shortpants

I wish you two would keep your kissin and huggin behind the doors of a cheap motel room in Payson!!! :lol:

Me likey!!!

This was truly one of my greatest adventures! With only 1 day of scouting done in a unit I have never been in before I new I had my work cut out for me. I spent countless hours on Google Earth and talked to as many people as I could and want to thank Christian and Jim right off the bat for helping me narrow down where I would hunt. I arrived in my main camp at 2am thurs. morning and set up the Jumpin Jack, got things ready to head out for a day of scouting before the opener and then jumped in bed at 3am for a 2 hour nap. I woke up and spent all day out trying to figure out the best ways to access the areas I planned on hunting. That afternoon I headed back towards the truck to glass because I wanted to get back to camp and get a good nights sleep. I glassed up 2 great looking coues bucks about a mile away. I only saw them for a moment but new they were worth a closer look so I decided I would try to relocate them in the morning. I also saw this great muley buck and was wishing I had a muley tag after seeing him. DAY 1: I set up where I thought I would be able to locate the 2 bucks from the night before and waited for it to get light enough to glass. At first light I glassed up a couple of small bucks just 200 yds. away feeding up a ridge in front of me. As the sun began to light up the hillsides I found more and more deer. A couple of hunters came riding past me on horseback and headed further up. I was really wishing I had a horse. After seeing several deer but not the right ones I picked up and headed up to the top of a ridge to glass the next valley and the ridges beyond. I had this spike and doe walk 100 yds. below me and took the opportunity to snap there pics through the bino's. Suddenly a shot rang out farther up the ridge than me and to the right of where I was glassing. I moved the bino's over to try to catch a big buck giving somebody the slip only to see a lion running up the hill. I later spoke with the hunters (same guys on horseback) and they told me the lion was getting ready to pounce on a little fawn. They missed the lion but saved a fawn! I continued on to the next vantage point which put me directly above where the 2 bucks from the day before had crossed. I was now in their bedroom hopefully! It was now noon and I had some lunch and took a short nap before getting behind the glasses again. I saw 2 illegals walking through bottom and glassed around them to see what they kicked up. Up ahead of them I saw a good looking buck running away. He stopped in a group of mesquites about 900 yds. away. I broke out the spotting scope that Jim lent me (thanks Jimbo) and gave hime a good look. I figured him to be about 85'', not what I was looking for this early in the hunt. The rest of the day was pretty slow but by the end of the day I had seen 36 deer, a lion, 8 javi's, and 2 illegals! As I was hiking back to camp I was happy that I had seen so much but also discouraged that the only 3pt. buck I had seen was only because the illegals had bumped him. I thought well if I could just find a shed or a skull on the way out that would cap the day off nicely. Not 100yds. later... DAY 2: I decided to climb a big steep hill that would give me a good perspective of the area and help me decide exactly where I was going to pack a bivy camp into. I saw a lot of country but not the deer I was looking for so I headed back to camp to have a good lunch and a short nap in the Jumpin Jack. That afternoon I set out to a different area to look at a particular canyon that had caught my eye on Google Earth. When I got out there there were hunters everywhere and I ended up sitting on a hill with 5 other people and no surprise seeing very few deer. I ended up seeing 20 deer, 3 javi's, 3 yotes, and just 1 illegal. I never saw a single buck that day. I went back to camp and enjoyed a nice steak dinner and pulled out my topo map. I made a new plan and got my bivy camp packed up, it was TIME TO GET SERIOUS! DAY 3: After hiking a couple miles I unloaded my bivy camp and set up to glass. I saw quite a few deer but nothing bigger than a 2pt. That's 3 mornings without glassing up a 3pt. Was I crazy to pass on the 85''er the 1st day? ''No way I just need to keep going'' I told myself. Leaving my bivy camp behind I went farther into the hills. It was late morning so I would stop and glass the good looking bedding areas and then hike farther and farther glassing along the way. Around noon I was approaching an area where I new there was a waterhole. I started seeing more deer and kicked a doe and a nice looking buck up and out of the country. It was miserably hot so I stopped and ate lunch in the shade of a mesquite. Another mile of hiking and glassing I stopped to glass a great looking bedding area and found this guy and his little friend. After passing on him I found some more young bucks and does before proceeding on. Another mile found me glassing up this low 80's buck. It was now late afternoon and I had a long way to go to get back to my bivy camp. I hiked on and was hiking through the bottom of a steep canyon when I decided to free hand glass the very top of the mountain to my left. I immediately spotted a good buck so I dropped the pack and pulled out the tripod and spotting scope (thanks again Jimbo). He was about 700yds. above me and after looking him over I decided he was probably about 92''. He was beautiful but I really wanted a 95'' or better hoping for a 100''er. Then I realized that I didn't have enough light left to go find another deer so I might as well get a little closer look at this buck. I ran up the steep ridge crossing a deep cut along the way and tried to find a place to set up. There was so much vegetation on the ridge it took some time before I found a small window I could shoot through if I decided to take the buck. I put the spotter on him once again and immediately new I was going to try to take this buck. I had under scored him and I now thought he looked right at 95'' but either way realized I didn't care what he scored because I wanted him. I ranged him at 405 yds. and dialed in my turret. There was no wind so I just needed to put the crosshairs on his chest and squeeze. BOOM!!! In the scope I saw the buck jump up and then roll head over tail about 20 yds. down the hill stopping behind a bush where I couldn't see him. I lay behind the rifle for 5 min. never seeing any movement. I HAD DONE IT!!! A one shot kill on a beautiful buck earned the hard way! I was exited but to exhausted to show it as you can see in this pic I took moments after the shot. With just 15 min. of light left and my tank on empty I made the hard decision to just leave the buck and come back in the morning. I know some of you will criticize me for this and thats ok. I will just say it was a very hard decision but the right one. I hiked 9 miles that day and that deer was straight up and across 2 deep cuts. I just didn't have it in me to get to him. I was sure the shot was a good one. At this point it was closer for me to hike back to my main camp as I had hiked in a huge circle so I left my trophy for the night and hoped the critters wouldn't scatter him by morning. I set out early the next morning to recover my buck and after a few miles and a very steep climb I found him right where I'd left him and in one piece. As I found him... And a few better pics... This buck was the 42nd deer I saw that day along with 1 javi. He measured 94 3/8'' and I couldn't be happier. To think I almost just kept hiking I must be crazy! I got back to my main camp with the buck at 1:30pm shaking from exhaustion and lack of food and enough water. I ate and drank and just sat and stared at at my trophy for awhile but my long day was not over. I still had to go back and get my bivy camp I never got to use. I ended up doing 7 miles between the deer and the camp recovery. Determined to get home I packed up and drove home that night making it home at 10:30pm. Those were the 2 most exhausting days of my life but some of the most rewarding and UNFORGETTABLE!!!

