R
rwc101
Guest
Between residency status and broken bones this is the first year I have been able to hunt big game out west. I drew three pronghorn tags this year and got to hunt the first today. A doe/fawn tag in a fairly easy to draw unit.
I met an aspiring hunter back in February at @BuzzH butchery class and decided to give her a call to see if she wanted to tag along. She was able to make the trip and we met up at some BLM land last night.
This morning we saw a couple groups of pronghorn (and 9 sage grouse hens).
While the grouse weren't bothered by our presence, the lopes only presented skylined shots that I wasn't comfortable taking. Around mid-morning we found a group consisting of 6 does and a buck bedded down on a hill side. We took a 3/4 mile detour towards some trees to bypass the open scrub sagebrush between us and the pronghorn.
We found a vantage point about 260 yards from the pronghorn where we could set up for a shot. We waited for a standing, broadside shot for about 20 minutes.
Eventually, the group stood up and I took a shot that I'm not proud of, but a quick follow up shot put the doe down. Didn't know it at the time, but a hunter approaching from the west spooked the animals, and I took a poor initial shot. Making the best of the situation, I tried to explain my mistake to my partner and treat it as a learning experience.
After demonstrating the gutless method to the best of my abilities, my new hunting partner dove in and did a great job quartering the doe. She also took the kidneys, liver, and heart home.
I met an aspiring hunter back in February at @BuzzH butchery class and decided to give her a call to see if she wanted to tag along. She was able to make the trip and we met up at some BLM land last night.
This morning we saw a couple groups of pronghorn (and 9 sage grouse hens).
While the grouse weren't bothered by our presence, the lopes only presented skylined shots that I wasn't comfortable taking. Around mid-morning we found a group consisting of 6 does and a buck bedded down on a hill side. We took a 3/4 mile detour towards some trees to bypass the open scrub sagebrush between us and the pronghorn.
We found a vantage point about 260 yards from the pronghorn where we could set up for a shot. We waited for a standing, broadside shot for about 20 minutes.
Eventually, the group stood up and I took a shot that I'm not proud of, but a quick follow up shot put the doe down. Didn't know it at the time, but a hunter approaching from the west spooked the animals, and I took a poor initial shot. Making the best of the situation, I tried to explain my mistake to my partner and treat it as a learning experience.
After demonstrating the gutless method to the best of my abilities, my new hunting partner dove in and did a great job quartering the doe. She also took the kidneys, liver, and heart home.
