It is not about size, but being able to harvesting a buck during the regular season and filling my freezer!
Jeff gets his first deer ever with borrowed 270 in the Willamette Valley of Oregon!
Frankie decide he would help out his cousin Zach’s buddy Jeff get a buck off of a small section of land he had access to in the Willamette Valley close to Oregon City, Oregon. It was the second weekend of the of the general Blacktail rifle hunt for western Oregon.
Picture of Jeff's Buck taken during the Oregon archery season in August 2011
The two young men traipse all over the 100+ acres of land through the blackberry forest, vine maple tangs and thick reprod. Not a deer was spotted during this hunt. As we all know Blacktails aren’t just going to let you walk up them unusually. So both of the boys were a little upset with what daylight was left quickly going to leave them for the walk back to the truck parked on the opposite side of the property.
There is a section where the grapes are trying to make a start on the farm that you can work along and possibly catch a deer along the tree lines. Now there was only one (1) hunter with Frankie working hard to find Jeff a deer, so Jeff and Zach could have some winter meat and plus his first kill!
By now they were walking along the tree line and working their way to the access road out. Frankie, hey he got out his bino’s and scanned the distant tree line along the grass field. “There is a buck just coming out into the grassy area.” There just happen to be a stump and Jeff had the rifle resting on the stump. The distance was about 250 yards, light failing at this point, the buck turns broadside! There was the report from the rifle and Frankie with is glass still on the buck sees it drop in the same tracks it was standing in! “Whoa, outstanding shot Jeff.”
The boys quickly made their way to the buck via the tree line and catching the gravel access road. They were not allowed to shortcut through the grapes. The deer had already taken out a number of them, so having excited hunters running through the grapes was not a good idea. A few pictures with a camera phone were taken. One of these days I will get Frankie to carry a decent camera in the backpack!
When Jeff got back to his house, Zack and his family were home. They gave him a bad time for shooting a small forked horn buck. The question back from Jeff Brodie was “what did you guys get in Heppner?” Zip! Hmm!
Borrowed rifle, Borrowed Ammo, Borrowed Knife, Buddies Truck! Moral of the story, Jeff filled his freeze with nice tasting valley venison!
Frank Jr.’s Oregon Grizzly Unit Not a guaranteed kill!
Horse Heaven Area Antelope 2004
This particular hunt came about with wanting to hunt Antelope sooner than later again with a rifle, plus not waiting until we had 12 or more points for hunting old haunts from the past in S.E. Oregon. My son Frank Jr. and I had 9 points saved up each. This would be his first Antelope hunt as a shooter! Getting very impatience with waiting for more points and looking out 4-6 years longer to hunt for Antelope maybe in the Wagontire, we decided since we had a couple of places to hunt in the Grizzly Unit in Oregon, that we would put in for the Grizzly Unit. Past and present I have sent many hunters into the unit with very good success!
Permission to hunt Earl Smith’s Ranch was given to us by Earl for hunting on the properties that laid in the Grizzly Unit, one piece being the “Old Gomes Ranch” and the other land lay south of the Cold Camp of Hwy 218, which included the Maupin and Hasting Buttes.
We had found a great buck on the “Old Gomes Ranch” prior to the season and he would be our first choice to chase. “Chase” Strange word with Pronghorn, as most of the time we like to ambush Lopes at water or crossings. In the Grizzly Unit you will not find the waterholes that one would find in the S.E. part of Oregon, so spotting and working in on them is the normal in the Grizzly Unit. We did not get to hunt the opener of the hunt coming in on Sunday late. Little did we know that Earl forgot about us (this happened a lot) and he let a guide come onto the land and hunt the place with his client. Having talked with the ranch foreman an old friend from the past, that particular hunt was very interesting to say the less. The client had a number of buddies with him at the time. It is hard to say who harvested the buck after all the shots that were taken with multiple rifles. Scuttlebutt was that the guide finally had to finish the buck off as it was leaving the property boundary, but then again it is only scuttlebutt! It did piss me off a lot on this one!
