A man with the knowledge and habits of Blacktail Deer
Hey Frank’
Manny knows what Big Blackies are and I have seen a few of his bucks!
I just wanted to give you a firsthand account of the late archery deer hunt for the Rogue Unit, this was my second year I participated in this hunt, last year was a charm seen tons of good buck and a few whoppers also. This year was way different; you see I hunt down on the south slope of the SiQ’s (Siskiyou) near Agate Flats which is surrounded by the Soda Mountain National Monument. I grew up round there so I am quite familiar with this deer herd.
It appears the word has gotten out, that there has been some great bucks coming from this area and I can tell you first hand by all the people who showed up to hunt this area, the word is truly out about the Soda Mountain Wilderness area.
Sad Part is; this area will not and cannot sustain that kind of hunting pressure, the bucks I seen this year barely seemed to be rutting but more like running from the pressure, the monument is only a few thousand acres and there was approximately 25 to 30 people hunting it the whole late season, the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife need to take a good hard look at this areas late season and put some restrictions on it otherwise we’ll have the same problem with the Blacktails we have with the Mulies
One of Oregon’s Premier Pronghorn – Antelope Spots
A very common sight around Riley, Oregon. The gateway to the Silvies and N. Wagontire Unit. Plenty of circles and the Pronghorns hang close.
Mick’s hunt did not go as planned, can happen to anyone!
Disaster! My help all bailed. I went Tuesday before the opener, camped at store. Highway noise negated sleep. It was 94 degrees and dryer than I’ve ever seen it there but road hunted on Wednesday. Quad was leaking gas so I was afraid to take it out.
Saw a small group later in the day where you had marked them by water. Several people were staking them out. Thursday much of the same! Met a farmer around 4pm, Hoot Raley! Great guy! Took me right to his farm, glassed a herd on his alfalfa field, and spotted a DANDY walking towards field. Snuck down to a spot he knew this lope would cross to, got into position, waited, guessed at about 300 yards, and took shot, missed 6″ high. Circled around to rest of herd, spotted a smaller buck and they spooked. Gave him Salmon hoping to try again on Friday, Hoot never showed.
Saturday took the Quad and followed your map markings to the “T” jumped a doe on the quad, pulled up rifle, scoped a buck on her tail, and took shot even though it was on a dead run, missed 6″ high. Spent the rest of the day on quad, help arrived at end of the day and he got drunk and didn’t show Saturday. Packed up and headed home.
Devastated, broke, dirty and tired. Your directions were spot on and much appreciated. I still wake up almost nightly wishing I could have either shot over again. Still pretty bummed but Sunday morning took a nice little buck here locally as I had to cancel my Malheur trip due to finances.
My dog became sick while Antelope hunting and had emergency surgery when I got back on his foot. Likely has cancer as his health is worse and new lumps on chest and hip have arrived.
But the conditions over there were brutal. To make matters worse the guy camped next to me took a beautiful buck in the same spot I scoped and it was at or near the spot you marked with an “X” to signal the old scruffy buck about 2 miles from the store. But the experience was good. To have shot and missed is better than most. I was surprised at the number of hunters out road hunting but I guess there was a cow bow hunt going on at the same time. I didn’t see any elk but saw several deer daily. I am confident that had I stayed or if the quad wasn’t freaking me out leaking gas, weather cooler any of these things I probably could have tagged one.
The farm incident was frustrating as hell, but a great guy. I should have gotten his number but the fact that he didn’t return told me he didn’t want to share another try. Plus, had he returned and I missed again I would truly be a wreck. The rifle is still sighted in but I know my judgment of distance is off. The deer I figured at 225 and I shattered its back about 6″ too high.
If one ask they can get permission to hunt near the circles. Ranchers or farmers do not like Pronghorn as they like to lay in the Alfalfa!
So I need a range finder, should have sighted in if for no other reason than to be used to the shot. I hadn’t fired it for over a year and might have been jerking the trigger in anticipation of its fury. But as usual in a like situation I didn’t feel or barely hear the shot. I am also confident of the area now but will likely not ever get the chance again. That tag took 15 years and if I get lucky I know exactly where to go.
Thanks again for your wisdom and sorry to let you down but your knowledge was spot on and appreciated. Thanks again. Mick!
The following statements are my opinion on the subject!
What a topic to write about, one could write a novel and it would a non-fiction totally.
This fine pair of Oregon Columbia Blacktail buck racks were taken illegally in the Willamette Valley of Oregon! Even the meat went to waste!
