This is about hunting and trying to find a big buck sometimes
Under this proposed Wilderness Act, BLM Access will be limited access to the BLM lands and the parties involved on the private sector would compromise by having a trail-head with limited access which would now be on their land and not on the once county road they want vacated. Just think about having arm guards asking for your hunting liscense before entering Public Land!
Since this involves everyone that uses Federal Lands for pleasure, sometimes a voice needs to be heard and sent out to fellow outdoor enthusiasts!
Over the course of many years I hunted, fished and hiked a great deal of the Oregon. Some has been on private land with permission, but the majority of it in the last 30 years has been on B.L.M and National Forest. Many that used B.L.M., (Bureau of Land Management-Public Land) know that B.L.M. has some of the greatest opportunities for hunting, fishing, hiking, mining claims, or just looking for rocks and fossils. We are quite lucky in the Western States to have so much B.L.M. to use for outdoor activities.
A great problem exists in the Western States with B.L.M., land-locked B.L.M. and private. Specifically, I am referring to a large private landing holding in Central Oregon where this has major problem for almost 30 years Recently I spoke with a person (government employee) about B.L.M. lands that are land-lock on this private holding and lack of access. He commented that you can work the corners (checker board BLM) by using Global Positioning Systems. To his amazement I told him that it was against the Law to do so. Regardless of your ability to jump the corners and work them, you still come in the land owner’s air space.
The particular area I am addressing is east of Madras, Oregon and near Historical Donnybrook and borders the John Day River, with both Wasco County and Jefferson County have county roads in the land area. To many it is known as the “Big Muddy Ranch” notoriously it was known as the Rancho Rashneeshpuram. Today it is known as the Washington Family Ranch, which is under the direction of Young Life.
This is the sign of the past that were posted on BLM, just not the private! So now we see NO TRESPASSING SIGN w-Washington Family Ranch! Remember if this Act goes through you will find these signs on the Public Road most likely!
There has been a bill drawn up by a couple of Senators Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) to do a Land Swap between a numbers of private property owners with B.L.M. encompassed on their lands. The name of this Bill is S. 2963, Cathedral Rock and Horse Heaven Wilderness Act. I believe the idea of consolidating the B.L.M., which has been land-locked since before my time. I am not sure though that it should become a Wilderness Area. After looking at the proposed map of the land swap, there is at least one major issue and that there is no public access to Cathedral Rock.
From what I see one Young Life will have greater benefits then the public would with the present proposal. The greatest concern is the issue with public access to the lands. Cathedral Rock or Coffin Rock would be the toughest proposal due to lack of road access touching the land. There would be on river access on the John Day River and that side of the land is extremely steep and if I remember there is only one real slot to come in from the river. For years now you could have access to the B.L.M. in the area via the N.E. Muddy Creek Rd. The public could get to Wagner Mountain (Cathedral Rock) and Horse Heaven via the N.E. Muddy Creek Rd. Understanding from reliable sources; Young Life has tried to vacate the roads. What his means is that the county road that goes into the area will become a private road. The result is a portion of the proposed land swap could only be used by Young Life and that would be for hunting purposes most likely. In a recent land hearing, the comment by the Director of Young Life is that they would regulate the usage of the road at specific times of the year. The comment was made that the ranch is has youth on the ranch and want to regulate people in the area. Young Life themselves have hunts going on the ranch during the big game season and bird season. Since the Washington Family donated the land to Young Life there is great deal of the money generated from the hunting on the ranch! It was once said when Young Life took over that land that they made comment that to the effect of wanting to put up a game fence 8’ high to keep the game on the ranch. It is strange but understandable that you can’t find a link on the Washington Family Ranch (Young Life) page for hunting or even fishing, rest assure they have it and there is a Game Director for the Ranch!
At this point there is no real benefit to the public or others such as Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs who might have sites in the old B.L.M. that are cultural importance to them to have access.
According to Town Meeting it was said, Young Life feels that all hunters want to trespass their lands to gain access to the B.L.M. or just trespass to hunt. Majority of the public does not realize that Young Life has patrollers during the hunting season patrolling their lands and the B.L.M. (will stop you on the B.L.M.) via truck, ATV or horseback. It should also be known that much of the B.L.M., lands ATV’s are no longer allowed, and you have walk in. There is a section of land east of Donnybrook on top of Gosner Road (Horse Heaven) that many hunters and hikers will camp at. During the hunting season patrollers of Young Life will come into the B.L.M. area that hunters camp on and take vehicle license numbers down and sometimes there have confrontations. This is a known fact, as I myself have experience a number of times of the years. One such encounter was with handgun carrying patrollers on B.L.M. and be accused of trespassing on their lands. I find that this person(s) are now a private land holder (Jefferson County Fire Cheif) next to Young Life property and has been involved to have the Muddy Road vacated and how the land should be used. I made a comment to the Director of Washington Family Ranch at the time, “are you planning to shoot hunters”, his comment back was “we will do whatever is nessacary to protect our lands”. I then asked him why does he feel he has control of the B.L.M. and have gun carrying patrollers on B.L.M.!
