redline410

TTT

Sorry bud, it was in the title but I should have put it in the body as we- $275 obo

Sports has condensed my girls fall break into a whopping 5 days and even though this was their first deer hunt, going to california ranked pretty high on the things to do list as well. they came to a little compromise and gave two days to the hunt and three to the beach- seemed fair to me...... with a limited hunt we hit the places we knew would offer the greatest area to glass. unforunately, over the past few years the deer in this spot have moved higher and higher up the mountain. they still wander down to the base on occasion so I was hoping we would get lucky..... after a half hour or so my dad tells me he's got two bucks sparring and one looks decent. just the tilt of his tripod had my legs hurting and when I was able to pick them up I really had my doubts either of the girls would be able to close the gap. after some deliberation my oldest daughter, Adrianna, was game and wanted to give it a go. Adrianna ready to get after it with a little support from her sister Ashlynn and cousin Kyle Needing to cut about 600yrds off the playing field we found a spot that would put us close. her and I worked our way down into draw and found that the hunting gods had built her a shooting platform in an absolutely ideal spot. Putting my pack on a rock and clearing some wayward limbs she nestled in behind the rifle with the nerves of an assassin. I gave her a range and told her to lay the cross hair across the top of the bucks back. after what seemed like an eternity, the .243 popped, the buck kicked like a mule, took a few steps and tipped over. I came out from behind the binoculars to tell her great shot and she was sitting up rubbing her forehead. the extreme uphill angle put enough tilt on the rifle that it gave her a little kiss on the eyebrow. Adrianna ready to head up the hill to get her prize. the red circle is her bucks final resting place. the pain was short once she knew her buck was down. a little fist pump, a big hug and we waved for the rest of the crew to come on down. It was as about as miserable of a spot as there is in this state to have to fetch up a deer. The loose rock and ridiculous incline made for a slow trek up and a trecherous portrait studio but we did what we could to memorialize the moment and slid back dow the mountain to to get little sis a deer. Dree and her prize coues. I told her I dont think I could have made that shot at her age.....the kid is ice cold And one with grandpa A second buck proved to be a little more difficult. we had a 2pnt mule deer cross the road in front of us as we were heading to a new spot but he was "too little" so we continued on to a peak that would give us a great view of many surrounding cuts and draws. As the afternoon wore on we found two of the biggest coues bucks I have personally ever seen on an island mountain and the nearest we could get was north of 600yrds. Hoping they stick around until archery season..... We saw a ton of doe and the kids had fun so I don't think Ashlynn is losing any sleep over not harvesting a deer....and besides, I think the knot on her sisters eye made her a little nervous. I was so proud of those girls- we had a blast. putting one on the ground was just a bonus..... Dave

This is an outside the box suggestion so take it for what it is: Victorinox serrated paring knife. Light weight (0.5oz), balanced, inexpensive (around $5), razor sharp, holds its edge, resharpens quickly (less time than i can change my havalon blades) and stout enough to twist and pry if need be. Give one a try, you won't be sorry...... And when you speak of me, speak well.... Dave

Wow Jaycie, Great buck girl!! Eesh, there is no way I'd have been that calm as a kid. Heck, after 25+ years I still have trouble settleing the nerves

Excellent read Gino..... Nice job Jett, that is a fantastic buck!! The bed time picture is hilarious.....Ha, kids are awesome...

Wow, great buck kiddo!!! congratulations.... See dad, record coues are easy. Big mule deer, now thats a challenge THe smiles are great, great job everyone...... Dave

nice job Clay, way to stay on it kid...... Youth hunts are the best- congrats to everyone..

Fantastic buck- congrats Payson!!

Fantastic bull and sounded like a great hunt- congratulations!!!