First off I personally feel there are 3 types of poachers, one that will harvest year round to eat, those that will poach for the horns-rack-antlers-teeth-claws-gall bladders anytime and anyplace, and lastly those that poach for the fun (drunk & other mind-sets), only to have a check mark on a list! The latter is a fact of knowledge, as I know via ranchers and law enforcement that it went on for years in the area of Madras, Oregon (just one local to mention). Some years ago I read and saw the pictures of some 20+ elk lying dead in what looked like a killing field. They were shot for sport and left to rot. The the elk were not salvageable for human consumption.
I would say our first knowledge of poaching would be placed in our minds with the Legend, Myth, or Fictionist Character of Robin Hood who would poach game off of the land of King of England.
Since there were little game laws in the past for hunting or harvesting game for the meat, the hides and whatever else could be used for trade or survive, we will move on to the latter years of the 20th Century and on to the 21st Century.
First off I have no problem for a person or persons to harvest game for survival or subsistence of life!
There is a saying that a famous hunter by the name of Bell Lang who once told to me, “Those that poach by the cover of night shall be caught, and those that poach in broad daylight are less apt to be, though in the end greed will take over and they shall be caught!”
In my early days of hunting or thinking about hunting when I got out of the service, I heard about a great deal of hunts and how the hunts started or ended.
A story that was passed along some 50 years ago from Uncle Dave of a new comer hunting during Elk season shot a monster Mule deer out of season. In the days of past the story only became a story after many years past. In this case it was an accident, yet it still comes under the ORS statues of game violations’.
Poaching for camp meat has been going on for years and was acceptable with hunters in a deer camp or elk camp. “Who’s going to kill us a fat doe for camp meat?” I am sure at least in the 20th Century we all have heard those words from the elders of the hunt, which includes me hearing those exact words. “As long as we eat it all up in camp it is legal!”Personally I was never much into eating fresh deer meat.
Then there is the great group hunting with lots of tags in the camp, with those that didn’t care if they shot anything or not. Hunting was an escapement from the grind of 60 hours plus weeks that many of us know from the past. One or two persons might be the shooters to fill the tags. I once loan a couple of my horses to a man that I once hunted with, later he told me thanks as he drugged out 9 elk with my horses in a single day. He was the shooter of them all and he fed the wild game meat to his care home residents. He has long since left this plant to his happy hunting grounds. Many years ago I told a rancher that invited me to hunt on his ranch that held a great deal of the Rocky Mountain Elk in the sage, Juniper and rim rock country in the Oregon, I had waited a number years to get this bull tag and I will shoot my own bull! I never did hunt in his group of 9 to 12 hunters with him. It was about the meat to him and not the racks, though they did harvest dandy 300+ bulls. It was a free for all when they got into a herd of elk. I do believe that they were pretty lucky as they seem to only harvest the number of elk that they had tags for.
So many times you would hear of stories of Mule Deer hunters hunting the great state of Utah, Colorado, Wyoming, Montana and even the great Steen’s Mountains in Oregon. Stories would be like the following. “Shot a dandy buck coming down to the wintering grounds, getting ready to gut it and a bigger buck came by and I shot him also.” Now this could all be hearsay or an inflated story, but usually people knowing that they have nothing to worry about, it most likely is the truth. The other line with these same stories, “we got the backstrap and hind quarters out of the canyon”. Many times a great deal of useable meat was left behind… So, is someone hunting deep in a rugged area for big bulls or bucks that only take the rake and backstrap poaching?
Well they are and now there are new laws that have slowed that down. Yet we all know it still goes on out there, just have to read the OSP (Oregon State Police) incident reports that are available on line. I am sure these reports are available to all in other states in the Union.
Here the Willamette Valley I have watched a section of land that has held monster Blacktail deer, prior to me getting permission to take pictures and later hunt the property. I would see these big 4 x 4 bucks and some dandy non-typical bucks, none of them ever carried over to the following year. I believe it was a free for all poachers that were willing to trespass the property. Now that I have put up No Trespassing Signs for more than 4 years, I have been able to watch deer that carryover. I understand that the neighbor is experiencing this in 2014. Access is easy and undetectable by the landowner.
“Come in the darkness and leave in the darkness undetected”
Have to say that some of the most humorous poaching cases are those during archery season, when the hunter has taken the game animal with a rifle and hoisted the animal in their garage or car port to skin the animal, only to have the neighbor call into the authorities that the person or persons have a deer hanging and they don’t bow hunt. It is only humorous because of the ignorance of the hunter!