My experience is on public record in the Wasco County Courthouse in The Dallas, Oregon.
Why should Young Life, or any other major land owner be able to determine who can be on B.L.M. Far as I am concern, it will lead further to major private land holders having even more control of public land. Just the fact that Young Life wants the road vacated goes along what has happen in many cases in the west with roads being vacated and Federal Lands become permanently landlocked with no Public Access!
“MARTIN ARCHERY BUILDS THE FASTEST AND MOST ACCURATE BOWS IN THE WORLD”
Think about MARTIN ARCHERYa privately owned company that is still around and being highly successful. Not many companies with the same owners that started the company are still around. I find those that have there next generation involved from the start will last. I would have to put Martin Archery up there with Tiffin RV when it comes to Product, Advancement in Technology and Service.
There are three generations at Martin Archery still today, as Gail Martin and his wife are still around to see what is going on. I understand that Gail Martinwent Antelope Hunting last year and can still get it done at 80+! Hoorah! He loves to drive a B Van to go hunting with his wife. In 2009 Terry’s brother Dan Martin went on an Antelope Hunt with dad and witness dad taking an Antelope in Wyoming. A comment was made to someones son by Dan Martin about the hunt! “archery is a lifelong sport”
Martin Archery has been the leaders in the archery world with innovation, especially in the Compound Bow area, with Terry Martin being the creator of technological advance bows being put into the market place. A great deal of other bow manufacturers have most likely gain knowledge from Terry’s ideas. Martin Archery has more than 25 patents on designs and more to come.
Another area that might be interesting to look at that is connected to Martin Archery is Rytera Archery, I understand it is “Aliens…”“Lightyears Ahead” in the archery world with all new Seeker 365!
Martin Archery has the bow for everyone, with the long bow and re-curve for those that want traditional bow shooting. Once you check out the 2012 Martin Archery Catalog, you’ll find that there are many to choose from. The State of Oregon actually has a Traditional Bow Hunt in a few units in the state!
I have know about Martin Archery for about 35 years myself over the years of hunting. When I first started to shoot the bow & arrow for hunting purposes it was around 1972. My first bows of course were re-curve bows and I chased a many a buck with them and getting a few bucks on the way.
My first Martin Compound Bow was the Martin Cougar Magnum around 1980-82 I think back to. It was fastest bow I had ever shot and it got the job done for me and many others that bought them in the Portland Metro Area in Oregon from Old Windy Linde (Chuck Linde) at a small shop out in Clackamas, OR. He had a rack full of Martin Cougar Magnums’ and it didn’t take long for a few of use to get dialed up with the new hot bow in the country. I took that bow and harvested my largest Oregon Blacktail Buck ever with that bow!
Over the years I have had and still have a number of Martin Compound bows to shoot. I would think that bows are like rifles to the rifle hunter. One is not enough, as I know the feelings from the rifles I have or have had and the bows I still have in the garage.
It has been a while since I had gotten into wanting another bow. My Martin Pro Series Scepter II for hunting I have had for about 12 years and my fancy Scepter for target shooting for about 11 years. Time sometimes slips away on when you have gotten a tool for hunting.
All new Onza 3 Pro in Black! Hot Stuff!
Recently I received a new Martin Gold Series Onza3 (III) set at 29″, 71.4 lbs and left handed in black to hunt with from Terry Martin. It is an ultimate shooting bow, that is very fast and quiet to shoot. I once had the original Onzain Camo that was set at 90 lbs. Great macho bow for sure, but on one hunt it got me into trouble as I was not able to pull it back while having 2 bucks broadside. I found a fellow employee that worked for me in Wyoming that wanted to bow hunt and he could pull it back easily.
Over the years and many arrows later I have never had a failure in the hunting field or on the range with any of my Martin Bows. I believe in preventative maintenance and I check my cables, screws and anything else tied to the bow before going into the field and have never had to worry about my Martin. There is a reason why Martin gives a Limited Life Time Warranty on their bows to the original owner with sales slip, they are designed to last a lifetime!
There is a reason that Martin Archery has the slogan of “FASTEST AND MOST ACCURATE BOWS IN THE WORLD”.Martin has always built fast, accurate and reliable bows since I can remember!
