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I went up on my deer hunt with my cousin (75) who it turns out tore his rotator cuff a few weeks ago & his grandson (16) Cousin wasn't hunting much and when he did he past a easy shot on a monster, then got busted by the lead doe trying to back out & get his grandson so the young man could have the shot.
Grand Son, like many of us was not ready for sage flats hunting. We spent the first day & a half getting him shots that he could not get set fast enough to accomplish. I only had through Monday noon to get my own deer and had really just been acting as a guide/mentor sometime less then patiently :redface:
We set up our Sunday evening with the two of them along a fence with a good view forward. I worked up into a bowl that we had hunted the day before & where the deer that spilled out had all gone to that fence line. My hope was that they would repeat and go right into their guns.
The deer had other plans and went the other way
I was at the top of the bowl, it was minutes from sunset (Though the sun still hit the hill top where I was at), so I topped out went maybe 150 yards to the next ravine and started down to the road. I only made it down 30 yards or so when I spotted 2 deer feeding 140 yards to my left and slightly behind. I gained 35 yards on them in plan sight before a fawn stood up and gave me the eye. I looked and the 1st adult was a fork buck. I set my rifle down and looked again, Yep he is a fork buck. Thought about trying to gain 10 more yards but that fawn was on full alert. One more look at the head, yea those are forks. By now it was 5-6 minutes after sunset, in 5 minutes more I wouldn't have sunlight for sights, I tried to kneel but the sage was just too high. I stood gave a quarter turn, tucked my left arm against my ribs "hung" the .54 Hawken on my left hand, with the set trigger pulled and the sights on the shoulder point
of the deer that was quartering to me, I touched the trigger. BOOM.. THUMP All three deer ran behind a slight ridge and a few seconds later about 6 deer popped out from behind it on the other side.
One is a few steps behind the others with a small tuft of hair over it's hart disturbed. It's a doe! I am going to be sick. . . I looked 4-5 times I KNOW it was a buck. Then I notice that there is no blood, just an odd tuft of hair, she seems fine and steps high, and she and all the others are looking back behind the ridge. With my heart in my mouth I walked the 105 yards from where I shot to where the "buck" stood. I go behind the ridge walk about 10 yards.
Shoulder, heart, lungs and just touched the liver on the way out.
I was never so happy to see a set of forks in my life! My hands still shook as I took the photo.
Grand Son, like many of us was not ready for sage flats hunting. We spent the first day & a half getting him shots that he could not get set fast enough to accomplish. I only had through Monday noon to get my own deer and had really just been acting as a guide/mentor sometime less then patiently :redface:
We set up our Sunday evening with the two of them along a fence with a good view forward. I worked up into a bowl that we had hunted the day before & where the deer that spilled out had all gone to that fence line. My hope was that they would repeat and go right into their guns.
The deer had other plans and went the other way
I was at the top of the bowl, it was minutes from sunset (Though the sun still hit the hill top where I was at), so I topped out went maybe 150 yards to the next ravine and started down to the road. I only made it down 30 yards or so when I spotted 2 deer feeding 140 yards to my left and slightly behind. I gained 35 yards on them in plan sight before a fawn stood up and gave me the eye. I looked and the 1st adult was a fork buck. I set my rifle down and looked again, Yep he is a fork buck. Thought about trying to gain 10 more yards but that fawn was on full alert. One more look at the head, yea those are forks. By now it was 5-6 minutes after sunset, in 5 minutes more I wouldn't have sunlight for sights, I tried to kneel but the sage was just too high. I stood gave a quarter turn, tucked my left arm against my ribs "hung" the .54 Hawken on my left hand, with the set trigger pulled and the sights on the shoulder point
of the deer that was quartering to me, I touched the trigger. BOOM.. THUMP All three deer ran behind a slight ridge and a few seconds later about 6 deer popped out from behind it on the other side.
One is a few steps behind the others with a small tuft of hair over it's hart disturbed. It's a doe! I am going to be sick. . . I looked 4-5 times I KNOW it was a buck. Then I notice that there is no blood, just an odd tuft of hair, she seems fine and steps high, and she and all the others are looking back behind the ridge. With my heart in my mouth I walked the 105 yards from where I shot to where the "buck" stood. I go behind the ridge walk about 10 yards.
Shoulder, heart, lungs and just touched the liver on the way out.
I was never so happy to see a set of forks in my life! My hands still shook as I took the photo.
