perma
Well-known member
Picked up a pronghorn tag!
Nephew Perma’s 100 Day Challenge
- Thread starter perma
- Start date
perma
Well-known member
!!!!!!!!
Sheltowee
Well-known member
perma
Well-known member
I admit it’s almost unfair how this unfolded, but every hunt has a story. Here we go.
Knowing we (wife and I) had one day to get it done, there was no room for pickiness. In my mind, I was shooting the first buck I saw. We wake up at 3:30 and leave around 4:30 to get to the edge of the unit. The plan was to walk the boundaries to get away from pressure and stay near water. Pretty sure the rutting was over at this point of the year.
We turn west into the unit and are greeted by our first buck. It’s legal shooting light and he’s 200 yards off the road, easy chip shot. My wife and I kept glassing him only to conclude he’s just too small. So anxiety hit a little because I’m passing pronghorn already and don’t know that we’ll see anymore. And we’re low on meat.
We drive a few yards down the road onto a little bump that overlooks a bowl. I tell my wife to start glassing while I get my boots and gaiters on. She’s able to glass four muley does but no bucks. I get up to the bump and glass farther west and I find a buck with three does. I decide that we need to take a closer look.
He was over four folds in the land so we drive to the top of where the folds begin. We walk out and I get a spotter; looks to be a decent buck. I shoulder my rifle and pack and we’re off. Half way down into the bowl we bump a doe and she runs away. Following her is this odd looking buck that had a weird chip on his curve. I glass him and decide that’s the one. He had big mass and seemed tall. That’s the one.
I hit him with the range finder at exactly 300 yards flat. Click to 3 MOA. Breathe in, breathe out. Cli-*boom*, *thwack*. He buckles his knees a bit and takes off.
Here’s where I made it weird. I had thought this gun would have some knockdown power that would make this thing drop, so for it to take off after that I was a bit surprised. I told my wife that I was 100% sure I hit him and heard it, but he didn’t respond like I thought. No smoke puffs from the dirt.
Then, out comes this twin tower looking buck who’s literally taunting me and testing my morals. He was easily taller than the one I just shot and the one I had from last year. I wanted him to run off the hill so if I did in fact miss, I’d make a play on him. He literally pranced around there for 10 more minutes to then I had enough and started pushing him down the bump he was on. It wasn’t 50 yards from the shot where I glassed the hillside where my buck ran to and found him piled up. Twin towers trotted away freely but was later told of his location to a dad and his youth hunter daughter. Hope you guys take him out.
I walk up to him and am all smiles. I do admit though, a touch of guilt. Not only for taking a life which is normal, but how fast it all happened. This tag was only in my pocket for 3 days, physically, a few hours. My guilt is washed away after a closer examination of the entry and exit wounds; a perfect lung pass through. He didn’t suffer and my reloaded ammo did exactly what I envisioned.
I look closer and see that his driver side hook is broken off, his face scarred and his neck gouged from fighting. He was a tough bratty buck and ruled this bowl. Very thrilled to hold off and take this one.
We’re on the board!
Knowing we (wife and I) had one day to get it done, there was no room for pickiness. In my mind, I was shooting the first buck I saw. We wake up at 3:30 and leave around 4:30 to get to the edge of the unit. The plan was to walk the boundaries to get away from pressure and stay near water. Pretty sure the rutting was over at this point of the year.
We turn west into the unit and are greeted by our first buck. It’s legal shooting light and he’s 200 yards off the road, easy chip shot. My wife and I kept glassing him only to conclude he’s just too small. So anxiety hit a little because I’m passing pronghorn already and don’t know that we’ll see anymore. And we’re low on meat.
We drive a few yards down the road onto a little bump that overlooks a bowl. I tell my wife to start glassing while I get my boots and gaiters on. She’s able to glass four muley does but no bucks. I get up to the bump and glass farther west and I find a buck with three does. I decide that we need to take a closer look.
He was over four folds in the land so we drive to the top of where the folds begin. We walk out and I get a spotter; looks to be a decent buck. I shoulder my rifle and pack and we’re off. Half way down into the bowl we bump a doe and she runs away. Following her is this odd looking buck that had a weird chip on his curve. I glass him and decide that’s the one. He had big mass and seemed tall. That’s the one.
