buckeye

Here are a couple of pics from my 2007 Mexico Buck. He is heading home to Ohio as we speak. I can't wait to see him again. What do you think of the mount?

110 2/8 Maybe...Very neat buck but is weak on the left side

haha...that is why I am going to graduate school. But for some reason I think the next hunt I will have to be a paying customer

The fourth full day of my hunt was the day that it all happened. Since arriving in camp earlier in the week, I had been extremely antsy to kill a nice buck. I had messed up on two 100-plus inch deer and passed on several 90-95 inch bucks. The night before in front of the fire, our Mexican guide talked us into checking out a new area of the ranch that rarely gets hunted. For some reason there are fewer deer in this area but a good 105 inch buck had been killed there earlier in the year. We would be looking for his buddy that Jose estimated would score just as high. After eating breakfast we hopped on the quads having renewed hope. I was with two of the best hunters in Mexico, how hard could it be to shoot one of these deer? After the sun came over the hills we immediately saw several small bucks. After watching them for a while we followed the dirt road to the other side of the ridge to glass the other canyon. After 20 minutes or so my uncle whispered for me to bring the spotting scope. All it took was one look to see that the buck we were looking at was a monster!! The buck was bedded down on the hillside directly across our position. There was just one problem; we couldn’t get any closer without spooking him. The buck looked extremely tall and we could easily see that he had tons of character. Finally we decided that this would be our only opportunity at this buck. I steadied my rifle on a tri-pod and shooting sticks and prepared for the 454 yard shot. I squeezed the trigger and the buck instantly stood up. I missed just inches to the right!! After the first shot a second 100 inch buck also stood up adding to the confusion. I was able to settle the crosshairs on the big buck and took another crack. I missed again!! I thought both my uncle and guide were going to either have heart attacks or steal the rifle from me. As luck would have it, the buck stayed on the same hillside long enough for me to get a third shot. This time the buck lurched forward towards a small draw below us. We could tell that I hit him but were unsure on how well. We waited for what seemed like an eternity before we went to investigate. The buck was still standing!! I set up on the tripod to shoot again; this time at 260 yards. My uncle and Jose were both screaming at me to shoot the buck, shoot him!! The problem was I couldn't see him from my angle. I could see the smaller buck but couldn’t see the monster because I was sitting down and they were standing. So I stood up, took aim and let the fourth bullet fly. This time we could hear the signature THUMP of a great hit. The buck stumbled and appeared to fall in the creek bed below. I was so excited that I could barely remember where I had stashed the rest of my gear. My heart was thumping from the shear excitement and anxiety of the last 20 minutes. I came to Mexico to harvest a good respectable buck and I had just been lucky enough to kill a buck of a lifetime. I was so excited that I yelled and cheered the entire way to the buck. This buck seemed to get bigger as we neared him. He has a typical 4 X 4 frame (a 10-pointer for us Midwestern boys) plus a up-side down L shaped kicker. He is extremely tall tined with tones on character; included bladed brows and G-3’s. After taking tons of pictures and hauling him back to camp we measured him at 116” gross. The rest of the trip flew by trying to help the other hunters in camp and my uncle harvest deer. The trip was amazing. We saw hundreds of deer, javelinia, three lions and I was able to kill a buck of lifetime all well taking in the beautiful Mexican landscape. I would like to thank: Aunt Diann for an amazing graduation gift, our cooks for outstanding food, Uncle Larry for spotting this buck and guiding for the week and Jose for helping guide and capping my buck. This experience has triggered a Coues addiction and can’t wait for a chance to hunt them again.

This buck is four years in the making. My aunt in phoenix promised me a deer hunt at my high school graduation if I did well at college. Throughout the past four years of school I was quick to remind my aunt of our deal, especially when the grades came out each quarter. Then late last summer she emailed me with the great news....I was going to Mexico. Living in the Midwest, I have been limited with a bow and shotgun in my pursuit for whitetail; so needless to say I was pretty excited about going on a western hunt. I flew into Phoenix mid-December and my uncle and I made the drive down across the border. After making it through the border, we were soon on our way to Sonora for my dream hunt. After getting the quads unloaded and meeting up with our guide and cooks, we decided that we had plenty of time for an evening hunt. After a 20 minute quad ride we ran across a large herd of javelina. To boast my confidence with the rifle and terrain, I killed a large boar. I knew then that this was going to be a great hunt. The next day we spent hiking and glassing several ridges and canyons. We saw at least 15 bucks and 25 does! That is probably more deer than I would see hunting a week back home. Late that first day, we saw a very wide buck that my uncle estimated at 105. He was a little far for a shot and disappeared as the sun set over the mountains. We had set a goal of 100 inches so seeing this ‘shooter’ buck was amazing on the first full day was amazing. Day two of the hunt we set out again for this wide buck. The deer seemed to be bedding down extremely early in the morning making the hunting tough. Late morning on a ridge opposite from where the wide buck disappeared, I had the first of many mess-ups. My uncle flagged me over to his position so I could get some pictures of herd of javelina feeding directly below us. With my camera in tow (not my rifle!!!), I walked over to get some footage. Our co-guide for the week also walked over. The second he came over the crest he whispered…’javelina..noo macho grande.’ Just then a 100 buck that was bedded down 75 yards below us in a creek bank jumped up. We had been at this spot for 4 hours and hadn’t spotted this buck right under our noses! I ran for my rifle but was unable to get a shot before he made it over the ridge. Day three again brought success and failure. Late in the evening we again stumbled on the wide buck that we had seen the first day. But before I could get my rifle into shooting position, he snuck into an oak draw. I was so frusterated because an outstanding buck was 250 yards away but wouldn’t show himself. Several does and small bucks gradually fed into the same draw as I continued to be set up for a shot. Finally with only 40 minutes of light remaining, the decision was made for me and Jose to walk across the canyon and try to get a shot from the other side. As we were making our way through the extremely thick brush, we could here deer getting up but couldn’t see them because of our angle. As we neared the other side, I finally caught a glimpse of the wide buck making his way up the ridge. I aimed and missed; marking the second failed attempt for a trophy Coues buck. more to come....bedtime

Thought this was neat photo of the buck I shot last fall. Check out the abnormal point on the far side of the rack.