Patrick's amazing year **updated with full stories**

[couesmagnet]

Are you kidding me, that's even better than an awesome year. Way to go!! Very very nice coues bucks indeed and a mess of other nice specimens also. Excellent job!!!!!

[naturegirl]

He is getting it done! Way to go

 

Beautiful Coues by the way!

[PatrickJr]

thanks guys, I cant wait for the elk results to come out!

[tjhunt2]

Keep up the good work and don't forget to add a story with all the success. Congratulations Patrick!

 

TJ

[PatrickJr]

you want a full story?

Keep up the good work and don't forget to add a story with all the success. Congratulations Patrick!

TJ

 

 

[tjhunt2]

you want a full story?

Keep up the good work and don't forget to add a story with all the success. Congratulations Patrick!

 

TJ

280REM.............Thanks again for sharing Patrick's super year. Kudos to you and I can tell in his post he has it in his blood for sure.

 

Patrick............I know your dad touched a little on each of your hunts but I would love to hear it first hand. It's always more exciting and that's the part I like to read. If I may suggest please take the time to start a journal if you haven't already. You'll be surprised later in life how much you will forget. Believe me!

 

TJ

[PatrickJr]

My Unforgettable Year

Part 1- Project Arizona Tusker

It was February 1st, 2013 and we met about midday with a family friend, Andy, and we headed off to a good glassing spot in 36a (I drew the junior 36a, b, and c javelina tag). We did not see anything so we moved to another area and we saw some bird hunters with their dogs about a mile away. We did not think much of it, until my buddy, Andy, saw the bird hunters bust some pigs! The ridge they were on was running perpendicular to us; so we headed diagonally to try to cut them off. We headed on this death march and Andy is hard of hearing so he never heard me fall the 4 times I did. We finally got to the ridge and thought they were on the other side, well they were not. And to this day I do not know how they eluded us.

Day 2-February 2, 2013 (last day we could hunt) We headed back to our first glassing spot from the day before. We glassed and glassed, nothing, until I glanced down to an opposing hill with my naked eyes at a patch of grass about 400 yards away. I noticed a couple dark spots that were not there before. I could not be sure that they were pigs because I only had hand-held 10x binoculars. So I asked Andy to check it out for me, and he confirmed that they indeed were javelinas.

These pigs were in a perfect stalking position, so we dropped into a canyon and start to head up to them, but with a little hill between us. We popped our heads over, and there they were. I had my gun set up on the triclawps and Andy ranged them at 100.2 yards. First reticle I thought, and waited for one to give me and opening through the ocotillo and Andy said "tell me when you’re going to shoot him" and I immediately answered with "Imma shoot em!" and bang! I racked the bolt and watched in the scope as the pig did a few spins and started to topple over. I finally after 4 years had my first javelina!!! I shot this boar with my 1916 6.5x55 Swedish Mauser. We then gutted him and threw him in Andy's Eberlestock backpack, and I packed him out a whole 500 yards to the road! Was a very memorable hunt and I am lucky to have a father and friend like Andy that help with my hunting adventures.

Part 2- Project Cow

It was Wednesday, October 9, 2013, when we headed up to 4a for my junior cow elk hunt and we got there and started "scouting” out some areas north of Chevelon Butte and all we saw was antelope.

The next day was Thursday, and we got a late start and were heading out of Winslow headed south when I happened to look across my father and out his window and saw 2 RED FOXES! We quickly pulled over and my dad pulled out his Ruger Mini-14 with a 4x Leupold. And off-hand at 140 yards he barely missed to the right of this fox and they took off. The wind had actually blown his shot to the right as it was raining and the wind was blowing about 25mph. So we proceeded on our "scouting trip" and we were headed down the gravel road that heads to the base of the butte, when I glanced out the windshield and saw a cow elk bedded about 800 yards out. I quickly got out my tripod and an old 30x Bushnell spotter. I lasted about 2 minutes out in the cold sleet. I set up the tripod in the truck where the passenger would normally put their legs, and watched these elk. I watched them for about 30 minutes through the windshield with the wipers running.

It started to rain real hard so we headed back to the hotel.

The next morning was opening day; we headed to a favorite glassing spot of ours. After about an hour of glassing, I looked down and there was frost on my new outdoorsman’s pack. Nippy to say the least! We glassed for about another 2 hours and at about 9am I found a giant herd about 3 miles away. Neither my father nor I felt like walking 3 miles at that point so we found a road that I knew would get us to within stalking distance of these elk. Well we start driving on this road and I kid you not, we spook a different herd with the truck! We quickly forgot about them and proceeded to the 1st herd. We were driving and I saw a cow in an opening, so we stopped. She had us pegged so we sat in the truck for about 10 minutes until she walked off.

We wanted to go light, so we brought our binoculars, a rangefinder, a rifle, a bog pod, and a knife.

