My Zimbabwe Wildebeast

INDEX OF STORIES AND JOURNELS

2011 Fall Montana Mule Deer Hunt
2007 Fall Opening Day Buck Hunt
2007 Spring Turkey Hunt
2006 Fall Mule Deer Hunt
2006 Spring Ram and Hog Hunt
2004 Fall Mule Deer Hunt
2005 Fall Caribou Hunt
2003 Fall Mule WA MuleDeer Hunt
2003 Fall Idaho Mule Deer Hunt
2003 Spring Turkey Hunt
2004 Fall Idaho Mule Deer Hunt

2011 Montana Mule Deer Hunt

With the 2010 Montana hunt still fresh in my mind I began my trip to Eastern Montana. The brutal cold from the previous years trip still caused me to shiver. I spent most of the 10 days in 20-40 below temperatures with my hunting partner and friend Amanda. The trip there and back was an ordeal in itself and almost as bad as the hunting conditions. Icy roads snow storms and visibility to 50 feet as we drove most of the way at 40 miles per hour towing a trailer. What was normally a 12 hour trip turned into a 36 hour marathon. It was so cold even with the heat in the trailer on everything in the cupboards froze solid. I filled the water lines with food grade anti-freeze and they froze solid. Even the extra gallons of anti-freeze that I brought froze solid. Did I mention that it was cold. This trip was starting out much better the roads were dry and the weather much more acceptable in the 20 and 30 degree range. The drive went well and I arrived around 10 pm. Setting up the trailer was a joy compared to the chore of last year with deep snow, driving winds and temperatures that chilled you to the bone at 2 am. My hunting partner brother, Dan, arrived at around 2:30am and grabbed a little sleep before we headed out for the day.

I knew that last years winter had taken it's toll on the wildlife. The antelope herds were decimated but the Mule deer seemed to fair better. All local reports said the numbers were down and we expected to see fewer animals. We were heading to an area that my friend and former boss Mike Funk had been hunting and has had good success over the last several years. This year Mike had been watching a draw, opening morning and caught sight of a nice tall mature 4 point as he fed his way to his bedding area for the day. Mike made a nice 400 yard one shot kill to add this buck to his impressive collection which included a big non typical a few years earlier. I had hunted close to this area so I was familiar with the roads and the country we would be hunting in.
As all trips go, you sometimes forget things or don't always have time to check closely your hunting list. As we climbed out of Dan's FJ Cruiser, he pulled his gun out of it's case and realized in his rush that he had grabbed his wife's gun. Unfortunately he had grabbed the ammunition for his gun and this first day of hunting we would have to stay together and share my gun if need be. We began walking towards a look out and within minutes we spotted a large 2 point that was on it's own and quite nervous. We continued hiking to a rocky outcrop and glassed for 30 minutes to an hour. We spotted a buck that had a unique rack that shot straight out to one side with some odd points while the other side was a standard 4 point. He was with a single doe and we watched them bed down. We were the better part of mile away and planned a good stalk but at some point we had to cross through wind that was drifting right to the buck.

We made it to a bluff and circled behind and then climbed straight up to the top so we would have the advantage but the deer had disappeared. Sometimes they are the worlds greatest escape artists and this was one of them. We climbed off the bluff and continued to the top of the far ridge. We had lunch at the edge of canyon that kept us busy glassing between bites. After lunch we walked the ridge and spotted 2 more bucks that were younger 3 points with groups of does but not what we were looking for. Sometime late in the afternoon we started back for the car. By the time we reached it I felt we had walked a thousand miles. As we slowly drove out of the area I looked to my right and saw an impressive buck, at just under 500 yards, that was heavy wide and tall. I yelled for Dan to stop and I setup and quickly shot twice as the buck disappeared over the ridge. I kicked myself for the rest of the evening for taking that shot. I have killed animals at this distance before but to do so you need to setup properly be aware of the wind and have some way to compensate for bullet drop. You just can't do that with a hurried shot. It was a really nice buck and I was afraid I had run it out of the country. As we continued driving out of the area, Dan spotted a Tall buck with several does on the skyline and decided that he would make a stalk. I followed in behind Dan and helped with yardage but he was using a gun he was unfamiliar with and ultimately we were unsuccessful.

The next morning we hunted the area Dan had seen the buck late the previous evening with no success. We decided to give this area a rest and move to one of my favorite spots over looking the water. We hunted the breaks down and then back to the vehicle seeing nothing of value. We then drove to a vantage point and began glassing where we spotted a buck with several does bedded in a high lookout with almost no way to approach it. After talking it over and discussing the options Dan decided to work his way in the bottom of a draw that would take him within 400 yards behind a steep bluff. He would climb the bluff and take his shot from there. I was to stay at the vehicle and give him hand signals if needed. I believe it is as much fun to have a plan and watch it unfold at a distance as actually doing it. I think I was just as excited for him as he worked his way through the draw scrambled to make it up the bluff and crawled in to position preparing for the shot. The stalk worked out perfectly. I was thinking about all the things going through his mind as he prepared for the shot and it suddenly occurred to me that he had purchased lighter bullets than what this gun was sited in with and he was shooting at a slight uphill angle and I wished I could have told him to hold low. I watched the deer through my spotting scope as he shot and could see it was a clean miss. It was a very disappointing end to a great stalk in the most classic location to find a big Muley and a lesson we won't forget. The next day found us back at the same location we were at on the first day. We began the long hike to the high ridge that we ended up on over looking a deep canyon with rock rims and steep drop offs. At several hundred yards we spotted a doe bedded on one of these Rock Rims. Dan wanted to take a closer look at the head end of the draw and see if he could find any other deer. I wanted to head the other direction closer to where I thought the buck I missed would have ended up. So, we split up. I began working my way up the ridge checking every draw carefully. Dan had worked his way on to an outcrop of rocks at the head end of deep draw and was glassing when he thought he heard some noise in the pinion and scrub oak brush 50 yards below him. Out ran 2 does and and a mature 4 point making a beeline for the ridge. Dan threw his gun up and dropped the nice 4 point clean, with a single shot, as he reached the top. When I finally reached Dan it was congratulations, high fives and lot of pictures with a great back drop of the Missouri breaks. We made quick work quartering the back half and deboning the front. Our packs were as heavy as I remembered carrying. But maybe age has weakened my mind or back for that matter. The sun had come out and started to thaw the iced over Montana clay and walking became treacherous as we made our way back. As we worked our way down a steep bluff I picked one route and Dan another. As I circled around the bottom of the bluff here came Dan covered from head to toe with red clay. He had fallen victim to the steep clay hillside but in exchange had made a quicker descent than some using his head as a stopping tool. I was chuckling as we walked looking at the clay covered creature in front of me.

We decided it was time for a break and sat down to rest our back and legs. If you've ever hunted Montana you know of the small cactus that are abundant there. The ones that I sat on made it ever so clear how vigilant you must stay to avoid such a calamity. So now as we walked back to the car Dan was chuckling about my cactus needles and I about his mud suit. It was an uncomfortable drive back with needles poking you where they shouldn't and mud on the seats but a satisfying one still. With Dan's buck down I was anxious to find mine. The next morning we went back to one of my favorite high points and began glassing for deer. I spotted a buck with several does at a distance of about 2 miles. It was hard to tell how good he was but he was wide and heavy enough to see at that distance which says something. We spent the better part of an hour trying to figure out how we could get to them. We finally agreed on a 3 mile stalk that should put us into position. We drove around to the entry point and put our packs together and started the down hill on the long walk. The bad thing about a down hill stalk is that you have to go up to get back and 3 miles up is a long ways. After a couple of hours we were in position with the spotting scope on this buck. I looked him over closely and watched him lay his head down and nap. He just wasn't what I was hoping for. We had made this long stalk and I hated to waste the day but I just didn't want to take this buck home. We circled around the bluff he was on and watched him run off with several does. It was a long trip back to the car but I made the right choice. He'll be a better buck next year.

I was still haunted by missing that first day buck so the next day found us back again where we had started. We immediately spotted a couple of does that were intently looking at something below them. The wind was not in our favor so we had to circle in behind them. We moved around a bluff and over a small ridge to find a whole lot of nothing. We moved through the head end of a short draw and over another ridge and stopped to glass. Dan immediately spotted 2 does across a big draw. I began glassed below them and after a minute or two I spotted the buck that I had missed the first day. The fact we were in the open and exposed became painfully evident as we sat down and tried to blend in with the brush. He had not seen us, and he was only 600 yards away but his focus was on the does and occasional food to sustain his drive. The wind was in our favor. Dan was to stay and give me hand signals as needed. I began slowly sliding my way down the open face of the hill towards a small draw that would conceal me. Once in the bottom I could move freely to the larger draw and cross to the far hillside where there was another draw working up the hill to within a few hundred yards of where the buck was. Everything was going well until half way up the other hillside a doe popped up out of nowhere and had me pegged in a stare down. She could only see a portion of me but she knew something wasn't right. The stare down seemed to last for hours when in reality it was only minutes but long enough to cause me to cramp from the motionless position I was stuck in. Finally the doe moved on and I was able to move to the point I had picked out from across the canyon. I looked back and Dan was frantically motioning me. The buck was so heavy in the rut he had been chasing the does up and down the draw and was actually further away then when I had started. I watched him for a minute and began to move closer. When I had crossed the next little draw and looked for him he was gone again. But this time he appeared at four hundred yards across the draw from me and moving down hill at a trot looking for more does. I sat down with my 300 win mag, elbows resting on my knees, and steadied the rifle waiting for the deer to slow down. At 330 yards I squeezed the trigger and saw the deer stumble. When I next put the cross hairs on him I could see the blood pumping from the wound and knew he was done.

It was the end to a great rewarding hunt and to have a second chance at the buck I missed the first day was unbelievable. I was grateful to have had the second chance and to capitalize on it. Now this buck was laying at the bottom of the draw and Dan was woopin and hollerin all the way over. He had as much fun as I did watching the whole stalk unfold. There were congratulations and lots of pictures. It was a hunt we will never forget.

