Roughin it

[Hilljackoutlaw]

Well we left southeast idaho friday at 2:20pm. Arrived to our buddys hotel at 6:10am saturday in benson, az. He drove out from Pennsylvania. We hit denny's then went to walmart to buy groceries and or tags. Got groceries but no tags. Arizona is still in the tag stoneage and the walmart was out of tags and the the next shipment would not arrive until monday morning at best. So we went to the KOA and filled the home away from home up with water and then went setup camp. After we set camp we started calling around to find a place with deer tags the closest place was an hour away so we saddled up and headed that way. Buying tags my card and buddy from PA cards were declined. His was skimmed and mine was locked for suspicious activity. So a couple 30 to 45 minute phone calls that was straightened out and tags were in hand. By this time it was 2pm so we took the long way home and hit up tombstone to see the sights, eat dinner, and watch some of the Bills game. Back to camp just before dark and just hit the sack early since 3 of us been up since 5am the day before from driving.
Day 1 of hunting was eventful. With morning brought lots of white butts flashing on the hillside with 2 failed stalks on good bucks. Closest anyone got was 90 yards. We stayed out all day and saw several deer even a good tussle between a couple good bucks. As evening approached we spotted 4 doe that stood up around 330pm eventually followed by a small forkie with a cool non typical drop tine. I decided I'd take him given the chance so away 2 of us went. Around 175 yards from him we were busted by a doe and the stalk was over after a long long hike. So we shot up to a knob and sat down and found him again, but also a 3x3 well above him so we tried to go around and cut him off in a saddle and he beat us there producing no opportunity. Dark came and back to camp we went. All in all day 1 was eventful and produced 30-40 deer with a few good bucks in the mix.

Home for the week.
Crystal palace in Tombstone
Loaded truck about to head out at home
After an unsuccessful stalk (phoneskope 1700yds)
Buck

 

[Deleted member 38069]

That's a haul. Glad you made it safely! Nice buck hopefully you see that many deer each day. Did you buy any Doc Holiday gear yet?

 

[Hilljackoutlaw]

No holiday gear yet. I was in a no sleep daze in doc holiday land and didnt think about buying souvenirs.

 

[TheBenHoyle]

Thanks for sharing the hunt. Good luck!

 

[teej89]

awesome stuff! My buddy and I have always been kicking around a hunt down there.

Love the side hacked tennis ball, your pups like, "yo, one last throw".

 

[zpooch]

Good luck man!

 

[Hilljackoutlaw]

Day 2: We rose early and eager. We headed to a glassing spot just above camp and it didnt take long for deer to start appearing. A group of 11 doe just after daylight. We tried hard to put antlers on them with no luck, but as the sun slowly covered more ground a small buck was spotted and another then another decent buck. A buddy an I decided to go up another point to try and get some views of land we couldnt see just above and beyond the deer we were currently glassing. Two other buddies did the same the opposite side of us. As we walked we spotted a good 3x3, spike, and doe just beyond the others. The stalk was on. The 3x3 bedded down and we traversed 1.25 miles and got to 25 yards but he was behind a cactus thing. He finally stood up and took off immediately. No shot. He headed towards our first glassing spot where steve was and he put on a stalk and got busted at 28 yards while he was behind another bush. No shot again. While this was going on ryan missed a decent buck down low at 60 yards. The day carried on with lots more deer sightings a few small bucks here and there and our first coues sighting of the trip a lone doe. Early afternoon 2 buddies stumbled on a big 2x3 chasing a doe and stopped him at 10 yards also producing no shot. On the other side of the hill Ryan was having better luck and hit a big 3x3 that was with a 4x4 and big forkie. He was unsure of the shot so they watched him for a long time as he moved off with the other deer. He eventually laid down noticiably wounded within sight of camp with 4 other deer. We decided to leave him alone as we watched from camp. Spot lighting is legal in arizona so just before bed we shined the light and he was still bedded alive about 1 hour ago. So were hoping to have a deer down in the morning.
Good day 2. I saw 51 deer and 6 buck. In our group we saw 11 buck total.

 

[LCH]

Good luck, hopefully he's there this morning!

 

[teej89]

good luck! Hoping to see some pics!

 

[duckhunt]

Great hunt, good luck.