Awesome!!!

Your truck looks familiar, I think we've shared the same road in the past. Sorry about your truck but glad to see everyone is ok! Thanks for sharing your story.

There was a couple in Deer Creek a few years back. Could be the same couple mentioned already if they moved?

Well if your both nuts then where's the tree? I'm so confused!

That is incredible!!! Congrats on your success, what an adventure! Don't bother bringing all that funny looking gear with you down here. I wouldn't even know what do do with that stuff. What do you call those things you guys are wearing in the pics again? Oh yeah jackets!!! Thanks for sharing your adventure with us, the pics are awesome! Good luck in Dec.

Congrats to all three of you on some awesome bucks and HAPPY BIRTHDAY Jim!

125 6/8

Great job Randy and Christian!!! Sounds like a good hunt for limited time.

Congrats, Awesome buck!!!

You are correct Doug, I already talked to Larry.

Doug, fantastic pics and great write up. I really wish I could have made it down to your camp to meet you and the guys and of course Rica too! I shared those same beautiful sunrises and sunsets as well as those blistering hot days. Try turning your pockets inside out next time you wash them pants to get that ''lucky bean residue'' out.

It's great to see you getting the boy out for some target practice. He'll grow up to be a great shooter.

Thanks for all the nice replies guys and gals. My signature sums up this hunt perfectly. It was insane!

The bullet took a small portion of the opposite side shoulder blade out which is why you see the big hole. Here is the entrance wound...

Way to go Amber and Katie!!! Looks like Colton's a tree off the ''OLD NUT!'' :lol:

That's why I hunt is to see stuff like that. Thanks for sharing!

Practice payed off! I was able to take this buck with a perfectly placed one shot kill at 405 yds.

Amanda, that's awesome! You and Scott sure have some adventures together!

What an awesome experience!!! CONGRATS on a beautiful trophy!

Sounds like you guys had a fun camp. I had planned on stopping by and meeting you guys but the long days got the better of me so maybe next time.

Congrats on your muzzy coues that's awesome! Did your friends ever tag out?

Best of luck to ya on the job and your hunt. Last year I missed my whole hunt because I was in a intern fire academy. I didn't get the job but I took my bow out in Dec. and killed a great buck so you just never know what can happen!