Quickest hunt

Joined
Aug 18, 2015
Messages
1,465
Location
Harrisburg, Oregon
Opening day, Oregon Cascade rifle bull elk. Mt. Washington Wilderness Area hunting with my brother. Hike back in the dark. Just after first light we’re sneaking around a thicket to look into a meadow. Two bulls, both 4x4, are standing in the open about 90 yards away, broadside. I shoot the one on the right, by brother takes the one on the left.

FYI, the historical success rate for the area was 9-11%.

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Not a bad morning.




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Joined
Aug 18, 2015
Messages
1,465
Location
Harrisburg, Oregon
A neat part of the story, the knife my brother is holding was a present from me. Gerber 950 fixed blade, my favorite knife for breaking down elk. When I gave it to my brother he swore not to use it until he could use it on a bull. It took a few years but he finally got to get it bloody.




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GSPHUNTER

WKR
Joined
Jun 30, 2020
Messages
4,564
When to central Cal. on a pig hunt, which was scheduled for Sat. and Sun. I meet the guide about 4 PM and he wanted to go out and do a little scouting and see if pigs were still hanging out in some winter cabbage. We got there about 5:30 Friday eve. and there they were, he said if you want a fast hunt, go ahead and shoot the one of your choice. I picked out a 125# wet sow and put her down. He let me shoot the wet sow because the piglets were big enough to be on their own. Dressed and hanging by 7 PM Friday. Took it to butcher in King City Sat. morning and was on the road back home by 3 PM.
 

htlt_surfboards

Lil-Rokslider
Joined
Jun 27, 2020
Messages
134
Location
Ventura, CA
A few years ago I was hunting a high basin in Colorado for mulies. The day before season I headed into a spot I know that holds deer but it was stormy and visibility was maybe like 50 yards. I decided to go up high and sit anyway hoping that maybe I would get a break in the storm. Eventually a small hole opened up in the clouds and I could see the bucks across the way. Im talking fully socked in except for this tiny window of clear that blew through for a few moments and then was gone again.

The next morning, opening morning, I got up in the dark and headed straight to where I had seen those deer the night before. Sure enough, as soon as there was light I could make out the deer were in the exact same spot. I was about 50 yards away and had to wait 15 min until legal shooting light and shot the second it was allowed. I had driven a day and a half from home to get there, had planned to be there for two full weeks and my hunt lasted 15 min.
 
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Joined
Feb 29, 2012
Messages
1,796
Location
East Wenatchee, WA
Shot a 5-point bull some years ago, after less than 30 minutes of hunting. I was still hunting through the timber and stepped out from behind a tree to see him looking in the direction of my father, who was about 1/2 mile down the ridge from me.

The buck in my avatar was killed by my son (his second deer/buck) about an hour into our hunt. After he killed it, he called his mom to tell her the good news and she couldn't believe that we already had a buck down. He was 13 at the time and is 27 now. His first 3 years of hunting are probably my greatest hunting memories. I look forward to more hunts with him in the future.

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YZF_88

Lil-Rokslider
Joined
Jun 9, 2014
Messages
220
I’ve had 3 rifle elk tags in Idaho. First was filled 6 minutes into the season. Second was definitely under 30 minutes as I called him into 10 yards. Third tag I really stretched out…to the second day.
 

Jack321

Lil-Rokslider
Joined
Apr 15, 2020
Messages
235
I've had several "quick hunts."

Most of them are bird hunting.

1. One year we walked out to a field goose hunting and we were setting up decoys and birds were coming in even as we were standing next to the decoys. One of the guys we hunted with shot his limit (two was the limit at that time) as he was walking out to his layout after parking the truck! He didn't even make it to his layout!

2. This past year we had a 5 man limit of geese by 7:15am (three's the limit now).

3. One time turkey hunting, my brother called one in for me off the roost. He flew down and walked right towards us. We were home by 630am. My brother was still living with my folks, and at 830 my mom walked into his room, she had just woken up. She shook him awake, "GET UP!!! ARENT YOU LATE FOR TURKEY HUNTING!?!?!"

He apparently mumbled, "I did. We already got one at 6am."

Still laugh about that to this day.
 

grfox92

WKR
Joined
Mar 14, 2017
Messages
2,750
Location
NW WY
This year, antelope. We left the truck at first light. Immediately bumped a group of lopes.

We trailed behind them keeping them at distance trying to not to push them again. We sat down and watched a buck hound some does at 400 yards, they started in out direction and I shot him at 320 yards through both shoulders.

Quartered him out and packed him back to the truck, went to town, ate breakfast got him in a cooler on ice and went back to fill by buddies tag. By 2pm his buck was dead, and we were on our way home.

Sent from my SM-G990U using Tapatalk
 

Ishisube

Lil-Rokslider
Joined
Mar 9, 2023
Messages
129
Closest, fastest hunts I know of were had by friends. Over a period of a few years, three black bears and one wolf, all from the porch no less.

