Herb
54 Cal.
- Joined
- Mar 19, 2004
- Messages
- 1,954
- Reaction score
- 454
I drew a limited entry muzzleloader buck deer permit for South Slope Diamond Mountain, Utah, starting September 24, 2014. I had a ML hunt here in 1998 and killed a buck. This is 22 miles on good blacktop road and then another six on dirt road to the end of where I hunt, sagebrush uplands. I hunted from my Volkswagon Rabbit before and have driven the area in my Buick Park Avenue, so it is easy terrain. My friends Carl and Carole Jackson killed bucks in this area with flintlock rifles I built for them and they wanted to be in on the hunt so did the driving in a four-wheel drive Ford. Carl and I scouted the area on Monday the 22nd and saw 24 bucks, at least 16 of them on public land where I hunt. Here is part of a herd of eight.
We left home 9/24 at 6:00am and were there 35 minutes later. There were 10 cow elk and a big bull first thing, then sage grouse all along the trail. At the east end of the rim road there was a lek (sage grouse booming ground) with over a hundred grouse, right on the road. We drove the trails on ridge tops and saw a small forkhorn buck just over the ridgetop looking intently south. I got out, primed and stalked up to the top of the slope and looked over. Three bucks stood there about 80 yards away looking at me. The biggest rack, a four-pointer (a double forked antler on each side) stood just behind one a little smaller. Soon the big one stepped forward but was still obscured by brush. I thought I had better shoot before he ran, and that the 270 grain roundball pushed at about 1650 fps with 110 grains of Goex 2F from my flintlock halfstock plains rifle I built would go through that brush. Wrong. I heard the ball crack as it hit brush and Carl watched with his 12X binocs as they ran about a fourth of a mile and jumped a fence into private land. The big buck had not been hit. It was good that I missed, because then we had three days of the highest quality deer hunting we have ever had.
The weather was clear and about 80 degrees with light wind. We saw only one other pickup on the main road with two hunters in it and again on Thursday. We had that mountain all to ourselves. There were five or six trucks on the main road Friday but no hunters out on the trails or walking. We saw these two Thursday morning. The smaller one cut away and trotted south towards the rim and came within maybe 150 yards of me.
The light was good but he was moving and I shot just behind him.
We drove the trails and glassed for feeding deer. I decided to walk a sidehill heavy with brush, under which the bucks bedded.
Carl dropped me off and drove about a half mile around to the south to see what bucks I would push out. I jumped a three-point at about 120 yards but didn't think I could hit him running so didn't shoot. Carole said nine big bucks moved out though I saw only the first one due to the terrain.
We quit hunting about 2:00pm each day. Carl has a medical problem and tires from his medication and Carole was in her second week of a shingles infection. I had no problems and did not tire. Friday we got to the hunt area about 6:15am and saw a big bull elk silhouetted on the skyline, bugling. There were 44 sage grouse on the lek, some strutting. We drove several trails, then north down NineBuck Hollow and started back, glassing the slope to the east. Carole saw a big four-point buck where I had walked the day before, feeding. He was maybe 300 yards away and there was a rise in the land between us that concealed me as I crouched and headed for him. I finally ran out of slope and the sun was just about to shine over the hill, after which I wouldn't be able to see the sights. So I stood up and was surprised to see him to my right, maybe 110 yards away. He ran for the brush and I shot after he got in it. Carl said I shot right over his back.
We drove some more trails and walked some heavy brush hillsides, seeing more bucks but not getting a shot. Then we glassed a hillside with deer feeding on it and I saw a dark four-pointer walk up the slope. There was a good three-point lying in the brush just at the top of the slope. We drove about a half-mile around, got out and snuck up to the edge of the hill exactly where he was bedded. I was astonished to see a doe looking at me from about 30 yards, and the three-point was lying at her feet. Carl and I took three steps and the buck jumped up and ran left. Carl yelled "There's a big one on the right!" He had jumped maybe 40 yards away. I swung on him and kept jerking my trigger but the durned rifle wouldn't fire. I was still on half-cock with the trigger unset. (I had not practiced jump-shooting deer). He disappeared down the slope and I sat down for him to reappear. Sat right on a cactus. We watched him run off. Carl said his antlers were at least five inches outside his ears, at least a 30-incher with heavy four-point antlers, probably the finest buck we saw.
So we drove some more trails and found feeding deer, including a good four-point. We were driving around to get down wind of him so I could make a stalk and two little forkhorns stood up out of the brush beside the trail. Because they don't hang out with the big boys, I didn't pay attention to them, but then two more deer stood up, including a good-enough three point.
I decided to shoot him because we couldn't hunt the next two days and heavy rain was forecst. Carl and Carole were both tired, so I got out, primed, and shot him in the heart from about 40 yards. He jumped straight up and ran about 50 yards, staggered and fell over. All three of us marked him down but it took us 20 minutes to find him in the heavy brush.
Carole called this my Victory Shot, where I emptied my rifle at the hillside. Hit it, too.
Carl gutted him and winched him into the back of his truck. It was about 9:00am. At home Carl skinned him and hung him in his walk-in cooler to age for a few days. The head goes to Carl for a European mount (bleached skull), some of the liver and meat, the hide to Carole for an Indian dress, the dew claws to Laura for an Indian rattle (see them in my post about Fort Bridger Rendezvous in the Photo Section), the heart and rest of the liver to friend Brian, and the good memories to all of us.
