Anybody bowhunt scrapes?

[GRONG]

Well I went back out to the same spot yesterday and didn't have the action I had a week ago but that's hunting. I did set up in a little different area for a while and after about 45 minutes of sitting I had a buck come racing off the hill behind me chasing a doe and fawn. He was grunting WAY loud and a lot too. They were about 60-70 yards from me but I never could make out antlers cause the trees are so thick there. I tell you what though, my heart was POUNDING!! I found a lot of scrapes but only 2 of them were being used since the rain/snow last Saturday. So I put my trail camera on one of them so we'll see what happens with that. I hope to be going back up on Sat/Sun.

Mike I've got a good feeling you're about to kill something! Did you see Brian Marshall's huge buck in the photo gallery yet? He rattled and grunted that buck in so I've got new hope once again.

 

Josh

Edited January 1, 1970 by Josh Epperson

[Rembrant]

I have the same feeling, Josh. But I just found out that I can't go for the 3 days like I had planned - I may not get to go at all this weekend. So I 'm gonna have to come up with an alternative. It's work that's getting in the way, so maybe I can burn a couple of personal days next week. I WILL GO!

Glad to hear you're still in the deer. I been reading alot about the eastern wt stuff. Maybe that's good, maybe not. One book is totally about moon phase. This guy is saying that although there are a lot of variables, the does will come into estrus when the amount of daylight is right (minimal) and this is accentuated by the new moon (even less light). This is a different month for different regions. Let's pretent that for us in AZ, it is January. We are coming off a full moon now and headed for the new moon in a week and a half or two weeks (I don't have a calender in front of me). This would explain why we are seeing a lot of 'rut' activity in the form of bucks running around chasing does.

The bucks are excited but the does aren't ready yet. We would consider this peaking, yet there is actually no breeding yet. When the does finally come around, the activity will seem to stop for a few days (while they breed) and then it will get crazy again while a bunch of horny bucks search far and wide for another receptive doe.

Sounds good in theory.

Or maybe I'm just doing some wishful thinking - 'cause I can't go tomorrow??!!!!

Anyway, I'm glad you're gettin out there. I think it's prime time for those really big bucks to start letting their guard down. You know how the BIG bull elk let the smaller bulls burn the energy and gather the harem, and then when the time is right they show up to kick some butt and breed the cows? I'm thinkin that between now and the new moon, the giant whitetail bucks will be moving around at times and in places that they would'nt be caught dead in for about 50 weeks of the year.

It will be interesting to see how all this pans out in the next few weeks.

Happy hunting!

Mike

[GRONG]

I got set up for the second time this morning and it felt like a great spot. Scrapes all around the ridges above and to the sides of me. I rattled first then for the next 15 minutes or so I'd grunt a few times about every minute or two. I rattled again about 15-20 minutes since the first time. It was really windy today and the wind in the trees sorta drowned out every thing else. So this time I rattled aggressively and loud. Within about 3-5 minutes at 10:25 I saw a buck coming through the pine trees. He kept checking the wind and licking his lips. I think he was smelling the Tinks 69 Doe in Estrus Pee that I had placed about 25 yards out in front of me on the wife's cotton swabs. He walked behind a bunch of deadfall and I rearranged myself to get ready for the shot. He kept on coming and came within 9 yards of me walking right to left. He's only a 70" 3pt so I tried to draw while he was in full view of me. Well about 1/3 of the way into my pull he busted me hard. I think I freaked him out cause he wasn't expecting some camo blob to be moving like that so close to him. He finally spun around and then stopped at 20 yards broadside. Even though he wasn't a super buck I was so pumped by the whole situation I drew with him looking right at me. Soon as the string hit my mouth I released. The arrow struck him behind the shoulder and a little high I'm afraid. He spun as the arrow was on it's way and I think it went into the upper part of his ribcage just below the spine. He high tailed out of there and I could see him about 150 yards out with the arrow barely hanging on. After a few minutes I went and checked to see what kind of blood trail there was. About the 2nd spot he landed there was blood. I followed it for about 30 yards and it looked pretty good. I went back to my pack and kicked back for about 45 minutes and resumed the trail. To make a long story short I followed the blood, according the the GPS, about a half mile in about and hour. I found a bed that had decent blood in it but not the foamy blood I wished for. I spent the next 3.5 hours tracking him on my hands and knees only to be led right back to the same bed. He had walked by the bedding spot and made a big loop up the hill and circled right back and bedded in the same spot he'd already walked by. I was all confused and finally figured it all out. Had I realized that the bed was on the end of the loop it would have saved me some valuable daylight. After he'd bedded he really clogged up and I could only find minimal blood. I did manage to trail him another 250-300 yards untill I lost him in the rocks and grass. I'm not sure what to feel. I have killed two Coues bucks with my bow before and the first one went 83 yards and the second went 35 yards so this blood trailing was a true test for me. But I think I did a great job for what sign was available. In all I trailed him for 5 1/2 hrs. It seemed that he lost a fair amount of blood in his 3/4 mile walk but the blood never really was that thick. Towards the last couple hundred yards the blood was real thin and more pink than red so I'm not real sure how hurt he really is. He went a long way but I'll try to get back on the trail in the morning and see what I can summize. HMMMMMMM.