A little dog hunting with the Glock at Earl's
So the hunt had changed for the both us now. This hunt was about Frankie getting his first Pronghorn in Oregon. We would have to work old deer and elk haunts in the Grizzly Unit that carried a population of Antelope and put Earl’s places on the back burner. We would work the area around Hay Creek as I had found a good buck over in B.L.M. area during another earlier scouting trip for deer. There were the areas around Ashwood and the National Grasslands that we could concentrated on for Lopes also. None of this worked out, even with all the glassing from observation points. Water was scarce in these areas; the Lopes were not working the areas as expected. We would work another area of the Grasslands later in the hunt!
A run into the Horse Heaven and Donnybrook area was warranted. We found a couple of decent bucks that would be shooters for Frankie during the first day of the hunt, but light was fading. The 2nd day of the hunt, Frankie got on a pretty good buck near Horse Heaven. The wind was really blowing hard on the hill and the shot was at about 300 yards. That was one lucky Antelope at that particular moment of the hunt in the Horse Heaven area outside of Donnybrook.
Later a number of good herds of Antelope were located in the Grasslands near Hwy 97, but all the bucks were small. No mature bucks were hanging away from the herds that we spotted. A little dishearten for me as I truly wanted to see a Big Buck. The Grizzly Unit had gone through a major poaching epidemic of Antelope, Deer and Elk some years back along the Hay Creek Ranch, Ashwood & Grizzly Mountain area. The culprits (youth) were caught from what I understand (local rancher gossip) and given just punishment.
We finally took a run down into Clarno which is B.L.M., the Northeast boundary of the Grizzly Unit and were about to drop in on quads to get back into the basin about 3 miles were I knew some good bucks would be. Just as we are unloading a lone hunter comes up to the road off of the well warn trail. He told us he had not seen any Antelope and he had been in their whole day. Hmm! Here we have a long hunter that is working hard and walking in, who knows if he was getting into the area of the Lopes. I did not want to just head off down the trail and over the knobs with him there. He then told us he would be hunting back in there once he got some food, new socks and a little rest. Disturbing his hunt was not in my nature!
A very good hunt for Frankie! Grizzly Unit Lope
Finally Mike T., the ranch foreman for Earl Smith is located out in the hay fields on a tractor, see what glassing gets you. Mike says go ahead and hit it hard in the two ranch sections in the Grizzly Unit, I saw a number of bucks earlier in the morning on those sections. The hunts know starts to get pretty exciting for both of us. This hunt was for Frankie and I wanted to make sure he got his Lope. Since I do most of the glassing in the field and Frankie can spot them with the naked eye on the road, I was able to find a buck up on top of a draw along a fence-line at about 1000 yards. Since I could only see the horns of the Lope, I told Frankie he was about to do some hiking to move in on the buck. It was now very hot in the late afternoon, so this hike was a bit laboring!
We are able to close the distance to about 150 yards with little cover at this time. The buck was not a monster or even a big buck, but Frankie said he still wanted to harvest the buck and get one under his belt (youth and the wait). The buck started to move out, but Frankie now had a rest on a fence post on the side of the hill. He made the shot from his Browning BLR 270 loaded with 130gr. Nolser Ballistic Tips. The shot hit the buck in the chest cavity, a bit high in the lung at an angle, I would see later on. The buck staggers and drops, but then all of a sudden he is up and heading out full tilt through the sagebrush and not stopping until he was a more than about 1/2 mile out in the rocks and sage. I forgot to tell Frankie to shot if they move! Now the chase was on for us without actually chasing the buck. Using cover and moving quickly we were able to get within about 275 yards. To my surprise Frankie stands up without any cover or rest and shots offhand at the buck as he starts to run again. The buck drops and never moves a lick after that. I was quite happy that Frankie got a Lope on this hunt and he made the final shot that counted.