OPENING DAY BUCK   Montana October 2007   Mike Funk

In the spring of this Year I spoke with Mike after he received notification of a successful draw in Montana.  He was excited about hunting an area in Eastern Montana that he was familiar with and had produced some nice bucks.  He talked about seeing mature deer and good numbers.  He also mentioned that his hunting partner had missed a huge typical that seemed to frequent his dreams nightly.  Then there was the elk hunting, ah yes Montana, the land of opportunity.  We talked for quite sometime before work demanded our attention and we went back to making money to support our hunting habit.

With great anticipation Mike and his hunting partner, Steve Petty, arrived 2 days ahead of opening day, to setup camp, glass and prepare for their hunt.  Their scouting spotted a bachelor herd of bucks with 2 that appeared to be shooters and deserved a closer look. 

Opening morning found them 3 to 4 miles away from an access road in a badland setting that was full of deep draws and canyons that might stretch for half a mile or better.  Mike and Steve stalked to within 150 yards of several 4 points, 1 of which was 28 inches across but did not hold much mass.  They had to exercise great discipline to pass but it was the first day and they were hoping to find something a little better. 

At 2:30pm they decided to make their way back to camp and grab a quick bite before they set out to hunt a different area later that afternoon.   They arrived at 4:00and discussed their strategy for the next hunt as they ate.  Within an hour they were walking through an area they had glassed the day before and spotted a few does.  Mike worked one group of draws while Steve worked another about a half a mile away.

The wind was gusting between 20 and 30 miles per hour so Mike began working his way along just below the edge of the ridge to hide his silhouette and his scent.  Stalking slowly and glassing frequently, he spotted what appeared to be a mature heavy 4-point that seemed to have it all. At close to 1000 yards it was difficult to see the points but it was easy to see that it was heavy, wide and tall.

The large bodied deer was feeding in the bottoms and appeared to be headed up a draw to higher ground and a small group of junipers.  After the deer disappeared behind a ridge Mike checked the wind and began making his move down off of the bluff and across a large draw.  Arriving at the steep clay ridge close to where he last saw the deer, he began the upward climb being careful not to knock any rocks loose or make any unnecessary noise.   As he approached the top He began to crawl so he would not expose himself on the skyline.  After peaking over the edge he realized there was another draw he had not seen in his approach.   Mike slowly stood up and suddenly the buck bolted from the hidden draw and ran for the top of the far ridge directly in front of Mike.  With just a split second to shoot, Mike squeezed the trigger with an off hand shot and thought he saw the buck flinch as he disappeared over the top of the knoll.  He felt good about the shot and was confident he had hit his mark. 

With light fading fast he approached the point where the deer had crested and began looking for movement.  He saw none.  He checked the area for blood and found a small amount trailing along the top of the knoll.  The blood was bright red and with the deer angling away and uphill, he became increasingly concerned about the shot.  Since this was a late afternoon hunt, Mike had only carried a knife, gun and a set of binoculars with him.  He was concerned that he may run out of light before he ran out of blood.  At 75 yards he found a small piece of lung reassuring him the shot would be fatal.  The deer had continued on his uphill escape for another 300 yards collapsing at the edge of a 400’ drop.

As Mike approached the deer, he began to see the extra points and the width.  The deer carried the mass up towards the tips and the stickers were incredible.  With uncontrollable excitement Mike called Steve to tell him his buck was down.  The deer was old and his front teeth were worn to the gums with only a few molars left to use for chewing.  The cape was bleached white and his body was enormous.  There was definitely no ground shrinkage here.When Steve arrived the celebration began.  He was shocked to see the size and age of the deer and the massive horns.  Mike began to bone out and cape the trophy by the light of the full moon.  Steve suggested perhaps they should return in the morning to finish the project.  I’ve know Mike for more than 10 years and I already knew his answer for his hunting partner. 

Mike is an exceptional trophy hunter and the trophy is important, but recovering the meat is just as important.  One thing that I have learned about Mike over the years is that every animal he shoots is a trophy to him. He always shows respect to the animal by making sure that the meat is removed from the field first thing so his family and friends can enjoy the bounty for a number of months to come. 

Mike and Steve caped and de-boned the big deer, only having one meat pack between the two of them, Mike hauled out the meat and the cape.  As Mike would tell you he stays in shape for two reasons, Mule Deer and Elk hunting.  It was a heavy 2-mile hike to the closed road but well worth the effort.

It was late when they arrived back at camp tired and worn but with a feeling of enormous satisfaction.  For Mike it was all done in one day but what a day it was.

On their return to Washington State they stopped at the Montana department of game and had the deer aged.  When the official found the deer to be between 10 and 11 years, they couldn’t help but wonder what the horns looked like when the deer was in the prime of his life.  With an outside spread of 32” and 8 points per side he would easily score well into the 200’s, a trophy of a lifetime.  Although the score really doesn’t mean that much to Mike, it certainly isn’t going to hurt his feelings either.

AMANDA'S FIRST MERRIAM SPRING 2007

Turkey Hunting in Washington State has exploded in the last 5 years.  The population is predominately Merriam’s but Eastern’s and Rio’s may be found in certain areas as well. I hunt in the Northeast portion of the state and noticed a lot of the Merriam’s have interbred with the Rio’s. The product appears to be a stronger and smarter bird that is a challenge for most hunters, but the challenge is what keeps us coming back.
I arrived with my wife and trailer in tow, early Friday night so we could locate some roosting areas and be somewhat prepared for a morning hunt. On the way in I had noticed a sign advertising a pancake feed and auction at the local grange the next morning. A pancake feed might just be the answer after the morning hunt.
Amanda, a professional acquaintance and friend, was excited about the hunt and attempt to bring home her first Merriam turkey. The amount of property she owned did not hold many birds so she did her homework and asked permission from the landowners around her property, hoping to gain access to enough land to harvest her first turkey.
Scouting that evening, we covered most of the ground only hearing one Tom gobble, just at dark, beyond our property restrictions. Back at the house we discussed our options for the mornings hunt over an extraordinary meal and hospitality.  
The next morning brought much of the same. We walked and called with no response on the property we had permission to hunt. The sign we came across seemed to indicate the turkeys were passing through the area occasionally. After a long hike and a lot of calls we headed back to the house to regroup.
With no prospects located during the morning hunt we opted to visit the pancake feed at the local grange. We talked with some of the locals as we ate that morning describing our turkey misfortunes. One gentleman suggested we ask permission of a cattle rancher that had been complaining of an abundance of turkeys. It just so happened the rancher was at the auction that morning and after a short discussion with Amanda (no one ever seems to turn down a pretty young woman with a nice smile) we were set for the afternoon hunt.  
We arrived at the ranch around 3:30 and discussed his turkey problem. The rancher warned us about his cows with some being aggressive because of the newborn calves and calving season. He pointed us in a direction that would keep us away from the cows and suggested we try to intercept the turkeys on the way to the roost that evening. The land was open with some broken timber and being our first visit to the ranch we were a little unclear on just where to setup so we looked the area over and made the best decision we could. The rancher suggested that we would not need the decoys so we left them in the truck, which proved to be a big mistake. After a half hour or so we started spotting some turkeys that were moving through the trees. We sat tight and made some hen calls with no response.  

After a short time I noticed 2 hens responding to the calls from a completely different direction. We focused our attention on them and not to far behind were 5 big long beards in tow. They began responding to the calls sometimes one at a time sometimes in unison.  Unfortunately the cows seemed to be responding to the calls as well. They began filtering in all around us inspecting what all the fuss was about. This made our ability to hide very difficult and shooting almost impossible, with birds and cows moving all around us, we had to keep an eye on the cows not only for their safety but for ours and try to move the birds within shooting range. When the birds were finally clear of the cows they were just beyond the reach of our shotguns.   If we had bothered to bring the decoys it may have made the difference in the last few yards necessary to make the shot. The Toms were magnificent to watch though calling in unison, strutting and fighting for position, something we will never forget. Seeing 5 big Toms like that is a rarity. 

When they were gone we were disappointed but still confident there were more birds in the area, so we moved to a different location and began calling. Again the cows moved towards us to inspect what was going on. About 70 yards away a line of several birds started to file into the timber paralleling our position. I continued a calling sequence and 2 younger toms split off from the group and began moving in our direction. I was laid out flat behind a tree trying to stay concealed and Amanda was sitting beside the tree with another tree in front of her. I made another call and peaked around the edge.  The Toms were running straight for us. I told her as soon as they appear around the tree let one of them have it. She focused on the first bird and squeezed the trigger. The celebrating including some squealing, jumping and hugging lasting for a short time but the quest for her first Merriam Turkey was over and elation had set in. 
Amanda insisted on carrying the bird and her gun all the way back to the truck to prove to herself she could have done this alone.  I was thrilled to be along and part of her first turkey harvest. I think I was just as elated as her. That night we relived the hunt as we went over cleaning and care of the bird.

I have to thank my Grandfather that I am an avid hunter today. In the past I have done much of my hunting alone and enjoyed it immensely. I have experienced hunting alone in the mountains for days at a time. Today, much of the pleasure for me is to watch others succeed and be a part of their success. I make sure that I spend some of every hunting season with someone who has not had the opportunity to hunt or is just learning. The excitement and challenge of the sport may just last them a lifetime. I know it has for me.

Another picture of the happy hunter.