Josh

Edited January 1, 1970 by Josh Epperson

[COUESAZ]

JOSH

Did your buck go up hill or down hill. if he went down then he is hurting. you should be able to find him the blood might slow down out side but he cant stop the bleeding on the inside and that is what the broadheads job is. they are made to make the deer bleed to death you did the right thing to not push him very hard. coues dont go very far anyway, and more so if he is hurt good. if you say you got blood in the first couple of jumps than the blood is pumping. you may have hit him high, and that dose slow the blood drops down. good luck and dont give up on him you have us waiting now.also if you dont find the arrow in the trail and it is still in him it will continue to cut him more and more every time he move.

Edited January 1, 1970 by ARIZONA GUIDE

[Guest Ernesto C]

Josh,please keep looking for that deer,do your BEST to find him again.Oh men the only thing I dont like is that the arrow hit him to high,I have seen deer hit to high and they survive,we had found them a week or two later and very alive and healty. Another thig you mentioned is that you found no bubbles on the blood,also Josh is typical of coues,most of the time when hit they tuck their tail in,they do not raise their tail when they are hit good.

I'm not trying to get you dissapointed or something like that Josh,one thing you mentioned that is more thant enough reason to keep looking for this buck is that you found more "pink than red blood" I'm hopping that when this buck was running or bouncing he cut (or maybe the arrow did) an artery that is really close to the spine,so just to make sure you MUST continues hunting/looking for this buck. "Pink blood" (it looks pink to us) is sometimes for arterys or lungs.

 

Is not going to be easy Josh (hunting is never easy) this time he knows you are there,is just going to be a biger callenge and more exciting than before but I know you can do it;situations like this one make us better hunters.

 

God bless you out there Josh ,have faith.

 

Thank you. Ernesto C.

 

P.S. Any buck it does not matter that size of its antlers harvested with a bow is a TROPHY.

[Rembrant]

Thanks for putting in the effort to find that deer, Josh. If you can't find him, he is probably alive and will recover. It seems there may be an area below the spine and above the lungs where little damage occurs. This is really strange - But I've seen it before.

I understand the getting excited part.

Josh, you're the man! Good job on getting a shot. The ratteling story is really encouraging me.

Hunting Coues deer with a bow and getting shots is like an impossible dream, yet you keep engaging with these deer.

MAN, I GOT TO GET OUT THERE!!!!

Thanks for keeping us informed.

Mike

[GRONG]

Went back out there again this morning and I couldn't get any farther than I did yesterday afternoon. I made some big loops and couldn't come up with anything. I hope the little fella makes it. I'll go back out there in a few days and look for crows just in case.

Ernesto and AZ Guide, he ran through the pines and down into a drainage then up the side of a fairly steep slope. He then made the loop I mentioned and bedded. After he bedded he ran sidehill for a couple hundred yards untill I lost the trail. Yesterday afternoon I looked for the arrow and couldn't find it but I'm pretty sure I walked past it since I was mostly looking for blood in the pine needles. I never did see any sign of him staggering or tripping so after all I'm bummed but I think that he might have made it. Only time and the crows will tell I guess. I had a hard time finding the last couple hundred yards of tracks and blood and I was following my boot prints, which were also very hard to see.

