2024 Blacktail bucks

[repins05]

This is my first harvest of any kind in terms of big game. Started hunting last year after a life of fishing,but wanting to hunt since early Childhood. Did a ton of research (including on here) and pestered my two buddies who hunt a lot with question even during off season. Bought myself a rifle and gear. Lots of glassing and hiking and learning. Just seeing animals and sign and the country makes my day. I love the hunt. Especially in the coast range.

The goal was a forked horn or better for my first blacktail so when I glassed this guy up in a steep bottom between a thin stand of trees, I didn’t hesitate to set my pack up on a stump and fling a bullet at him. What an absolute incredible moment. I’ve started late (30 years old) but I think
Ive Lost a lot of my salmon fishing days in the fall from now on. Thanks to my goody buddy who went way out of his way to come help
With my first time cutting up and packing out, as well as getting photos.

View attachment 782989

Good job! Glad to hear you are a self starter and followed through with it.

 

[Taudisio]

My pops bought a non-res tag to come up and hunt with me. We passed a bunch of spikes, haven’t seen any forkys since last week. We saw a monster 4 on some private timber with no public access. Then found a funky bladed 3x3 dogging a doe hard. Tried to sneak in close, he shot it at 20-25 yards because they bedded right where they entered the trees. Dad wants to get a shoulder mount done for his first true Columbian blacktail. Pretty good time in the woods yesterday.

 

[roosiebull]

My pops bought a non-res tag to come up and hunt with me. We passed a bunch of spikes, haven’t seen any forkys since last week. We saw a monster 4 on some private timber with no public access. Then found a funky bladed 3x3 dogging a doe hard. Tried to sneak in close, he shot it at 20-25 yards because they bedded right where they entered the trees. Dad wants to get a shoulder mount done for his first true Columbian blacktail. Pretty good time in the woods yesterday. View attachment 783154

He absolutely should shoulder mount it, all blacktail are pretty as it is, and that’s a cool buck

I have a hard time not shoulder mounting all of them, they are all pretty this time of year. One of the coolest critters there are… especially the funky ones

Love this time of year, probably the most enjoyable time to hunt all year for me, it’s so satisfying seeing bucks

 

[repins05]

Same here. I prefer the OR BT season because of the length of the season and the change of seasons. I feel like I can enjoy hunting and can always get away from areas that are pressured. Would I rather take a Bull Elk.....yes......but hard to enjoy 4 days of 1st season combat hunting.

Black Tail is the hunt I most enjoy.

 

[Northwest_stillwater]

Careful, blacktail are addicting. It is a slippery slope once you get a taste. Congrats

this is true. more so than i thought it would be. i thought the Roosevelt hunting would be my hyper focus area but i absolutely love chasing blacktails so far. cant wait for more!

 

[Northwest_stillwater]

Same here. I prefer the OR BT season because of the length of the season and the change of seasons. I feel like I can enjoy hunting and can always get away from areas that are pressured. Would I rather take a Bull Elk.....yes......but hard to enjoy 4 days of 1st season combat hunting.

Black Tail is the hunt I most enjoy.

length of season and being able to hike away from crowds very much factors into why i have enjoyed it so far.

i hunted west cascade for elk last year which was out of my element (my first season as well) this year will be my first on the coast. interested to see exactly how packed it is compared to popular deer areas. i've heard horror stories! hoping to check my first bull off the list eventually. much easier said than done of course

 

[Drewdog10]

First buck ever at 17!

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[repins05]

First buck ever at 17!

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Nice buck! That is quite a wound channel....

 

[TripleJ]

Had a really good buck slip away from me this morning, 1st good one I have seen all year. Glassed him up at first light standing right below a little ridge staring at a few does below him. I ranged him at right about 400 yards, and I was going to start setting up for a shot but realized upon further review that he had a little doug fir sapling in front of him, blocking off his vitals. I gambled he would stay in the same general area and tried to work into a better position for a shot, but he had disappeared when I got to my planned shooting point. Couldn't turn him up again but I sure tried. Don't know much about his rack except that his frame was tall and wide, definitely a bigger frame then the 4x4 I killed in the same clearcut last year. At least they are starting to get a little rutty on the southeast side of the valley, they tend to rut a little later over here.