THE BAD LUCK BUCK

David May lives in Houston with his wife, Selina, and their daughters,

Savannah (15) and Brittany (21). He was in route to a turkey hunt with his

two daughters when he called me to review his notes and memories of the 2006

hunting adventure in British Columbia. Speaking with David is like talking

and reminiscing with an old hunting buddy. It's no wonder, seeing that his
father, Harold, took David on his first hunting trip at the ripe old age of
four. Now 45 years later, their passion for hunting is still going strong. Last year, with David's heavy work schedule and many days away from home,
Selina wanted to surprise him with a hunting trip. She found the "BC Hunter"
website in his favorites and after some investigation, decided that would
make a great hunting trip for both David and Harold. Minutes later, she
booked the late November hunt for the father and son.I am sure that you have heard the saying, "If it weren't for bad luck, we'd have no luck at all." That seemed to be the case for the two hunters because
right from the start things began to go wrong. The hunt dates from thewebsite were for the previous year so the airline tickets were booked for the wrong date. In addition, Harold had the wrong date on his flight from Little Rock Arkansas to Houston and arrived a day early. He called from the
airport wondering where David was and when David arrived at the airport, Harold's cell phone was turned off and he was nowhere to be found. The next day they were sent to the wrong terminal and almost missed their flight. When they boarded the plane they found their seat assignments were right in
front of the exit door so their seats would not recline. Eight hours and 45 minutes later, they arrived in Vancouver, BC - sore backs and all. David was trying to finish up a key piece of business over the phone while going through customs with paperwork for his gun that was not filled out
correctly. As time ran low the customs agent finally just said, "Oh, go on."So they boarded the plane for Williams Lake, BC.  Ron Emelkamp, from BC Hunter, met them at the airport and they gladly
climbed in the truck and headed for Cougar Creek hunting lodge, which was to be their main stay for the next week. Over breakfast, the next morning, they met their guide, Keith Romans, and after breakfast he took them out to sight in their weapons. Harold's gun was right on but David's was not even on the
paper. In all his years of hunting, his scope had never been off. Losing confidence in the gun and scope, he opted to use Keith's gun. David is a left-handed shooter and Keith's gun was right-handed shooter, but hey, at least it was on target.

Hoping that all of their bad luck was out of the way, they began their hunt.

They left the lodge and headed for Keith's favorite hunting spot. Once there

they began glassing and immediately spotted does bedded down on the

hillside. Keith's motto, during the rut hunt is, "Find the does and you willfind the bucks." However, they watched until dark but no bucks showed up.

The next morning, at breakfast, Harold informed everyone that he was clean and odor free so the deer would not smell him. He then told everyone that he would shoot his buck by 10:00 am. Now, if I were sitting next to someone that was telling me that, I would have to think that he was either a raging optimist or maybe a few shells short of a full magazine, but that is what he believed. Soon they were headed back to Keith's favorite spot and when they arrived they began spotting does

right away. However, this time the does seemed a little more on edge and after glassing for a time, they spotted a buck at about 150 yards that did not want to leave the cover of the trees. This made judging the size very difficult but after a short time, David was able to see the drop tines that made this buck very unique. Harold decided that he had better take him but the only shot the buck offered was a small opening between two trees. Harold lined up his shot, took his time and cleanly dispatched the nice buck with a single shot. Keith said, "That was an excellent shot and could not be duplicated by most men!" The time was 9:45 am and I guess that either Harold was a raging optimist, or maybe their luck was changing, or maybe it was just Harold's shower that made the difference.

The next day brought a change of weather causing the snow to melt and freeze making a stalk nearly impossible because of the crunchy snow. About noon, Keith informed the hunters of a new law mandating all guides to rest their eyes for a period of one hour. Being the law-abiding guide that Keith was, he was now going to observe the law. While Keith's observation was limited to the inside of his eyelids, everyone ate lunch and glassed. It did seem like a strange law but who were they to question a provincial mandate. After a while a nice buck was spotted but because of the noisy weather conditions, the stalk failed. One thing that did catch their eye, however, was an enormous buck track that seemed to be frequenting the area. Later that same day, found them back at the honey hole. While glassing for a short time, a doe walked up to within eight yards of the trio making for excellent entertainment. After the doe had kept them pinned down for a while, they began glassing along the edge of a gulley. Suddenly, at less than 100 yards, David spotted just the horns of a deer that was walking along the bottom of the gulley. At first glance David could see the buck was heavy, wide, and larger than anything he had seen up to this point. Seeing that the gulley followed a line that would cross the trail in front of them, he began to prepare for what he unknowingly knew as the shot of a lifetime.

A few moments later the unsuspecting buck climbed out of the gulley and David took the broadside shot at about 70 yards. Instantly, the deer disappeared, but David felt good about the shot. When Keith and David arrived at the point where the deer stood, David began tracking the deer to the left and Keith questioned him on where he was going? With which David informed him that he was going to find the deer. It was then, that Keith told him the buck was down. While David was recovering from the recoil, Keith had seen the buck take a few steps, jump into the gully back fromwhere he came, and that was where he lay.

After seeing the buck on the ground, David realized this was a buck that he may never improve on. The rack was 34 inches across and gross scored better
the 230 Boone and Crockett points! He could not believe his good fortune - this was a buck of a lifetime! After some congratulations, hand shakes, slaps on the back, whooping and hollering and pictures, the buck was loaded
in the back of the truck. It looked as though their luck had definitely
changed.

The lodging and meals made this trip especially comfortable. Keith's knowledge of the area and the game helped make a successful hunt and a "thanks" go out to Ron Emelkamp on the great job he is doing with the Cougar Creek lodge and the BC Hunter outfitting business.

2006 Ram and Hog Hunt

The military ceremony was similar to the last but it didn’t make me any less proud of my boy Ross.  He again graduated with honors in the top 2% of his class and now was a full fledged Army Medic.

As a reward we had planned an exotic sheep and wild ram hunt near Gonzalez, Texas.

We checked out of our motel Sunday morning and headed for the Ranch where the hunt would be conducted.  When we arrived at the gate we were met by another hunter that was leaving and he sounded quite excited and mentioned something about a big pig they had seen. 

Inside the gate we headed for the bunkhouse.  On the way we saw 2 gazelle and 6 bull elk.

This all started while I was perusing E-bay’s hunting section and found a ram hunt that seemed quite reasonable a couple of bid’s later and I was the proud owner of a Texas Ram and Hog hunt.  As I read the small print I found I was paying twice the winning amount for 2 people so, essentially 4 times the winning bid.  Ugh….dooped again!

The hunting area was touted as 3000 acres, but turned out to be 300 acres of high fence that could be hunted on foot and 2700 acres that could only be hunted from stands.

Our orientation lasted about 3 minutes consisting of eating times and a ram we could not shoot.  We began asking questions and found that not all of the species advertised in our hunt were present.  We also learned that the word “trophy” was a very subjective term and that the term “fully guided” can mean something totally different to the people of south central Texas especially Jonathon.  His idea of “fully guided” meant dropping us off in an area and pointing his finger.  Apparently we just had to remember which way his finger was pointing and we were fully guided.  It’s hard to recall but I am sure he was pointing with his index finger?

Despite these inconsistencies, Ross and I were determined to have a good time.

We began unloading our gear into the bunk house and like usual I had brought to much gear so it took us a little longer than usual to get organized.  

We jumped in the back of Jonathan’s truck and dropped us off in what he called the “bottoms” and pointed his finger.  About this time we thought a map would have come in handy but, they had none and therefore we had none, so we began to explore the area as we went.  About 30 or 45 minutes into the hunt, we found a Corsican-Barbados cross ram sleeping by a small pond. 

While we were glassing the ram, Ross began to recall a wager he had made the night before with his wife Folake.  In conversation with her, the fact (which is arguable) came up, that we rarely bring home anything when we go hunting.  She was so convinced, wrongly I might ad, that we would not bring anything home greater than size of a suckling pig, she swore she would never eat any Krispy Kreme Doughnuts again if the results were different. 

Upon recalling this statement, which in some cases could be considered worse than treason and punishable by death, Ross decided to harvest the nice Ram.

The animal was neatly dispatched with 3 shots from his 30-30 at 20 yards.

The pressure was off of us but we now knew that Krispy Kreme Doughnuts, as a company, was in trouble unless they were able to find someone to support the company with the same reckless abandonment that Folake displayed.  We immediately called our broker and sold all stock we had in the company.  We then called Jonathan and informed him of the location of the kill.  

We continued for the next 3 or 4 hours searching for hogs in the “bottoms”

The “bottoms”, we discovered, consisted of land about 10 feet lower than the rest, with more brush, trees and ponds than the rest of the ranch.  We had no success in locating any pigs but we did run across fallow deer, elk, sika deer and various other exotics.  We were also starting to get a feel for how the 300-acre high fence property was laid out.   On the North and Southeast boundaries we discovered some unique traps that lured wild hogs from the outside and released them on the inside.  This was an economically feasible way to constantly supplement their hog population.  This also legitimized the term “wild hog hunt”.

After traversing the property from north to south a few times we were tired and hungry. We called ole’ Jonathon for a ride which we discovered he wasn’t too excited about so, we ended up walking back to the bunkhouse.

For dinner Jonathon fixed goulash and biscuits, which we ate to our stomachs content and then began to prepare for the evening hunt.  Jonathon was a pretty fair cook but when it came to information he only spoke in vague generalities.  We had never hunted hogs before and never hunted at night before.  We began probing Jonathon for information but the most we could get out of him was that you just sit and wait.  Maybe they show up maybe they won’t and maybe one of us should hold the light and the other should shoot.

Still in the dark about hunting in the dark we headed for the night stand.  I volunteered to hold the light first and Ross would shoot.  I had borrowed a night vision monocular for the trip and discovered that with no moon it worked slightly worse than the naked eye.  After about 2 hours the pigs announced their arrival with a lot of grunting and squealing.  We found out immediately that the pigs were extremely skittish and at the first sign of any light they were gone like Mario Andretti at an Italian road rally.

What we eventually discovered, out of trial and error was that the pigs showed up like clock work and if scared always came back after a couple of hours.  This information would have been quite helpful the first night.

Not knowing this however, we waited another hour and headed back to the bunkhouse.

We were late getting into the field the next morning but we were bumping the pigs by 7:am.  It was then I learned that shooting with a scoped rifle at short range in the brush was not going to cut it.  Ross was having his troubles adjusting to the 30-30 Winchester, which was shooting to high so we were skunked again.

After a couple of hours of traversing the bottoms we showed up for a late breakfast.  Ole’ Jonathon had fixed scrambled eggs and ham with soft shell tacos.  I ate plenty and with a few cups of coffee, we were back at it.  

We abandoned the lowlands and headed for the west end of the property.  On our way we ran across more fallow deer and bison.  After a short time Ross spotted 4 rams awaiting our inspection.  2 of the 4 rams were mature.  One was a 4 horned and the other was a Black Hawaiian.  My first choice was the 4 horned ram but just before I was to shoot I ask Ross to call Jonathon and verify it was ok.  This turned out to be the ram they did not want us to shoot so I moved my attention to the Black Hawaiian.  One shot from the 243 and the ram was quickly dispatched.  We called ole’ Jonathon and headed back towards the lowlands.  Another couple of hours produced no pigs so we headed back to the bunkhouse where ole’ Jonathon set out some sandwich fixens’ and we had lunch. 