We took off. Because of the rain the day before, the ground was soft and very quiet. We were hopping from juniper to juniper, trying to catch up with this moving herd of elk, and after a mile of stalking, we ran out of junipers and a cow had us spotted. We stopped and stood like statues for what seemed like hours, and finally said "forget it". I sat down, extended my bipod and my dad ranged her at 351. I knew to put the 300 crosshair on the top of the kill zone and the 400 crosshair on the bottom. I had trouble with my breathing as my adrenaline was going! I settled the crosshairs and squeezed, “WUMP”!!! All the elk scattered, she did not go right down, and she ran out of sight. The herd ran out 100 yards and stopped to look back. So we figured she was way behind or dead. The herd took off and did another loop to come back and check on her. No other elk joined the herd. We went to where she was when the shot occurred and there was no blood to be found, but I could smell dead animal. Not a stinky smell but the same you smell when you are butchering an animal, not paunch, for sure. We searched for her for a while and I finally saw what looked like the right side of a belly. I looked with my binos and looked up to the sky and said "God, please do not play this kind of dirty trick on me" as it looked like a rock. It was not, it was my very first elk. I dedicated this elk to my deceased mother, she and my brother shot their cow elk with the same rifle I just did, a Remington model 700 in .308 Winchester. My dad and I worked all summer developing a load for it, 44 grains of Varget topped off with a 155 gr Berger VLD.

We celebrated a little and my dad looked at me and flipped me the truck keys and said "start walkin", so I did, a mile back and I drove the truck across the flatland right up to my elk. We then skinned her and quartered her, and butchered her using the gutless method and were on our way. We were back on pavement by 1 pm on opening day!

Part 3 #1- Project Kill-a-Coues

We headed in to a friend’s secret spot in 33 on Thursday November 21, 2013. We set up camp about 6pm and started to prepare dinner. Our family friend, Patrick Romero (guide for Diamond Outfitters) arrived that night and we got set for the morning hunt. My dad has been having knee problems so he didn't join us for the opening day hunt.

Opening day- we parked and started to hike in the dark with spitting rain. We hiked in about 1.5 miles and found refuge under what Pat calls his "Traditional Tree". When it was light enough to glass we headed up the hill a few hundred yards and set up. Right off the bat, Pat found a group of 5 does. Then he shifted position and now 10 minutes later he was calling for me to bring him his spotting scope. He zoomed in and realized it was a nice buck (he had asked me the night before what might minimum size deer was for opening morning, I said 90 inches .....at the time that was wishful thinking) he zoomed out and let me look at him, but not close enough to realize how big he was. I could tell by the way Pat was acting that this was in fact a good deer. At first we were 800 yards away, so we began a stalk. As the stalk went on I remembered how horrible my breathing and heart rate were with my elk. So I just followed Pat and focused on my breathing, I knew Pat would get me where I needed to be.

Next thing I know, we are at 411 yards and Pat already set the turret on his .257 Weatherby Magnum. All I had to do was chamber a round and touch it off. I remember Pat saying "he knows we’re here, but he is not spooked", and all I could think was, well that doesn’t help at all! I found him in the scope and saw his left antler and could tell he was the deer we wanted, and Pat said "put it right behind the shoulder", so I fired and the wind blew the bullet just in front of the hips. The deer ran down the hill and was fighting death with I took another shot, miss, but then he expired. We headed up to my 2nd Coues deer and when we arrived, it hit me how big this buck really was! He had mass like I have never seen. We took care of him in a torrential downpour and were headed out at 10 am, opening morning! We planned that when we arrived at camp we would act like we did not see much in front of my dad and when he was not paying attention we would surprise him with my deer.

We got back to camp and came up with an "it was miserable, only saw a fork and 2 does" story, then my dad started to get mad at me and tell me to go change my pants, as they were wet and he had hypothermia the year before. I was still high on adrenaline so I told him I was fine, but he insisted. When I started to go into the tent Pat said "Patrick, go get the wet clothes out of your pack so that they can dry.” So I walked over to the truck, slung my pack over my shoulder and waltzed into camp. As I was walking up, my dad was saying something and as he was speaking, he slowly turned around, then he was looking at my face while talking. Then I could see his eyes slowly shift from my face to the antlers sticking out of the pack, and his jaw hit the floor!!! Absolutely priceless!!! We then celebrated and had some celebratory brats for lunch.

To be continued…….

 