There is another sight that is very interesting to me on Archery that everyone should visit and see what is happening in the Archery World. There are classified ads, manufacturer’s ads, tech forum, articles on shooting and hunting, including articles from Ted Nugent himself. Check out Archery Talk and let me know what you feel about this website.
There was has been a time period when I did rifle hunt for elk, as most of my partners were into the rifle hunting of elk. This particular story is about a great rifle hunt for Rocky Mountain Elk in Oregon. The hunt involved my brother Steve and one of my running partners Frank Phillips.
Frank Phillips and I had drawn Grizzly Hunt Unit -Oregon second season elk tags and poor Steve had not drawn the Grizzly tag and ended up with a general season tag and would have to hunt the Biggs Unit that lay across the rural Highway 218 that split the two units.
In those days those us that hunted the B.L.M., State Lands and some private that were encompassed within or near the “BIG MUDDY“ or to my group named the “Rajneeshpuram“, kept hunting the area as quiet as we could. Not wanting it be known about how many elk lived in the rimrock, Junipers and sagebrush land that was overgrazed by cattle in and around Donnybrook, Ashwood, and Antelope closely guard for many years. The “Bhagwan-Shree-Rajneesh“ and his followers were to thank as they kept more than 60,000 acres closed to hunting, managed the creeks, built lakes and planted crops. I believe we first sighted Elk in about 1983 while bow hunting for the monster Mulies of the area, while glassing back at the at observation towers of the “Rajneeshpuram“ (tower had 365 degree viewing, plus sleeping area for the guards).
2 Bulls with this type of antler taken out of the gene poll!
On with the story that started with Steve and myself meeting Frank in Madras, with him being dropped off by his wife as she was heading to Black Butte Ranch outside of Sisters, Oregon. Keeping a low profile we got a couple of rooms in Madras at Huffy’s Motel easy to come and good to where we were hunting (45 minutes).
Since Brother Steve was going to have to drive down to the lower part near Clarno, Oregon and head into the BLM or maybe even Sorefoot, he would be dropping us off for our hike into the interior. We started out at about 4:30AM by being dropped off at the Microwave Complex on the road and we would check out the main basin near the “Baily Ranch”. The first part of the hike in would be about 4 miles of downhill with lots of rocks to maneuver through.
In that country when it rains the going get rough as the soil is more like clay and most difficult with caking up with as much as 4’ on the soles of your boots. Now both Frank and I were in great shape running as much as 30 races a year and putting in about 150 miles a month running. If it were today and kicking our legs out to get rid of the mud, probably have to have knee surgery. It was tough and one wonders what the heck we were doing and why not wait for the ground to dry out. We had the land to ourselves and during the whole hunt never saw another hunter. A well-kept secret, plus most want to hunt first season to get first lick on the big bulls. Little do they know that the big bulls get pushed out of the National Forest to the south of this area? So easy for them to find refuge in this open country where they can lay and watch there backside.
Looks pretty good from this angle!
We reached the basin that is near the big pine, the only big pine in the area, pretty close to the head waters of Current Creek. We did have access to a number of ranches in those days. Funny all of the land owners are now gone or dead, thus today much of this is not hunt able except with hard cash in the form of 10K or more. The B.L.M. holds elk still, but not in the numbers it once did with the predation from the Cougars, plus all the fires on private land has changed the landscape and habitat.
As for numbers, let me tell you about the 250 plus elk that were spotted by Rick Baily once near the lake. After 2 hours of working into the grazing herd, Rick and his buddies were able to take 9 bulls. This area is B.L.M. and one can sit above this place near Horse Heaven and glass for hours and never get bored!
So we are in the basin and I am starting to glass, as I know the area well and would find the bulls. It is the same spot about 3 years prior that my partners got there a few days early and decided to scout, though my advice was to scout and leave it for the opener. I believe that M.J. made comments on that opener day that they jumped 16 big bulls at the black rock. Oh! Yes! At times one would not believe the bulls that we would find!
My binoculars are Bausch & Lomb Elite 12 X 50. I love big glass with light gathering capacities as that is what I need in the early and late afternoon while glassing canyons and draws. It wasn’t long before I spotted a real nice bull, I would put him at about 320″. Since Frank was my guest, I gave him first opportunity to take bull out. I figured the distance to be about 375 yards and since he has taken deer at great distance in the Eagle Cap of Oregon, it should be no problem. Funny he asked me a question on “how are we getting this bull out of here if I kill him?” Not a problem with the quad for me! Now Frank is sorting out if he wants the bull and I was looking for bigger bulls as this was going to be the last time to hunt with a rifle for me for Elk.