 

After lunch we followed Jonathon to a blind on the 2700-acre ranch to try our luck at calling in varmints.  My new electronic call seemed to function just great but the varmints were not in agreement with me.  At dark-thirty we headed back to the bunkhouse and more of ole’ Jonathon’s cookin’.

At 8:30 we headed to the stand with a new plan.  We had decided we would stay as long as it took to harvest the squealin’ creatures.  We also decided to eliminate the lights and only use pistols that could be easily maneuvered through the small windows in the stand.

At 10 o’clock, just like the night before, the pigs made an appearance.  We waited for the majority to gather around the stand.  We then softly counted to 3 and opened fire.  It was at this time, as the pigs disappeared into the night, that we realized our skills as “pistoleros” were not all they could be.  Undeterred we sat back and waited.  At midnight they again returned again we opened fire filling the night air with lead.  After the barrage was finished the ground was absent of bodies.  This time Ross decided he would wait on the ground.  When they finally returned they either saw or smelled him and left before the fireworks started.  At 4:30 am we threw in the towel and headed for the bunkhouse.
7:00 again found us in the killing fields, which incidentally, were not living up to their name, looking for pigs. 

As we made a sweep from the North side we discovered one of the unlucky recipients of a lead spanking, inflicted the previous evening, the likes of which had not been seen before or since.  Our first pig kill had been realized.  Again we called ole’ Jonathon.

We made one last sweep of the Southeast corner and to our surprise jumped a very large number of sleeping hogs.  I am certain they were extremely tired from the activities of the previous evening.  As they were attempting to make their hasty exit Ross quickly applied a lead spanking to the shoulder on 2 decent boars using the 30-30 Winchester with some great shooting.  We called ole’ Jonathon for the last time and headed back to the bunkhouse for a quick breakfast.  

As we drove back toward San Antonio we laughed about the terminology used to sell the hunt and the lack of evidence to support it. 

Would I go to the sane place again?  Probably not or at least not with the same expectations.

Will I do more research before buying another hunt?  You bet! 

Will I check references next time?  You know it.

Despite less than perfect conditions we triumphed.  We choose to proceed with the best attitude possible and created a hunt for ourselves that we will never forget. 

2004 Mule Deer Hunt

Idaho Non-Typical

By Craig Flinders as told to Ron Kellogg

Sometime late spring early summer the good news arrived in the mail from the Idaho Department of Wildlife.  Craig, along with his son and hunting partner had all been drawn for permits.

Prior to the season, Craig had received permission to hunt the breaks of the Clearwater from a landowner in area 11A.

The landowner encouraged them, discussing the nice bucks he had been seeing in the last year or two.  Because of time restrictions, pre-season scouting was not an option and they had to relay on all the information they could get from the landowner.

With great anticipation, the day of the hunt finally arrived.  The terrain was steep breaks extending to the edge Clear Water river, with several small draws and pockets for the animals to hide in.

The morning hunt was physically challenging but profitable, spotting some nice Mule Deer.  After meeting up for lunch, his hunting partner informed him of a large non-typical he had seen first thing in the morning.
The rest of the afternoon was spent glassing.

Towards the end of the day, three bucks were spotted bedded down in the sage and one was the big non-typical.  Only horns were visible above the tall brush.

The distance was 300 plus yards, with the open country and the unpredictable winds, a stalk was difficult at best.

Craig was confidant that he could hit the deer once he stood up.   So the waiting game began. 

Thirty minutes before lights out, 2 of the smaller bucks stood up to feed.  After waiting for another 10 minutes, which seemed like 10 hours, Craig realized his window of opportunity might not open.  After considering the options, he began a careful stock and fortunately was able to closed the distance to 80 yards.  The new position allowed Craig the opportunity for a shot on the deer in his bed.  Taking his time, he placed the shot well and the buck never got up.

Approaching the buck, the hunters realized just how big he really was.

The mass, width and height were exceptional.  The extra points gave this rack great character green scoring in the range of 230 points Boone and Crocket points.  The white hair on his face and the wear on his teeth indicated he had spent a few more years alive than most of his kind.  Craig was elated!

As a side note, I believe the reason these bucks get so big is because at the first sign of pressure they become nocturnal.  It is hard to shoot one if they never completely expose themselves in daylight.

Craig modestly attributes his success to luck. 

My definition of luck is: Skill, preparation, endurance, chance and opportunity converge to create success. 

Whether luck or skill in this case, the end results are the same.  A buck of a lifetime!

2005 Turkey Mania

Again, for the survival of mankind, I will sacrifice a weekend to defend our position against the wild turkey.

He is wily and dangerous for sure, but beyond that evil at the core.

I think back in the not so distant past, when the wild turkey conspired with the domestic turkey to perpetrate numerous attacks on Jennifer Smith. 

The mocking gobble of the turkey still echo’s their sentiments today.  It is like they are laughing uncontrollably each morning to commemorate their past success.

So, it is not just the survival of mankind that I venture out again this weekend, but to revenge those vicious attacks which we never will forget.

The Miriam turkey species was the last recipient of this revenge.  This weekend it will be the Rio Grande species.  

If it is in the cards that I not return from this weekend’s battle, remember that I died protecting you and I would do it again given the chance.

For the benefit of all,  pray for success.

2005  Miriam cross Tom                                                 A little humor never hurt anyone. 

Another dangerous turkey has been put to rest.  It is highly likely this was a man killer but no body knows for sure.  One thing we do know is that mankind is safer because of his demise. 

The Tom heard the hen call, but quickly recognized it as one of man's many disguised calls, and swiftly ran to attack the unsuspecting hunter.  Fortunately, the hunter was ready to defend himself and the turkey's devious plan came to an end.  Just a warning to everyone, please be aware at all times when in the forest, no one knows the day or the time an attack may be perpetrated by one of these evil birds.

2003 ALASKA CARIBOU HUNT

Tom black and Dan Kellogg display the caribou success of the trip.

Sept. 8, 2003

 

The flight from Spokane to Seattle was uneventful, unlike the airport security detectors that seem to find metal all over my body.  After practically stripping naked in the airport concourse, I was allowed to proceed.

Upon arriving in Seattle I hooked up with Tom Black and we spent the next 2 hours catching up on adventures from the last 10 years and all the equipment we had procured for the trip.

My biggest concern at this point has been the clothing or the lack there of because of weight restrictions on the last leg of the trip,  I have limited myself to a minimal amount.

I do have 2 layers of fleece and a rain jacket with a down vest for my luxury.  The weather has been in the 30’s and rain is predicted over the next 10 days.

 

Sept. 9, 2003

 

We arrived in Anchorage 1:45am Alaska time, 2:45am Pacific Standard time.  The Layover until the first flight to Bethel is 4 hours. 

We found the first open bench, not an easy task, and tried to sleep until 6:am with the worst elevator music playing in the background just loud enough to keep you alert.

At 6:am we wandered through security, in a daze, and packed ourselves into a smaller plane and headed for Bethel.  About an hour later we Bounced our way into Bethel.

All of our bags bounced in as well, which was a great relief.  We met our outfitter, Steve and another couple Kathy and Gary, heading out for a combination 10 day moose hunt and a 5 day caribou hunt.

A short ride and we arrived at the lodge located on a small lake outside of Bethel.

The facility was clean, comfortable, adequate for staging and preparing for arrival and departure.  The demon scales glared at us as Tom and I went through our things and made the final adjustments so that we could meet our weight restrictions.

At noon we were allowed to borrow the truck, drive into town and have lunch.  We ate at Subway and were surprised to see prices were double and sometimes triple that of the lower 48 states.  We took a peak at the local grocer and found prices to be outrages.

We saw an amusing sign posted on the bulletin board in the entry way, “waitress wanted for Breakfast”.

Kathy and Gary purchased a few items at the local grocery store that quickly added up to a hundred dollars. 

Upon returning Steve informed Gary and Kathy they were flying out that afternoon.

With very little sleep last night I tried catching a nap whenever possible. 

I took pictures of the 2 Dehavland Beaver Float planes. 

One was purchased from a museum in the Midwest.  It was built in 1957, used by the army.  It still had the original army green paint with the army star on each side.  A real classic.

Tom Black crouched in front of the 1957 Dehavland Army Service Plane.

We are now killing time waiting for Dan and Audrey to arrive and Gary and Kathy to leave.  I can’t wait to watch the float planes take off from this small lake.

Sept. 10, 2003             Cold

 

Tom Black woke up in the middle of the night and opened the door to every room turning on the lights trying to find the bathroom.  He woke up everyone in the place.  We all had a good laugh about it in the morning.

For breakfast we all had an egg omelet-kiesh kind of something and a variant of cinnamon nut roll……….very good.

Late yesterday a party of 3 came back with 3 caribou.  All respectable one was very nice wide and heavy with good tops.  Tom woke them up too.

After Breakfast we loaded our things in the truck and drove down to the river.  The plane took off from the lodge and met us at the river.  I guess our weight was marginal for take off from the small lake.  We packed our gear from the truck to the plane and squeezed our selves in.  Tom was to big for the back seat so he took the front and was almost too big for that seat. 

We too off by 9:30am, very powerful plane.  We flew very close to the ground in the old army service plane. It was tight fit with all 5 of us.

We arrived at the edge of the Kilbuck mountains in about an hour.  From the air we had seen caribou and grizzly.  As we taxied down the lake we pondered over where to setup camp.  Finally came up with the location and got to work unloading and setting up camp.

We all had a good laugh about Tom’s tent being so small.  We figured Tom would have to put the tent on standing up and then lay down.

After camp was situated we made a quick lunch and went up to glass for animals. 

The valley mouth across the tundra always produced good bulls.

We saw several small groups of caribou, another grizzly up close and 4 more grizzlies before the day was over.  I did glass 3 caribou that deserved a closer look in the morning.  As the sun was setting the temperature dropped rapidly and I became cold quickly.  I made my way back to camp and fixed dinner.  We made a fire to burn garbage and talked about strategy for the following day.  Dan had fished for about 45 minutes earlier and caught 3 graylings about 14 inches long.  Real fighters.