Frankie really liked the 270 BLR, now he has to shoot the 257 Weatherby in the future!
I never did see a buck that I would take on the rest of the hunt. The Grizzly Unit is not an easy hunt, as most areas of the Grizzly Unit are walk in area. Now if one can hunt some of the private lands that hold Lopes, it could be a much easier hunt. Would I hunt the Grizzly Unit again, yes I would. Though I want to go back to another haunt with Lopes that is going to take 12 points or better to draw. There is something about hunting the S.E. part of the state, that only one that has hunted it would realize what draws you to it!
The following video was taken during the archery season for Antelope.
The following Video is a pretty good Antelope – Pronghorn buck in the Grizzly Unit. I took the short video while I was bow hunting for mule deer near Clarno, Oregon.
The following video is a selection of pictures put into a video form of Blacktail Deer, maining bucks from May to the first full moon in August. There are a few pictures of bucks taken in the hard horn during and after the regular archery and rifle seasons’ in Oregon.
Hunting the Snake River Canyon in N.E. Oregon is for those than can shoot!
I almost lost one of horses on the pack-out and had Czar #1 Horse go down in the timber while trying to get to the elk for pack-out!
Years ago I loved to hunt for elk in the Snake River Canyon. I had a couple of horses that were for great riding and as pack horses. It was nothing to see bulls at long range during the season and try to find a way to get to them or shot long range shots.
The picture in this post, was one of those long range shots. I wish that I had more pictures, but can’t find them. I had hunted the year before and missed a big bull as I hastily taken the shot without getting setup properly.
I had trade hunting spots with a fellow named Randy Krupe. He wanted a place to hunt in the Steens Mountains and I wanted I wanted one of his elk the hot-spots. So I got the hot-spot near Tee-Pee Springs in the lower part of the Snake River.
I had found a great observation spot to glass for elk. This spot I had found the year before and I knew I would have to hustle to get this shooting rock and got there about an hour before first light.
As usual when dawn is breaking and your sitting there waiting, you have tendency to fall asleep as the temperature drops. Kinda weird how this happens! I had spotted a couple elk prior to this, but they were cows on the move. I told myself as I slapped myself that I could not fall asleep and not get the first lick in. Well this did payoff, but barely.
About a 1000 yards off, or three ridges off in the distance, I see the flash of horn. I quickly use the spotting scope and could see a branched bull. He is broadside in a down timber patch. I said to myself what the heck, I can’t kill him if you don’t take the shot. After the first shot, the bull turns and heads uphill and stops standing straight away from me. I figure at this time I need to aim between the horns and hold about 48 high or so. There was no wind and I had a great rest. I also know that my 340 Weatherby with the 210gr. Nosler would get there. I love this caliber for long range shots on elk. The Snake River Canyon is known for having to shoot cross canyon! At the sound of the shot, the bull was no longer standing. As the distance was great and I did lose sight of the bull. I felt that I had hit him and I would need to work my way over there. It took about 40 minutes to hit a game trail that would allow me to get into the patch. As I approached the area and was about 150 yards away I could see the bull bedded on the steep hillside in the down timber.
This was my first branch bull, that formed the path to bigger bull!
The bull’s head was up, but he could clearly see me, but wasn’t getting up. I was able to get a clear shot and put him down the rest of the way. Under inspection, I found my original bull hole in the neck. It had touched the just about everything in the neck.
Getting the bull out is another story about working my old horse Czar and almost losing my other horse on the pack-out.
P.S. There were 13 of us in an Elk Pool, with 20 bucks a head! It was based on points and not B & C Scoring. It was my lucky day!