Poachers can be a trespasser, not just person or persons that harvest game illegal in my opinion. This brings to mind about technology that is now used everywhere and many trespassers and poachers are now being caught. That would be trail cameras that are set out on private property as well as public lands. The new cameras available are undetectable by most, including the game. I have seen a few come onto the property that I hunt in the valley. I have asked the landowner if he know them of course before I pursue the individuals. Recently during the writing of the article, one of my hunters has noticed 2 persons coming into the trail cams range. They even have gone up into his treestand and sat. All is on camera to be seen, strange though as they caught the cams take their pictures, they were out of there. This also allows the hunter, landowners and other concerns the profiling of the game. The old cliché that all they look alike is nonsense.
Poaching will continue and poachers with be caught, they love to brag about their kills with pictures. Most are not old enough to remember a monster bull that was harvest some 30+ years ago in the Mt. Rainer National Park. It was a feature picture in the Oregon Hunting & Fishing Newspaper. It did not last long, as a hiker that frequent the area, knew the exact tree that the bull was posed in front of. It did not take long for the Washington Game Officers to be up to the spot with the picture. Oh! What a fine to poach in a National Park, now the Feds and the State are involved with the crime.
The State of Oregon the Oregon State Police have the finest Forensic Labs in the Nation. I bet most don’t know that they can tell whether a Mule deer came from the Steen’s Mts. or from The Dallas. The 21st Century is upon us and to gamble on taking an animal illegally is a big gamble, as you going to lose more than you can imagine.
Just take a look at Aronson’s in the Bend, Oregon area and thinking he and his wife was getting away with poaching and selling hunts that the animals weren’t his to sell on guided trips. More than $66,000.00 in fines, plus 23 others sited with a total of 1200 illegal game violations against the group. One thing I see he got off easy with 30 days in jail.
One can only get away with for a while; it will always catch up with you, if you don’t stop. I would call it Cold Turkey the process!
Even the once great Kirk Darner got caught in the taking of Boone & Crockett Mule Deer bucks every year for many years. In his case, I do believe his wives of few helped in the process. Be careful who you make enemies of when you are in the practice of poaching.
Remembering a customer once that got busted for harvesting a big Mule deer out of season and bull elk in the wrong area during a given year was busted because he owed money to the fellow that hunted with him on both hunts. The game officers were taken to both spots by the informant.
Some years ago while in the famous Fort Rock area of central eastern Oregon, I had spotted a monster Mule deer that had come down off from the Newberry Crater in to the stubble fields to winter. As I was leaving during the Thanksgiving holiday, driving through a foot of snow to the main highway, I noticed a pickup with a couple of guys. I had that feeling they were up to no good. They were in the heart of the wintering grounds for mule deer in this part of Oregon. I waited a couple of minutes and decided to double back, yep they were stopped, glassing and packing. My presence at that time was enough to stop the act of them making a mistake in life. So you are asking if the intent was there! It was as I left out that someone was standing along the truck with a rifle out! For that moment the buck had another lease on life. I hope he made it through the winter.
On last statement from the past in the 20th Century, is the taking of a Pronghorn – Antelope out of a helicopter with a shotgun legal? We know it is done with wild hogs in some states, but Pronghorn. There once was a world famous hunter with a restaurant that did just that. He has long since left the world, but many of his trophies are still around, though not in the restaurant any longer…
There are all types of poaching, but in most cases it usually in my opinion it is about the rack, horns or antlers as Number 1!
In conclusion game officers’ have to have the mindset of a poacher to catch a poacher! Law bidding hunters and citizens need to take a state in the wildlife we have and the new environment of anti-hunting and anti-guns and help put a stop to poaching!
A hunting trip into the alpine country at Mt. Adams left us empty handed!
Jake with his first Blacktail Buck from the State of Washington, near La Center, Washington!
I love to be in the woods or on the water, so when my wife Crystal and daughter Grace and I moved from Juneau Alaska back to Vancouver Washington, I felt lost for the outdoors. People tell me all the time that the Northwest is full of opportunity for adventure and I smile and nod. Those people never lived in the playground that I lived in. I have heard it said that when young people experience Alaska it ruins them for the rest of their lives, and I agree. At some point we will return to the last frontier, but for now I am committed to not be complacent and enjoy the amazing beauty that the Northwest has to offer. If you haven’t been to Alaska to experience adventure, wait until you are old and grey so you don’t have a huge desire to pack your whole life and move tomorrow. This is my story of trying to find the ghost of the woods in Washington. Known by hunters all over the world as one of the most elusive large game animals, the black tail deer leaves many tags unfilled every year.
The adventure began with my friend Seve and I doing some scouting past Carson Washington up in the hills at alpine elevation. Seve and his wife Lauren moved here from Juneau Alaska as well and Seve and I worked together at the local Ford dealership in sales. The couple days we were camped out pre-season it was pouring rain and we didn’t see any animals, but lots of fresh sign. Seve drove up there one more time prior to our much anticipated hunting trip and he found an even better area with lots of sign and good places to tent camp. The stage was set all we needed to do was do the best we could to find the ghost.
