2020 She Said So

[5MilesBack]

You're definitely getting some great weather for the hunt. Now I'm wishing I had put in for my high point 4th season buck tag, but I hate the cold. This year would have been the golden ticket for me. The big bucks are already chasing does pretty hard in my yard. Good luck, and I expect to see pics of a good one on the ground.

 

[Scoot]

Good luck- with an attitude like you expressed in your original post, it's hard not to cheer for ya! I hope a good one follows a doe right in front of you!

 

[Darrin]

Any more updates?

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[prm]

Sounds like you are in my old stomping grounds. I will say deer spend all year in the “wintering grounds”. Find the does, there will be some bucks in the area.

Best of luck to you!

 

[Swampyak]

Good luck

 

[Trypad]

Good luck! Safe travels!

 

[80tx]

Good luck

 

[Voyageur]

Awesome story. Thanks for sharing and keeping us updated.

 

[Gunnersdad49]

First off, your wife sounds like an absolute hero. That kind of support is hard to come by.

It is rut season. I'm finding does are up and feeding at first light, and the bucks are often bedded nearby. If you see some does feeding, get on the glass and absolutely pick apart every shadow and piece of cover until you find that big fella taking a siesta.

Best of luck to you

 

[cacklercrazy]

So here we are.....halfway to Colorado making the most of a bad 2020. After I lost my job of 22 years because of COVID, I told my wife “maybe we shouldn’t take the trip”. She insisted. After we found out our newborn was going to be born with 1 kidney, I told my wife “maybe we shouldn’t take this trip”. She insisted. After an outpatient surgery left me with a 14cm abscess /infection/incision and a 4 month road to recovery, I told my wife “maybe we shouldn’t take this trip”. She insisted.

So here we are, halfway to Colorado on a 4th season mule deer tag with no expectations. A bad 2020 trumped any semblance of hunt preparation. “We are going to be fine,”, my wife insisted. She is right. No matter how bad 2020 could have been, I am blessed to be halfway to Colorado with the love of my life and our 3 littles.

The only plan I have from today on, is to land in the unit just over the front range, set up shop for her and the kids in the Airbnb, go hike with a rifle everyday and go back to them in the evening. God willing, He blesses me with an opportunity to pull the trigger one time.

Good luck to everybody out there still getting after it.


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Good luck and maybe God bless you. Hope 2021 is a better year for you.

 

[CiK01]

Hey everybody! Buck down. 3x3. More to come later.

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[Zdub02]

Heck yeah! congrats on a well deserved buck!

 

[hobbes]

That's awesome!!! Congrats!

 

[prm]

Fantastic! Look forward to the story when you have the time.

 

[Darrin]

Dude that's super awesome. I've been cheering from texas for you. I was telling my wife about your story the other day.

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[eamyrick]

So stoked for you. Great job.

 

[Jgill19]

Hace fun and be safe. Hunt while you can, and enjoy the family when your with them. Got dealt some cards, you and the family will be stronger on the other end.

Just seen you already got one!! well done!

 

[ShakeDown]

Congrats!!

 

[full choke]

Right on!

 

[CiK01]

Heading home heavy.

What a week. Thank you to everybody who commented, sent well wishes and even reached out with advice. Hunting isn’t only about success stories and venison dinners, it’s about sharing and the camaraderie of the love for the outdoors. Thanks for being a part of this tribe.

Lessons Learned This Week
1) Listen to your significant other - when they tell you to go, go. The burden of this year weighed on me and taking this trip seemed so inconsequential compared to all the other things going on. I am thankful she kept telling me to go. God only gives you so many hunting seasons. Take advantage of them while you can.

2). Backup plans work - I came here to glass for mule deer. That was Plan A. Plan B was to glass too. Plan D too, kinda.

3). God provides - We had a hard stop today (Saturday). Punched tag or no punched tag, we needed to be heading home with some of the season still going on. 2 days scouting, 3 days hunting was what I had. As I progressed through the week, content for the experience became a prevailing thought. God’s plan had a little more.

I never found a deer with glass from up high. I tried, morning and evening. Plan C saw me cruising burnt ridges with aspen groves in the valley. I scrounged up 2 bucks doing that.....neither of them ever turned around to look at me as they peaked out on their escape. Someone on here said, “pay attention to where you see deer instead of where they are supposed to be”. Luckily, I marked every deer I saw on my pre-dawn trek into my glassing spots and on my post-dusk march to my family. Plan D became walking drainages with big timber (pine not fir) with mature aspen patched. Finally, some action.

I never thought for a minute that I would drive from Indiana to Colorado to end up still hunting. After busting out wads of deer over and over and over again, I had to slow down. They were seeing me way before I was seeing them. To change that, I resorted to taking 10-15 steps, stopping, using my binoculars to scan the areas in front of me and beyond ridges as the next ridge came into view. I finally started seeing them before they saw me.

This guy never saw me. As days to hunt turned into hours to hunt, I didn’t think I had the luxury to hold out for another. He never saw me and was the only buck to that point to present a shot.

Heading home today.....heavy in the cooler and heavy in the memories.


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