We could not keep track of all the deer we saw, but probably over a hundred bucks, a lot of them three and four pointers. I made six or eight good stalks on bucks and got close enough to have killed most of them, though I only shot several times. I did not wound any bucks that escaped. I'm glad that big four-point is still there and I wish him long life. My .58 flintlock is as fine a hunting rifle as I have built, out of about 50. We hope you enjoyed the story.
We left home 9/24 at 6:00am and were there 35 minutes later. There were 10 cow elk and a big bull first thing, then sage grouse all along the trail. At the east end of the rim road there was a lek (sage grouse booming ground) with over a hundred grouse, right on the road. We drove the trails on ridge tops and saw a small forkhorn buck just over the ridgetop looking intently south. I got out, primed and stalked up to the top of the slope and looked over. Three bucks stood there about 80 yards away looking at me. The biggest rack, a four-pointer (a double forked antler on each side) stood just behind one a little smaller. Soon the big one stepped forward but was still obscured by brush. I thought I had better shoot before he ran, and that the 270 grain roundball pushed at about 1650 fps with 110 grains of Goex 2F from my flintlock halfstock plains rifle I built would go through that brush. Wrong. I heard the ball crack as it hit brush and Carl watched with his 12X binocs as they ran about a fourth of a mile and jumped a fence into private land. The big buck had not been hit. It was good that I missed, because then we had three days of the highest quality deer hunting we have ever had.
The weather was clear and about 80 degrees with light wind. We saw only one other pickup on the main road with two hunters in it and again on Thursday. We had that mountain all to ourselves. There were five or six trucks on the main road Friday but no hunters out on the trails or walking. We saw these two Thursday morning. The smaller one cut away and trotted south towards the rim and came within maybe 150 yards of me.
The light was good but he was moving and I shot just behind him.
We drove the trails and glassed for feeding deer. I decided to walk a sidehill heavy with brush, under which the bucks bedded.
Carl dropped me off and drove about a half mile around to the south to see what bucks I would push out. I jumped a three-point at about 120 yards but didn't think I could hit him running so didn't shoot. Carole said nine big bucks moved out though I saw only the first one due to the terrain.
We quit hunting about 2:00pm each day. Carl has a medical problem and tires from his medication and Carole was in her second week of a shingles infection. I had no problems and did not tire. Friday we got to the hunt area about 6:15am and saw a big bull elk silhouetted on the skyline, bugling. There were 44 sage grouse on the lek, some strutting. We drove several trails, then north down NineBuck Hollow and started back, glassing the slope to the east. Carole saw a big four-point buck where I had walked the day before, feeding. He was maybe 300 yards away and there was a rise in the land between us that concealed me as I crouched and headed for him. I finally ran out of slope and the sun was just about to shine over the hill, after which I wouldn't be able to see the sights. So I stood up and was surprised to see him to my right, maybe 110 yards away. He ran for the brush and I shot after he got in it. Carl said I shot right over his back.
We drove some more trails and walked some heavy brush hillsides, seeing more bucks but not getting a shot. Then we glassed a hillside with deer feeding on it and I saw a dark four-pointer walk up the slope. There was a good three-point lying in the brush just at the top of the slope. We drove about a half-mile around, got out and snuck up to the edge of the hill exactly where he was bedded. I was astonished to see a doe looking at me from about 30 yards, and the three-point was lying at her feet. Carl and I took three steps and the buck jumped up and ran left. Carl yelled "There's a big one on the right!" He had jumped maybe 40 yards away. I swung on him and kept jerking my trigger but the durned rifle wouldn't fire. I was still on half-cock with the trigger unset. (I had not practiced jump-shooting deer). He disappeared down the slope and I sat down for him to reappear. Sat right on a cactus. We watched him run off. Carl said his antlers were at least five inches outside his ears, at least a 30-incher with heavy four-point antlers, probably the finest buck we saw.
So we drove some more trails and found feeding deer, including a good four-point. We were driving around to get down wind of him so I could make a stalk and two little forkhorns stood up out of the brush beside the trail. Because they don't hang out with the big boys, I didn't pay attention to them, but then two more deer stood up, including a good-enough three point.
I decided to shoot him because we couldn't hunt the next two days and heavy rain was forecst. Carl and Carole were both tired, so I got out, primed, and shot him in the heart from about 40 yards. He jumped straight up and ran about 50 yards, staggered and fell over. All three of us marked him down but it took us 20 minutes to find him in the heavy brush.
Carole called this my Victory Shot, where I emptied my rifle at the hillside. Hit it, too.
Carl gutted him and winched him into the back of his truck. It was about 9:00am. At home Carl skinned him and hung him in his walk-in cooler to age for a few days. The head goes to Carl for a European mount (bleached skull), some of the liver and meat, the hide to Carole for an Indian dress, the dew claws to Laura for an Indian rattle (see them in my post about Fort Bridger Rendezvous in the Photo Section), the heart and rest of the liver to friend Brian, and the good memories to all of us.
We could not keep track of all the deer we saw, but probably over a hundred bucks, a lot of them three and four pointers. I made six or eight good stalks on bucks and got close enough to have killed most of them, though I only shot several times. I did not wound any bucks that escaped. I'm glad that big four-point is still there and I wish him long life. My .58 flintlock is as fine a hunting rifle as I have built, out of about 50. We hope you enjoyed the story.