We left on Sunday night after our work shifts ended. We stopped at the local gas station for some fire wood and snacks and we both vowed to remember this trip. Seve and I would talk for hours about missing Alaska and how the city was creating a feeling of being caged. Leaving to drive to the mountains left us both feeling like we were home again. We arrived at night and set up camp in the dark and built an epic fire. We both enjoyed the fire so much, and the whiskey, that we stayed up late and it was hard waking up early. We woke up and were off, but we had misjudged the time and missed our window of darkness. When we got to the meadow it was already light and we both felt like we ruined our chance of seeing movement. Through the course of the couple days of hunting it seemed like whether we were hunting the woods, meadows, or alpine clearings, we were minuets too late. The entire area was filled with fresh sign and we didn’t see a single deer. After hours of sitting in the woods on the final morning of hunting I was convinced that a tree near me was a deer. The tree branches and bushes around it made me think it was huge; needless to say it was wishful thinking. The next morning I was processing through the trip while Seve was on a plane to Juneau to hunt on a remote island near Gustavus. I wasn’t sure if I was going to have another opportunity this season as I have family obligations and a short deer season.
I was talking with coworkers about the hunting trip and my friend and sales manager Kevin Kotrous, started telling me about the multiple deer he was seeing on his property in the La Center area. He leases out acreage to a vineyard so the deer were coming in eating the grape vines. I started asking immediately to come hunt his property but was promptly denied because the deer were becoming more like pets to Kevin’s family. They were also concerned about me using a rifle and when we looked into the law it turns out that GMU 564 is a no rim fire or center fire zone. I used some salesmanship and let Kevin know I would be using my 20 gauge shotgun with deer slugs. I also had to promise not to shoot any smaller bucks, and to split the meat. I agreed to all the terms. Kevin pulled his property up on Google maps and showed me where the deer were coming from and where I should set up in the morning. I knew that I would have a great opportunity so I maximized it by purchasing some deodorizer spray from Dead Down Wind and I was set.
I was up at 3:00am and to Kevin’s property by 4:00am. I soaked myself in the spray from head to boots, and I also applied some camouflage face paint. I walked through the dark rows of vines to the spot that Kevin had showed me on the map, but I was concerned that since it was dark I may not pick the right spot. I found an indentation in some blackberry bushes and I sat down. It was lightly raining and the sun was not going to come up until 7:00am, I was in for a long wait. I would adjust positions carefully when my legs would lose all feeling. The entire time I was sitting very aware of my noise and breathing. I eventually found that sitting cress cross was more comfortable as I was haven to lean slightly forward because the blackberry bushes were very loud when they would stick to my coat and not pleasant. The other part of this equation is that I only had a small zone I could fire into because Kevin’s house was directly in front of my position across the field. I was also nervous about using my dad’s childhood 20 gauge shotgun as it only has two beads to aim with and I didn’t have an opportunity to sight it in. I was in and out of sleep when I saw something move out of the corner of my eye. I was startled to see two does within about 10 feet of where I sat. My heart was racing and the deer were just staring at me. I remembered what my friend Frank Biggs (the great Bwana Bubba) told me and I closed my eyes. It felt like minuets but it was really only a few seconds I opened them and the deer were eating grape vines no more than 15 yards in front of me. The deer had not been able to determine what I was and they deemed me no threat. I counted three more does that came by me the same way and each time I closed my eyes and put my head down and the deer just continued on eating as if I was not even there. I had been in the blackberry bush over two hours and my body hurt but I was rushing with adrenaline I had never been this close to Blacktail deer. I was startled by a loud snorting sound coming from behind me and I became very alert. I was peering through the edge of the blackberry bushes when I saw a beautiful sight, at no more than six feet from where I sat a nice sized two by two buck staring at me. This buck was more intent on me than the does and I shut my eyes and put my head down. My heart was going so fast and I felt my left hand shaking. The buck was in line with Kevin’s house so I couldn’t even put my gun up to my shoulder until the buck was in a better position; I felt it may not happen. I kept my eyes low looking at his hooves and he began to eat the leaves off the grape vines. A few minutes went by and this buck walked back toward me and away from the house. I raised my dad’s trusty shotgun and the buck froze in his tracks. The impossible had happened I had a beautiful shooter buck at less than 15 yards broadside. I aimed my two beads behind his front shoulder and I fired. I saw blood spray out as the buck turned to run into the woods, I had a clean shot.