He did not take the shot on the bull and I am sure he was worried about get the bull out of the basin. Some years earlier M.J. killed a bull in the same basin and ended up rolling his quad and having it and the bull on top of him. So the bull survived and with hindsight, I should have just shot the bull and got it over with early.
So now I am wanting to go cross country and head towards Earl’s place near Hwy 218 and that was about 6-8 miles line of sight. We did go cross country and it took a great deal of time, as we were getting tired of stopping every 300 yards and kicking the mud off of our boots. It really sucked and we were not seeing any elk on the way, only big bucks which did help take the mind off of the mud. Lucky for use Earl had a few pieces of land that connected, as we did not have permission to hunt David D. or Lowell F. Ranches.
Now we have gotten across the DMZ and were working up into in Cold Camp Creek on our way to Maupin Butte or Hasting Butte. There was a section prior to Maupin Butte that held a lot of Elk and Mule deer. There was always running water from a spring, plus the good grass that grew in there. We were now getting the chance to use the river bed to move and no more mud. The rain had stopped some hours before and the ground was getting firmer for us.
As we reach the first draw, we were quick to spot three bulls moving quickly through the trees, with one being a rage horn and the other two being spikes. Then came along a couple of decent Mulie bucks and finally a brave coyote taking up the back of the group! At this time I figured there was someone else coming from the Cold Camp Road to the West?
We let things settle for a while and then started to work down the draw and get up on the plateau and glass again. All of a sudden I spot a big and I mean big bull with about 15 or so cows. As I am getting down to take aim on this bull that was at some 600 yards plus I hear Frank say “now if you miss I kill him with my 270”. I wanted dearly to take the shot, but with those thoughts in my mind and the conditions not in my favor, I decide to let the bull drop over the plateau. He was not going anywhere and I could find him easy.
Now I was shooting a Weatherby Mark V Left Handed Custom in 340 Caliber, 26″ Magnaport barrel, Leupold VariX II 2.5 X 10 50MM and cranking out a 210gr Nosler Partition at about 3300 at the muzzle. Not a problem for long range shots. That rifle is still around and is one elk slaying rifle and I can tell you elk have fallen at distances I can see with the naked eye.
So now we are on the move and have gotten on the other side of the plateau and figured the bull was just over the edge. Ah! No bull or any elk around! We made it a couple of steps more and I spot an elk up in a draw off of Maupin Butte at about 1200 yards I figured. The hunt is now on and I asked or more like told Frank to head to left and I was heading to the right and straight forward once I got some cover. It was long as I was running so Frank would not get to the spot before me, he gave up his chance and it was my opportunity to tag the bull. I made it to what I thought would be the best place to have cover and equal height to the bull, but it would be a cross canyon shot. When I get there it is about 5PM or close to it, low light and what I see is a side profile of a big bull. All I see is antler mass and I am on the ground without looking at this point tri-pod down and taking instant aim at the bull that is at around 625 yards. I put the crosshairs on his back and let it rip (the 340 is sighted in at my standards at 500 yards)! I hit the bull in the boiler room, but he didn’t move! The cows made quick escape of the ridge! As they say if it isn’t on the deck, keep shooting. I take another shot quickly and hit the bull in the left front leg above the knee; he now of course falls over as he is on a side hill. Now one has to remember I only saw the side profile and figured it was my big bull I had seen earlier. Frank P. and I reach the bull at the same time! “Damn, it’s the wrong bull! Great mass but the bull had a bad pedestal and the left horn was all distorted and rolled back in! I pulled my tag out and tagged the bull!
The first season, my old time hunting buddy Ben Olson had taken a bull about 10 miles to the southeast at Horse Heaven that had the same issues, his had the right horn with a bad pedestal and the left horn was a massive six point. We did need to get the gene pool out of the area.
Now while we were quartering the elk and capping him, old brother (younger brother) was hunting in the Biggs Unit. He had run into old Mary M., who had a ranch on both sides of Hwy 218, who told him a monster bull that was in her place crippled up. I can’t believe that he did not ask permission to kill the thing. All I know is he worked the line below here fence line looking for the bull. She had told him that he appeared to be heading to the river (John Day). He never found the bull!
It is now coming on darkness as we would have to meet Steve at the gravel pit (which one you ask?) at exactly 6:30 for pickup. With my Hawaiian style of quartering an elk we had the elk capped, skinned and bagged in 45 minutes. With a quick hustle off the mountain, being able to hit Earl’s access road to the Maupin and Hasting Butte we came to the gravel pit at 6:30PM and Steve was there on time for pickup.
