el unit
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Good hunt. Thanks for sharing it.
2017 Nevada Mule Deer Hunt (w/ Pack Goats)
- Thread starter Duck-Slayer
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duckhunt
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Enjoyed following
Duck-Slayer
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I'm getting to this late. Been a busy Sept. and early Oct. figure I would start the 2nd part of this NV hunt. I decided to for go my normal Idaho Archery Mule Deer hunt and make the trek back to NV and see if I can find one of those elusive bucks. I left on August 28th and I was headed south on HWY 95 for what turned out to be a hunt that would test my determination, ethics, and will power.
Matt
Matt
Duck-Slayer
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Duck-Slayer
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I rolled into the hunting unit around 4:30pm its was a stifling 101 degrees when I was pulling into my new friend Rebel's home near Winnemucca, NV. It was good to see him and reminisce about the last trip, this time when I arrived his brother from New Mexico had come up to hunt for a few days, he also had the tag, we were going to try and fill all 3 tags. I had 7 days to get it done.
I relaxed for a few hours and let the sun start to get close to the western horizon before I decided to go out and start looking for a camping spot to spike camp out from. Did not spot any bucks that evening but got a good shot of the moon and smoke in the valley right after sunset. I knew this was going to me a tuff hunt and this trip did not disappoint in that area....
Matt
I relaxed for a few hours and let the sun start to get close to the western horizon before I decided to go out and start looking for a camping spot to spike camp out from. Did not spot any bucks that evening but got a good shot of the moon and smoke in the valley right after sunset. I knew this was going to me a tuff hunt and this trip did not disappoint in that area....
Matt
Duck-Slayer
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Found a great camp spot under a couple tree's, which in this country is pretty rare unless your way up high, even then they are small tree's. It was fairly brisk when I woke up at 5:30 for the 29th of Aug. I was sleeping in the back end of the pickup which was a nice change from the back seat and out on all the rocks like the previous trip here. The really nice thing is that I did not have to get up to get the coffee pot going, presetup everything before I went to bed, so all I had to do is roll over and fire up my MSR pocket rocket and wallah coffee was going. Gotta have the morning coffee! After a great cup of Joe I took a short ride on the wheeler up the rocky steep trail to where I was parking a packing in for the day. First glassing position was a small basin about 45 min. walk from trail, this basin did not hold any deer this morning, so I continued down the spine of the ridge and climbed over the next saddle to a very large basin. I had not yet glassed this basin, did not make it over this far the last trip I was here. I glassed this basin all morning and I was turning up deer after deer with no problem, the only thing was that they were all slick head Doe's and fawn's. I estimated over 30 deer and no bucks...... It was around 1:30 in the afternoon or so that I got up from my glassing position to use the restroom, well as I was standing there I just happened to look at the rock cliffs about 300 yards away and straight down wind. And by my surprise there was a buck standing on the sky line looking at me! I think, I said to myself "well hello there". Finished the business and walked slowly back over to the spotting scope and got to looking, there was 3 bucks there. The one looking at me was a small hard horned 3 point, another hard horned 2 point, and a very impressive 2x3 in full velvet. The 2x3 was 22"-24" tall only about 6" wide, he went straight up, crazy heavy looking deer, he would have been a huge 2 pt. if it wasn't from a 2" 3rd on his driver's side. I decided right then and there that's a buck I want to shoot. I have a slight 2pt. and velvet addiction......
Matt
Matt
Duck-Slayer
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Pic of the small 3 pt. standing looking at me from the rocks they were bedded in.
Matt
Matt
Duck-Slayer
Well-known member
After close examination of the area I had decided that there were those 3 bucks and that was it. Watch the spike and small 3x3 feed around for a bit and change beds. The big 2x3 never stood up or even knew that I was around, he had a perfect spot in the shade of the rocks and was sound asleep.
The Wind was blowing probably 20+mph straight at them, this would mean that I would have to circle way around and over the top to get the wind right. On top of that I had to walk 1/2 mile straight away from the bucks to another saddle out of view so that I could begin my stalk without them seeing me. The terrain in the area I was, is very steep with lots of rockslides and cliffy area's. So it took a bit to get around to where I wanted to go up and over the rock summit they were bedded on. I paused for a good 10 min. to catch my breath, this country is no joke steep!, I thought I was in half way good shape, but no, not so much. I did quite a bit of huffing and puffing on this hunt. Back to the action, once I hit that 100 yard mark I slowed way down picked the spot's I wanted to step(non loose rocks and big enough for half my boot to go onto). I always watch 10 yards in front of me so that way i'm not guessing where to step next. Well one of those times that I looked ahead to see where I wanted to go and bedded looking straight at me is the small 3 pt., all I was thinking in my head was crap, I messed up, should have knocked an arrow 25 yards back and clipped my release on. So I froze, the spike was standing there looking away but when the other buck was looking up at me alerted well the spike saw me skylined. All I was thinking to myself was just keep still, don't move, they will lose interest..... Nope, the small 3 pt. stood and they both walked from straight in front of me and moved to the left out of sight, not spooked, just a fast walk. At the same time I knocked an arrow and clipped my release on, I already had my Montana black gold ascent slider locked in at 30 yards. As I was knocking an arrow and following the 2 deer to the left I saw the horns of the tall 2x3 still bedded on the other side of the rock right where I left him he was at 12 yards. He was still sleeping I believe, as the two other deer walked down the hill and made the knocking noise as there hooves hit the rocks they were walking on. I watched the buck look around than he started to stand, for some reason I kinda froze, not sure why. I should have been at full draw already, but no I hesitated and didn't start to draw until he was almost all the way standing and of coarse he caught the movement and immediately bolted down the hill and the other 2 bucks followed. I instantly grabbed my range finder, talking to myself saying there going to stop, be ready. And yes they stopped, quick range 56 yards. A simple dial of the sight and I was a full draw, Had that dang pesky wind that was quartering into me...... And that darn small 3 pt. was standing in font but slightly to the R. of the 2x3, crap..... Oh well I'm not much on horn's anyway or a trophy hunter, so I put it about 2 ft. too the left or in front of him and release, watched that arrow zip right through him with that DirtNapGear broadhead leading the way. (This was all on my FaceBook page as it happened). All he did was kinda trot off too the R.(east) and out of sight. As he was trotting I saw the exit hole, blood coming out but to me it looked fairly high, like I should have spinned him. He definitely wasn't feeling good.