I stood up very shaky and full of adrenaline and I heard Kevin’s voice from his bedroom window, “did you get him”? I didn’t realize it but Kevin was in his room with binoculars watching all the does file through and right when he had started getting ready for work he had heard the gun shot. He walked me down a hot cup of coffee which I was extremely happy for. We followed the blood trail into the woods until I couldn’t find any more. Kevin was out ahead of me walking through the woods drinking his hot coffee like a captain surveying the battle field and then he found the buck. Kevin had me pose for the picture with my first black tail buck and it was a proud moment. Kevin then turned and said,” I am off to work, have fun”. That was when the real work began.
The moral of this story is that going after deer of any kind in the mountains is a magical experience, if you find them. I learned that by gaining access to private property I was able to see more and tag out for the year. I was still able to drop the meat by the butchers and get to work only an hour late. Frank Biggs then helped me dress out the scull. I am appreciative to my friends at work and to Kevin for letting me hunt his property.
This is another great story from a Pronghorn Hunter who waited the years to get a great tag!
Frank, here is my story and pics, the buck was taken on private land in the Maupin unit!
This year I was one of the lucky ones to draw an antelope tag for a unit close to my home. Since living in the area my entire life I knew the better antelope areas would be on private ground and would require gaining access to those areas, so the homework began. Having friends that own ranches in both units made access fairly easy, but finding a descent buck to take was not such an easy task.
What great Mass this Pronghorn! It is all about the Mass!
Since I had to work opening weekend I could only dream of chasing big ole lope bucks, and this was not easy. Monday and Tuesday I focused on a few agricultural areas that always held a few antelope, and while I saw a few descent bucks I knew the area held some bigger bucks and continued to hold out for that special buck I had waited 12 years for. Wednesday I changed gears and hunted close to home, with a tip from a rancher about a dandy buck he had seen a week earlier. Excited and ready to seal the deal I got an early start and headed out to the area that the rancher had seen the buck previously. The weather was fairly cool in the morning with a strong breeze blowing from the South, and rain clouds threatening to pour some much needed moisture on the dry ground, wow I thought to myself this feels like deer season. As I proceed through the gate I see 12 doe and fawn antelope running down the road in the direction I’m heading, I was thinking to myself that this is already looking good. Feeling motivated and ready to see a good buck antelope I park the pickup and head in the direction of some newly planted fields that the big buck was spotted last. I stopped at a fence-line that overlooked the fields, and glassed down the draw towards the fields and saw a few antelope milling around. Being close to 1000 yards away I made my way down the draw for a closer inspection. As I got closer I could tell there was an exceptional buck antelope lying down among the others, and knew this is the one I had waited 12 years for. As I made a plan to crawl and hide my way closer to the buck I wished I would of brought my knee pads, but had so much adrenaline pumping through my body I really didn’t feel a thing.
As you can see there is little Public Land (BLM). It is best to get yourself lined up with a rancher. This mapping would help to find someone! The MAUPIN unit for sure lacks, the West BIGGS unit has some huntable Antelope BLM.
As I was working my way closer to the buck I realized he had gotten up and was chasing the other bucks around and feeding in between sparring matches. I was running out of cover and came to a slight rise in the terrain that allowed me to get a perfect rest and range the buck at 305 yards. I decided that this was as close as I was going to get, and set up for the shot. I placed the cross hairs on the buck’s front shoulder and squeezed the trigger. As the recoil of my 257 Weatherby came back the old buck dropped in this tracks. I took a moment and thanked GOD for such a fantastic opportunity, and taking such a great buck. As I walked up to the buck I couldn’t believe the mass of his horns and that this beautiful animal was mine. I spent a quiet moment with the great antelope buck just admiring him and taking in the moment.
The hunter with his great trophy. Doing the research, brings rewards!
The bucks horns measured 14 1/2″ Long, with 6″ Prongs, and a little over 7″ Bases. The buck holds his mass all the way to his 3rd quarter and has lots of character. I couldn’t have asked for a better antelope hunt and realize how lucky I was to experience this rare opportunity to hunt pronghorn in Oregon. This buck is very close to being able to make Boone & Crockett! Depends on the 90 day drying period! Jeff H.
The following story is one of the best that I have read on an Oregon Pronghorn Hunt. As you can see Ken is a man of detail and the results show! Thanks Ken!
“Hey Frank,
I would like to share my hunt experience with you since that’s the condition you gave me when you helped me with advice, locations and mapping.”
A great Dinosaur of the Warner Hunt Unit! An awesome hunt with action and lots of Antelope-Pronghorn to few!