 

[Hilljackoutlaw]

Day 3: This morning we got up and took advantage of having to wait until daylight for Ryan's wounded buck and slept in until 6:30. Which was nice. The buck was still bedded with the doe at daybreak. He stood up about a half hour later hobbling a little and heading to pass over a small bottom of a finger. So Ryan and I raced up there and the buck managed to squirt between the 40 yards between him and me. The only way to describe how this happened is wth!! Deer spotted us and took off and he was not stiff anymore as he was carrying the mail. Steve raced down a road and up a draw in his truck to get eyes on him and did. By this time he was acting normal and no visible injuries present. He walked around another finger and 3 of us went up that way to find him with no luck, but as we looked we spotted a really good 4x4 biggest buck so far, big forkie, and doe. They seen us but were preoccupied and far enough away they just milled around. So I ran down the road and got in the saddle above them. Meanwhile steve, jason, and brian were just over the hill so we told them to be on the lookout. I got 80 yards from the big buck but was stuck. The 2 point and a doe came up toward the saddle and spotted me but didnt know what to do as ryan was still below. They were jumpy and I got the 2 point to stop I shot aiming high vitals at 65 yards and watched my arrow sail just under him. I did not have time to range him and guessed wrong as he was 73 yards. 60 is usually my max distance, but I got excited and gave it the college try. I have learned in 3 days that shots dont come easy in this wide open terrain so I took the chance. That fiasco ended and I found my arrow and headed back down the hill to regroup with the guys. We put a plan together and went in our groups. On the way to where ryan and i were gonna glass we spotted a good 3x3 and 6 doe. I stayed back and ryan continued up to the glassing spot. I setup and got him at 40 yards with no shot. They headed up the hill and I sat tight because they didn't know I was there. Ryan snuck up the back of the hill and got close but no cigar. The deer crossed a saddle and I had an idea what they would do so I circled them. This led to a 7 mile chase/stalk with me getting inside 50 yards of the buck 4 times with no shots. It was tiring but so much fun. Meanwhile jason got inside 30 yards on a big 4x4 but could not see the deer. Tristan videoed the stalk and was pulling his hair out because jason could not see the deer right in front of him. Jason wanted to pull his hair out after watching the video but he is bald. Later in the day jason and brian put a stalk on two 4x4s, two other bucks, and a bunch of doe. Brian chased them a long ways but never got closer than 80 yards. Steve spent the rest of the day in the blind we setup for him because he is 65 and gets tired of hiking quick. He saw plenty of doe and a spike he passed on. Another day chalk full of deer sightings and action, but also a day closer to tag soup. This has been an absolute blast so far, but it is not easy in the least. The learning curve is steep and riddled with failure in a good way. There is a little frustration in camp but after sitting down for another great dinner the frustration fades away with a few beers as we remember why he hunt together and the camaraderie. Tomorrow we will get up early and head to an area with lots of javalina to take a stab at them and some deer if we happen onto some in the area.
Sorry for the lack of photo pleasure in the thread, but service is not great so I have hard time loading them.

 

[Hilljackoutlaw]

awesome stuff! My buddy and I have always been kicking around a hunt down there.

Love the side hacked tennis ball, your pups like, "yo, one last throw".

Do it you wont regret it! Some pretty neat country and the deer are rutting hard.

 

[Oregon_Ryan]

I used to live near there and thanks for the photos of your hunt and trip to the Crystal Palace. Really brought back some memories.

 

[Hilljackoutlaw]

Day 4: I'm tired as shit will do the recap tomorrow.

 

[Hilljackoutlaw]

Ok so day 4: We traveled to a different spot with javalina, but hunted a deer spot in the morning. I was setup just off a pecan orchard and this was just cruel and unusual punishment. We could shoot any deer outside the pecan orchard fence but not in the orchard. I saw four 4x4s one with extras in the first 30 minutes all 70ish yards away in the orchard harassing doe. Only deer I saw cross out of orchard in range was 3 doe. It was pretty cool to see new country and a couple giant mulies. Afternoon we hit a javalina area, and we couldnt find one to save our butts. We decided to call it quits around 330 and go try out some local grub and on way out we spotted a lone javalina in a huge wheat field of property we can hunt just javalina. We conjured up a plan that kinda worked to perfection but ended with no javalina...let's just say things got pretty western for about 20 minutes and I laughed alot and 2 arrows were lost. After some good local Mexican grub we headed towards camp stopping to chase 6 other javalinas that gave us the slip. With no need to cook dinner we feasted on barley dessert and hit the hay. Side note I should of took my shotgun and dog as we saw 100s of quail while looking for javalina...oh well I know for next time.

