backcountry mule deer hunt in pics

[mtwarden]

Four days, 30-ish miles (and ton of vert), passed on a nice buck, saw some very wild country- great hunt!

 

[Newtosavage]

Damn that's beautiful country. Tough too! Good for you!

 

[Tick]

Great pics

 

[Fatcamp]

That looked to be a solid buck.

 

[SDHNTR]

Ida shot that buck in a heartbeat!

 

[N2TRKYS]

I’d put that buck on my wall. Beautiful place.

 

[jpmulk]

Ya, another vote for i woulda shot that buck

 

[mxgsfmdpx]

Great photos as always. Thanks for sharing.

 

[Bubblehide]

OMG, I didn't know you were hunting the Sierra's,

 

[Ucsdryder]

What the hell were you looking for? Lol!

 

[woods89]

Gorgeous country. Looks like good times!

 

[Nickofthewoods]

Man, beautiful! Thanks for sharing.

 

[PNWGATOR]

Always enjoy your posts!

 

[fwafwow]

Four days, 30-ish miles (and ton of vert), passed on a nice buck, saw some very wild country- great hunt!

Wow. I’m blown away.

 

[slick]

Looks like a good time. Thanks for sharing.


Curious, why did you pass? Have seen bigger in there? Had a bigger buck scouted? Didn’t want to pack it out? Early in the hunt and the weather was hot?

 

[manitou1]

Four days, 30-ish miles (and ton of vert), passed on a nice buck, saw some very wild country- great hunt!

If you passed on that buck in the picture, well... I hate you. Just so ya know!
Great pics as usual MTW.

 

[mtnwrunner]

Another vote for shooting that buck!
But PNWGATOR wouldn't have let me.

Great pics.

Randy

 

[mtwarden]

Thanks Gents!

On the buck It was my buddy who had the permit. We saw the buck from about 400 yards, he was getting his rifle ready and it slipped out of sight into a patch of timber. We spent another hour continuing to glass figuring he might come out in one of the openings- he didn't. When we glassed him he was high on the ridge near a notch and we figured he may have slipped out of this basin into the next. We decided to see if that was the case and slowly made our way to the notch- it was a rock chute straight down into more rock, so we were confident he didn't go down and was still in the patch of timber. We decided to back out and wait him out until evening (plenty of other country to glass in the meantime). As we were backing out we saw him, he saw us- 39 yards! He was locked on us and I'm not kidding, but we whispered for nearly five minutes on taking him or not, he never even flinched. Finally my buddy said he was going to pass and almost like he knew he turned and sauntered off.

I told him I would have taken that buck ( it would have been my biggest), but he's killed three or four in that general range (he hunts other states in addition to his home state of Montana) and was going to hold out for something a bit bigger.

Where we were at definitely figured in too. It was two miles back to our camp including a very (very) sketchy steep chute to get down to it. From camp another 7-8 miles to the trailhead- a good chunk of it off-trail through some really rough stuff.

Now did I breathe a slight sigh of relief when he said he was passing? Yes I did

We hunted two more days in a couple of other really nice basins- saw deer, elk, goats, but no other good bucks.

He's heading for California for a week (to hunt with his Dad), but we've already started making plans for a return to that area as we've found a few more basins worth exploring

OMG, I didn't know you were hunting the Sierra's,

 

[ChrisAU]

Man those pics are awesome.

Tent arrangement tells me someone snores

Haha love threads like this, really gets the excitement up for the fall!

 

[Bubblehide]

Thanks Gents!

...

He's heading for California for a week (to hunt with his Dad), but we've already started making plans for a return to that area as we've found a few more basins worth exploring



Bubblehide said:


OMG, I didn't know you were hunting the Sierra's,

The irony!

Actually we, as in Ca, have some dandy bucks.