Finally it had arrived!! The most entertaining hunt of the year was upon us. I rolled into Grizzly's house and met him and Upper Deck's father, Jim. After an amazing display of packing prowess, necessitated by an obscene amount of gear for a simple antelope hunt, we hit the road.
When traveling/hunting with Grizzly, a wise partner takes the necessary precautions. This would have to suffice as I could not take a full face respirator from work!
After ten hours on the road we pulled up to the campground where Upper Deck was already set up. He chose to do away with roughing it and had purchased a fifth wheel trailer. This was a significant change from our rather spartan camps. Grizzly was instantly spoiled and expects this kind of treatment on every hunt we go on now! Alas, he will be very disappointed in the near future!
The next morning was a bit slow. Grizzly and I looked over some antelope, but nothing we were too excited about. Later in the afternoon we found a large herd bedded down with multiple nice bucks. We were undecided if they were on public or private land. While we were debating at length where they were at and trying to contact a landowner, the herd moved off onto a huge piece of public land. We loaded up and headed after them.
Within 30 minutes we located the herd, looked them over closely, and got into position ahead of them. They ended up feeding within 75 yards of us. One of the does picked us off while I was getting ready to shoot and took off running with the herd. Fortunately I was able to find the buck I wanted and put him down with one shot. With the rest of the herd streaming by, Grizzly stood up, took his SWEET time and put down the buck he wanted with one shot. Both bucks were on the ground within 80 yards on each other. Incredible! Reminds me of a saying that even a blind pig finds an acorn once in a while.
That evening Jim put his first antelope down as well and it was a nice one.
The next morning we all piled in to the truck to hunt with UD as he was the only one left with a tag. Shortly after arriving in the hunting area he located two bucks in a strip of private land. A plan was hatched to walk the public land on the far side of the bucks and "drive" them through a draw to the public land on the near side where UD would be lying in ambush. Of course we all agreed this was bullet proof and couldn't fail. UD hustled into position. In short order, Grizzley and I determined herding antelope is similar to what I imagine herding cats is like. The bucks didn't get the memo and went up the wrong draw. UD, ever alert and on the ball, foiled the bucks escape by making a great 350 yard shot.
Also found a great looking mulie buck after the hunt.
The rest of the trip was spent relaxing, eating too much really good food, soaking in a hot tub, and absorbing incredible amounts of wisdom from UD and Grizzly's animated conversations. More and more I appreciate truly great hunting partners. They determine whether a trip is successfel, not the size of the animals harvested. Thanks again guys and we will do it again very soon!
When traveling/hunting with Grizzly, a wise partner takes the necessary precautions. This would have to suffice as I could not take a full face respirator from work!
After ten hours on the road we pulled up to the campground where Upper Deck was already set up. He chose to do away with roughing it and had purchased a fifth wheel trailer. This was a significant change from our rather spartan camps. Grizzly was instantly spoiled and expects this kind of treatment on every hunt we go on now! Alas, he will be very disappointed in the near future!
The next morning was a bit slow. Grizzly and I looked over some antelope, but nothing we were too excited about. Later in the afternoon we found a large herd bedded down with multiple nice bucks. We were undecided if they were on public or private land. While we were debating at length where they were at and trying to contact a landowner, the herd moved off onto a huge piece of public land. We loaded up and headed after them.
Within 30 minutes we located the herd, looked them over closely, and got into position ahead of them. They ended up feeding within 75 yards of us. One of the does picked us off while I was getting ready to shoot and took off running with the herd. Fortunately I was able to find the buck I wanted and put him down with one shot. With the rest of the herd streaming by, Grizzly stood up, took his SWEET time and put down the buck he wanted with one shot. Both bucks were on the ground within 80 yards on each other. Incredible! Reminds me of a saying that even a blind pig finds an acorn once in a while.
That evening Jim put his first antelope down as well and it was a nice one.
The next morning we all piled in to the truck to hunt with UD as he was the only one left with a tag. Shortly after arriving in the hunting area he located two bucks in a strip of private land. A plan was hatched to walk the public land on the far side of the bucks and "drive" them through a draw to the public land on the near side where UD would be lying in ambush. Of course we all agreed this was bullet proof and couldn't fail. UD hustled into position. In short order, Grizzley and I determined herding antelope is similar to what I imagine herding cats is like. The bucks didn't get the memo and went up the wrong draw. UD, ever alert and on the ball, foiled the bucks escape by making a great 350 yard shot.
Also found a great looking mulie buck after the hunt.
The rest of the trip was spent relaxing, eating too much really good food, soaking in a hot tub, and absorbing incredible amounts of wisdom from UD and Grizzly's animated conversations. More and more I appreciate truly great hunting partners. They determine whether a trip is successfel, not the size of the animals harvested. Thanks again guys and we will do it again very soon!
