Silvies Unit Antelope taken with 257 Weatherby @ 250 yards.
I can’t say that in the earlier days of my kids growing up that I had family hunts with them. I had been a bit selfish about hunting, getting use to hunting with my partners and harvesting bucks and bulls. The idea of hunting with the family and sitting around camp, burning daylight as camping trip and not a real hunting trip that would not go over very well with me. I finally came up with the great idea of the family hunt and then partner hunt during the season.
When our son was about 9 his mother had drawn a Silvies Unit Pronghorn – Antelope tag. Now this would be a Son, Mom and Dad hunt in the Silvies Unit. Knowing that I could get Frankie’s mom Linda into a Boone & Crockett Pronghorn. It had been a while since I had been in the Silvies Unit, but I knew that the big bucks would be there for us to fine. I had some keys spots that I was going to take Linda and Frankie too. On this hunt I was going to have a lesson of humility given to me. I did not realize what a great shot Linda was; I had just recently given her my 1 hour lesson on shooting on the run. We had gotten up into an area that I knew would hold a dandy buck, in the Junipers, near Dry Lake. It wasn’t long before Frankie spots a Big Antelope buck at about 200 yards out. Linda gets out with the 257 Weatherby and wants to take an off-hand shot, I tell her to take a rest and felt that she could not make the shot. She did not have much time with shooting the 257 Weatherby in the field. This would haunt me later in the hunt and even to this day! As we were making up the mind to shoot, the buck bolts and ran off over the rim. A few minutes later another hunter took the buck down. I thought we were the only ones up in this area and that it was not a big deal to let the buck go and find him later. Pronghorn – Antelope are quite habit forming in their routine.
I found out later by the local rancher that the buck went 16 1/2 inches and had a green score of 85 B&C.
During the rest of the day, not much was said about that incident. It would be the next day before we got on track with the harvesting a Pronghorn buck. I had taken Frankie and his mom down by the lake off of Hwy 20. I notice a monster buck out at about 400 yards, an easy shot with a rest. I told Linda that I would get on all fours and she could use my back as rest. She would have nothing to do with that procedure of hunting. The buck got tired of waiting for Linda to find a rest that was safer. The only shot she would have with that buck was from my back as the conditions were such. We are now 0 for 2 on big bucks found!
Later in the day we came around the corner of a Timothy grass field and there was a buck standing about 250 yards out head on. Linda said “I am going to shoot that buck,” “no wait until we see the side profile.” Her rifle goes off and to the amazement of Frankie and me the buck goes down in the spot he was standing! Wow! Were the words out of Frankie and myself! Linda had just shot the Antelope Buck at 250 yards, OFF-HAND and a low percentage head on frontal shot. It may not have been a Booner, but it was a big buck to our son! You say luck on the shot, not at all, well maybe at that time I thought so! After that I have seen Linda shoot sage rats on the run with a 22LR at 50 and 100 yards. She has the gift of shooting game on the run and hitting what she sees. Oh! I have had to eat my words many times, when I’ve told her she wasn’t going to hit the target.
So, on this hunt our son had a real taste of hunting and seeing his mom make a great shot.
The hunt was not over with all the way… On the way home near Wamic, I spotted a number of bucks down in a gulley. I found a parking spot and told Linda and Frankie I would be right back with one of the bucks. “Ya!” Were the words out of their mouths… I had to cross the White River and work my way into the thick brush. I could see two bucks at about 75 yards. I close the gap to 35 yards and made a through the cross fence and took the nearest buck. I was back in 15 minutes to the truck, “I need some help in packing out the buck.” “Sure dad!” It was not a great buck at all, but a memorable hunt for Frankie. It allowed me to later concentrate on my up coming elk hunt. He got his first taste of having to field gut a couple of animals. Frankie can shoot like his mom, I have yet to see him miss anything, but then that is another story.