tsquare602

Hello, I've been a lurker for a few years here, I may have another profile but I can't seem to figure out what it was. After my hunt this last weekend I figure this is a good time to make a first post. So..., I had a long write up for this but I messed up and deleted it somehow so I'll rewrite in a little bit. The story is pretty good. I'm fairly new to hunting big game. I have fished my entire life, I have bird hunted for over 15 years but I only took up big game hunting a short time ago (This is my 4th year). This last weekend my two good friends Brian and Kevin and I went down in Southern Arizona for my 3rd attempt at a Coues buck. I never dreamed that my first big game animal would be such a trophy. Story to come...

No worries, Thanks bgshooter.

I picked up my mount friday. Im pretty pleased with it. Chris did a great job dispite me barely leaving him with enough cape. Ill post some pics shortly. I cant wait to get back out there and chase them again in two weeks.

Nice video! I shot a 112" buck last year too. Id love to snap a pic of them side by side. Mine is tall and narrow so it would be cool to see the difference side by side.

Has this happened? I emailed an entry and never heard anything back.

Very nice! Great buck!

@Archermatt, you crack me up dude.

What a great looking buck! Love those droptines! Congratulations!

Awesome! Great Job.

Nice! Congrats. I was out there too. I filled my first elk tag Tuesday about midday.

Well, my luck continued this year. I had a late 22N Bull elk rifle tag and last Tuesday I was able to tag out. A couple friends and I glassed this bull up from over 1 mile away. Mid Morning I started my stock. It took me 4 1/2 hours to stock in on him. I got to within 300 yards and watched him bed down. Just before 2pm I set up my rifle and decided to try to get him to stand up so I took aim and started whistling and yelling. After about 5 solid minutes of me making a bunch of noise a couple cows stood up near him and he stood up right after they did. As soon as he did, I took a shot and hit him really good but he was able to walk about 40 yards. I lost him for a minute behind some trees but he popped out in the open moments later. I took another shot that was just high missing him. I racked another round, lowered my aim and took one more shot. This time I hit him in the spine and dropped him immediately. He was down for the count and quickly passed. I was lucky I had a few great friends with me to help me pack him out. I was even luckier that one of them had horses. He's no monster but I'm really, really happy with my hunting successes this year. Merry Christmas everyone.

It depends on what you consider a point. If we go by the books requirements it would be called a 6x6 here in the west. On the east coast it would be called a 12 point. If I count all the points reguardless of how long each of them are it would be an 8x8 or a 16 point. I've been calling it a big 6x6.

Very cool! Congrats to both of you!

Thank you all! I love the way this buck looks and he could, very likely, be the biggest Coues I will ever shoot. I'll post up some more pics when the mount is done (probably in about 10 months or so). Thanks for the compliments and thanks for all the congratulations I received here. It's been awesome reading everyone's comments and estimates. I'm glad my buck has created so much conversation. I'll do my best to be more involved here on the forum. You guys harvest some awesome bucks and its fun seeing pictures and hearing your stories as well. Good luck to you all on your next hunt. I've got an Elk hunt next month up north so hopefully I'll have someone else to show by the end of it. Cheers! -Travis

Couesmagnet your estimates are pretty darn close. I dont have an official scoresheet but ill try to get one from bnc when its scored. Unofficially.(my measurements).. Points: 6 x 6 Inside spread of main beams: 10 1/4" Main beams: 14 1/4" and 12 1/2". G1's : 2 1/2 and 3" G2: 8 1/4" and 8 1/4" G3: 5 3/8 and 6 1/4" G4: 3 5/8 and 2" G5: 1 1/4 and 2" H-1: 3 5/8 and 3 3/4 H-2: 4 and 4 H-3: 4 and 4 1/8 H-4: 4.5" and 4.5" Total gross estimate (mine)... just over 112. My Taxidermist score (sci and p&y certified) : 112 3/8" Gross It has over 102" of antler but the inside spread is narrow. I like to think of him like a bobcat (the machine not the animal) hes compact but packs a HUGE punch.

I followed the guidlines for a gross score and did my best to measure it and the score is accurate. I think the pics make it look wider than it is. I calculated about 52" on one side, 50" on the other and just over 10" on the inside spread. I'm totally happy with the score and i think i will be very lucky to beat 112 in the future. Its a beautiful buck that is totally unique and its one I am VERY, VERY proud of.

