Idaho Unit 11

[wowzers]

I have never hunted mule deer before but drew an early unit eleven tag. I'm wonder how the best way to hunt would be, come in high and glass or float the salmon and snake with my raft and pull over periodically to glass? I'm basically looking at having nine days to hunt. Would you hit it first off or wait towards the last part of the season? Thanks for the input.

 

[Rizzy]

I your going to backpack hunt, I would go early and high. If your going to float, I would go late. It looks like the season closes before the rut, but still close enough that it might be good. I can't help much, I've never hunted that hunt

 

[wowzers]

I got this guy late Saturday evening. Got a late start that day so I hadn't gotten hiked in and camp set up till about two o'clock. I was glassing some flats from a main ridge when I spotted a group feeding on this hillside about a mile away. Made my way down to the next terrain break and set up the spotting scope to see a bedded down buck. I couldn't really get a good look at the buck due to shadows and brush, so I slipped in a little closer to see if he was worth shooting.

Turns out he was pretty a pretty small three point with just crab claws for forks. Not exactly what I was after. By the time I had gotten down and set up he was up milling around chasing this one doe. Without much day light left I decided to just watch tis group till dark and slip back to my tent. About a half hour goes by when I notice movement to my left and a considerably bigger buck was nose down headed right for this group. I had just enough time to take a quick glance with my binos and saw he was just three on one side with a really long back tine, not even really getting a good look at his other side. When I drew this tag I was really hoping for a four point but looking at that long back tine and knowing I had only two more days to hunt decided he was something I was interested in.

Since I first decided the smaller buck wasn't a shooter I hadn't even chambered a round in my rifle yet. So here I am fifty yards away from this buck with an empty gun. Lucky for me he had one thing on his mind and screamed past me to the group. I somehow managed to chamber a round and roll over on to my day pack lid just as he hit the group about two hundred yards away . Seconds later he turned broadside and I touched off my ultra mag. I watched him hunch up and then he folded.

That was where all the fun ended. I spent the next five hours skinning, quartering, deboning, and moving him up to the main ridge. Got back to my tent at about 10:30 and was up packing him back to my pickup at five thirty. I started out with all of him in my pack and that lasted about five hundred yards. So I dropped the two front quarters and head and packed the boned out back quarters, back straps, neck meat and any trim and made the four mile up hill journey. One more trip and I had the rest of him and my camp back to the pickup by 1:30. I tell you this pack out removed any delusions of grandeur I was having about packing an elk out this canyon by myself. I would love to go back and hunt elk there but only if I have someone to share the misery with, or a mule.

I have been going down to this area scouting since the beginning of September and this was about a perfect end to my season.

 

[2rocky]

Now you know why it is called HELLS CANYON...

That is a good buck for that area. See any Sheep?

 

[Craig Van Arsdale]

Nice buck! Congrats !

 

[robby denning]

great job, nice buck & country

 

[HellsCanyon]

Too funny.... that last picture you posted, we pulled a 155" buck off that flat a few years back! not an easy place to pack out of that's for sure!

Mike

 

[H'n'F]

Great Buck the hard way!

 

[wowzers]

Thanks everyone, it was a great capstone to my season. I had glassed some nice four points early towards the end of September, but this guy is more than enough for my first mulie.

 

[wowzers]

Mike,
I was about half way between the old piece of farm equipment and the roof aying on the ground if you know what I'm talking about.

Preston

 

[HellsCanyon]

Mike,
I was about half way between the old piece of farm equipment and the roof aying on the ground if you know what I'm talking about.

Preston

We were down by that "roof" when my buddy dropped his buck if I remember correctly, it's been 4-5 years! There's a nice Schrade knife laying down there somewhere...

Mike

 

[Muledeerhunter]

That'll work, nice job.

 

[tttoadman]

I love this story. Great hunt.

 

[InDeep]

Nice buck congrats!!