We were tired and needed to head back to Madras, get showered up, eat a steak and relax for a while. Frank P.; say “we can get the bull out in the morning”. I said no we get the bull out tonight or I will. I remember Frank P. looking at me a strange way!
We got back and get a hot shower; head over to the restaurant at Huffy’s and have a real dinner. All pain is gone, the temperature is dropping (31degrees) and full moon is now out with the sky opening up to stars and the moon. I got Steve on board and Frank P. is now in favor of getting the bull out at night and being able to hunt for his BIG bull in the morning. There is still was that monster bull in the area for him to take.
We reach the gravel pit at around 10:30Pm, un-load the quad, Steve left the area to go sightseeing and try to talk with Mary M. and try to get permission to hunt her place in the Biggs Unit.
Frank P. and I take the road up between Maupin and Hasting and hit the fence line which we now follow-up as far as we can. Thank goodness the moon was out as we weren’t running with lights, needed to keep the secret of the hot spot. Earl hated quads anyway and only let them be used once in a while… We make it to the spot and quickly load the quarters and head onto the quad. Frank says he will walk back down and I tell him “nobody walks, get on and hold on”. The whole roundtrip took some 45 minutes and Steve was back for the pickup on time.
Steve did not get permission to find the bull on Mary’s place! We get back to Huffy’s in about an hour. Take the bull and put it the shower of one of the rooms. We did not want anyone knowing we had taken a bull. Plus I did not want to haul the elk around with us for the next day’s hunt.
Sunday was going to Frank P.’s day and I would get him in on the big bull for sure. We got dropped off at the gravel pit on Hwy 218 again by Steve and head back to the kill area. Funny where my bull died, walk about 50 feet you could see Hwy 218…
We venture down past Maupin Butte, past the swamp and into the next basin above the Bhagwan’s place. You could see the old school buses and I could see a massive amount of elk bedded down! Surely the big bull was amongst the cows bedded in junipers somewhere. For more than 30 minutes I glassed and never found him. I then said to Frank “remember those large tracks we crossed about 500 yards back in the draw” “yep” “well those have to be the bull’s tracks and he probably knew we were on him and pulled himself out of the herd”. We can get him Frank, let’s haul ass and get him in the next basin, he is going to want to re-group with the herd sometime.
This is where I was blown away on the opening weekend by my running partner. “Bubba, I got a luncheon date with my wife at Black Butte Ranch at 12:30”
Another Position!In the velvet, this is what Frank P. Sr. could have gotten!
Thus ended the hunt of a lifetime, which I know Frank P. would have killed the biggest bull ever.
The following year Frank hunted the Grizzly Unit with his boys and they got a spike out by Horse Heaven…
Brandon’s 2010 West Beatys Butte Antelope 40 yards!
Early on in 2010 after Brandon drew his Archery Antelope Tag for West Beatys Butte with one preference point, he contacted me via email about possilbe Lope hunting sights in the unit. He and his dad were willing to spend some time to scout the area. I worked up some waypoints from the old days and since he had a Garmin Mapping GPS, it made it easy for him to utilize the waypoints.
I thought I would share the pictures from his hunt and a short story about the hunt. The big thing he was successful on this bow hunt and harvested a very good Antelope.
Bwana,
In the above attachment you will find the 2010’ Archery Antelope that I got which you helped me on with the GPS coordinates. You will also see a picture of a really nice Lope that we saw during our scouting trip we did 1 month prior to opening day.
Scouting Lope at waterhole!
I got the smaller lope at the same hole as we saw the larger lope at. There was an average of 20 to 40 lopes using the water hole we found. I shot my lope at 40 yards out of a Primos double bull blind while he was drinking water from the hole. Last year was extremely dry and any hole that had water had antelope around.
The water hole that I hunted which I found while scouting is coordinates:
Top Secret Spot
Thanks again for all the help you were. Your help with the GPS let me find the above water hole which brought me success. There were a lot of antelope around this water hole.
I can be contacted via the following email addresses for any questions you might have for on first interview. Free. Intro of me: I am home base out of Oregon – Native Born Resident
I thought I would do some updating on this post since I did write it in 2011. I am a firm believer in having the correct equipment and knowledge to keep legal while hunting. The other benefit of having the following tool, is that you might be able to find a landowner that let you hunt. Most farmers have great feeling about Lopes when they grow grasses…
Everyone should have @onxhunt in Mobile and or Garmin Colored GPS with the #onxhunt chip.
The tool know where you are at all times, boundaries are important to know…
In my time I have done a great deal of scouting and researching of Pronghorn or Antelope as most call this great animal from the past in Oregon and the rest of the Western States, where they roam in hunt-able numbers.