 

Sept. 11, 2003             Overcast but warmer

 

The day started with a bang.  I made oatmeal and coffee and hiked up to the knoll, just above camp, to eat breakfast and glass for game.  Just as I reached the top of the knoll I spotted a group of 30 caribou about at 1000 yards angling away from me.  One bull was exceptional with long tines and some that branched.  I quickly prepared a pack and took off as fast as my 9 surgery knees would take me.  After about 2 miles I realized there was no way I was going to beat the angle and get in front of them.  A good lesson. 

I worked my way back toward what we called the lookout.  On the way I found several moose and caribou kill antlers.  When I reached the lookout I joined Audrey and Tom and glassed for an hour spotting several caribou about a mile away, one nice bull.

We started to stalk toward the caribou we had spotted.  About half way there we split up to cover different areas. 

Tom Shot a nice tall caribou at about 3:00pm.  The only problem was that it was about 4 miles from camp and he had only worn a small day-pack. 

Tom's Tall caribou

We quickly de-boned the meat and moved it from the carcass.  We all took heavy loads to try and make just one trip.  Poor Audrey.  Her first meat pack was heavy and a long 4 miles back to camp.  I tied a hind quarter to Tom’s day-pack straps with rope and hoped it would hold.  Tom tried to carry the horns on his shoulders for the first half mile.  I felt sorry for him and took the load for the rest of the hike to camp. 
Dan shot 3 times at a fox today and missed.

 

 

September 12, 2003    Rainy Misty Foggy

 

So many things happened today.  I woke up with a migraine, quickly eat breakfast and headed for the lookout point with Dan and Audrey.  We immediately spotted 3 caribou but no shooters.  Audrey had forgotten something and had to go back to camp.  On the way back she had gotten turned around in the fog.  I had to chuckle when I heard her talking to Dan on the radio.  She was so disoriented when she saw our camp she said that there were other people camped here.  Dan explained that it was our camp and she was not lost any more.  Dan was able to help direct her back to the lookout point we were on.  We decided that we would not let Audrey stray to far on her own any more.

I spotted 2 caribou I had seen bed down the night before.  I was only able to glass them for a few minutes before they slipped behind a ridge.  They were angling our direction so, we quickly moved 800 yards to get into position.  Tom was on his way to get his last load of meat.  In route he spooked the caribou we had seen.  Dan and Audrey dropped their packs to make time and try to head them off.  I carried their packs while trying to watch the invents as they played out.  They arrived at the point the same time the caribou and set up for the shot.  Audrey had rested her gun on the ground and was unaware of a mound of dirt and rock ahead of her gun. 

Dan with caribou

Dan put his caribou down with 2 shots and Audrey missed.  When I caught up to them it was elation and despair all at once.  Dan elated he had taken a nice bull and Audrey was so disappointed she had missed.

Dan and a happy Audrey with her caribou.

We had seen 2 more bulls that were about 1200 yards away and one was keeper.  Audrey and I decided to make a stock on them.  We dropped down in to a depression that held a small lake and circled around to get closer to the bulls.  We crawled up out of the depression and could get no closer than about 375 yards.  We set a pack and coats under the gun for a rest and Audrey prepared for the shot.  We talked about the distance and where to hold.  Audrey killed the better of the 2 bulls with one shot at 362 yards.  She was so excited she jumped up and down waving her arms and screaming and laid on the ground kicking and screaming.  It was a great celebration dance. 

Audreys Bou was pushing 450 lbs.

Dan and Audrey both had nice caribou down.  We spent the rest of the day skinning, de-boning and packing meat back to camp.  Our pack to camp was a little over 2 miles a much nicer pack than the previous.  Back at camp I am very tired tonight but a very rewarding day.

Funny stuff: Always kidding Tom about all the stuff he brought.  He had enough food to feed an army.

 

September 13, 2003                Raining Cloudy Windy Cold

 

I spotted 2 caribou on the way to get a load of meat from Dan’s caribou.  I looked them over closely and decided not to peruse.  One with good tops and bad bottoms and the other with bad tops and good bottoms.

I am not seeing as many caribou today.  I am starting to worry about finding the right one.  I am always a little to picky.

When we reached Dan’s caribou, a grizzly had already claimed the carcus.  I quickly packed my quarter and headed to camp.  When I arrived at camp, I was soaked to the bone. 

Audrey’s horns are very wide and heavy.  Dan’s had a lot of extra points and Tom’s were very tall.  Everyone is happy with their caribou.

I quickly headed for the lookout to glass for more bulls.  I was searching for 2 bulls I had seen earlier.  Tom was on his way for a load of meat and spooked them.  They were moving at a bad angle and I was unable to make a stalk.  I glassed the entire afternoon and evening until dark.

I am fighting another migraine tonight.  Took to pills to counter.

Just as we were preparing to leave the lookout Dan spotted a cow and calf headed to the lake to our left.  They both jumped in and swam across.  It was fun to watch the calf get out on the near side.  He was very spunky raring and jumping and running around tearing the ground up.

We hiked back to camp and Audrey had dinner ready.  It was hot and that is all that mattered.  We were so cold.

Much to prepare for the next day, everything is wet.  I had to pump water before bed.

I am down to my last pair of sox.

 

 

September 14, 2003                Sunny Windy Cold Frosty and Icey Beautiful Day

 

Much colder today with frost covering everything.  Water was all iced up.  I chocked down a quick cup of oatmeal and coffee and high tailed it for the lookout.

I immediately spotted a group of bulls on the far side of a distant lake a couple of miles away.  I radioed to Dan and ask if he would come up and spot as I made my stalk.

A half a mile from the lookout, I spotted another group of bulls on the near side of that lake.  I believed that one of the bulls may have been one that I had spotted in the distance late yesterday so, I began moving toward that group.  When I reached the ridge I had seen them on, I took off my coat and pack and crawled the last few yards.  I saw the Antlers at less than 75 yards.  The wind was right and they had not seen me but my rain pants were a little to noisy.  When I crested the ridge they were running away at about 200 yards.  They began following a ridge angling away to my left.  My glasses and scope were all fogged.  I had to wipe them clean to determine which was the best bull.  My range finder was the only thing not fogged.  I set up for the shot.  The last one had the best rack so I placed the cross hairs on his shoulder and lead him by a few inches.  I squeezed the trigger and he dropped like a rock. 

My caribou finally down. Notice how plentiful the lichen is.

He hit the tundra so hard I could hear his horns clang as they dug into the ground.  The Range finder said 243 yards.  I radioed Dan and told him he was down.  Everyone was happy with the 4th caribou down and only a mile pack back to camp.  The antlers had a lot palmation and long tines off of the tops.  Good bez points but only one good shovel.  We began skinning and de-boning as soon as the picture taking was done.  A beautiful sunny day, a little windy and cold but a great view and the wind did keep the bugs at bay. 

Me feeling the extra wieght of the horns and a larger portion of meat.

I took an extra heavy pack to make just one load back to camp. 

I did some fishing with Dan in the afternoon caught and released several graylings.  Good fighters a lot fun to catch.

About dinner time I realized I had left the tenderloins in the rib cage.  After dinner Tom and I went back to the kill zone and cut out the tenderloins.  Tom picked up horns I had found from a caribou kill.  Very cold tonight, in the teens.

 

 

September 15th 2003                Coooooold     Sunny No Clouds

 

We ate a leisurely breakfast and talked about the events of the past few days.  I went up to the lookout to spend the last day glassing.  A lot of wild life on the tundra today.

I saw several Caribou in the morning with 2 bulls passing between me and the near lake to my left.  The far valley mouth always produced several caribou and usually good bulls.  I spotted 7 grizzlies today from this vantage point.  A sow with 2 cubs ambushed and tried to bring down a bull caribou but the bull was just a little bit quicker.  He barely escaped with his life.  Those bears can sure move fast when they want to.  The sun warmed everything up and no wind until the after noon.  I glassed the rest of the day never tiring of the animals and beauty.  Dan brought up a freeze dried meal and some water.  We cooked dinner at the lookout and glassed until dark.  The last day and I hate to see it end so soon.

With the wind picking up this afternoon it made it even cold in the sun.  We will pack tonight and prepare for the flight out in the morning.

Dan, Audrey and Tom around the last campfire.

We made the last campfire tonight.  My breath is fogging my glasses.  Very cold, will write later.  Dan was up at 3:am and saw the northern lights.

Sunrise on the lake we were camped at.  The fish are starting to surface.

September 16               Sunny Clear Cold

 

Fixed a quick breakfast and began packing for the flight out.  Finally dried everything out.  We moved the meat and horns down by the lake and waited for the plane.  I crawled up on a high point and glassed till the plane showed up around 3:00pm.  We scored the caribou while waiting for our ride. 

The flight back to hunting camp was interesting.  We had arranged for 2 planes for the trip back to haul all of the meat and horns that we had.  I flew out with the plane that had the meat and the others flew with the gear. 

On the flight back my pilot flew over a camp of hunters he had placed and they had a tarp laid out signaling they wanted him to stop.  He asked if I would mind if he landed and check on them, to which I replied it was no problem.  Just then a flock of ducks appeared out of no where and the pilot had to bank hard to miss them.  Visions of the movie the edge flashed through my mind, but we did miss them.  We landed despite the strong side winds trying to prevent us and check with the hunting party.  

We arrived back at the lodge and immediately went into town to try and arrange shipping for the horns back to Washington.  We arranged to pack all horns into a single create to be shipped by boat back to Seattle.

We talked to the next group of hunters heading out.  They had both caribou and bear tags.  Gave them the location of the bears we saw and the source for good caribou hunting.

We barrowed the truck and headed into town for dinner.  We choose Dimitries Pizza House again.  The same waitress who never smiled waited on us, but the food was good.  We did however see Elvis at the small restaurant.  It was good to see he was alive and well in Bethel Alaska.

We went back to the lodge and processed the meat.  The limit for carry on luggage at this time was 70 lbs. Each box.  I packed each box to the max and gave the rest to a needy local.  We had fun watched the film Dan had taken of the trip.  We went to bed about 11:45.