I would love to tell you where this buck was taken, but I promised that I would not give out the exact location. For two (2) years a couple of the fellows in the circle have taken dandy Antelopes from this area in S.E. Oregon. It is a Pronghorn Archery Hunt Unit that takes about 5-7 preference points to get draw. As my biologist that I have known for more years than I can remember told me recently that Oregon has monster Lopes in every unit, “it is just a matter of having the time and patience to find them”.
I myself have hunted a number of units with the arrow and have been fortunate to harvest some big Antelope Bucks! So I know from scouting in almost all of the units that there dandy bucks everywhere.
Pictures from the 2011 Oregon Archery Antelope – Pronghorn Hunt:
A little different profile! Great buck taken by Russ!This is a dandy archery Antelope Buck taken by Russ in 2011This buck was one that got away, but not before Doug took his picture. Definitely a candidate of a buck for Boone & Crockett in 2012!
Do sons give credit to their dad’s for the paths they take in life?
While my father is still alive, I thought I should write things about him that is important to me over the years! First off, this is a young man back in about 1953 that takes on a ready made family. I was about 3 and my brother Steve was about 2 when Bill Biggs met Barbara Trumble, a widower at a very young age. Our natural father died in the Columbia River going back to the ship in an automobile accident in 1952.
It is funny how one as they gets older have total recall on the past, yet can’t remember where they put their truck keys, guess that is why most of us have a special draw or bowl for short term memory!
Having not known my natural father that I can remember at he was a Merchant Marine, Bill Biggs aka Dad from here out in this writing took us boys as his own. As I look over the years I would have to say it was that way and we always looked to him as Dad. No I never called him daddy, just dad! He was in the U.S. Navy for a number of years and this I can remember, so it was for some years forward to about the age of 6 for me. He served during the Korean War as a Navy Radar Man, in those days they would have to write backwards on a see through board so the CO and XO see what was going on in the Command Center. When he wrote is was always in printing and never script. His A’s were always flat on top!
I know we lived in Astoria, Oregon up on top of the hill while station aboard the U.S.S. Oriskanyhe was on was station at the once famous Tongue Point at Astoria,OR. I know that he never caught sneaking out of my bedroom window and going to the outside refrigerator to just crack open the Coke bottles and sip a little pop. I made sure they were all at the same level, each and every bottle!
CVA-34 Known as the Big O!
Later Dad was stationed at Alameda,CA as the ship he was on the U.S.S. Oriskany, a famous aircraft carrier that was used even in the Vietnam War. The circle of that ship is pretty small, for as a kid in Tongue Point, I was able to go aboard the ship. Later while I was stationed in the Philippines in 1970, I did Comms with the COMSEC team aboard the ship. I had a chance to go aboard the ship TAD, but chose Vietnam with the 5th Marines instead! My brother Steve was over in Vietnam at Yankee Station aboard the U.S.S. Coontz DLG9, running cover for the U.S.S. Oriskany in the battle group. Steve was there when the Oriskany had a major fire aboard the top deck! You could see the fire from more 18 miles away with the naked eye! Glad I was not aboard!
My dad was of Danish & American Indian ancestry and was a statue of a man with broad shoulders, tall, lean and jet black hair with green-blue eyes. In the old days out at Janzten Beach there was a swimming area with high dives. One that was brave could got to the high dive and actually dive into the Columbia River. I still remember as a kid, him doing that in a Swan Dive and having perfect entrance into the river. One would have thought that John Weissmuller was diving into a lagoon.
Now getting to the future with Dad! I remember his hunting trips with Uncle Dave and when he bought the Mannlicher Schoenauerin 30-06, from the once famous Foster Sporting Goods in Portland, OR. He and Uncle Dave bought one each. Over the years, which are many times, I have given a bad him time about not getting that rifle. The truth is Dad it was more of a jest, as that darn thing is right handed and has such a high comb, it would definitely beat me up. I would hope that Dad did give some hunting or sporting thoughts to my sister’s son Michael and pass it along to him. That rifle can not ever be replaced in the 21st Century!