Could have had my choice between two medium sized bulls if hunting had been allowed at work. They were off to each side of the trail I took back to employee housing and the one laid its ears back as I approached without rifle, leading me to go back and around. Been charged by moose too many times, but that would have been the first one that was a bull.

It's amazing how much walking some of us have to do to get anywhere, and other than a ptarmigan up along the haul road, I've never had a quick hunt. Would have gotten more, but someone pulled up behind me and told me I wasn't allowed to shoot within five miles of the pipeline.
 

robtattoo

WKR
Joined
Mar 22, 2014
Messages
3,517
Location
Tullahoma, TN
Actually, this year's deer were pretty quick.... eventually.

I spent
3-1/2 frigid, rainy & frankly very miserable days hunting by myself at a friend's cabin. I sat dark to dark the first 3 & didn't see a damn thing. I set off home, dejected, at lunchtime. I got back to town at about 3ish & figured i had time for one quick sit at the local airport (I have permission) wouldn't you know it, I hadn't been there 15 minutes & a nice doe stepped out at about 100yds. I dropped her on the spot, christening my 9.3x62. I hadn't even ejected the cartridge & out came another. So I shot that one too.
Bugger me, a third stepped out right behind her! We're allowed 3 antlerless per day here so i figured that Karma was repaying me for the previous 3 days of misery. Can't argue with karma, so I shot her too.
3 deer, maybe 25 minutes from sitting down.
And it was on flat ground, AND i could get my truck to em!
Sometimes, I'd rather be lucky than good!
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NRA4LIFE

WKR
Joined
Nov 20, 2016
Messages
1,652
Location
washington
Moved to Missouri in 1986, never hunted turkeys nor had ever even seen one. learned some calling from a guy and lit out opening morning in the dark. Started calling and 9 jakes walk up within 10 yards, not 5 minutes into shooting hours. Done deal. Same year, same spot, opening day of deer season. Climbed up a tree with my stand and HOLY MOLY, I had to crap. 10 minutes before legal shooting I spray one right off the stand. OMIGOD I get set back up, 2 minutes into legal shooting and a nice 4X5 decides to get dead.
 

summs

Lil-Rokslider
Joined
Jul 29, 2021
Messages
176
Location
Nj
Mid October NJ bow season. Flew home from Maine to attend a surprise party. Got in Friday morning, had to be out of the house, so I figured I'd sit a piece of private land. Got in the stand at 3. At 3:15 7 turkeys and spike walk in. At 3:20, a basket rack 5 pointer. First time dressing a deer in daylight, so much easier.
 
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akcabin

Lil-Rokslider
Joined
Feb 10, 2023
Messages
226
Lurking on this thread. Mixed feelings on quick hunts, but in my experience that’s how it goes. MN deer season, I tend to look at my odds are 1:2 opening weekend after that it plummets to 1:10 for seeing nice bucks. Me and two buddies tagged out Saturday opener one year, they got two in the morning and I pulled mine in the evening.
For a lot of us folks we are on a meat run. Trying to feed our families. And hormone n steroid free meat is the best I can get.
 

WCB

WKR
Joined
Jun 12, 2019
Messages
3,640
5 or 6 years ago got a ND rifle tag for whitetails on the western side of the state. Drove 6ish hours out to our hunting shack in ND to pick up a tow behind fish house to stay in for the week. Got there at 3am hooked up and got semi dressed so when I got to where I was hunting I could drop the fishouse and go hunting right at first light. Left the shack for what should have been a 3hr drive at 4A.M. because of an ice storm, snow and wind...My 3hr drive turned into a 6.5hr drive. Dropped the fish house and got to the first spot I was going to hike in at around 11:30. Walked out 1/4 mile from my truck and spotted a doe about 450yards away standing looking at me. Picked up the binos and right behind her out pops a 20+" wide tall buck with good mass (at the time no idea if it was a giant 6pt or what....I dropped my pack, grabbed my rifle, got a range, dialed and touched off the shot in about 30 seconds. dropped him right there.

From the time I left the truck till the time I got back to the truck with a quatered up and caped buck was 1hr and 15 minutes. I easily shot that deer within 10 minutes of leaving the truck. Scored just under 150 as a mainframe 8 with matching forked G2s. Not too bad of an ND buck.

I was back to our shack and eating dinner in the local bar by dark.
 
Joined
Apr 26, 2022
Messages
318
For a lot of us folks we are on a meat run. Trying to feed our families. And hormone n steroid free meat is the best I can get.
100% love a quick hunt when I’m working but when I take a few days off for it, I’m looking more for experience. Everyone likes to work hard and then get the trophy. If I ever have a bonus tag in my pocket though I’ll fill that with a smile on opening morning!
 
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