 

 

September 17 2003

 

 

  Tom got up about 3:am and processed meat to send back with me.  I got up at 6:am and left for the airport at 6:30 to catch my flight.  They charged 75.00 extra for each box of meat.  I boarded the 747 that had been partitioned in 2 sections.  The front half was reserved for cargo and the later for passengers.  The flight to Anchorage was fairly quick.  When I arrived I purchase a book by Larry Kanuit, “Cheating Death”, for the trip back.

The flight from Anchorage to Seattle was long but uneventful.  No lay over in Seattle and a short flight later I was landing in Spokane.  A great trip and it was good to be home.

 

 
Side notes:

This trip I have seen Moose, Caribou, fox, bald eagles and many grizzlies.

Small lakes are everywhere on the tundra.  Every depression holds water it seems.

We were fortunate to be in a hilly area allowing us to travel on hill tops making walking much easier.  The lower ground is covered with mounds caused by freezing and thawing making walking difficult.  One nice thing for my bad knees, is the moss covering the ground cushioned each step compensating for the lack of cartilage in my joints.

Grizzlies had claimed 2 of the 4 kill zones before we were able to get back to them.  No shortage of grizzlies here.

 

The roads and runways are all very uneven, from the affects of the permafrost.  Very bumpy take off and landings.  Driving to town was also very slow about 30 mph tops.

Bethel is a very small town with a depressed economy.  Prices are very high.  All things have to be either shipped or flown in.  No car dealerships.  Very few vehicles. Buildings are run down.  Water and sewer pipes are above ground and insulated to keep them from freezing.  If you live away from town water has to be trucked to your above ground tank.

Eastern Washington Mule Deer Hunt

Daniel Happy with his first buck

 

 

October 15th 2003

 

I arrived at the hunting cabin at 4:00pm.  I found Steve Strickler by 4:15.  He was soaking wet, after a drenching down pour, wearing the latest in quiet rain gear.

I trust only triple layer Goretex when it comes to heavy rain. 

Steve was glassing a group of bucks that had bedded down in the tall CRP.  There was a mature buck with an odd configuration but not many points.  He was a big old bruiser but definitely on the downhill side.  On one side he had a huge fork and eye guards that went 4 inches past his ears.  On the other side a single spike that went straight up in the air about 20 inches, an apparent damaged horn during spring growth stage.  Just before I reached Steve I had spotted 2 bucks close to the road.  One was a 24” 3 point with eye gaurds and the other a smaller 2 point.  By the time we were done spotting we had glassed 10 bucks but none we were overly excited about.

That night Dan arrived and we made plans for the morning hunt.  My purpose was to help spot as needed.  Steve was to hunt with Chet in the morning looking for a 4 point that he had seen earlier.  Dan  and I would glass the Hayden Corner.

That night we watched a Jack Brittingham movie, 30 years of hunting Mongolian Argali Sheep.  Great movie!! 

 

October 16 2003

 
Next morning we ate a quick breakfast and were on our way.  Dan and I were into deer right away just a half mile from the cabin.  We had spotted 6 bucks before we arrived at where we would hike up the ridge to glass.  I glassed for an hour and spotted about 10 more bucks and 50 does before I had to leave for work.  I was late to work and had a hard time concentrating for the next two days while my mind kept drifting back to that CRP field. 

 

October 18 2003

 
I arrived Friday night with my step son Daniel.  We made plans for the morning and then watched another of Jack’s movies.  They are the greatest!!

The McGinnis group arrived planning on doing some bird hunting in the morning.

 

October 19 2003

 

Up at 5:am a quick breakfast and we were on our way.  We dropped our truck at the far end of the DNR piece and caught a ride back to the near side.  We were into deer right away but nothing acceptable.  This will Be Daniel’s first deer so we were not to be real picky.  We covered a lot of ground that morning not really seeing what we hoped to.

Near the end of the DNR piece I spotted a nice buck in the distance across the alfalfa field moving toward some rock formations that I thought we could make a stalk on. 

What the deer saw from his point of view.  We had just circled the far rim rock around the back side

I also spotted a 3 point bedded down beneath one of the Rocky bluffs.

The sun was up and it was unusually hot for mid October.  This country is fairly open so, any shady cover at all should hold deer.  We headed for the truck and spotted several deer in the opposite direction.  Just as we arrived at the truck I spotted a deer bedded down.  It took about 15 minutes to point it out to Daniel.  He couldn’t see it for the longest time.  We had a pretty good laugh over that. 

At about 12:30 we headed for the cabin for lunch.  We fixed a few bowls of Top Ramon and napped for about 15 minutes. 

In the early afternoon we drove the CRP and found several does and a few small bucks.

About 3:00 we headed for the Rocky bluffs we had seen the bedded dear.  We parked by the alfalfa field and began the hike to the rocky bluffs.  It seemed no matter which direction we would go the wind would always circle around behind us.  As we hunted in to the rock formations we would carefully circler from the sunny side to the shaded.  Checking all beds we could.  Towards the top of the bluff I sent Daniel on top of a section of rim rock as I circled.  Just as I came around the edge of the rock I spotted the buck, at 100 yards, that we had seen earlier.  He spotted me at the same time and stood up.  I froze unable to move or signal Daniel.  As it happened Daniel was on top of the bluff directly above him not more than 10 feet away.  I was frozen like a statue hoping Daniel would like my direction.  Finally the deer’s nerves could take no more and he turned and ran.  (later Daniel said he could hear the deer breathing but could not see him)

Daniel took 3 quick off hand shots as the deer was making his exit and missed.  He was very disappointed and upset that he had missed.  He reloaded and we tracked the deer for a distance and saw no sign of blood.  The track led us to an old access road and we began to circle back toward the truck. As we rounded another group of rim rock, I looked to my left and saw a bedded deer, in the shade of the rim rock at about 200 yards.  I put the glasses up and saw that it was a 4 point.  We both sat down and set up for the shot.  I ranged the buck at 182 yards.  We stacked back packs and what we could to create a good rest for the shot.  Daniel was so nervous I could see the gun barrel shaking.  I had to stop and talk to him and calm his nerves.  We talked about where to hold the cross hair and how to breath and slowly squeeze the trigger.  Finally his nerves seem to quiet and touched off the shot.  The buck never got up. 

The buck as we found it.

We walked closer and found it necessary for Daniel to finish him with one more shot. 

He was a quick drag to the access road and we were on our way back to the hunting cabin with Daniel’s first deer. 

Coming up on the deer we found that the deer had seen us walk with in 75 yards of him.  We were concentrating on tracking the other deer and did not bother to look in his direction. 

Gospel Hump Wildernes Mule Deer Hunt

A view down the ridge that we had spotted the big buck on.  About 2000 feet down hill from camp.

 

 

Friday night November 7 2003

 

We arrived at the trail head @7:45pm.  It was very dark and cold and few places to park.  A lot of trailers and horses.  We had to drive another half mile to find a space that would hold both rigs.  We unloaded all 9 horses and found a way down to water.  That old saying is true, “you can lead a horse to water but you can not make him drink”.  Only a few of the horses actually drank.  We were to tired to make camp so Dan and Roley slept in the truck and I crawled in the 5th wheel horse trailer.  The horses and the cold kept me awake most of the night.  My winter bag was already packed so, I had to use an ultra light summer bag which closely resembled a bed sheet.  I am certain my toes were frost bitten.

As the sun rose we crawled out of our respective sleeping areas and started packing the horses.  We finished packing and were in the saddle by 9:30am.  My horse was anxious to get going and refused to walk for the first mile or two.  It still felt good to be in the saddle again.  It had been to long. 

 

The trail was a little longer and steeper than the last time, well at least from what I remembered.  My previous trip was bitter cold, around zero and below with 12 inches of snow on the ground.  The river was iced up.  I went in by myself with 2 horses, 1 to pack and 1 to ride.  I did get on a nice 28 inch buck but he some how survived.  He had as many lives as a cat does.  I guess that is why we are back.

Dan Wood and his horses coming back from the water hole.

 

This time we had 9 horses, a nice wall tent and stove and planned to stay as long as necessary.  We were ready for the cold and snow. 

We had to stop several times on the way in to adjust the packs but for the most part it was uneventful.  My horse, Sonny, was acting strange when we arrived at the camp site.  He was in obvious pain.  We determined he was colic.  He went down several times and would not get up.  We buted him and walked him.  He did drink some water and eat a little.  I think he will be ok, we just needed to keep an eye on him.

 

Dan and Roley set up camp while I went for Water.  I pumped water for an hour and still did not fill the 2.5 gallon container.  Ugh..

Roley and I set up the tie lines, for the horses in the dark while Dan fixed Dinner.  We fed and tied all the horses.  Not sure what dinner was but it did eat good and it stayed down.

A start of a migraine tonight.  I took a pill, went to bed and hoped for the best.  Dan checked Sonny one more time before he went to bed.  Looks to be ok.

Dan snored like a water buffalo keeping Roley and I awake most of the night.  A long night between the snoring, the horses pawing, kicking and fighting.  We got up twice to fix problems.  A long night before the alarm sounded at 5:30am.

 

November 8 2003

 

There was an eclipse of the moon last night.  Fun to watch from the top of the mountain.

We chocked some coffee down, ate a breakfast bar and went right out to glass.  We saw 3 different groups of elk and a glimpse of a mule deer.  Dan and Roley went down to investigate further.  A short time later they radioed me and told me to come down.  They had seen a nice four point.  When I arrived there was a 4 point coming up the ridge right at us.  This was the looser of the sparring match for a group of does.  The antlers branched to high and no one wanted to shoot it. I can’t believe I didn’t take a picture of him.  He was 40 yards at his closest.

The other buck was a good mature 4 point with heavy beams wider than his ears and good forks.  He was a keeper.  They began their stalk down the ride toward the buck.  I held my position and glassed.  I soon spotted another 4 point further down than the one they were headed for.  By the time they arrived at the point the buck should have been at, he had pulled the old disappearing act. 

We had hiked down hill about 2500 feet and had a long hard climb up out of the hole they were in. 

Back at camp there was more work to do, water and feed the horses, pump drinking water, chop wood, hang another tie line and fix dinner.  By the time we were done it was snowing pretty hard.  Very tired and sore tonight. 

