Coues 'n' Sheep Report post Posted January 24, 2010 Well it all started with a phone call from my buddy, Jimmy Mullins… “Hey, I promised Ian that I’d take him archery deer hunting this January… now my truck is acting up and I need have it in tip top shape for Mexico… can you help a Brutha out?” My reply was “Heck Yeah! I’d love to do it!” In preparation for Ian coming to hunt with us, I wanted to get a couple more ground blinds out so that he could hunt them. You see with Ian’s hearing loss I did not want his first archery coues hunt to be spot/stalk or in a tree stand… the ground blind method would allow him more movement and lil’ more noise tolerance. I set one up and then off to a surefire location that I have hunted for about 10-15 years…. Great spot and no one seemed to be there this year which was refreshing… as easy spots had become popular the last couple of years causing me to avoid them. I had monitored the area for several weeks and with no real sign that hunters were in the area… I set the blind right in the same swale I had always hunted…. 36 hours later… blind is gone! It had happened last year to a buddy… hope I get it back… but know I won’t… Well I’m stubborn, so I put up a new blind in the exact same spot and this time I put up a trail camera, 12 feet up in an oak pointed right at the blind the night before Ian is to climb in and hunt. But as luck would have it other hunters found the blind before dark that night while scouting the area… At 6:30 the next morning as Colton and Ian sneak out to the blind they bump into 3 guys setting up to hunt a 100 yds from the ground blind! The one guy asked if they were hunting the ground blind that had the Cam on it. Colton replied, “Yes, and Ian cannot hear well so please don’t screw with him.” The reply Colton got was, “No worries.” They wished each other good luck and parted ways….. Colton and I discussed pulling Ian out and moving him… but a 100 yds in coues country was a long way…. Those guys knew they were that close when they set up… and we decided we would move Ian to location 2 at noon if the sudden increase in people there affected the deer movements. See… having hunted there many times I knew that most of the deer would move past Ian’s blind first in the normal travel pattern in the area, giving him first crack at shoot or pass… I was very hopeful and positive that he’d have that chance by mid morning…. Mid morning came and I was expecting a text saying “Got one!” Instead I get “Some A-Hole just slung an arrow at a nice 3 point coming down the trail 13 yards from the Blind! I was at full draw!!” Colton and I are in full flight mode… Colton beats me there and finds the other “hunter” quizzing Ian as to “whether or not he hit the buck” with his 100 yard shot through the thick trees! This is where I am very Proud (while I was running as fast as I could through the woods to get to them)… Colton and Ian packed his stuff and got him to a new hunting spot without starting any kind of a fight or so much as a cross word. They rose to the occasion. I, however, was on the fight when I got to the site of the ground blind…. only to find everyone gone. I had a few choice words (with the trees) … then I took down the blind and waited for Colton to come back for me. Later at home, waiting for Ian to have more luck, I follow up on a hunch and show Colton a pic of a “Fellow I knew” …. He says, “Yep that’s him… except he was wearing checkered sweat pants and bleached hair, today…” Well, long story short, not only did the other “hunter” shoot at the deer and nearly over the blind at a 100 yards (one hit branch could have deflected that arrow at Ian)…. he may have also wounded the buck and didn’t even pursue to check. We saw the buck the next day with a high back (non-fatal) wound…. Ian tried to get the buck but it never gave him a clean shot. As Ian sat another ground blind the next day he had lots of action, bucks and does were moving through the natural funnel area he was sitting and there seemed to be a hot doe. Colton and I spent the morning scouting near Ian, feeling confident today was his day…. Colton bet that 9:45 AM and I bet that 11:45 AM would be when Ian scored. We were both close when my Phone went off at 10:23 AM, “Shot on! Big buck!”