I have been fortunate to have harvest 2 Booners. Should have 2 more, but things happen. I have guide a few in the past and had them on Booners. One fellow that I was really upset was told me he could shoot out to a 1000 yards, no he did not shoot at 1000 yards, but has rested shot at 200 yards on the famous Rye Grass Buck. He missed him, hunt over and we parted ways…
2019 Thoughts: If you have time to scout even 1 day prior, get a game plan of glassing and glassing. Everyone should have at least an A, B and C plan. Glass from afar and if possible from a rise. Lopes are habit creatures and will work the same water holes and areas.
The best part of having a successful hunt is having experience with you. On my first Antelope hunt I was very fortunate to have my a Navy buddy guiding me in an area that I have never been in. My Navy buddy and I met when I was station at the Naval Security Activity in Imperial Beach, CA. I was a young enlisted guy and he came in as a LTJG from Portland, OR. I took him on his first duck hunt in the area of Imperial Beach and Tijuana. We later got reconnected when I got off active duty and joined the Naval Reserve. Rod retired as a CMDR from the Navy!
Grizzly Unit – Archery Lope
Cutting to the chase, my first Antelope hunt was a great learning experience for me. I became a quick learner and listen to everything Rod had to say and show me. He had a friend that worked for BLM in the area that knew the habits of the local Lopes. My First Lope Hunt
After that I became quite hooked on Antelope and spent the next 20 years plus scouting, chasing and free guiding on Antelope in Oregon and a little in Wyoming.
I have found that Antelope are very habit forming in their movement. I have seen the same buck or bucks working an area even after pressure. I know that most people do not realize that Antelope any other animal that marks their territory. One may not notice other animals doing so, but with Lopes the area that they live is a bit more arid and their marks show up. I always found it particular that they would mark a dirt road. I would catch them squatting in the middle of a road on scouting trips.
Many times I hear that a hunter hasn’t seen an Antelope at all on a scouting trip or hunting trip. I often ask them how much glassing had they done. Glassing you will find the the sage brush moves and the colors aren’t green. One has to have an eye when driving in or just looking for game. If what you think you see is not rock, dirt, junipers, or sage brush, it is usually some sort of game.
Spotted from 1/2 mile away during rifle season!
Over the many years of chasing Lopes, I have found the same buck in an area from year to year, which includes the same feeding areas. Years ago I chased the same buck for more than three (3) years in the same 5 X 5 square miles that I would locate him. I do believe that he lived to be a ripe old age.
Don’t ever overlook the fringe area of timber in an arid location, especially in Oregon. We have many units that the Antelope use the timber as would a Mule Deer buck. We have areas like the Maury, Gerber Res, Paulina and many more that the successful hunters have found big bucks in the timber.
If you want to find the big boys you need to take out the Coy Dogs!
My words are to those that hunt for Pronghorn is to carry a great pair of Bino’s, water, Mapping GPS (Garmin), a rifle cartridge that can carry the distance in wind, and maybe someone that can spot game.
Many times I am outspoken on many subjects and on this subject I am rightly so.
I have written this because of the trio that walked into Iran and were taken as prisoners. There was not excuse for them at all and I feel they got what they deserved for trespassing in a foreign land without permission. Only in the U.S.A. can you trespass and not get arrested in most cases!
How many times do we hear of hikers, hunters, fisherman, Boy Scouts, Mountain Climbers and even the Christmas Tree hunters being lost! Then a team of searcher’s has to go out and look for them for days, months and even of the course of years. Many years ago a young child was lost near LaPine, OR on a Christmas Tree Hunt. He as never found, fowl play or just lost? As for small children there are devices from Garmin (I feel Garmin is #1 in technology) that are used for hunting dogs to keep track of where they are. Kids can move quickly and have a habit of always wearing the patience of the parents in movement!
In the old days before modern technology it could happen pretty easy, I know I have been mixed up on a couple of hunting trips myself in the old day of the last century. It could have helped though to taken out the old standard compass and map!
On one occasion on a deer hunt near Walton Lake in Oregon, could not remember which direction to go in getting back to camp. It was early so I took a nap next to a logging road, another hunter came along at gave me directions. Another time in the Snake River Canyon on an elk hunt, I came out at dark in dark timber on the trail-head and my horse had been moved from the trail-head by a hunting buddy (don’t hunt with him anymore). I was lucky to hear my horse bay and found him in the darkness of the night and road him the 4 miles out to our base camp in a snow storm.
With today’s technology and low cost of such items as a GPS, and with the new Garmin’s that high sensitivity antennas, cell phones, 20+ mile range handhelds like the Motorola’s and Beacon Locator’s (sell for 99 bucks), there is no excuse to be left in the wild. That is not to say someone or ones can not be in trouble in the field and need assistance to get out. This can happen to anyone in a matter of seconds.