Part 3 #2 –Project Double in a Day

It was still November 22, 2013. I had just shot my Coues deer and we had lunch, after that we decided to make use of the day and look for some javelinas (I drew the November unit 33 junior deer and javelina tags). We stopped at a spot and I started to glass, but then the rain came AGAIN! So we hopped in the truck and eased down the road, not expecting to see any pigs or anything. The rain all-of-a-sudden had stopped. We came around a bend in the road with a cliff to our left and my father and Pat we just talking, not paying much attention. We rounded the corner and I see about 15 pigs standing in the road!!! I said pretty loudly "PIGS!!!" and they looked up in amazement to see the unaware javelinas. We came to a screeching halt only 50 yards from the pigs. I grabbed the 257 Weatherby that was next to me and Pat grabbed his rangefinder. We eased out of the truck, my dad stayed still, and I grabbed the walking stick out of the bed and walked slowly in the mud. Then the herd spooks!!! But I notice a lone pig wandering up the hill, so I quickly found him in the scope, and Pat said that he was at 100 yards, so I put the crosshair on what appeared to be pig hair and pulled the trigger. The pig instantly reared up on its hind legs and took a nose dive! We hustled to get a view of the pig and couldn't see it. I walked up the hill and found the sow only 15 yards from where she was when I shot. I dragged her down the hill to the road and we took a few quick photos. We thought we were going to go back to camp and get some quality photos; instead we went to San Manuel to have dinner and had some truck trouble. At that point I had never felt so lucky in my life, a 107" Coues Whitetail and a javelina all in one day. A true Double!!!

 

Part 4-Project Ole Mexico

It was Saturday January 18, 2014 and we met up with Bobby Boido at a gas station in Tucson, I loaded up my gear and Bobby and I were headed down to Mexico for a Coues deer hunt. My dad couldn't accompany us because he recently had eye surgery. We went last year and he shot a deer and I went as a packer/glasser and he promised that the next year (this year) I could shoot a deer. So Bobby got stuck with me for a whole week! After going through all the checkpoints and driving the 4 hours down there, 2 of which were on dirt, we unpacked as quickly as we could and I when with Mark and Tyler Kuhn for the afternoon hunt. We didn't see anything of note that day. It was getting up to 90 degrees each day and the deer had very odd patterns, some would be up at noon and some would be up at 4 while others are bedded. I did not see much until the morning of Tuesday, when we saw a couple of does and I happened to find a buck only 300 yards from us and I passed on him, I thought I could do better, but Bobby did not hesitate, and shot the deer in a very small window of space and time. This was the first deer of the week for all of camp. I hunted with Ernie Denogean (outfitter) and Albert Amado (fellow hunter) the next day and did not see much but 4 herds of javelinas in 1 day and one white javelina. That day another hunter, Mark Ballis shot an awesome deer at 628 yards! This deer had great mass and great time length, but was broken up a lot. Mark's deer even had a G5 on one side and a G4 on the other side. Tyler Kuhn also shot 2 coyotes and a deer with his bow all in 30 minutes!!!

The next day we went back into a spot where I had my camera up and got 2 shooters, one had a 5 inch drop tine! We saw a few deer and all-of-a-sudden Tyler said "I have a good buck, oh, and he is nice!!!” Then a lot of chaos occurred, I was about 10 yards away from Tyler, so I set down my binos and lay over my tripod and started to head over there to look at him. I guess I was making a lot of noise so Bobby quietly scolded me and told me to "go get the 300!!!”. Well I knew that Bobby's gun was a 300 WSM and I thought that Marks gun was a .300 RUM, so I said "which 300???”. He scolded me again and I grabbed the 300 WSM and headed over. I found the hill that the deer was on and started to scan for the deer as Tyler would talk me in, well I could never find the right trees and the buck was always in the thickest brush there was on this ranch. After about half an hour I finally found him going across an opening and waited for my shot. I didn't have a very steady rest, I had to hold up the left leg of the bipod, and the front side of the gun was on a squishy pack, but I'm not making excuses. He finally gave me a shot where his body was going downhill and he was quartering to the right, towards me. A tree was blocking his lower chest so I decided to try to squeeze the shot into the top of his lungs. I shot and Bobby said that I missed, but I heard the famous "WUMP" and then Tyler said he saw blood coming out of his neck like crazy. The deer ran 20 yards then stood behind a tree and fell over. I hit him just barely in the neck but that Barnes Triple Shock bullet took a monstrous chunk out of him. I finally had my first Mexican Coues deer! Tyler and I hiked over there and had to drag my deer a whole 30 yards to the road! The same day Albert shot his buck over a water hole after being set up for only 2 minutes! That night we also took care of a few pesky skunks around the ranch house! The next day some of us went predator calling, and I shot my very first gray fox! In the afternoon we packed up the trucks and relaxed so that on Saturday we could take off early in the morning. I had an absolute great time with friends and who I now consider family. I want to give a shout out to Ernie and Francisco of Francisco Denogean's Trophy of Sonora Outfitters for helping me with the hunt of a lifetime on the El Tule Ranch. I would also like to thank everyone that helped me in my success, not only on this hunt but in all areas of my life.

Written by Patrick W.

 

[tjhunt2]

Great write up Patrick. You certainly brought out the excitement that only the hunter himself could do. It was a very good read with my coffee this morning. Thanks for sharing and congratulations again on your trophies. Can't wait to read some more.

 

Patrick, that was a very nice tribute towards your mother. I'm sure she was looking down from above with a smile as big as yours. Class act young man.

 

TJ

[tjhunt2]

You are certainly on a roll Patrick. I hope it continues for you in to this year. Thanks again for posting. You definitely have a way to bring a story to life. Glad you have joined us here on cwt.

 

TJ