2012 Muzzy Buck

[3Coues3]

Well 2012 started off with a big goose egg across the board on the draw. No Elk, Antelope, Deer, no nothing!! So I jumped on the AZGFD website and checked out the left over tags, filled out a app and figured better than not hunting at all. Well I drew a muzzy any antlered deer tag in a unit I have never personally hunted but had helped out on a few hunts. To top it all off I haven't even shot a muzzy let alone own one. But I figured whats another gun to add to the collection. I got lucky and bought one off of a CWT member in the classified section. Once I got the gun out of the way I started scouting!! I scouted about every weekend for two months. I was looking for muley's due to there body size and the fact that I truly just wanted meat for the freezer. It didn't pan out very well and I decided to go back to the deer I grew up hunting "The Grey Ghost" With only one weekend to scout before the hunt, I went out all though the second whitetail hunt was going on that weekend I figured got to have at least a idea of where I was going to hunt. We spotted the buck in the first three pic's along with a few more and I though well that wouldn't be a bad first deer with a muzzy!! So we backed out of the area and hoped he didn't get taking in the next few days cause there were a handful of hunters in the area. Some even a little to close for comfort. Opening day came and we got behind the glass searching the cuts and canyons for the buck we had seen the weekend before and any other buck that show himself. We glassed up one decent buck a mile away and across a large canyon and decided he could stay there, we also glassed up a nice cinnamon bear walking a drainage I did my best to snap a few photos of him before he disappeared We decided to make our way over to the other side of the hill and glassed some other cuts and draws. About 30 minutes into glassing our new location I spotted the fork and spike that were with the 3x3. I figured if he made it through the general hunt he would be some where in the area so we kept a close watch on the two bucks but continued to search the hill and surrounding area that the bucks were in. A few minutes after the two smaller bucks walked over the hill I spotted the 3x3. We watched him for about hour as he worked his way to every barrel cactus on the hill, destroying the ripe fruit. He finally bedded behind a juniper out of site from our vantage point. So we sat there devising a plan of attack!! Between the four of us we had three different ideas but I went with my gut feeling and I am glad I did. We worked our way across the canyon and headed up the right side of the hill. Our buddy stayed at the first vantage point and my dad stayed at the bottom of the hill in case the buck decided to head that direction. As we worked our way up we jumped three doe and had to wait for them to head up and over the hill with out spooking the buck. We radioed in and asked if the buck had spooked when we pushed the does. We lucked out and he didn't but he did move from the one juniper to the next juniper to the right. We continued up the hill and over it to the back side where we would work our way to the peak of the hill and look down. We had guessed the first tree he bedded in would be about 150 yards max. Well we reached the top and crawled to a point where we could see the trees. No deer!!! we found the first juniper and if he would have stayed there it would have been a 125 yard shot! We could see the tree to the right, our left now that we had come over the back side of the hill. No buck!!! We backed out and worked our way around the side of the hill hoping to get a better angle! Still no buck! We where only 100 yards from the tree but had realized there was a small lip in the hill preventing us from seeing the base of the tree. So we radioed in and asked if the buck had busted out and the answer was no. So I worked my way closer to the tree using a large boulder as a screen. I peaked around the boulder to see the buck bedded at 70 yards away!! I was about 5 yards from the boulder and though well how could I miss a 70 yard shot! So I free handed it and shot. BOOM!!! right over his back. I peaked around the boulder to see him now standing up!! I went back behind the boulder and reloaded, which I was amazed by how fast you can load a muzzy when you want to!! So I take another shot BOOM!!! miss to the right. I couldn't believe it but I looked and the buck was still standing there. The wind was blowing pretty good straight in my face and I think it was taking the sound of the gun away in which the buck really didn't know what was happening. So I reloaded and decided I needed to move to the boulder and use it as a rest and if I spooked the buck in the process then oh well I had my chance already!! I get to the boulder and rest the gun against the side of it, the buck was still there!! I put the cross hairs on the center of his chest cause he was facing me and let another bullet fly and down he went right back to his bed. This time he wasn't getting back up!!! After some celebration and pictures we got my first muzzy buck back to the truck by 12 pm opening morning.

[yumabowhunter]

Congratulations! That's quite an accomplishment. I would have been a wreck trying to get that gun reloaded.

[AZLance]

Great smoke pole buck!

[Little Creek Calls]

Great whitetail with a muzzleloader. Glad to see the knight put to good use again. It did the trick for me a few years back on a 6 x 6 bull elk.

[3Coues3]

Little Creek Calls thanks again!!! It was worth every penny, I think I am going to start putting in for more muzzy hunts it was a blast!!

[Pine Donkey]

That's a good looking buck. Pretty cool you were able to take him with a muzzy.

[randyolson]

Congrats! What a great hunt by the sounds of that story! Thanks for sharing.

[trophyhnter]

Great buck with a smoke pole! My dad wants to hunt this year with a muzzleloader! Ive killed my javelina with my muzzleloader and its a lot of fun!

[bonecollector]

Congrats on a nice muzzy buck. Awesome you were able to reload twice and have the buck stay put.

[Umpqua]

Nice job! Way to get it done with a muzzleloader.