… “Split g2 on one side!” The Buck had come charging out of the brush less than 20 yards from Ian as a smaller buck was trying to rut a doe infront of him…. And he Hammered him! Ian tried to explain his shot to me, but I nervous. The thought of an arrow in a buck with a split G2 in an area where all the “splitter” bucks we have seen were Toads, made me very cautious about how long we should wait. Ian and Colton were both confident and wanting to go after him and I was skittish… Playing it safe we waited 3 ½ hours… only to find Ian’s first Big Game with a bow laying 40+ yards from the shot! He had punched through both Shoulders (below center) and the arrow stuck in a tree on the opposite side! (Hoyt....WOW) The buck had run just over a rise, where Colton was the first to spot him. Ian commenced to whoopin’ and hollerin’… Colton and I were speechless… not one splitter… Two! Ian got his Redemption! He had risen above a very discouraging situation the day before and the good Karma had simply flooded his way!! For a young man who has overcome so much in his life, he is the most humble, polite, and dedicated gentleman that I have met in some time. Ian’s largest kill with a bow before that day was a coyote he called in himself and then shot at 15 yards... He has put archery at the front of his passions and I am so happy that I was able to boost his efforts by helping him get this Fantastic buck… I know lots of Giant bucks have been taken this year, but this one seems larger than life for me , because of the young man who harvested this awesome buck! I taped Ian’s, Karma Buck at 114 3/8” gross and the buck has about 3 inches broken off of his right eye guard…. Making him a Giant in my book! Congrats Ian!!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
matthewp45 Report post Posted January 24, 2010 Oh my god that buck is an absolute toad. A very big congrats to a great young hunter. What a great trophy and from what I hear it will go well with the two monster bulls he has already killed. What a way to start off his coues/bow hunting career. Next January maybe we can get him down here to kill a monster desert muley. Let me know if he would be interested. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
grizzwald)--> Report post Posted January 24, 2010 Great story!!! Persistence is a beautiful thing... did that guy know the blind was there when he launched that bomber!? Some peoples kids Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
coyotekid Report post Posted January 24, 2010 what a toad. Got to love the muley forlks, and on BOTH sides! Congrats to all you guys. that is one heck of a way to start a bow hunting career. -sam Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bobbyo Report post Posted January 24, 2010 WOW! What a beauty! Congratulations Ian, Bob Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
coueswthunter Report post Posted January 24, 2010 nice Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kilimanjaro Report post Posted January 24, 2010 Yep... this one's gonna go over like the preverbial turd in the punchbowl on this site.. I'm gonna make the popcorn and watch the sparks fly! I like seeing both sides of the story being laid out.. Great buck BTW. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
FlyingW Report post Posted January 24, 2010 Congrats to Ian and everyone involved !!! Glad it all worked out for you guys in the end.... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Coues 'n' Sheep Report post Posted January 24, 2010 Congrats Ian on the buck of a lifetime! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TAIL CHASER Report post Posted January 24, 2010 That is a great buck. Congrats to Ian for arrowing such a great creature. Congrats to Gino and Colton too for making all their hard work pay off in a big way for Ian. Great job everyone. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Coues Archer Report post Posted January 24, 2010 Oh my that buck is a toad!!! Congrats to your buddy on a buck of a lifetime that is just awesome.. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
matthewp45 Report post Posted January 24, 2010 Great buck Ian I think that picture needs to go up for best field photo. Lets keep the focus on Ian's unbelievable buck. There is plenty of room for other threads. Congrats again on a beautiful buck. You guys did great! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
GameHauler Report post Posted January 24, 2010 Congratulations Ian on a great Coues. You have been blessed with 3 really nice harvest in the last couple years. Glad to get to see some more pictures other than the cell picture I got a few days ago. Gino had nothing but great things to say about you and you politeness and thankfulness for everything including being woke up in the morning. I would cherish the opportunity to meet a man of your caliber. Again, congratulations on a great buck. Mike Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
AZ402 Report post Posted January 24, 2010 The split G2's on that buck are way cool! Congrats on a great buck.. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