I hit him with the range finder at exactly 300 yards flat. Click to 3 MOA. Breathe in, breathe out. Cli-*boom*, *thwack*. He buckles his knees a bit and takes off.
Here’s where I made it weird. I had thought this gun would have some knockdown power that would make this thing drop, so for it to take off after that I was a bit surprised. I told my wife that I was 100% sure I hit him and heard it, but he didn’t respond like I thought. No smoke puffs from the dirt.
Then, out comes this twin tower looking buck who’s literally taunting me and testing my morals. He was easily taller than the one I just shot and the one I had from last year. I wanted him to run off the hill so if I did in fact miss, I’d make a play on him. He literally pranced around there for 10 more minutes to then I had enough and started pushing him down the bump he was on. It wasn’t 50 yards from the shot where I glassed the hillside where my buck ran to and found him piled up. Twin towers trotted away freely but was later told of his location to a dad and his youth hunter daughter. Hope you guys take him out.
I walk up to him and am all smiles. I do admit though, a touch of guilt. Not only for taking a life which is normal, but how fast it all happened. This tag was only in my pocket for 3 days, physically, a few hours. My guilt is washed away after a closer examination of the entry and exit wounds; a perfect lung pass through. He didn’t suffer and my reloaded ammo did exactly what I envisioned.
I look closer and see that his driver side hook is broken off, his face scarred and his neck gouged from fighting. He was a tough bratty buck and ruled this bowl. Very thrilled to hold off and take this one.
We’re on the board!
duckhunt
Well-known member
Very cool buck
perma
Well-known member
Well you can’t have a hunt without something going wrong. Went to go clean the skull. Both my pressure washer and my boiler both decided to call it a life. I can fix the skull boil part but I’ll have to either buy a pressure washer or piss off some residents in town with brain matter going down the local car wash drain.
elk hunting next weekend! Morale is high, boys!
elk hunting next weekend! Morale is high, boys!
Scott85
Well-known member
- Joined
- Nov 22, 2018
- Messages
- 2,981
Congrats!!
perma
Well-known member
!!!!!!!!!
But not what you’d expect….
But
!!!!!!!!!
But not what you’d expect….
But
!!!!!!!!!
Sheltowee
Well-known member
Yeah, what the heck man! I’m betting he finally got the pesky squirrel at the bird feeder. Until he updates us, that’s what my gut is telling me.
Sheltowee
Well-known member
My money is on "smacked a prairie chicken with the front grill of an F-150 on I-80."
perma
Well-known member
No chicken or squirrels were harmed........
Got an elk hunt coming up this weekend in CO. This is the big one, boys. Stay tuned.
Until then, teasers until I can sit down and write a logical story...
Got an elk hunt coming up this weekend in CO. This is the big one, boys. Stay tuned.
Until then, teasers until I can sit down and write a logical story...
perma
Well-known member
Sorry friends, you’re gonna have to wait a bit longer.
The tag I’ve done the most research on is here. CO. LE elk. Bus leaves tomorrow morning. 9 day hunt. All in on red.
The tag I’ve done the most research on is here. CO. LE elk. Bus leaves tomorrow morning. 9 day hunt. All in on red.
perma
Well-known member
Sorry all, I haven't found the words to come up with a story for anything except that I failed to fill the tag. I had some great advice and encouragement from some amazing folks on here and got within stalking distance of a good bull, it just never happened. That marks 13 years for me of elk hunting with nothing to show for it. Extremely upset with myself and borderline appalled that I can't seem to make it happen.
I'll probably end the thread early this year early even though I have a cow hunt and an ID deer hunt. I just really want to focus and finish the season strong rather than focus on the story.
I'll probably end the thread early this year early even though I have a cow hunt and an ID deer hunt. I just really want to focus and finish the season strong rather than focus on the story.
Sheltowee
Well-known member
Hang in there bud. You've got a ton of knowledge, stories and experience to show for it. We're killing one next year, you can bet your retirement on it.
perma
Well-known member
Next year's thread title: Bull or bust
But I can see how that can get taken out of context, so we'll work on that....
ignorethefringes
Well-known member
- Joined
- Sep 19, 2016
- Messages
- 3,012
"Perma: Bull buster"