The first phase of my hunt was preparation. I had 12 points and decided it was time to quit doing point savers and get into the hunt. I prepared an antelope worksheet, which I have attached. My criteria were significant public land, a projected draw range around 12 points, and a high harvest percentage. The Warner Unit second season looked like a good possibility. Next I searched the internet for hours looking for any information on Warner. I didn’t find much, but nothing negative and the general consensus was a good number of bucks, although maybe not the next B&C record. Then I found the Bwana Bubba website and made contact. You sent GPS waypoints and I managed to get them into my Magellan GPS and Topo! software. Also at your recommendation I bought the Oregon Hunting Maps premier subscription from onXmaps HUNT for my iPad. No cell service but I had pre-cached the maps and the iPad GPS worked like a charm. Excellent suggestion and worth the price. I also called and spoke with your friend Craig, the ODFW Bio for the area. He was very helpful and I had enough information to decide to put in for the tag, which I drew. After drawing I drove down and visited Craig in Lakeview. We went through the maps I’d printed and we strategized the four main areas to hunt in order of preference. The #1 area based on water and animal count this year was from about Luce Lake north to just above Colvin Lake. There were also some springs still running in Coyote Hills that made that #1A. The northernmost section of the unit was so dry this year the antelope had moved down to the area I hoped to hunt. I spent the rest of that day driving around the unit to get the lay of the land and headed home.
The next phase of my hunt was learning about Antelope hunting first hand. I borrowed my friend’s Rhino and trailered it into my chosen hunt area late the night before season. I slept in my rig and was up early for opening day. It took a couple hours to find the goats but as I got within a few miles of water they started appearing. The main area I hunted was around Colvin Lake and north and east to Cement Springs in the Coyote Hills. As I was driving down a road (road means you drive on the same big rocks as everywhere else but the grass is shorter) I came across a hunter packing out a beautiful antelope – the consensus of guys who later saw it was 82-83 – and gave him a ride several miles back to his camp past Colvin. I tried to put the sneak on a group I saw heading into water at Colvin but hunters were already set up there so the shooting began before I got there. I headed out to other areas and saw bucks other guys had taken and chatted with the State Troopers cruising through the unit. Late that afternoon I travelled back in towards where the guy with the big goat had been and sneaked into a lake about half a mile long north and east of Colvin (see google earth picture attached). Throughout the day I had seen just one buck on the hoof but I spent time practicing sneaking in on the does to see what worked and practice my skills. Now down at the water I watched as one, two, three and then four herds came to water. I noted the time they showed up and the locations, as well as their behavior. This was my first antelope hunt and I needed all the intel I could get. I checked out a fair number of antelope through binos but observed no bucks. After some time the herd furthest away (about half mile) showed some activity and in the binos I saw some chasing going on. Interesting. Then I noticed one of the lopes had a prominent black cheek patch. “Hey – that’s a buck! And I can see horns at half a mile!”
The final phase of my hunt was the stalk. Because there were some junipers and pines along my side of the lake I eased back to their outer edge and started heading down towards where the buck and does were. Covering distance on that terrain is not quick and I needed to be careful so as not to be spotted. By the time I got down to the opposite end of the lake all I could find were big-eyed cows staring up at me. I couldn’t find the herd but as I looked into the distance across the sage there was a nice buck. I hit the ground and kept watching in the binos as he was a quarter mile out, alternatively grabbing a bite of sage and trotting away. He was nervous but could not see me as I had the setting sun to my back. I watched him over the horizon and consoled myself with the thought he’d be back tomorrow at the same time so I’ll come an hour earlier. I headed back to put glass on the other herds, by now moving away from the water. It was at that point I thought I should at least walk the country the buck had gone into so I was familiar with it in case I needed to go in there the next day. As I walked out across the sage, I saw him coming back towards the lake. Again I hit the ground. He cut the distance between us, moving from my right to my left heading towards the lake.
A closer look at Ken’s mature herd buck!
The sun was now quite low and every time he went behind any sort of bush or tall scrub I bent as low as I could and cut whatever distance I could. I kept my shadow pointing at him as he moved so the sun was always in his eyes. He just ambled obliviously towards the lake. I figured in all the excitement he forgot to get a drink of water and was heading back. When he went behind some scrub trees near the lake I moved as far forward as possible and figured I was at 150 yards from having ranged things earlier. Then I saw why he went back – there were three does heading toward him from the lake. Now I was in trouble, though, because there were a lot more eyes and they had a better angle on me. As I reached forward to flip out the bipod on my rifle in preparation for a potential shot, all three does busted me. They took off running from my left to my right across the sage. The buck took off running behind them in the same direction. I knew there were no people the direction I was shooting and had no time to do anything but take an off-hand shot at a running antelope. So I pulled up standing and located a small juniper tree ahead of the does, putting my cross-hairs on its right side. As soon as the does ran behind it and came out the other side I counted running antelope through the scope, “One, two, three…” and timed the movement of my rifle so I was already swinging to the right just as the buck came into the crosshairs. I squeezed off one shot and watched as the antelope hunched, staggered several steps, and fell to the ground. The shot felt good, but I’d be lying if I didn’t admit I was surprised. The 180 grain .300 Win Mag went through both lungs, and I couldn’t be more excited. I had just enough sunlight to get some pictures before the work began.
