sn.outdoors
Well-known member
I'm new to forum as a member, but I've been stalking and getting info from this forum for years. I finally decided it was time to get an account and share my knowledge and experience with you guys. I look forward to many fun and helpful interactions with all of you.
I couldn't be more happy with my first mule deer. I'm glad I held out for a nicer buck. Quite a few smaller legal bucks tempted me, and I caught some grief and jabbing from my hunting buddies. Having been in NM for over 3 years, I knew there could be a big buck behind any one of the sand dunes out there.
Day one was mildly successful. We saw a young whitetail that tempted me quite a lot, but he was too young and I've shot several his size already. We got rained on and spotted 3 legal muleys in the morning. We relocated for the afternoon hunt, but about an hour into it we got hit with a substantial thunderstorm. I'll post a pic of my soaking wet self sometime soon. We didn't quit right away... We waited for the hail, lightning, and 40mph winds before we realized we're not invincible.
This is one of only a dozen or so trees in the area. Naturally the deer were drawn to it. I think we saw a dozen deer within 500yds of THE tree.
Glassing was pretty unnecessary in the rain. You either saw them with the naked eye or they weren't there.
It rained a lot the first day. It reminded me of the long, cold, wet days I spent going through training, which is why you see the smile on my face. I always enjoy the suck. I think it's what separates the boys from the men, the weak from the tough, and the smart from the stubborn.
Day two we walked more than 5 miles, crossing over hundreds of sand dunes, before my buddy spotted the stick that did not look like the others. He was only a little over 100yds away so I glassed him through my scope set at 4 power. All I could see was the deep fork on his right side. I knew immediately he was a buck I'd be happy to take.
I laid prone, looked back at my buddy, and settled the crosshair on his neck. I closed my eyes and exhaled. When I opened my eyes, the crosshair was exactly where I wanted it to be so I executed the trigger squeeze. The bullet hit exactly where I intended, and the buck barely flinched. He was dead.
It all happened in less than 30 seconds. I honestly thought he was a 3 yr old 4x4, nothing special. I hadn't really taken a good look at his rack. I thought he was my minimum standard for the trip. As we got closer the buck flinched a little and I saw his rack was as tall as the oak scrub we were walking through. I said to my buddy, "I think he's a little better than I thought." Sure enough he was.
This is almost exactly how he was laying when I shot him. The only difference was his head was on the ground to the right a little. It amazes me how these deer lay like dogs with their heads on the ground.
It was a long hike out. 4.2 miles and we did it in 2hrs.
He's not the highest scoring deer out there at around 155", but with his age multiplier he's a Booner in my book.
And yes, I love his mass...
My buddy was able to get 19 seconds of the encounter on his iPhone, and I was able to turn it into this video. [video=youtube;02hsKbiI7hY]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=02hsKbiI7hY[/video]
I couldn't be more happy with my first mule deer. I'm glad I held out for a nicer buck. Quite a few smaller legal bucks tempted me, and I caught some grief and jabbing from my hunting buddies. Having been in NM for over 3 years, I knew there could be a big buck behind any one of the sand dunes out there.
Day one was mildly successful. We saw a young whitetail that tempted me quite a lot, but he was too young and I've shot several his size already. We got rained on and spotted 3 legal muleys in the morning. We relocated for the afternoon hunt, but about an hour into it we got hit with a substantial thunderstorm. I'll post a pic of my soaking wet self sometime soon. We didn't quit right away... We waited for the hail, lightning, and 40mph winds before we realized we're not invincible.
This is one of only a dozen or so trees in the area. Naturally the deer were drawn to it. I think we saw a dozen deer within 500yds of THE tree.
Glassing was pretty unnecessary in the rain. You either saw them with the naked eye or they weren't there.
It rained a lot the first day. It reminded me of the long, cold, wet days I spent going through training, which is why you see the smile on my face. I always enjoy the suck. I think it's what separates the boys from the men, the weak from the tough, and the smart from the stubborn.
Day two we walked more than 5 miles, crossing over hundreds of sand dunes, before my buddy spotted the stick that did not look like the others. He was only a little over 100yds away so I glassed him through my scope set at 4 power. All I could see was the deep fork on his right side. I knew immediately he was a buck I'd be happy to take.
I laid prone, looked back at my buddy, and settled the crosshair on his neck. I closed my eyes and exhaled. When I opened my eyes, the crosshair was exactly where I wanted it to be so I executed the trigger squeeze. The bullet hit exactly where I intended, and the buck barely flinched. He was dead.
It all happened in less than 30 seconds. I honestly thought he was a 3 yr old 4x4, nothing special. I hadn't really taken a good look at his rack. I thought he was my minimum standard for the trip. As we got closer the buck flinched a little and I saw his rack was as tall as the oak scrub we were walking through. I said to my buddy, "I think he's a little better than I thought." Sure enough he was.
This is almost exactly how he was laying when I shot him. The only difference was his head was on the ground to the right a little. It amazes me how these deer lay like dogs with their heads on the ground.
It was a long hike out. 4.2 miles and we did it in 2hrs.
He's not the highest scoring deer out there at around 155", but with his age multiplier he's a Booner in my book.
And yes, I love his mass...
My buddy was able to get 19 seconds of the encounter on his iPhone, and I was able to turn it into this video. [video=youtube;02hsKbiI7hY]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=02hsKbiI7hY[/video]