 

After I was done looking I started to check a couple new areas a little farther out from where I've been going. YOU TALK ABOUT SCRAPES!!!!!!!! I couldn't believe the sign I found. I wish I had 10 trail cameras I'd put them all over the woods. I found a huge scrape with his licking branch about 5' high, he'd have to stand on his hind legs to get up at that thing. There were 2 rubs within yards of it too and one of them was flippin huge! I mean he'd have to have a tall body or some really tall horns to do the damage he did to this tree. The tree wasn't bendable either so I know he's got to be pretty decent. I set up there and rattled and grunted for nearly 2 hours and had no action. Oh well. I did drag a tarsal gland off of a Dec deer through his scrape to torque him a little. I'll check it in a couple days and see if he did anything to it. I've got to go get my trail camera off of another scrape and put it on this one. The area I'm in there is no possible way to glass it from any direction, it's up in the pines and I think there are some deer in there that are huge. Never saw a deer all day other than a 85" 3pt that jumped across the road in the dark this morning. I did find a matched 2pt set of carp sheds laying next to each other.

 

Mike I hope you can get out soon, I'm whipped.

 

Josh

[Guest Ernesto C]

Josh,is very rare to see a wound it buck run up hill,I hope you get to see this buck again. That new place you found with scrapes sounds hot,it may produce a big buck,hope you get something with the trail cameras. God bless you.

 

Ernesto C.

[COUESAZ]

Josh

it sounds like that buck just wanted to finish out this rut before he packs it up

and heads of to the old breeding grounds in the sky. It sounds like you gave it a good hard try that is all anyone could ask of a respectful hunter. It sounds like that is what you are so go find another one. I wish i could be out ther hunting my self but i have to put hunting and guideing of for the moment. I just started a new bathroom renovation company and it is taking all my time and money.

[More D]

Hey Josh sorry to hear about your loss little guy! Great stories and even better memories. How about pictures of to sheds even though they are mulie sheds.

Thanks again for the great adventure, it is almost as if we were there!

 

 

[CB1]

Arizona Guide, what part of the state are you in, i could use some bathroom renovation, were in phx.BH

[Rembrant]

Josh,

Good try, great story. Thanks again for puttin in the effort on searching for that deer.

Looks like you will be blessed with a BIGGER deer!

I like them piney spots. Ain't nobody gonna glass up and rifle down these elusive "bug in a rug" bucks 'lessen they screw up and step out on the fringe - at the wrong time.

I'm gonna go for 4 days this Thurs - Sun.

Gonna do a lot of sittin and thinkin 'bout life.... and big bucks.

Mike

[COUESAZ]

CB 1

I am in mesa but I work all over Arizona. Send me an email and I will give you my number and tell youi what i do I dont want to afend anybody by talking on this site. maybe the guys on here arnt that way but just in case send me an email.

[GRONG]

MoreD, When I get my pics developed I'll try and get it posted. I'm off tomorrow to get my trail cam back and then then next day to hike in and put it up by the huge scrape and rub. Maybe even stick an arrow in him?????

 

Good luck Mike, I'll be thinking of you as I'm guiding pig hunters this wknd.

 

Josh

Edited January 1, 1970 by Josh Epperson

[Rembrant]

Got to spend three days in a tree. Saw a big bodied buck doing a walk by, out about 70 yds. He was trailing a doe - even though he could see the doe, he would keep his nose on the ground and scent trail her. His neck was real thick. This buck had lost all the daintyness that the Coues' posses. This was a big buck. I did catch a glimpse of one side of his rack. He was a four point (Amanda count), and was not the same 90 classer that I saw before because his front was not crabby. I bleated a couple of times and he ignored me and continued after his doe.

The next day I sat in my tree for 9 hours and saw no deer.

The next day a doe, fawn, and 3" spike came in and cockroached around at the bottom of my tree. That's it.

Don't know if I'm gonna get to go back.

Spent 9 days in the same tree. Four days were deerless. Saw bucks on 3 days. All together saw 13 does and 6 bucks. The bucks included: 1 spike @ 10yds; 1 forker - sighted on way in;1 - 10-12" big forker with the G-2's broke off @ 17 yds; 1 - 80" 4x, walk by @ 60yds; 1 - 90" 4x @ 20yds (couldn't get him kilt!); and the big bodied buck doing a walk by @ 70 yds.

Every deer except 1 was sighted in the morning before noon.

I learned a ton. I feel very confident that I will one day arrow a big Coues buck. May take a few years, but it will happen.

Mike