redline410 Report post Posted October 10, 2011 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 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Santana Outdoors Report post Posted October 10, 2011 Congratulations to all of you. It doesnt get any better then that. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pwrguy Report post Posted October 10, 2011 Way to go Adrianna!!! Good shooting Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Brian Payne Report post Posted October 10, 2011 Good times. Congratulations! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
lucky2hunt Report post Posted October 10, 2011 BoooYaaaa!!!! Way to go after it Adrianna, so awesome! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bonecollector Report post Posted October 10, 2011 Nice buck! Congrats. Good to see the youth connecting on some nice animals. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bowhntrsx7 Report post Posted October 10, 2011 Way to rock it girls. Sounds like a great hunt. I know the shots my kiddos make were way out of my league at there age. Great job girls. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Coues 'n' Sheep Report post Posted October 11, 2011 Congrats to all! Awesome family time! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Chef Report post Posted October 12, 2011 The ladies are BRINGING IT! Congratulations. Nice to see the whole clan getting up after it. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Pine Donkey Report post Posted October 12, 2011 Wow, the memories of the first buck, a great shot, and time spent together, will last forever! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Lance Report post Posted October 12, 2011 Awesome Father Daughter outing!nice buck and congrats to all! nice pics for tough terrain too! Lance Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cramerhunts Report post Posted October 12, 2011 Yes, congratulations on a dang nice buck. Way to go and awesome shooting. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CouesWhitetail Report post Posted October 15, 2011 Way to go!! that's a great family hunting adventure! Nice job hiking to that buck on that crazy mountain Adrianna!! Congratulations on a fine buck! Must have been nice to have your family there to hunt with you.... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jackal Report post Posted October 15, 2011 Way to go. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bigorange Report post Posted October 16, 2011 Nice buck and great way to make it a family hunt. Can't wait until my kids are old enough to hunt with me. Took my 6 year old scouting for coues today and he loved it. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
