2LuckyHunters Report post Posted February 26, 2014 For the 2012 rifle deer hunt, my husband, Jimmy and I had scouted and knew where we wanted to be on opening morning. I was up before the alarm went off and was excited to get out to our spot. We glassed up 6 does and decided to slip in quietly to find the buck. We crept in to 150 yards and got a rock solid rest on some boulders. The does were bedded, so we glassed for the buck. We couldn't find him, so we had to sit and wait for the ladies to get up. We had the perfect set up, except there's was no buck! When the does moved off, he wasn't with them. This brings us to day 2. We got into our spot well before sun up. We started glassing in the gray light. I kept getting the feeling that I needed to check a mountainside behind me. I could just barely make out what looked like a rack at the bottom of some buck brush 400 yards away. As the sun came up, the buck stood up. As we were trying to decide if he was a shooter, (he was still in the shadows)he did what they do best. He disappeared! We glassed and couldn't find him, so we decided to go check a few other areas. As we are both walking away, the more we thought about it, the more we knew we needed to go back. So, my husband hatched a plan for us to circle around the mountain and come up the back side. As we were creeping up, there was sign everywhere. This old buck had claimed this mountain, and didn't seem to leave it. We were expecting him to be bedded somewhere near the top where we had lost sight of him in the never ending brush. Well.... he wasn't. We thought it was over, and were talking not whispering at this point. The mountain curved around to our right into a nasty ravine. I asked my husband if he thought we should just take a peek "over there." As we started walking, we hadn't went 30 yards when we heard rocks rolling and brush breaking. That sneaky old buck was right under our feet in the ravine! As he blew out, Jimmy sounded like Troy from the show "Swamp People." "There he is SHOOT EM, SHOOT EM!!!!!" It happened so fast.... no time to get a rest or he was going to be gone. As I pulled my rifle up and found him in the scope, he was moving directly away from me. All I could think was "please turn." Well he must have heard me, he turned giving me a broadside shot, slightly quartering away. Right then, Jimmy whistled at him and he slowed a bit and looked over at us. The rifle seemed to have fired on it's own, hitting the old buck behind the shoulder. Through the scope, I saw him arch his back. I was preparing for another shot when he went another 18 yards and was down! I couldn't believe what just happened. I got out my range finder and ranged the spot where I had shot him.... 92 yards. A bow shot for some guys. Thanks for reading this story and letting me relive my hunt. ~ Jess *** The mount was done by Wild Heritage Taxidermy. They do awesome work!*** 6 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
firstcoueswas80 Report post Posted February 26, 2014 Very Nice. That Is A Difficult Shot And It Sounds Like You Made It Look Easy! 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
2LuckyHunters Report post Posted February 26, 2014 Lol I definitely had some luck on my side. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Chef Report post Posted February 26, 2014 Your intuitions paid off, love it when that happens! Congrats on your buck and thanks for sharing the story. I too get excited reminiscing about my hunts. Awful nice you had your husband offer to pack him out whole! 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mocha1545 Report post Posted February 26, 2014 Nice Buck! Nice shot. Glad you trusted your gut instinct and went to check out the ravine. Smart to birng your own pack mule with you! 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Chef Report post Posted February 26, 2014 />Very Nice. That Is A Difficult Shot And It Sounds Like You Made It Look Easy! I did that once using a borrowed .257 Wby! 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Couestracker Report post Posted February 26, 2014 What an awesome hunt you had! Retelling the story always brings it back. That was a fantastic shot you made on a great deer. The mount turned out incredible too. Congratulations and thanks for sharing your story with the site. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
firstcoueswas80 Report post Posted February 26, 2014 />/>Very Nice. That Is A Difficult Shot And It Sounds Like You Made It Look Easy!I did that once using a borrowed .257 Wby! That Was A 22-250, But Yes You Did! 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
2LuckyHunters Report post Posted February 26, 2014 Thanks for the responses! It's fun to relive your hunts and share them with people that appreciate the excitement. About the pack out: I was very thankful my hubby was willing to work his tail off like that. It was a long way out and the weather was pretty warm that day. I was worried the skin around the eyes, nose and mouth was going to start to decay before we got it to the freezer. He saved it for sure....at the expense of his legs and back. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CouesWhitetail Report post Posted February 26, 2014 I definitely enjoyed the excitement of your hunt! Thanks for sharing it with us! And very nice to see the mount done so nicely too! 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
papa Report post Posted February 27, 2014 Super nice buck you took along with a great shot congrats. I love the mount they did a great job for you. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ElkyG Report post Posted February 27, 2014 Congrats on your sucess 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Coues assassin Report post Posted February 27, 2014 Congrats on a nice deer! Never seen it packed out like that but I like it. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
out2hunt Report post Posted February 27, 2014 Awesome story and congrats on your success both in the field and at home on the wall. Gorgeous mount 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
2LuckyHunters Report post Posted February 27, 2014 Coues assassin, That frame is from The Outdoorsmans. My hubby says it's really comfortable and levels the load nicely. Their system has interchangeable packs to add to the frame. It's a pretty slick system. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