The bottom line is this: Thank you for the great help – the hunt would not have been the success it was without it!
Ken Dixon – Professionals Pursuing the Perfect Project
This Moose has hung over the cast iron wood stove in this Log Home for about 40 years! A lot of shrinkage over the years!
Prologue: I do remember the day I recieved the picture of dad sitting on the Moose, I just happen to be in Vietnam. What a surprise, as I did not even know that he was going on such a hunt! A bit jealous I was at the time. I finally got to see the Moose up close on a wall in my parents home in Portland! Cobra
This is my story of one of the greatest hunts that I have ever been on! It has been some 43 years since the hunt into the Wilderness of British Columbia, Canada! Though I might not remember every detail and I hate to type, I have given you the joust of the hunt through this day by day hunt story! William Lee Biggs
Day 1
The first day in Canada at Fort St. John! It took 3 days of driving coming from Portland, Oregon. It was a beautiful drive and very enlightening trip with the sighting of lots of game along the way. Today I met up with the Head Guide “John” and the first question after shaking hands was “what do you weight?” He had a small plane, said it “it will be a little bit of wait, as we have to clear the highway of traffic so we can takeoff.” I said “OK” the take-off went off without a hitch and we were in the air for about 40 minutes when the pilot said “grab the stick; I need to read my mail.” So I said “OK” and was in total control of the plane as we flew over the Rocky Mountains.
What a sight with all the game moving around on the ground below. As the pilot was getting ready to land on the isolated airstrip, there was a big Bull Moose on the landing strip. He moved off pretty quickly and once landed, all the guides were waiting for 4 hunters at the High Camp.
My hunting partners from Portland, Oregon (John Bay – Fred Bay News) went to the Lower Camp. My choice to go to the High Camp turned out to be the correct choice on this hunt of a lifetime.
“It was my last time seeing any humans, no roads, only game and trails!” So I thought!
Day 2
More information: We gatherer up our horses and started the new day and John (Guide) asked me “how big of Moose do want?” I said “the biggest one you have tied up to a tree!” Anyway I wanted a big Moose and John said “I can do that.” We passed up many bulls for about a week and walked many a mile and road horseback on ground that only game had been on. We never saw a deer or an elk during the whole trip, only Wolves, Moose, Sheep, Goats and Caribou!
Day 3
Up at 0700 daily to eat breakfast before the hunt and lucky enough to have a Pro Cook whose name is Luther Boy and what a cook he is, making sure we have a great lunch while out in the field in the Rocky Mountains of Canada. Around 0900 daily is the times we start are hunts every day. We are now back on the trail and we see a lot of Moose, but all are small. John gives the thumbs down on all of them. While on the trail the horses stopped dead, the Head ‘John” Guide said “Stop” it was a Wolverine crossing our path and they are meaner than “Hell Nasty Critter.”
Day 4
This is a resting day, as we have covered a lot of ground the first few days of the hunt. We felt we had plenty of time to find game on this long hunt.
John looks up and says “we may have weather moving in” “Snow! Hell its August and the next thing we have 2 feet of snow. Built a big fire and spent most of the day talking. I asked John “what happens if a man gets sick?” He said “if you’re lucky they put you on a plane, if the weather is flying weather” a lot of ifs, and we didn’t talk about it again.
Later in the day the snow has melted and I look up from the campfire and in rides an Indian with two (2) hunters. They were in a Spike Camp up in the High Country. Ok! Two (2) Hunters, Two (2) Pack Horses, Two (2) Heads, Two (2) Capes and lots of meat. The heads were two record class Stone Sheep.
The High Camp is some distance from the lake (camp).
Nothing eventful, other than Luther telling us we are going to have fresh fish, as he had caught two (2) big trout from the lake next to our camp. Now that was a meal to remember!
The lake the tasty fish came from on the Day 4!
Ok! It was a big day for me and the guide to see some Sheep that had been harvested, the thought of being stuck in the snow for a while…
P.S. Also only the Healthy Hunter is allowed on this hunt (Sheep)! So the next day we would be back in the saddle for another hunt!
John said, “Hell how do you feel like going up into the High Country, you’ll see the Goats and Sheep up close.”“I am all in for that trip!”
