Tines Report post Posted January 1, 2013 I've had the opportunity to hunt with Ron and his son Luke several times over the years. Luke and I have become good friends during that time and have shared quite a few camps. Ron was fortunate enough to draw one of the December muzzleloader Mule Deer tags in Southern Arizona. Taking a desert Mule Deer would complete his "slam". Suffice it to say, this was a group effort. No one person is responsible for Ron's success so thanks again to those who helped (you know who you are) from this site. This hunt started off a little slow. Although we woke up to about 6" of snow on the ground on opening day, there were very few animals located and a truck all but buried in a bar ditch as we slid down the sloppy roads. It was still good times with great people. Second day wasn't much different. Few animals located but nothing worth while that morning. In the evening, we did find one 130ish 3x4 but just couldn't make it happen. This was frustrating because taking a desert Mule Deer would complete Ron's deer "slam". Worst case scenario, we'd find some Coues deer to chase. Day 3 started off with a bang. We found two good bucks right away. We tried to circle around and get in front of them but they just seemed to be one step ahead of us. We eventually lost them and figured they held up in some big draws that we'd eventually dig out. As we were driving around to check one last draw, right in front of us at 100yds is about 9 does and a big herd buck pushing them. They spooked from the truck and ran away. We decided to watch them from the truck since we were busted anyway and they went exactly where we hoped- down into a big canyon. We hurried over to the canyon and tried to catch them coming through. No luck. Not sure if we made it far enough, we decided to go all of the way to the end of the canyon where we KNEW we'd be far enough ahead. From there we slowly worked our way towards the location they disappeared into, hoping we'd see them before they saw us. It took us more than an hour to cover the 3/4 mile stretch when we got to the last draw they'd be in. Beleive it or not, I almost passed it by because it was so small. This is a testament to everyone to just stick it out and keep looking EVERYWHERE, you're already there! This was a pretty small rivine. Hardly big enough to hold 9 does and a big buck. We slowly inched our way forward, glassing every step and elevation we gained. I caught a glimpse of something that looked like the hide of a deer but I thought to myself that the object was WAY to close to actually be a deer. I then pulled the binos away and realized that we WERE that close! At 40 yds I could see a doe bedded down and she stood up acting pretty nervous. She took a step forward and as she did I could see the buck staring at us through the trees. He stood up providing a small lane to fit a 240gr slug into. I "anxiously" whispered to Ron to shoot him and Ron dropped the hammer! Congratulations to Ron on completing your slam with such a fine trophy. And to do it with your son at your side makes it that much more special. Glad I could tag along! As a side note, this buck had one of the biggest bodies I'd ever seen on a desert buck. Thanks for reading and enjoy! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
azslim Report post Posted January 1, 2013 Nice buck, good job. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CouesWhitetail Report post Posted January 1, 2013 Great story!! Congratulations! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
coueshunter Report post Posted January 1, 2013 great great job. congrats on your slam, i know that feeling. i killed my sitka blacktail on kodiak island to complete mine. congratulations...allen taylor Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mocha1545 Report post Posted January 1, 2013 Congrats on your slam. Awesome to have family with you. Nice buck to complete the slam with. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tucson John Report post Posted January 1, 2013 Hey! I know those guys! Awesome Buck! Great job fellers! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cramerhunts Report post Posted January 1, 2013 Super buck! Congratulations to Ron on completing his slam on a beauty. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
yotebuster Report post Posted January 1, 2013 Congrats on a beauty of a desert muley! I thought the slam just required a "muley" not a desert, is there a more specific slam that requires a desert muley? If so does it also need a "texas whitetail", carmen mountain, etc??? Just curious, I've killed desert mule deer, regular mule deer, coues and eastern whitetails, I guess I need to start looking into a couple blacktail hunts! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
firstcoueswas80 Report post Posted January 1, 2013 Very awesome buck, looks like he has a big old head too! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tines Report post Posted January 2, 2013 Thanks guys. yotebuster, You're right. That's why I used quotations. He's taken the rest of the required but his own personal "slam" didn't feel complete without this one. Like many others, including Ron, I wish that the desert Mule Deer could be in it's own class but oh well. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
trophyhnter Report post Posted January 2, 2013 Great buck! Way to get it done! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Basser15 Report post Posted January 2, 2013 That's a great buck. Congrats Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
