Rokstaff Hunt 'n Success Photos

[Justin Crossley]

Nice work Ross!

 

[robby denning]

Tag #1, Tag #2,
ha ha. we're just hoping to fill one every few years! Way to stack 'em up Ross. Love your hunting style.

 

[Brock A]

Here is my OTC bull from this year



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[Elkfitness]

Nice! Hoping for some snow in a few weeks here in Colorado.

 

[tipsntails7]

Here is my OTC bull from this year



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Beauty Brock. Washington or out of state?


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[Brock A]

Beauty Brock. Washington or out of state?


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Out of state. There isn't any elk in Washington ;-)

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[tipsntails7]

Out of state. There isn't any elk in Washington ;-)

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Congrats.


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[Tony Trietch]

Kansas is treating me well as usual.

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[Greg Beck]

Kansas is treating me well as usual.

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Awesome buck!!

 

[luke moffat]

Wow you guys are slaying it this year!!

 

[Justin Crossley]

Dandy buck Tony. Nice work.

 

[Northernpiker]

Nice rack on that buck Tony. How wide was he?

 

[AK Troutbum]

Wow! That is a slammer buck, congrats.


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[Tony Trietch]

22.75" inside.

Nice rack on that buck Tony. How wide was he?

 

[Jared Bloomgren]

"Let Them Grow - Shoot a Doe!"

With a month long season I was able to put in ample time trying to find a mature buck of my choice to wrap my tag around. It involved many hours and miles scouring the Black Hills of SD in search of that monster buck that everyone is after. I passed on numerous bucks that didn't meet the criteria and should really be given a chance of turning into trophies. I understand everyone's definition of a trophy varies a great deal. Most bucks I passed would have been trophies for many others. To each their own...

It came down to the final day with putting in 19.4 miles and passing on six bucks from sunrise to sunset and was able to fill my tag in the final few minutes of the season with a BIG healthy good table fare doe! Very happy of this kill! She was well earned and I was more than happy to take a doe rather than a buck!

With this tag you have the option to shoot any sex deer. There are plenty of does, too many to be honest; so taking a doe was best for the management of this area I feel. I wish more did that rather than shoot a small, immature buck just to say they shot a buck. Heck, the doe eats better anyway!

 

[robby denning]

Jared, thanks for having a pair big enough to post this! Too many high-profile hunters are a little leery to post up that they shoot a doe. Yet by shooting that doe instead of a small buck, you actually help the buck:doe ratio instead of hurt it. Good on you...

As I said on your FB post, there's some very old faulty thinking out there when it comes to harvesting does. People think we're raising cattle "and you can't shoot the mammas!", but cattle have virtually limitless "habitat" (it's called a haystack) but wild game is limited by the amount of natural habitat (that is mostly shrinking).

Some of the best mule deer hunting of yesteryear occurred under either-sex hunting rules. Now we force a segment of the hunters to shoot a buck under bucks-only regulations when many of them would be happy with a doe.

I've shot many does over my hunting career. Even this year, I was ready to shoot one last eve if things hadn't turned for the better. In SE Idaho, we have a lot of does right now and when a hard winter hits, the remaining bucks will have to compete with all those does for survival.

I'm not saying every mule deer herd can support doe harvest, but many can and should have doe harvest (lots of guys are surprised to find out our best mule deer state for herd size and antler size offers many doe tags in a lot of units- Colorado).

If the good biology says it's acceptable, I support it. When the herd is balanced with habitat, everything just works better- healthier fawns that are born on time, better buck:doe ratios, and even better antler growth.

Thanks for posting this!

 

[Slim Jim]

Congrats Jared! Definitely good table fare. Good for you brother

 

[Ryan Avery]

2016 was a good year!

 

[Jared Bloomgren]

I thought I had posted this picture already!

I was lucky enough to go back to MT again this year after mule deer. Very happy to find a buck that I had saw last year that I passed up while he was tending a doe. He grew nearly 20" from the year before and was located very near the same chunk of BLM land that he was on the previous year!

Gotta love proper management!

 

[Jared Bloomgren]

Sondra, my fiance' was lucky enough to draw a late season SD muzzloader tag and we were able to turn up this buck after putting on many foot miles in less than 0 degree weather! She is stubborn or very dedicated, one of the two, as she wouldn't let me help pack the buck out! She carried all the boned out meat, head and cape back to the vehicle in her pack! What gives?! Naw, I am very proud of her accomplishments!