I remember a Bobcat skin that I had in my room that Dad had shot as a young man on the Feather River outside of Sacramento, California as a young man. He was riding on the fender of an old pickup and killed the Bobcat with a 22 rifle. He was a crack shot.
There are a couple of short stories as a teenager that I could have gotten into trouble, but Dad was pretty cool about it. When I got to go on my first Goose hunt to Summer Lake in Oregon, I remember being on a dike in the middle of Summer Lake. I had 5 boxes of shotgun shells and shot every one of the shells. When I got back to Dad and his hunting partner, with no birds or shells, he asked me “what were you doing”, as they had a stack of Snow Geese on the ground. I told them, I shot at every goose and duck that flew over me and none fell out of the sky. He just shook his head, and later at Sauvies Island, I learned how to lead a bird! Shooting targets with a 22, I never had to lead!
Another time while I was still at home before going in the Navy, I would have to be at work at 1:00PM, but would get up at 0300 and if not caught going out the door I would head over to the Deschutes Riverat Warm Springs to fish forRedsides. If caught by mom I would have to back upstairs and get up at 0600 and fish for hatchery fish on the Clackamas River. I would race over to the Deschutes in my 54 Ford at 4000 RPM; it would take me an hour and 15 minutes to get there. Never got a ticket once going there. Anyway this particular day I did not have work, so I got back at about 1700 Hour and had the Redsides in the kitchen sink and Dad got home and looked in the sink. “Son those don’t look like ClackamasRiver trout” With a smile he turned and went into the living room with a cup of Coffee!
When High School, I was going to Benson and I was on a rifle team with my cousins with Lucky 22’s. They all had 22 target rifles and I did not have one. My dad talked my mom into getting a German made Anchutz 22LR Target Rifle in left-handed for me at Meyer & Franks’, yep in those days they sold rifles. It was a really big deal to get this rifle and not have to borrow one. Later they both allowed me to switch from Benson Polytechnic and go to Franklin H.S. so I could shoot on their rifle team. He put up with my political fight with the school district to make it a Varsity Sport, which happened after my senior year!
There is a lot that I remember about Dad over the years, like the time while I was in Vietnam he sends me a picture of a Boone & Crockett Canadian Moose he killed up near Fort St. Johns in B.C. That picture was pretty famous with my Marine counter parts.
When I got back from over seas, we hunted a number of years together for Blacktail deer and Mule deer. The last hunt was pretty special as I saw him make a very long range shot with that Mannlicker outside of Ashwood, OR on nice mule deer buck. That was a great hunt as we both got bucks on that trip. Then there was a Blacktail deer hunt down by Falls City, OR, which I learned on that hunt was never to say, “There’s a buck”. As when ever that was said, a Blacktail never got shot! I have taken that forward in all of my hunting!
Dad also took me on my first deer hunt when I was in the 5th grade and not yet able to carry a rifle. The following year I took hunter safety.
“My first hunt that I went on with my dad was with Uncle Dave and his group of hunters, such as Uncle Harry, Uncle Monroe, Uncle Floyd, Jack Carroll, Danny Carroll and Bill Biggs (dad) to Egypt Wells, outside of Riley, Oregon. With the old 55 Studebaker loaded to hilt and trailer loaded also. Of course that group all tagged out on Mulie bucks up in the Silvies.”
In closing we also did a great deal of fishing and spent many trips up to Ollialie Lake near Mount Hood and many trips to the Metoluis River at Camp Sherman.
One last memory of how tough he was is during the gas shortages in the 80’s, he had the Chevron Station at the Memorial Coliseum on Broadway. Tough time with fights in getting gasoline for cars and all gas being allocated. Dad wore a hand gun (Colt 357 6″) on his side during the many months of this scam by the government and oil companies. He never got robbed or confronted at his place of business!
Thanks Dad for guiding me in the correct direction to the Right!
P.S. The Navy was ok also, giving responsibility in Life!