Motorola Handheld 20 mile line of sight rangeBeacon w/GPSGarmin 62 Series-Works in Timber
To many times there are people lost within 200yards to 1/2 mile of their central location such as the vehicle, being so close and not knowing!
I do not go anywhere, even on a short hunt of an area that I know without a Cell Phone and at least (1) of my Garmin GPS’s. Plus I usually have a paper map to go along with the GPS. My Garmin’s all have TOPO and the maps have been setup in areas that go into.
I do know that some people feel they do not need such equipment and it weights too much to carry or the cost of such items, why spend the money… Spend the money, HMM, like the trio that came from the East Coast to mountain climb Mt. Hood in a snow storm. I am sure in their minds they knew everything about the tame mountain in the Pacific Northwest. Mt. Hood as with any mountain or wilderness is not tame in the winter months. They lost there lives, did they fall into a crevasses, fall off a cliff, get to cold or did they just lose their way… With proper equipment of technology they could have been saved or found within a reasonable time.
As it is said don’t leave home without it, a small price to pay for a piece of mind or saving yourself.
You have to read the last post to this story from Mike Willis!
A little update since the writing of this post! Recently after all these years I have found that Diane Campbell, Wild “Bill” Campbell’s wife is still living on the ranch in Pilot Rock, Oregon! 06-09-2018. Diane put up with all of us that frequented the ranch! One of the greatest places to ride horses, hike and hunt for pheasant hunt, elk and deer hunt!
This picture was donated by Linda Mathison Bill Campbell is on the left…
I had an email a while back from an old friend; well he is younger than me. He had been on a Texas deer hunt with his kids on a friend’s ranch. Mention about a dear friend that is no longer around and that the tradition of the hunt would change. How true his words were to me that day! Over the past 30+ years or more I have had the privilege of hunting a number of private ranches. Some were rancher friends that I have met via hunting with someone else, met in the road near their place, through work and from knocking on doors.Relationships with ranchers change with the times and the conditions of life.This reading with me is about a rancher that I met during a deer hunt near Pilot Rock, Oregon that I was invited on from a Naval Officer that I first met when I was stationed at the Naval Security Group Activity in Imperial Beach, CA. Rod Briece was from the Portland Metro area and was on his active duty obligation. I took him on an unsuccessful duck hunt along the Tijuana border. The day before there were more than a 1000 ducks and geese held up in tidal flats…? This story about a rancher; he went by the name “Wild Bill Campbell”, a rancher that lived up on East Birch Creek outside of Pilot Rock, Oregon. Bill Campbell was a Cattle Rancher, Horse Trader, Husband, Peacemaker, Hunter and mostly a Friend of mine.
As I said earlier I first met Bill on a deer hunt with Rod. Rod was hunting with his usual deer hunting group. I was the outsider invited to the hunt; I came ready to deer hunt prime private property on eastern Oregon Cattle & Horse ranch.Bill’s ranch was along East Birch Creek and had boundaries south near Pearson Creek and the Umatilla National Forest. There are many notorious places that are still thought of by the hunters or persons that roam the area. Such places that might be alone the 4230 road such as Foggy Knob, Four Corners, Little Pearson Creek, California Gulch, Government 80, Sagebrush Flat, Dark Canyon, Merle Canyon, Tamarack Gulch, Cold Springs Canyon, Hascall Spring, Pole Mill Rd, and Spring Hollow just to name a few spots that are like having a GPS with waypoints when talking.Right from the get goes; I knew that I was going to like Bill a lot. Bill looked like he came from out of the “Old West”; never saw him without a Single Action Revolver and or wearing suspenders.
On this hunt Bill gave me knowledge and taught me to be patient, go with the flow. On one particular day I was riding with Bill, he would stop and talk with every other rancher or ranch hand he knew. In my mind I am going is this ever going to get over with, it’s daylight out and I need to be hunting and not BS’n. There had to be a big buck waiting for me in the timber. Later I find out that with Bill talking with everyone, he is gaining knowledge on game and getting us permission to maybe get onto another rancher’s property…
Since that time I have learn to take time out during the mid-day and slow down. Bill was a man of many stories of past times. Bill had a cabin up near Sagebrush Flats that all of us would jockey on the use of the cabin. On the walls were written passages of days spent on the cattle trail moving cattle from the out of the mountains to the valley floor. I remember one passage written by Bill when he was with his father-in-law, “the snow was more than three feet deep, with drifts over your head, wind blowing hard, 10 degrees out, horses tired and a pack of coyotes following their every movement”. If one had foresight they would have taken pictures of these passages on the wall of the cabin. I understand that the cabin is gone, as an outfitter bought the property some years back from Bill’s widow. Being and old horse trader, or better yet a gun trader, I have always felt it to be a privilege to hunt someone’s property. Not much on paying with “Green Backs”, but with something that every rancher might want to rat hole. Has anyone every known a rancher that might not want a new rifle, possible good pair of bino’s, knives or how about a master case of 30-06 Remington 180 gr. cartridges.