Unless I missed my mark, I'm guessing the "Parties" with which the man spoke were the wizards behind the curtain and not the gentlemen who started the thread. tjwking was asked not to speak any longer on the matter and although it may have been his friend/guide that made the request to him, if said friend/guide is representing anyone, you can bet that where the order came from. Making seditious public statements based on opinions derived from limited information is a bad way to go through life. Now, would someone please post a topic showing an actual successful elk hunt?!?!? Dave

Interesting- As a general rule you should probably call into question EVERYTHING on the internet and not single any one person or event out. One person's perception is their reality regardless of the events- can't change it, its human nature. Unless you were sitting there witnessing it, there are two acceptable responses to this thread, either 1) "if thats really what happened thats too bad, better luck next time" or 2) "Cool story bro, tell it again!!!" There is a reason tjwking was asked to stand down I'm sure. Oh and in regards to the other party not responding- If I had to guess, unless my calandar is way off, it is the middle of archery elk season. They are probably hunting elk since, well, that's what most people do when they are fortunate enough to have a tag. Carry on- Dave

Atta boy Tracy- nice job buddy and great write up. thanks for sharing the hunt with us.... Dave

Wow- Nice job Angie, congratulations!!! great write up, thanks for taking us along. Well Tracy, now you get to follow that good luck buddy....

Took my two girls and nephew to the camp this weekend as well. What a cool gig for the kids (and adults). Woody, DeWayne, Bill and the entire crew put on a fantastic camp. Can't say enough about how impressed I was with the whole experience. The way I look at it- if two teenage girls can get through the entire weekend without their phones and I not get annoyed by the whinning, somebody did something right. Also had the privilege of meeting Tracy, Angie, Jackson and their two lion hounds- great people to say the least. Dave

Archery 27 Amanda.. Congratulations!!!

A couple of friends and I made a trip this weekend to check out some old haunts- obviously the elk have found a new place to winter this year but, there was still a few leftovers from the last couple of seasons to make it a good trip. Had a brain cramp and didn't get any ATL's. Truth be told, unless the antlers were white, in the open, and had a ray of sunshine focused directly on them we wouldn't have found them, so most would have looked staged anyway. Matt and Curt with our biggest 3 Bonus feature- I've covered a lot of ground in this area and this is the first time I've come across anything like these. Random. The ancient herb gardens must have been stellar As always, it was a blast fellas- Thanks Dave

Beautiful mount and a nice buck- congrats!!

Congrats again brah- fantastic buck.... those mains are ridiculous.

Fantastic write up and gorgeous buck Amanda- Congratulations..... Dave

Before last Friday, it had been 7 years since I really hunted for mule deer. All the big bucks that have been going down lately had me in a fighting an internal battle of good and evil and last Sunday, I succumbed to the tantalizing allure of the forked rack..... and to be quite honest, I loved every second of it..... Well, right up to the point I got the pack on for the hump out..... not cool, not cool at all...... So after two days of being speed bagged by his relentless harem of doe, I set out Sunday with very low expectations. Wouldn't you know it, on the opposing ridge, I see this and hour and a half later- bring on the cheese fest! I was reminded that mature mule deer are large critters. Lay one on a 70° incline every little move is an adventure. based on girth alone, I'm thinking he out weighed me by a good 40lbs so I'm not entirely sure why I thought holding on to him would do much good. looking back, if gavity would have taken hold, there was little I was going to stop the decent... Only a 3x4 but my best mule deer by far. Got the mule deer itch scratched... Back to coues come 2012... only 348 more days... Thanks for looking- Dave

WOW, outstanding buck.... congratulations!!

Ha, y'all are getting a little outta control now. There are a few fully functioning brain cells left that are rattling around in that melon of mine. Never gave much credence to the "strong back, weak mind" philosophy and have become fairly proficient at reducing ungulates down to bags of meat and horn. the reference to the pack out was simply comparing the amount of boneless meat one must strap to the pack. pretty sure the cape out weighed my entire coues from last year..... Thanks for all comments- as always, I had a blast.... Dave

Great buck! the shape and color of those antlers are fantastic.... Big time congrats.....

Gak- way to go Weston!!! STUD buck......