Camp site was at about 6000 feet right near the snow line.  A couple of Goats lived right close to camp.  The Wall tent and stove made the weather tollerable.
Monday Nov. 10th             Snowing Foggy

 

Awoke with a migraine today, but determined to hunt anyway.  Lots of snow and fog this morning.  Snow still coming down.  We are right in near the snow line so not a great deal of accumulation. 

I went to glass at about 6:15am and stayed for several hours.  Fog inhibited greatly my field of view.  Did not see much today.  A few mountain goats across from camp.  The deer were hanging in the timber to get out of the weather.  I made it back to camp at 12:30.  I fed and watered horses.  We rode up the trail a few miles and found a great place to hunt if the weather permits.  Also found a better spot to water the horses.  Headache is really bad tonight.  Took 2 pills, if that doesn’t kill it I will take a shot in the middle of the night.  We had steak for dinner.  I took a shot of imitrex at 1:30am.  Headache finally gone by 6:00am.

 

Tuesday November 11th             Snow freezing Rain

 

Stormed all night with snow and freezing rain.  Lots of wind. 

I headed out first thing towards Johnson Butte in a driving snowstorm.  Dan went up the ridge and Roley went down.  I walked for an hour to reach the location I had picked out.  Snowing and blowing so hard I can not glass.  The ridge was open with very little cover.  I finally found a stump to crawl under.  I had to dig it out to make room for me.  It did offer some shelter but, I was still being pelted by snow.  My feet were wet and frozen and after an hour and a half I was shivering so badly I had to move.  The storm had not let up and I was unable to glass.  I headed back toward camp.  I made it back to camp, cho che che’s frozen.  It was sure nice to have a tent with a stove in it.

When I arrived at camp Dan and Roley were there so, we sat down and compared notes.

Dan had seen a small 4 point, Roley a Doe and fawn.  We dried out and warmed up by the stove.  The weather finally broke around 2:00pm so, we went out to glass. 

I saw 2 big herds of elk with several bulls but no deer.  I came in late for Dinner.  We had spaghetti and cream corn.  I won at hearts tonight.  So happy no headache tonight.

We made a new drying rack today with more drying space.  It sure helped to be able to hang things close enough to the stove to dry.  Very tired tonight.

 

 

Wednesday November 12 2003

 

So nice to have good weather today, no storm last night and finally a good nights sleep.

I had a cup of coffee and a breakfast bar and was off to find the buck we had seen the first day.  I arrived at the vantage point at 6:45 and found that big buck with in 10 minutes of arriving.  He was tall wide and heavy and I estimated would score close to the mid 190’s.  He was with another small buck that was pursuing the does relentlessly and really irritating the larger buck.  As soon as they disappeared behind the ridge I began moving to get into position.  I quickly moved down the ridge to close the distance.  At about 500 yards down the ridge I ran into my first herd of elk, about 30 head,  that were bedded on the edge of the ridge in the trees.  I dropped down to circle beneath them hoping not to spook them to badly.  Another 100 yards and I ran into another herd of about 75 head elk.  I had to sit and wait for them to pass.  I can’t believe it.  Almost an hour had past since I had seen the deer.  I finally arrived at the vantage point the buck was nowhere to be found. I did find the smaller buck with the does but the larger was gone.  I watched the smaller buck run off another buck.  I glassed the entire area for the rest of the day until dark.  The larger buck never showed up.  I did spot 4 more bucks during the day but I could not bring myself to consider them after seeing the big 4 point.

I climbed the 2500 feet up to camp in the dark.  Much to do tonight to prepare for tomorrow.  

Watering the horses consisted of saddling one and ponying 2 additional horses at a time to the watering hole.  It usually took about an hour to get them all watered and retied then, at least another hour to get them fed and retied short for the night.

I am readjusting my pack and trying to lighten the load tonight.  I have reset the alarm for an hour earlier.  We are all heading down the ridge after the bigger buck tomorrow.  Very steep and Rugged country.

Another view down the ridge we had spotted the Big Buck on.  This old burn area seemed to hold a lot of deer.

Thursday November 13th 2003

 

I woke up at 3:00am with a headache.  I could not sleep so I got up to check the horses.  I found Doc Loose.  He had chewed through his lead rope.  I found another and retied him.

Back in the tent I kept the fire going until 5:00am and started coffee and lit the lantern to wake everyone up.  We finished a quick breakfast and headed out in the dark to be in position when day light arrived.  We traveled about 2 miles down the ridge, a 1500 foot drop and setup to glass.  He did not show today.  We spent the rest of the day checking every pocket on the hill.  We saw several bucks and does as Dan made a lower circle on the hillside.  No sign of the larger deer.  Again he had eluded us. 

 

We had run short of feed for the horses and Roley was anxious to head  home so we packed up camp to leave despite my pleading to ride out and get a load of feed and come back.  I hated to leave when we have been so close to getting that bigger deer.  So disappointed we are leaving 3 days early.

The country is very steep and rugged but the trails are good.  I stressed my legs to the limit most days.  The horse trails are good but because of the steep country if a horse were to make a bad step it could be serious.  Roley is very worried about the trail and the ride out.

Weather is clear but windy and very cold today.  I could not stay warm.

 

 

Friday November 14th 2003

 

Awake at 6:am started packing up camp.  A long process ending about 5 hours later.

3 horses to ride and 6 to pack.  Once all horses had been watered we loaded each with pack boxes and top packs.  We took careful measures to tighten down each load so we would not have to stop on the way out especially on the steep part of the trail. 

 

We only had to stop a few times on the way out to adjust packs.  A much better pack trip out.  We did run into an outfitter with several pack horses on a steep part of the trail.  It was a little hairy moving the horses off the trail.  Roley bailed off and had some trouble.

We stopped at a cutoff to a wilderness ranch and fed the horses in a grassy field. 

We finally made it to the pack bridge, another concern for Roley, but made it across with no incident.

Back at the trucks we unpacked the horses and fed them.  We drove to the end of the road to see if there was another trail on this side of the river.  When we reached the boat launch we found it was only a few canyons away across the river from where we had seen the buck.  We headed back to the horse trailers and the horses.  I made one last plea to stay and hunt for that larger buck but Roley was headed home.  We loaded the horses and headed out.  We stopped in Riggens for Dinner but Roley kept moving toward home.

Dan and I decided we were going to try and explore the north end of the wilderness.  At the restaurant we pulled out the map and decided where we  would try and enter from the north side.  The road was a little narrower than we had planned on and maybe not as improved as we had hoped.  We were gaining elevation rapidly.  We were in a Ford crew cab pulling a 20’ gooseneck trailer.  It took a couple of hours but we made it to the edge of the wilderness.  It was about 9:30pm and the snow was pretty deep.  The closer we got to the trail head the deeper the snow got.  At the first wide spot in the road we stopped to turn around.  I got out to help guide Dan as he backed the trailer.  It was then I noticed we had been trailing a stream of transmission fluid.  The truck almost immediately stopped moving either forward or reverse.  We had lost the transmission in the middle of nowhere.  We could not run the truck to stay warm so, we just leaned the seats back and tried to sleep.  It was a long cold night.  Not much sleep for either of us.

 

 


November 15th 2003

 

 

This morning we saddled up the horses and headed for the closest town 40 miles away.

About 3 miles from the truck we ran across another hunter in a truck that agreed to call for help when he got into cell range or into town, whichever came first.  We headed back to the truck and trailer and started a fire and made breakfast.  An hour or 2 later a wildlife agent showed up and said he had run into the hunter we had seen.  He radioed for a tow truck and a truck with a 5th wheel hitch.  It was late afternoon when they finally reached us.  We helped chain up both rigs front and back and we headed out.  We made it to the main road by 9:30pm.  They had called a local outfitter for permission to keep our horses and trailer at his place.  He was a great guy and offered a trailer for us to sleep in by the horse pens.  He also gave us a truck to drive for what ever purpose we needed.

What a great guy.  He could really talk and was really interesting to listen to.  He also allowed us to make a phone call to get a truck coming to haul the horses while the Ford was being fixed.  We drove to Hoots café for dinner just before they closed.  We were starved and eat our fill.  Back at the trailer we were so tired we fell asleep almost instantly. 

 

 

November 16th 2003

 

We got up, fed the horses and headed to Hoots café for breakfast.  I had a huge order of biscuits and gravy.  We headed back to the ranch and talked with Marvin for awhile.  He showed us the ranch and several deer.  His ranch was 1 mile by 4 miles.  The bottom mile fronting the Salmon River, what a great place.  He had purchased it from FHA by bid for a song.  He told us the story of the last horse roundup where he had gotten in a bad wreck where he had been kicked in the head and fallen about 20 feet.  They had taken him to the hospital where he had walked out later that night and they found him wandering the streets.

Todd arrived with another truck and we loaded the trailer and horses and headed for home.  I had my laptop with me and watched movies all the way home.  Hunting of coarse.

 

I had planned to go back the following weekend by myself and try to float across the river, but I had misjudged the season thinking it didn’t end until the 25th instead it was over on the 18th.  Maybe next year.

 

 

 2003 Turkey Hunt

Happy with my 20 lb Rio with  9.5 inch beard.

 

 

April 25th 2003

 

I arrived at my nephew Daniel’s house at 10:30pm Friday night.

We talked, planned and prepared for an early assault. 

 

April 26th 2003

 

4:am came awful early but we were up and anxious to get out into the field.  We arrived at the hunting location in the foothills of the Blue Mountains about 45 minutes before sunrise.  We gave a crow call and listened for the answer.  Gobbles to the North and West, we decided to go West.  We setup under a fence line and started calling.  We had several answers from Gobblers still in the roost.  As the sun climbed higher the gobblers began to fly with a couple landing in our direction.  We were hearing some behind us and assumed it was Daniels hunting partners that were suppose to join us.  We had one Tom that came with in 75 yards but not close enough. 

Daniel was disappointed, we had a great setup but the turkeys didn’t cooperate.  We covered a lot of ground the rest of the morning with a few responses but no success.  We went back to the house for lunch and then headed out for an evening hunt.  We spotted some turkeys to far to stalk but marked where they would roost and left them until morning.

