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Did not get a deer yet. But had a great few days. bowhunting.scouting.
I have a few questions for those on this board.
I have seen horse pictures and good pictures.
I have not posted any of our horse packing pictures. not sure I people like them.
But I have some bad pictures of bucks in the spotting scope. Let me know if they are even worth posting. maybe not.
But we went 2 days. Rode in first day and saw 15 bucks. big huge high country basins.
First light a great big 3x3 and a small 18" 4x4 came running at us and I could not figure out why they were running at us.
at about 150 yards they took a sharp right and when right over the top of the mountain. stopping on the skyline to give us a perfect view.
I now understand why they ran at us. The only way out of the big bowl/canyon through the cliffs was that little 10 hole in the rocks.
Really fun and beautiful. After they let I said I should have taken pictures. To busy watching them in the binoculars.
Rode another mile and 2 little bucks jumped up and ran right in front of as they did no want to go through the snowdrifts. There is still snow from last year up high.
Rode up to a pass and wow the wind was blowing. It blew off my brothers cowboy had and I laughed at him. He could not keep it on at all for the next hour as we glassed many big basins from this great glassing point. Only saw 2 deer. one great big 26" 2x3 with heavy horns and still in the velvet. His buddy was a small 22" 4x4 and spindly. He was polished off with no velvet.
My brother picked up 3 little bucks in the basin to the south. One might have been a 4x4.
While I am spotting from this pass my brother hikes down a few hundred yards. probably to get out of the wind and not loose his hat.
I spotted nothing else but a herd of sheep(like 500 of them) about 5 miles to the north. With the sun at my back and my huge tripod, that does not even fit in the pack saddle worth beans, I really was able to look over a ton of country.. That tripod it is great for spotting as it is super heavy. You would never backpack it in. We are in about 4-5 miles at this point from the horse trailer.
I thought I would see lots more deer. But no more deer./
I finally got tired of being frozen in the wind. I think it was easy 50 mph wind. And I was numb.
I rounded up the horses and rode down the ridge to where my brother had went.
Hey waved to me and I could see he wanted me to tie up the horses and come over to him.
I got my huge tripod and scope back out and went on the ridge. It was nice and a perfect breeze in the sun. It is always nice to unthaw yourself.
He had seen a good buck across the canyon but was looking a little into the sun. So he could not tell much. He also only had binoculars.
As he was explaining where they were I was trying to focus my Swarvoski ES bincoculars. They would not focus. The focus not would not turn? I turned it a little hard and I heard a snap. Now it would focus fine on the right eye but the left eye is not focusing. I was not very happy. I spent super money on my swarvoski's. This is the third time in 6 years they have broken on a hunt. I have to send them in to get fixed. They take 6 months to get them back to you. So this year I will have one eyed binoculars until after the hunt. They also charge me to fix them. I should have bought Brunton's or Leupolds. My brothers and nephews have broken these as well. But the nice thing is that these companies send you a spare while they fix yours. (Tjhey fix them for free) They also get them back quick. So your hunting is not held up much. The Brunton and Leupold's were broken by falling or some other really hard thing. My swarvoski's Just break when it gets cold or hot and I am using them. Brunton asked for a credit card to make sure you sent back the spare. Seemed like great service to me.
I do not know what to do with my swarvoski's.
I have a swarvoski spotting scope and it has never broken. So that is good.
I will quit belly aching and get back to spotting.
The sun keeps getting higher so it is easier to see across this canyon. I keep looking and after 45 minutes I find a good buck laying down. he is a 4x4. (I will show you the horrible pictures I took of him.) As the sun gets higher he gets easier to see. But he is about 75 yards down the hill from where my brother saw the other deer. We discuss if it is the same buck. I keep spotting and finally see a deer chewing its cud. All I can see is the mouth. it is about 70 yards up the hill. The lower buck stands up as the sun started to hit his hind end.
He gets up and moves through the timber and I try to take some pictures. He is a nice 160 class 4x4 with 5 inch crab claw fronts. If you zoom in on the picts you will see he has super backs. 1 inch eye tines.
The other bucks stands up and is also a 160 class buck but he is a 3x4. Way bigger backs and heavier.
both are about 26" wide.
There is another little 3 point in those trees we now see as well.
I try to decide if I should try a stalk. My goal has been a 170 buck and these are just a hair shy. Probably stupid. They are in a very stalkable position. I pass on the stalk.
We go and ride through a bunch more bowls and see no deer sign at all. a few elk tracks.
We get into some high bowls in the evening and spot until almost dark. no deer at all.
We have a ways to get to the truck. And the horses are ready to go.
We get back to camp with 10 minutes of shooting light left. I say ride up the trail and look on one more hillside. On the way I see a 30".
4 minutes of legal shooting left. I run up the hilll straigh at him because there are trees blocking us and just enough of a breeze to cover my sound. It get to 55 yards and he is eating behind a small pine tree. I range him. I say since he is straight up that hill I will shoot with 40 yard pin.
Right then another deer must have smelled me and saw me because it is running hard to that 30" inch buck and they take off up the hill together and pick up another buck on the way.
Really fun and I had the shakes but no shot.
Next day we rode up and looked in some bowls but only saw 5 little bucks in total.
Not sure if we will hunt here or other places we have been but it was a fun couple of days on the horses.
I hope the pictures are not too bad.