After this I headed down to where the buck was standing, took a bit too find the arrow in all the rocks but I found it. Too my surprise there was not much blood at all on it, some small specks, mostly hair and fat.
So I went over to the spine of the ridge that he disappeared over, nothing in sight. Didn't find much blood. Here's a quick little vid of what I found.
The Wind was blowing probably 20+mph straight at them, this would mean that I would have to circle way around and over the top to get the wind right. On top of that I had to walk 1/2 mile straight away from the bucks to another saddle out of view so that I could begin my stalk without them seeing me. The terrain in the area I was, is very steep with lots of rockslides and cliffy area's. So it took a bit to get around to where I wanted to go up and over the rock summit they were bedded on. I paused for a good 10 min. to catch my breath, this country is no joke steep!, I thought I was in half way good shape, but no, not so much. I did quite a bit of huffing and puffing on this hunt. Back to the action, once I hit that 100 yard mark I slowed way down picked the spot's I wanted to step(non loose rocks and big enough for half my boot to go onto). I always watch 10 yards in front of me so that way i'm not guessing where to step next. Well one of those times that I looked ahead to see where I wanted to go and bedded looking straight at me is the small 3 pt., all I was thinking in my head was crap, I messed up, should have knocked an arrow 25 yards back and clipped my release on. So I froze, the spike was standing there looking away but when the other buck was looking up at me alerted well the spike saw me skylined. All I was thinking to myself was just keep still, don't move, they will lose interest..... Nope, the small 3 pt. stood and they both walked from straight in front of me and moved to the left out of sight, not spooked, just a fast walk. At the same time I knocked an arrow and clipped my release on, I already had my Montana black gold ascent slider locked in at 30 yards. As I was knocking an arrow and following the 2 deer to the left I saw the horns of the tall 2x3 still bedded on the other side of the rock right where I left him he was at 12 yards. He was still sleeping I believe, as the two other deer walked down the hill and made the knocking noise as there hooves hit the rocks they were walking on. I watched the buck look around than he started to stand, for some reason I kinda froze, not sure why. I should have been at full draw already, but no I hesitated and didn't start to draw until he was almost all the way standing and of coarse he caught the movement and immediately bolted down the hill and the other 2 bucks followed. I instantly grabbed my range finder, talking to myself saying there going to stop, be ready. And yes they stopped, quick range 56 yards. A simple dial of the sight and I was a full draw, Had that dang pesky wind that was quartering into me...... And that darn small 3 pt. was standing in font but slightly to the R. of the 2x3, crap..... Oh well I'm not much on horn's anyway or a trophy hunter, so I put it about 2 ft. too the left or in front of him and release, watched that arrow zip right through him with that DirtNapGear broadhead leading the way. (This was all on my FaceBook page as it happened). All he did was kinda trot off too the R.(east) and out of sight. As he was trotting I saw the exit hole, blood coming out but to me it looked fairly high, like I should have spinned him. He definitely wasn't feeling good.
After this I headed down to where the buck was standing, took a bit too find the arrow in all the rocks but I found it. Too my surprise there was not much blood at all on it, some small specks, mostly hair and fat.
So I went over to the spine of the ridge that he disappeared over, nothing in sight. Didn't find much blood. Here's a quick little vid of what I found.
Duck-Slayer
Well-known member
WILL NOT LOAD OFF MY PHONE.
Matt
Matt
Duck-Slayer
Well-known member
Can't get the 11 second clip to load.... Well the rest of this story does not go how I wished it would have.... Long story short I looked for this deer for 2 1/2 days, lots of coyotes and lion's in this area from what I hear, and I saw roughly 5 coyotes a day every day for 13 days..... I concluded that I hit just above the lungs and just below the spine, bled for maybe 50 yards and stopped, tracked another 200 yards, never saw hide nor hair of the buck or crow's/magpie's on a dead animal in the 3 basin's that I was searching for him in. I also never saw that group of deer the following 4 days after the 2 1/2 days of grid searching. You all have your thoughts and opinion's on what I should have done, I made the conclusion that it was a non lethal hit and after the 2 1/2 days of searching I decided he was still alive and that I should keep hunting, yes I felt bad for that deer, he may or not make it through the winter or even the rifle season. But I did what (I) and only (I) thought was right. This is my opinion......
Matt
Matt
Duck-Slayer
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@RookieSeason
Matt
Matt
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