 

April 27th 2003

 

Daniel had church responsibilities the next morning so I headed out early before daylight.  I hiked in to the area that I had marked the night before.  I began calling and had immediate responses from the roost.  When they flew from the roost they choose another direction.  My calling seem to work more as a way to drive them away.

I hunted most of the morning with no success and headed back to the house.  After lunch we headed out to a ranch on the Snake river for permission to hunt.  We had heard there were a large number of turkeys and were not disappointed.  We talked with the owner and received permission.  We took a short hike to scout and saw turkey sign everywhere.

Daniel jumped a group of about 30 turkeys.  We couldn’t believe it, there seemed to be turkeys everywhere. 

 

April 28th 2003

 

Sunrise found us in the same location where we could see quite a distance.  We called and glassed and watched some nice Tom’s working up a draw across the canyon from us.

I watched as a Tom with a group of hen’s worked into a group of oak brush.

 

We began our sneak along the rim on the far side of the canyon.  As we approached we jumped a few hens at the edge of the draw.  We continued to sneak along the rim and could hear the hens cooing just inside the brush.  Daniel choose to stay with the amazingly vocal hens and I continued on to the oak brush that I had seen a nice Tom move into.  The Tom’s did not seem to respond to our calling or even the calling of the hens.  We wondered if we had happened upon the largest group of gay toms in the world. 

I snuck along the rim very slowly.  About 75 yards after I left Daniel I spotted 2 Tom’s hunkered down in the brush at about 30 yards.  I took careful aim and shot.  The brush seemed to explode with turkeys running everywhere except for one that seemed to be tired.  Maybe he was tired and wanting to lay down because of the extra lead he was carrying in his cranium.  I crawled under the oak brush and pulled the turkey out.  Daniel came around the corner with his gun pointed at me.  Some say I could be mistaken for a turkey, I beg to differ.  Daniel’s better judgment took hold and he decided to wait for a turkey of the wilder nature.

Daniel continued on jumping a group of Tom’s and made a hasty two shots missing. He then realized he only had 2 shells with him.  He started heading my direction to borrow shells from me.  As he made his way he almost stepped on a hiding tom.  He yelled in disgust as the turkey ran off. 

 

A few days later Daniel was able to fill his tag in the same local area.

Daniel on the 2003 turkey hunt.

My Tom had a 9 and a half-inch beard and was over 20 lbs., with spurs that were 2 inches long.

This was an unconventional way of getting turkeys but it worked for us.

SE Idaho Mule Deer Hunt

Dan Wood Glassing from a high point in S.E. Idaho

Friday October 8th 2004

 

I met up with Dan Wood in Coeur D’Alene, Idaho around 12 noon.  I left my truck and road with him in his Ford Crew Cab 4X4 pulling a 20’ horse trailer.  It took us about 13 hours of driving to arrive at the trail head where we unloaded and fed horses.  We pulled out sleeping bags and crawled in and grabbed a few hours sleep until daylight. 

As the sun came up we were packing the horses.  We were on the trail by 10:00 and a short 5 mile ride later we were setting up camp in an aspen grove.  Dan’s friend, let’s call him the anti-christ, road one horse and towed 2.  All 3 horses were green and not really trail ready.  One good thing was he brought in a large wall tent. 

We had to clear several logs before we had enough room to setup the tent.  Once the tent was setup the anti-christ informed us of certain rules he had involving the tent and one was that I could not sleep in it. 
 I had been fighting a migraine most of the day, so after dinner I took my bed role and crawled under a tree and went to sleep.  I was determined not to let the anti-christ ruin my trip even if it meant setting up my own camp elsewhere. 

Our camp in an Aspen Grove near the trail.  The smaller tent on the left is where Dan Kellogg and I slept.

Saturday October 9th 2004

 

Dan and I saddled up a couple of horses and headed up the mountain to check the ridge line and do some glassing.  We spotted a few bucks early in the morning and several elk through out the day but, nothing worth taking.  We rode several miles to cover the extent of the southern ridge and When we arrived back at camp we discovered the anti-christ had stayed in camp all day and done nothing.  He made crazy statements like he wasn’t really sure he could shoot an animal and crazy wacko political statements looking to start a fight.

We set up another tent I could sleep in and made dinner.  After dinner I quickly retreated to my tent before I was tempted to target practice on a 2 legged mouthy creature that no one would miss. 

 

Sunday October 10th 2004

 

After a quick breakfast we saddled up and headed for the pass and down into the next canyon.  We stopped just on the far side of the pass and glassed for deer.  We spotted half a dozen bucks but no shooters.  We continued on down into the bottom of the canyon and then up towards the head end and circled up on to Snowall ridge. 

We found an abandoned  camp near a spring where someone had apparently poached a doe and left most of the meat.   This type of hunter is what can ruin it for all of us. 

We road the horses back in the dark.  We have ridden the horses hard the last few days and decided we would give them a break tomorrow.

Dan Wood with a couple of his horses.

Monday October 11th 2004

 

My brother Dan Kellogg is walking in today and going to meet up with us so I am keeping a radio with me.

After a quick breakfast Dan Wood and I headed up from camp to a small ridge that sat in the center of a large basin.  There was remnants of an old cabin that gave us some cover as we glassed.  As the sun came up we started spotted deer everywhere.  Before the morning was over we had spotted almost 30 bucks but only a few 4 points that did not hold much interest for me.  I continued on up the ridge while Dan Wood went back to camp.  Just as I reached the top of the ridge my brother Dan Kellogg radioed and said that he had dropped his main pack at camp.  I asked him to meet me at the pass where I would be glassing.  We traveled several miles and canyons the rest of the day with most of the deer spotted falling short of our expectations.  Back at camp my 9 knee surgery legs were screaming for comfort and Dan Kellogg was introduced to the anti-christ.  I was somewhat relieved in that Dan takes this type of person on as a personal challenge so the pressure was off of me and I would not have to kill him after all.

 

Tuesday October 12th 2004

 

We left camp in the dark and rode for the pass.  We stopped at day break and began glassing the far side of the canyon we would be dropping down into.

We immediately began spotting deer.  Several bucks and finally a nice heavy beamed 4 point.  We watched and schemed trying to anticipate the buck’s bedding area and a good plan for a stalk.  The anti-christ was with us, for the first time and was making fun of the fact that we would travel this far to try and kill this buck.  A short time later we spotted an exceptionally wide 4 point.

We decided that we would draw straws to see who would have first choice.  I  drew the short straw giving me first choice.  It took us 1 and a half hours, several miles and a horse wreck to get in to position to begin the stalk.  My brother Dan was the unfortunate recipient of the horse wreck, damaging his shoulder and face.  Fortunately his head cushioned the fall on the rock taking most of the impact. 

Just before I was to begin the stalk, the anti-christ decided he might want to try for the deer as well so we had to draw straws again and include him in the draw as well against my fervent disagreement.  After the draw I had somehow drawn the short straw again. 

About 2 hours had passed since we had last seen the deer and I was skeptical but hopeful of finding the deer.  Unfortunately we were unable to locate either of the nice deer again.

The 2 Dan’s and I decided to continue up the ridge while the anti-christ decided he would go back to camp.  That didn’t seem to hurt my feelings any.

A mile or so up the ridge we jumped 2 of the smaller bucks we had seen earlier in the day.  We stopped and glassed in several locations up the ridge but were unable to locate the 2 bigger bucks we had spotted that morning, or any thing equivalent.

Dan and the 4 point he may have been a little hasty with.

We circled into a high basin connecting with the main trail and headed back towards camp.  As we rode downward out of the high basin Dan Wood spotted a 4 point on the side hill and Dan Kellogg decided he would take it.  One shot and at about 200 yards and the deer was down.  It was an easy drag down to the bottom of the canyon.  We gutted him quickly as the sun went down and rode back in the dark.

Dan's 4 point.  Notice the scarred face from the horse wreck.  Fortunately his head cushioned his fall.

Wednesday October 13th 2004

 

Dan Kellogg and the anti-christ decided they would pack out the meat from the deer Dan had down while Dan Wood and I would try Snowall ridge again. 

We began the long ride again glassing as we went.  Sometime during the late morning we heard the anti-christ shoot.  He had taken a small buck on the pack out with Dan Kellogg.

They processed the meat quickly and packed it back to camp. 

Glassing the rest of the day produced a lot of elk and some smaller bucks but no keepers.

Another long ride home in the dark.

 

Thursday October 14th 2004

 

For some reason the anit-christ had changed his tune.  He actually was somewhat helpful and even his conversation was boarder line reasonable.  A mystery to me.

I took off on foot today hoping to cover a steep ridge not accessible by horse.  I spotted Moose and Elk today and a few small bucks.

Dan Wood watched the basin behind camp and spotted a decent four point.  He shot and missed at 250 yards. 

That evening we hiked down the canyon and up a good ridge and glassed until dark.

We saw a couple of bull Elk and Moose and a few deer.  Another long walk home in the dark.

This hill side seem to hold a lot of deer.

 

Friday October 15th 2004

 

We saddled up and rode down the canyon today and picked a draw to ride up hoping to find another pass over into the next canyon.  It was good ride but somewhat unproductive for deer.  Again a few deer spotted but no takers.  As we rode up the canyon past the 2 deer kills an eagle flew up and just over the top of me as I rode.  It was amazing to see him so close I could almost touch him.  Dan hiked out today and headed for Washington.

 

Saturday October 16th 2004

 

We rode up to the pass at day break and setup to glass hoping to see the larger deer we had seen a few days earlier.  Again we spotted the smaller bucks but the larger deer were no where to be found.  We spotted bull elk most every day and were very impressed with the numbers.  The number of deer were impressive as well but the number of mature deer were down from our expectations.

This was our last day of hunting and we glassed until the last dog was hung.

A nice valley that always had Elk, Deer and Moose.

 

Sunday October 17th 2004

 

We packed up camp and headed to the horse trailers.  We loaded up and drove 12 hours back, arriving in Spokane about 1:00 am in the morning. 

Tearing down camp and preparing the horses for the pack out.

A good trip overall but Dan Wood and I came to the conclusion that we would both agree on any additional people we might invite along next time.