My story... Sunday morning was Kevin and my last morning to hunt and the "Da Da Da Dah, Da, Da, Da Da Dahhhh... Good Morning" alarm came faster than any of us wanted. We heated some coffee and pre-made breakfast burritos, reloaded our packs and slipped our soar feet into our boots. I looked over the duct tape job I had done on one of my boots the previous day and it looked like it would handle one more morning so after tying them on, Brian, Kevin and I were ready to go. Off we went, It was dark and our headlamps lit the way. We hiked, and hiked, and hiked. We had located a few good bucks on the days before but despite our best efforts we were unable to tag one. This morning we decided to push our luck and try to get a little closer. As we reached our glassing point and started to set down our packs the deer in the area busted us. Three different groups started yelling out warning calls and in a flash they had left the area. Brian, Kevin and I froze at the sounds and our hearts sank. We blew it.... dang... Devastated that our last chance had been spoiled we decided to stick around, enjoy the sunrise and hope that in a short time some new animals would move back into the area. We choose our spots, sat down took the first hour a little less serious. I ate the burrito I had packed in and, hey, it was still even a little warm. We glassed for a few more hours and saw a few does with fawns in the far distance but that was it. As the sun grew higher we decided we had given it a solid shot but our mistake earlier that morning had screwed us. We packed up our stuff and in a last effort, decided to glass for "10-15 minutes" at one more location that was on the way back to camp. Brian got comfortable and took a seat. I stood and Kevin decided to continue a little further before stopping. As Brian and I glasses we talked about how much fun we had had, how beautiful the southern AZ deserts were. (and how much more beautiful they could be without all the trash from the illegals.) Brian glasses up one of the does we had seen early and took a couple of pictures with his phone through his spotting scope. Just as the last few minutes started ticking away Brian whispered directly... "Dude!, a big buck just came over that ridge!" I though it was kidding for an instant but I could tell by his tone he was serious. "What? Where? How far out?" Brian pointed to the top of a ridge and said "There, near a large white rock.". I told him I wanted to take a shot and that I knew I could do it. Brian looked at me and said "Yes, do it. You can do this Travis." I grabbed my back pack and rifle, set the pack down and laid in the prone position. I quickly located the buck in my scope. At this point my body was shaking like an unbalanced washing machine. My heart felt like it was in my throat. When I took a breath or exhaled I sounded like I was shivering... I took three long breaths. I noticed some consistency in my shakes. I took one more breath, slowly exhaled as I watched the cross hairs hold my mark I squeezed the trigger... When the gun went off I didn't hear it. I didn't feel it either but I knew it went off. As I pulled the bolt back to reload Brian called out "You hit him!" I pushed another round into the barrel and looked through the scope to try to located the buck again. "He's running down hill. FAST! I think you hit him pretty good, he's slowing down." I was unable to find the buck in my scope again but I could hear rocks crashing down the hill he was on. "He just dropped over that hill. He shouldn't go too much further." I was instantly PUMPED! Brian and I both were. I glanced back toward camp only to see Kevin headed back out way full steam. We were all so stoked. After giving the buck some time. We eventually made our way onto the hill where we last spotted him. We located a blood trail and after more tracking that we expected, we found him. When we saw him. All three of us jumped for joy. We knew he was a good buck but none of us expected to walk up and see what we saw. It was an amazing sight and one I will NEVER forget. I picked up the rack on my lunch today and snapped a few more pics for you all. According to my taxidermist it is a Typical 6x6 and its pretty rare to see that in a Coues (or so I'm told. - Yes, I probably should know that but if you all remember in my first post. I am pretty new to this and this is my first buck). My taxidermist scores for SCI and Pope and Young and after measuring it twice he concluded it grosses 112 3/8. (I think its lacking some width) I still plan on having it officially scored for B&C but I understand that B&C take a net score after deductions and only measures after 90 days of rest. I think there is a fair amount of deductions based on the rules of the score sheet that I have read. I can't get over how awesome it looks and I am can't wait to see how the mount comes out. Thank you for all the comments everyone you guys have really helped put this buck into perspective for me.

Nice bull man! I hope to find one at least 1/2 that size in Dec.

Haha, I am anxious to get it back.

Thanks for all the comments everyone. Its been fun reading them. I should have the rack back and a estimated score tomorrow. I'll take a few more pics of it and post up the story sometime tomorrow.

Nice bears!

That would be awesome! I do want to have it officially scored for B&C when its ready. Shoot me a message in a few months and we'll get together.

I wondered how long it would take for someone to notice that. We hiked our asses off on this hunt. Apparently, my boots couldn't keep up. On day 2 the sole of my left boot started to separate. I duct taped it back in place and crossed my fingers that it would hold together for the rest of the weekend. I hiked over 10 miles (bushwacking most of it) with it taped up and suprisingly it stayed together. I have Dec. elk hunt in a few weeks so its time for some new boots. 121 is my guess too actually. I'm hoping it can score as a typical but we'll see. My taxidermist is going to measure it today and let me know what SCI would score it and an estimate for how it would score B&C. I'm pretty sure that's what happened last year to me. This year I did everything in my power to try to stay calm and breath slow and consistently. Despite my best efforts though my body was shaking like an unbalanced washing machine and my breathing sounded like I was severely shivering.

Yeah its getting mounted for sure. (even though the wife is giving me a very hard time about it.) I hope to have a rough green score on it soon too. Any estimates? Might be time for a new wife! Lol Truly a buck of a lifetime, congratulations! haha, She'll warm up to it I'm sure. She's my first trophy though so I'm not giving her up for anything. Thanks for the congrats!