DNS Report post Posted August 10, 2014 Here is an interesting tall buck that I got in 2012. The hunt went something like this. Day 1- started off in one of my favorite areas in this unit and found a bunch of does, but no bucks Day 2- Went to another area that I like and got right on a small 2 point at first light and decided to pass. Saw 3 nice wt bucks, but no other mule deer bucks Morning Day 3- Went to another area that I hunt, dad kills a 3 point in one direction and I see more does but no bucks in the opposite direction Evening Day 3- I decide to hunt a different area that I had scouted prior and saw some deer in it, but it is rough to get into and tough to move around once you get there because it has some big deep canyons. I'm hunting the second rifle hunt of a difficult desert unit so I figure that the bigger bucks are in some of the tougher areas to get to. I get in there with about 2.5 hours left of light and go to a waterhole that I found while scouting. I get up on a ridge just south of the waterhole and this ridge basically makes a big cross and then drops off steep on all sides. I take the south part of the cross and get to the point of the ridge just before it drops off steep. I set there and glass for approximately 30 minutes, but don't see anything so I start to walk back and take the East part off the cross. I get about 1/2 way back to where the ridge splits and I can hear something running from back where I just was. I quickly get back over there and get set up. I look through my scope and find the deer and it is a nice buck. He was bedded in an area that I couldn't see in straight below me about 100 yards. He is running straight away from me, but I know he is going to turn left or right when he tops out because there is no where to go in the direction he is running. The buck turns left and I have a couple hundred yards or so before he gets out of site so I wait and see if he will stop and give me a good shot. I wait and he finally slows way down, but doesn't stop. I'm comfortable with the shot and the range so I shoot and immediately know I shoot just over his back from where I see the dust cloud of the bullet. The buck takes off again and gets into an area that there is no way I will be able to find him before dark. I walk over to where the buck was when I shot to verify a clean miss and follow his tracks for 1/2 a mile, but there was no blood so it was definitely a clean miss. At this point I am pretty pissed at myself for missing. The shot was no gimme, but I should have made it. Anyone that hunts some of the tough desert units knows that good bucks are usually far and few between. It ended up being good because my son killed this same buck that I missed in 2013 and made a far better shot than I did. Here is the thread on that buck http://www.coueswhitetail.com/forums/topic/44768-desert-buck/ There's about 45min-1 hour left of light and I know that I can't get to any other area before dark so I decide to move over 2 ridges to the north of the waterhole. I'm walking down the ridge and find a spot that I can glass to the north, but didn't find anything so i went over the ridge to the south and started heading back towards where I had parked my quad. I top out on the ridge and look just across this little cut and see a buck bedded down on a big rock only 50 yards away. When I first saw him it looked like his horns were 3 ft tall. He saw me the same time I saw him and he wasted no time getting up and heading out. He needed 4 jumps and a turn to the right to get to where I would never see him again, but I was ready to go quickly and shot him on the 3rd bound. He dropped in mid jump and just pile up. He isn't a giant buck, but he is cool. His main beams go straight up over 12 inches before the G2 split. He has no eyeguards or any bumps where he might have grown eyeguards. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CouesWhitetail Report post Posted August 10, 2014 Great buck and congratulations on a great hunt! It pays to put in the work and go to some of the hardest places to hunt! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
brian390 Report post Posted August 11, 2014 Great buck! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Flatlander Report post Posted August 11, 2014 How was the Dec 27 hunt? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DNS Report post Posted August 11, 2014 The 27 hunt was awesome. Here is the story and buck I posted from that hunt. http://www.coueswhitetail.com/forums/topic/45585-unit-27-december-rifle-mule-deer-buck/ Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
randyolson Report post Posted August 13, 2014 Nice story!!! Congrats on your Buck!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