 

[Hilljackoutlaw]

Day 5: Today I headed to a spot 15 minutes away that holds coues deer by my lonesome cause nobody wanted to tackle the terrain. It's incredibly rugged country...steep with huge cuts between the fingers with lots of scrub oak and junipers. I didnt leave until light since I was unfamiliar with the area. I finally arrived at my first glassing spot at 9am. Within 10 minutes I spotted deer. They were a long way off but I could side hill my way to them not gaining or losing much elevation. It was a small 4x4 with some doe and a forkie with just one side. I was 97 yards from the 4x4 when I saw a doe coues rise from a bed at 50 yards between me and the 4x4. Then a small forkie coues and 2 (senoran dik diks) I was unable to close on e the mulie so I changed course. The terrain was really steep and I could not move without rocks rolling so I only moved during wind gusts. At 50 yards I shot hit a limb and the small coues snorted a bunch and all the deer including the mulies bolted. Frustrated but loads of fun.i glasses until dark seeing a few more mulies out of stalk distanc. The other guys saw multiple bucks with few big guys but had no luck. Jason got a javalina and brian hit and lost one. Great day with a great chance it just wasn't meant to be. We cooked a massive feast for dinner including javalina back strap and hit the hay.

 

[Hilljackoutlaw]

 

[Hilljackoutlaw]

Day 6: My last quick glassing spot on my way back to camp on day 5 produced a big 3x3 and 7 doe just over a finger by camp. So in the morning Jason and I headed up to a spot to glass where I saw them the night before. No dice, so we decided to just work finger to finger glassing until we spot some. Over top of next finger and sure enough the 3x3 is there across a cut about 400 yards. We were glassing and game planning when jason snuck just down the hill to take a leek. And spotted another deer a ways off in the opposite direction. This was a 4x4 bedded. At this time its 830am and we decided to go for the 4x4, but we had to wait for the 3x3 and doe to move over top of a saddle. That never happened as the 3x3 and doe bedded down. So at 930am I grew impatient and told Jason i would take the long way around to try and stalk the 4x4. So back to the bottom of the mountain I went almost back to camp and around the face and back up to the top above the buck. 1.87 mile trip not super long but it could of been a 1/4 mile trip the other way. What fun is that tho.
So 930am turned into 1030am then 1130am then noon. Finally at roughly 12:15pm I respotted the buck bedded about 15 yards from where he was when I took off after him. He was 30 yards away from me. Now the stalemate began I waited 45 minutes and he never stood up. I started trying to get different angles on him and eventually was 12 yards from him in his bed. If you look in the center of the picture u can see his antlers sticking up. U see what I see at 12 yards.

 

[teej89]

wait is there an extension to this story?!

 

[Hilljackoutlaw]

Day 6 continued: As I stood 12 yards from the deer i finally slipped on some loose gravel. Deer jumped up and took off like a rocket. Frustration immediately set in, how could I screw up this stalk that took over 4 hours and put me 12 yards away. As the deer bounded away I watched and he just stopped. 25 yards and my FMJ exploded his front shoulder. Not an ideal hit, but completely shattered his leg and shoulder. He kinda run and stands at 60 yards. I shoot again and miss. He takes off again as best he can. I get back up to him and he cant really use his front legs, but mustered enough to get a nice bluff charge on me. 20 yards I nock an arrow to finish him quickly and hit a branch and miss again...are you kidding me me?!!? Meanwhile Jason is on the hill watching this whole thing go down laughing at me chasing a deer and getting charged. I wave him down and borrow an FMJ from him as I was out of arrows... I nock up again and move closer to make sure everything is clear for shot and he charged us again! Finally at 7 yards I sent it thru his heart and the old warrior perished. The old buck had many scars on him the coolest being below his eye. He was very grey and weak with not much for teeth. He recently had his butt whooped and was gored by another buck it looked like and had an infection in his one front leg and shoulder. When I get an age on him I'll post it. I posted a team pic of our group as this hunt was 100% a team effort and we worked hard all week to get a buck down. Without Jason signally me on my long stalk I never would of succeeded.