If people like I will post pictures of horses and of the rifle hunt next week.
I have a few questions for those on this board.
I have seen horse pictures and good pictures.
I have not posted any of our horse packing pictures. not sure I people like them.
But I have some bad pictures of bucks in the spotting scope. Let me know if they are even worth posting. maybe not.
But we went 2 days. Rode in first day and saw 15 bucks. big huge high country basins.
First light a great big 3x3 and a small 18" 4x4 came running at us and I could not figure out why they were running at us.
at about 150 yards they took a sharp right and when right over the top of the mountain. stopping on the skyline to give us a perfect view.
I now understand why they ran at us. The only way out of the big bowl/canyon through the cliffs was that little 10 hole in the rocks.
Really fun and beautiful. After they let I said I should have taken pictures. To busy watching them in the binoculars.
Rode another mile and 2 little bucks jumped up and ran right in front of as they did no want to go through the snowdrifts. There is still snow from last year up high.
Rode up to a pass and wow the wind was blowing. It blew off my brothers cowboy had and I laughed at him. He could not keep it on at all for the next hour as we glassed many big basins from this great glassing point. Only saw 2 deer. one great big 26" 2x3 with heavy horns and still in the velvet. His buddy was a small 22" 4x4 and spindly. He was polished off with no velvet.
My brother picked up 3 little bucks in the basin to the south. One might have been a 4x4.
While I am spotting from this pass my brother hikes down a few hundred yards. probably to get out of the wind and not loose his hat.
I spotted nothing else but a herd of sheep(like 500 of them) about 5 miles to the north. With the sun at my back and my huge tripod, that does not even fit in the pack saddle worth beans, I really was able to look over a ton of country.. That tripod it is great for spotting as it is super heavy. You would never backpack it in. We are in about 4-5 miles at this point from the horse trailer.
I thought I would see lots more deer. But no more deer./
I finally got tired of being frozen in the wind. I think it was easy 50 mph wind. And I was numb.
I rounded up the horses and rode down the ridge to where my brother had went.
Hey waved to me and I could see he wanted me to tie up the horses and come over to him.
I got my huge tripod and scope back out and went on the ridge. It was nice and a perfect breeze in the sun. It is always nice to unthaw yourself.
He had seen a good buck across the canyon but was looking a little into the sun. So he could not tell much. He also only had binoculars.
As he was explaining where they were I was trying to focus my Swarvoski ES bincoculars. They would not focus. The focus not would not turn? I turned it a little hard and I heard a snap. Now it would focus fine on the right eye but the left eye is not focusing. I was not very happy. I spent super money on my swarvoski's. This is the third time in 6 years they have broken on a hunt. I have to send them in to get fixed. They take 6 months to get them back to you. So this year I will have one eyed binoculars until after the hunt. They also charge me to fix them. I should have bought Brunton's or Leupolds. My brothers and nephews have broken these as well. But the nice thing is that these companies send you a spare while they fix yours. (Tjhey fix them for free) They also get them back quick. So your hunting is not held up much. The Brunton and Leupold's were broken by falling or some other really hard thing. My swarvoski's Just break when it gets cold or hot and I am using them. Brunton asked for a credit card to make sure you sent back the spare. Seemed like great service to me.
I do not know what to do with my swarvoski's.
I have a swarvoski spotting scope and it has never broken. So that is good.
I will quit belly aching and get back to spotting.
The sun keeps getting higher so it is easier to see across this canyon. I keep looking and after 45 minutes I find a good buck laying down. he is a 4x4. (I will show you the horrible pictures I took of him.) As the sun gets higher he gets easier to see. But he is about 75 yards down the hill from where my brother saw the other deer. We discuss if it is the same buck. I keep spotting and finally see a deer chewing its cud. All I can see is the mouth. it is about 70 yards up the hill. The lower buck stands up as the sun started to hit his hind end.
He gets up and moves through the timber and I try to take some pictures. He is a nice 160 class 4x4 with 5 inch crab claw fronts. If you zoom in on the picts you will see he has super backs. 1 inch eye tines.
The other bucks stands up and is also a 160 class buck but he is a 3x4. Way bigger backs and heavier.
both are about 26" wide.
There is another little 3 point in those trees we now see as well.
I try to decide if I should try a stalk. My goal has been a 170 buck and these are just a hair shy. Probably stupid. They are in a very stalkable position. I pass on the stalk.
We go and ride through a bunch more bowls and see no deer sign at all. a few elk tracks.
We get into some high bowls in the evening and spot until almost dark. no deer at all.
We have a ways to get to the truck. And the horses are ready to go.
We get back to camp with 10 minutes of shooting light left. I say ride up the trail and look on one more hillside. On the way I see a 30".
4 minutes of legal shooting left. I run up the hilll straigh at him because there are trees blocking us and just enough of a breeze to cover my sound. It get to 55 yards and he is eating behind a small pine tree. I range him. I say since he is straight up that hill I will shoot with 40 yard pin.
Right then another deer must have smelled me and saw me because it is running hard to that 30" inch buck and they take off up the hill together and pick up another buck on the way.
Really fun and I had the shakes but no shot.
Next day we rode up and looked in some bowls but only saw 5 little bucks in total.
Not sure if we will hunt here or other places we have been but it was a fun couple of days on the horses.
I hope the pictures are not too bad.
If people like I will post pictures of horses and of the rifle hunt next week.