Well Bill was always one that would want something new that he has never had in his gun cabinet. Being able to get some items demo out to me or be able to pick up a new rifle for wholesale, I could not past up the opportunity to do this barter system.We always had a place to stay, leave our horses, go anywhere, do anything, hot meal in the evening and even drive Bill’s truck up into the back country. Bill would be ready to go on a hunt at a moments notice. No one ever had to worry that he would not be ready.
His truck was never without a rifle, six shooter, knives or ammo. On the Ready! The following are a couple of short thoughts and happenings with Bill Campbell.
Remembering when I had a small group of bro’s hunting with me, we were staying at Bill’s and Diane’s House. One of my buddies Steve Pomp was staying thee also. We all bunched in the living room. Yelling all of sudden when Bill’s big black cat jumped up onto Steve’s face. Pitched dark… The object at the time went flying through the room. Steve must have thought he was back in Vietnam…
Oh! Bill was a Reserve County Sheriff and would go out on any call. One look at Bill and I think an outlaw would just put their hands up. One afternoon Bill and I had to go into town to the local market, we had just come out of the canyon above Bill’s main house. We were packing iron on the hip. Getting out of the truck I started to remove my holster and belt. Bill quickly said “Frank no need to do that, we pack here”, so it is probably first and last time that I have walked into a store with handgun on he hip… Looking at us would have most likely seemed like a picture from the past.
Another time Bill had the county veterinarian come out and look at one of his horses that was sick. The county vet., said that he would have to put the horse down, he felt the horse was contagious to the rest of the herd. Bill slowing put his hand on his hip, of course where his 45 Colt was and look straight into the Vets. Eyes and said “I don’t think so Doc”. The Vets eyes went to the size of golf balls and he left most hastily.
There was the time that Bill gave me a pink lariat for my Birthday on an early scouting trip in June. Inside of the package was a set of chaps from the turn of the century and this pink lariat. Bill, his wife Diane and Stick gave a really bad time to me on this gift. It was given to me because I thought I was a macho cowboy from the valley… Anyway I still have the lariat. My lariat was always tied to my saddle, even when I was in the bottom of Hells Canyon.
It reminded me of the great times I spent with “Wild Bill Campbell” at his ranch. One of the most memorable hunts that I had with Bill was a middle of the season deer hunt at this place. Bill had dropped Ben and I off at the head of California Gulch for a two person deer drive. Ben and I split up on the two walls of the canyon and worked our way down into the timber. Ben was a great partner, when working canyons we seem to know were and what the other person was doing without ever seeing them. Anyway I had beat Ben to the bottom of the canyon and was working my way up the center into some down timber and grassy area. All of a sudden I jump a large black bear that was sleeping. The bear jumped up and was on top of a down tree broadside at 50 feet. I had my 257 Weatherby at the time. I quickly shoot into the boiler room of the bear, nothing happen, so I shoot again at the bear into the same spot. The bear is off the tree and running. I shoot twice again at the bear as it is moving left to right into the same spot but on the opposite side of the animal. The big black bear expires in the creek bottom! Now what I said to myself. One has to remember that while shooting the last two rounds I had yelled up the canyon for Ben. Ben came running down and thought that I had a small war going on. To his surprise there was a bear laying dead in the creek and not a big buck. In my mind I wanted to skin this bear and be able to have a life size mount done. We could not budge the bear out of the creek as the creek had steep walls due steepness of walls from spring flooding. We skinned the bear in the creek which took some time to do. No we knew that Bill would want the bear meat, being an old mountain man. Just getting ready to quarter the bear and we hear a truck coming to us down into the canyon. Bill with his Blue and White Ford F250 pickup stopped at the edge of the creek wall. You have to be kidding me, Bill drove to us. Morale of this story, have patience, a rancher can get anywhere to pickup game.
Sometime in 1987 Bill Campbell “Wild Bill” passed away in his favorite sitting chair in the living room. I suppose he had a glass with good aged whiskey in it. He had honor, give you the shirt off his back, lone you a weapon if short and he would open his home to you to stay.“Wild Bill” I hope you are still chasing elk and deer up in the clouds!