 

[Taudisio]

Had a really good buck slip away from me this morning, 1st good one I have seen all year. Glassed him up at first light standing right below a little ridge staring at a few does below him. I ranged him at right about 400 yards, and I was going to start setting up for a shot but realized upon further review that he had a little doug fir sapling in front of him, blocking off his vitals. I gambled he would stay in the same general area and tried to work into a better position for a shot, but he had disappeared when I got to my planned shooting point. Couldn't turn him up again but I sure tried. Don't know much about his rack except that his frame was tall and wide, definitely a bigger frame then the 4x4 I killed in the same clearcut last year. At least they are starting to get a little rutty on the southeast side of the valley, they tend to rut a little later over here.

They seem really hit or miss. Still finding a ton of does without bucks. I’m hoping this high snow we got last night and the weather hitting the rest of the week is going to turn them on hard. I took the rest of the week off after work today. Going after them as much as possible.

 

[roosiebull]

Had to bring the pup for a trip up the hill. She showed me that I had walked by 5 times only 10 yards below me.
Glad she found it, first time I haven’t found a buck after the shot.

That’s a dandy!! I bet the stress of not finding it was rough, I have passsd bucks across canyon in those really overgrown cuts in the past out of fear of not finding it. Not a huge deal with 2 people, but solo it can be.

One was a beautiful heavy horned stud, 240yds, it was in one of the few small openings over there and I knew I wouldn’t be able to find it from the other side… it was really hard to not kill that deer

I have played “where’s my buck” enough in easy places to find them, knowing they were dead for sure.

 

[Drewdog10]

Nice buck! That is quite a wound channel....

Grazing a 300 WM 200 grain bullet will do that I found


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[MatukaJoe]

Finally got the pics of my buck's wound from another hunter uploaded by my buddy. Anyone else ever shoot a wounded buck? This was my first and he didn't show it at all. Still so glad I decided to take him when we saw this.

 

[Steve300xcw]

I bet he'da been fine...tough animals

 

[Blueman75]

Missed a dandy today. Found him back in August and I’ve been looking for him all season. He finally showed up this morning and I managed to miss him at 170 yards. I think buck fever got the best of me. Heartbroken….but back at it tomorrow morning.

 

[Steve300xcw]

Missed a dandy today. Found him back in August and I’ve been looking for him all season. He finally showed up this morning and I managed to miss him at 170 yards. I think buck fever got the best of me. Heartbroken….but back at it tomorrow morning.

Had one a while back. Absolute bruiser buck at just under 200yrds. I'm sitting with a big log for a rest. Absolute gimmee shot. And then the other bruiser buck walked into the scope as well........Things went to hell after that

 

[NWBLKTAIL]

That’s a dandy!! I bet the stress of not finding it was rough, I have passsd bucks across canyon in those really overgrown cuts in the past out of fear of not finding it. Not a huge deal with 2 people, but solo it can be.

One was a beautiful heavy horned stud, 240yds, it was in one of the few small openings over there and I knew I wouldn’t be able to find it from the other side… it was really hard to not kill that deer

I have played “where’s my buck” enough in easy places to find them, knowing they were dead for sure.

Thank you! Yes I was blown away I had walked by him so many times. Actually had my father in law with me, he couldn’t believe where we found him.

This cut if a stepped back actually isn’t to thick compared to a few I have just had to walk by for the reasons you are talking about. Some places you just have to walk by and act like they don’t exist even though you know a bucks gonna show up.

 

[slvrslngr]

Had to bring the pup for a trip up the hill. She showed me that I had walked by 5 times only 10 yards below me.
Glad she found it, first time I haven’t found a buck after the shot.

Good job to your pup! My girl found a buck for me a couple weeks ago.

 

[Steve300xcw]

. Some places you just have to walk by and act like they don’t exist even though you know a bucks gonna show up.

I gotta couple canyons like that. Badass country, but to hell with getting a buck up outta there

 

[NWBLKTAIL]

Good job to your pup! My girl found a buck for me a couple weeks ago.

Thank you she got lots of praise, she was a happy pup