My 2004 Utah Muley

[CHD]

Thought I'd add another since things are a little light around the forum due to the fact that it's huntin' season. Also, seems like I have a regular audience here, and I sure don't wanna let you down. Thanks for your responses and compliments.

 

 

 

 

 

Here he is, if you can see in the dark! The %&*$# flash on my %&*$# camera didn?t cooperate with me at all. I hoped that the shade wouldn?t be a deal breaker for pics. I set my camera on the only bush present (very unstable) oriented the only way possible, and the only time the $%&*# flash went off was when my head was cutoff! But I?m a buckhunter not a photographer. Anyway, I tried. Would have made a neat pic tho with his living room in the background. These pics were made into .jpg's by the photo shop from the actual negatives, and are a lot cleaner than the others.

 

I took this nice buck last week on a late hunt in the Utah Bookcliffs, my second home. I used 8 bonus points to draw this tag as a non-resident, and hunted BLM land in the lower country. I stayed at home here and drove 1.25 hours to this spot.

 

Very tough hunt as far as finding a real good one. I looked at prolly 10-12 different bucks that were 5.5 years old or older, which is an incredible number of mature bucks on a modern day muley hunt. They were all VERY drought stunted with thin, wavy antlers, short points, narrow spreads. We had a very wet April following the driest March on record here, with no moisture after April. Muleys at this latitude need good March, April, and May moisture to grow their best racks. Anyway, it was actually hard to find an 'outside-the-ears-buck' in this unit that has a decent (but not super) gene pool. I realized after a few days that this is what I was up against. Same thing for the bulls I hunted in the same unit this year and last. Dang I?m tired of the prolonged drought.

 

Anyway, I had spotted this buck on the AM of day 2 from over a mile away with my 15x Leica Duovids feeding from a sagebrush meadow with his does into some small finger ridges covered with junipers. Few trophy muley hunters use 15x's on a tripod, but I have for years. Common to older animals, he was in rougher country that most weren?t hunting. Later in the hunt I decided to SLOWLY hunt these fingers in the middle of the day, and try to spot this buck which had the biggest frame of any I saw on the hunt. I sneaked around in shadows, never skylining myself or moving in plain view of the opposite ridge. I moved slowly into the wind, peaking over each rise onto the next finger hoping to spot this buck bedded under a juniper tree on top or on a small knob, which is where they prefer to bed in this type of country. Sure enough, I spotted him with my handheld 8x50 Leica Ultravids at about 500 yards bedded in the shade of a juniper tree. I made my move and came out 162 yards from him. He was in his bed asleep with his head resting on the ground sideways. I waited 30 mins for him to wake up, sized him up, and shot him in his bed from 162 yards with my Weatherby BigGameMaster in 7mm WBY Mag firing a 160 gr. Nosler Accubond at about 3,100 fps from a kneeling position. He never knew what hit him.

 

He is 28? outside and 20.5? tall and will prolly score 175-180, for you guys wondering. Also has "booner backs". Still a nice buck, but not what quite I wanted and expected. He was heavy-bodied with a HUGE head and a wide 24?-25? earspread. I sure would liked to have seen him after a couple of wet years. He would?ve been a great buck. His teeth were worn waaaaay down and he is prolly 6-7 years old. Had very little body fat.

 

Here is a great view of this buck's classic lower PJ/sagebrush/rimrock country that I have taken so many old bucks in.

 

 

 

On another note, my AZ unit 22 Dec Coues deer hunt is now in jeopardy due to people quitting at work. I supervise a group and we are now really short-handed. I'm keeping my fingers crossed, as I would REALLY rather show you all a big ol Coues buck than some of these others I've posted. But we all know that in the end, the living has to be made first.

 

Enjoy this post, and take care.

 

 

 

PS - WANTED, one experienced kill-shot photographer with a fully functional camera to tag along on big-game hunts and be available when needed. I'll furnish the trophy animals, you will furnish the great pics. LOL

[111]

What an amazing buck!!!!!!! I really like that rough looking county your harvesting these nice animals in.

 

Most coues hunters look at a December 22 coues tag kinda like a strip tag for muleys. You should be able to make an excuse for your boss before Dec 17th.

 

 

Again nice buck and thanks for posting the pics.

[BRYCE CANYON]

Nice buck! Do you live around Monticello?

[WHT_MTNMAN]

CHD- I just bought a new digital camera. I'd love to tag along . congrats on the pic and story. Next week is my wifes bull tag in 3C, and my brothers coues hunt in 36a. can't wait. Again congrats CHD

[CouesWhitetail]

Awesome buck! Thanks for all the info and photos to go with it. You know with a photo editing software like Photoshop Elements you can lightened that right up. In fact, I can do it for you if you want.

 

Amanda

[Rembrant]

Chris,

You are one deer killin son of a gun.

Mike

[Couesi1]

CHD,

Nice buck man! Hey, I hope the work thing works out for you. A 22 December whitetail tag is about as good as it gets. You're a deer harvesting machine and you deserve to hunt it.

Couesi1

[Daniel in Ak]

wee! doggie! wtg! CHD,now thats a hog.Congrats! And the pictures are awesome.Daniel

[CouesSlayer]

I saw one like that on top of a huge mountain in the snow on my last deer hunt in NM, but I couldn't get to him on accout of I had to be home! I hope your work thing "works" out! GoodLUCK!

[More D]

BIG BUCKS BEWARE!!!

 

CHD IS HERE! HE HAS A TAG AND A SHOLDER CANNON!

 

 

 

 

 

Edited January 1, 1970 by More D

[CHD]

Amanda was kind enough to lighten up this photo a bit so you all can see the buck better. If my flash would've gone off, it would've been a really neat pic. This buck's head was huge. Check out those big ol floppy muley ears. His thick nose, droopy jaw, eyes that are far apart, protruding eyebrows, and bright white face identify him as an older muley buck. Not to mention his pot belly, lol.

 

Thanks Amanda, for cleaning this photo up a bit.

 

 

[azcouesandelk]

That is an absolutely beautiful buck you got there.

[GRONG]

CHD, That is a killer deer man. I was gonna say that with your digital camera you take some great pics. However if you don't mind a little constructive criticism I'd like to offer some. The only reason I'm mentioning this to you is cause I've taken dozens of what would be killer photos only to have them half in the sun and half in the shade and they are never what they could have been. What I usually do now is wait for a cloud to come over so it's all in the shade or drag my subject, be it a shed antler or dead critter, into the sun completely. The flash you mentioned can only help so much. Just a little advise from one hunter who appreciates good photos to another, take it or leave it. Killer deer man that is awesome. Beautiful deer and great looking country.

Thanks for sharing,

Josh