Day 5
It is now Friday morning and what a beautiful day it is; the horses are ready to move on. John said, “We are going into a new area today up high” “Ok! Let’s do it” We road all morning and came up on a big flat area in between ranges; all of a sudden I see something in the flat, “John what hell is that?” He said, “A bear made a kill here, they move all around letting everybody know this is my area, stay out”, so we moved on!
The rifle I have is Remington Model 700 with custom hand loads in 7MM Remington Mag with 175gr. bullet. It could take down anything that I wanted to kill with it. Great flat shooting and hard hitting round.
Looking up the hillside, John puts his arms up and tells me to “STOP”, then the thumb goes up, “ Biggest Moose I have ever seen in these parts” John says! Off the horses quickly and John tied up the horses.
Dad is 6′ 4″ tall and has a wingspan of a Condor!
I am quick to find a down tree, so I have something to lean on and get a steady shot off. The monstrous Bull is at 350 – 400 yards uphill. I shot three (3) times at the broadside bull and he dropped like a log. All three (3) had hit within inches of each other. I learned a long time ago, keep shooting until they fall over. Nothing worst chasing a 1500lb animal in heavy cover and in bear country.
John says, “Reload your rifle; we may not be alone here!”
“Now the work starts”
During the night a bear came in worked over the front quarters of the Moose, yet we were able to get the rest of the meat out in the next couple of days.
Conclusion:
My hunting party that came on the trip with me, that had decided to hunt in the lower camp both got their Mini Moose with little racks. They were most impressed with the big one and wished they had gone the distance on a tougher hunt.
On the way back to the plane, I did take a nice Caribou and was thankful for that harvest also!
John capping my Canadian Moose out for future mount. Finest hunter/guide that I have ever known! BB
This Canadian Moose was the largest that had been taken from the area in many years and the largest that the guide had ever seen taken.
Even after the bear worked over the meat, there is plenty to bring home!
The Canadian Moose scored over 290, and was in full velvet, only wished I had had him scored sooner. It now hangs in the home of my past brother-law in Oregon City; fitting that is a Log Home that one of his sons’ now lives in.
A total of 7 days of hard work on a 15 day hunt, the chance to see game in quantity and drink water next to your horse from a stream or lake!
To Trespass Knowingly or Not To Trespass with Technology!
Without getting carried away with the past, I will say that in the day, in Oregon when the Bhagwan & his Cult ruled some 60,000 acres outside of Antelope, Oregon, that also had some 60,000 acres of B.L.M. within the boundary, with a vast majority of it being landlocked, I ran the line to hunt for the big Mule Deer and Rocky Mtn. Elk that roamed the land. Later it was taken over by the Washington Family, who donated the land to Young Life. The Bhagwan was pretty easy if you stayed on the B.L.M. via a public road access. Young Life in the first year allowed access via Current Creek on the Big Muddy Rd. That did not last long when the Management of the Young Life on the Big Muddy found there was real money with the hunting of big game.
In 2002 I was stopped on B.L.M. on the Northeast Sector of the Grizzly Elk Hunt Unit in Oregon by Young Life Patrollers. They demanded our Licenses, which in Oregon if on private you’re going to have to give it to them. I told them we were on B.L.M. and I wasn’t going to give them anything. They were packing handguns and demanded the licenses of all three of us. I said are you going to shoot us if we don’t and they said” are you going to shoot us”, I said funny our rifles are on the Quads some 100 yards down the B.L.M. Road. Standstill for a while and the other hunter (Young Life Donor & Doctor) who was with us gave up this license first, then without any more battle of words we all gave the Olsen Brothers our licenses. Their words when they finally got their old technology GPS’s (old technology GPS didn’t work well in pockets) out of their front pockets and found a signal said the following “we are on B.L.M.” “Ah! We still know you were TRESPASSING!” Let it be known that they had to cross B.L.M. to get to one small parcel in the middle of B.L.M.
When we go out of the B.L.M. via the same trail we took in via B.L.M., an O.S.P. Game Officer was waiting for us on the Hwy 218 road access. He asked the following “did you guys have an incident while hunting” I said of course we did, but we were on B.L.M. and showed him the maps that we had, which were made up of old technology and Garmin GPS to outline all of the B.L.M. and had it color coded, with our tracks going in and out. We were carrying the first Topo mapping Garmin GPS that had come out in 2000. We all thought it was over with the proof that we were legal. Well 9 months later we get ticketed for Criminal Trespassing. The same O.S.P. (Oregon State Police) Game Officer from Bend, Oregon drove over to issue the tickets to us in Oregon City, Oregon. I asked him why, since I had an O.S.P. Game Officer as a neighbor and the Senior O.S.P. Game Officer some 4 houses away. His comment “was he had to do it, as Craig I., said he saw you Trespassing”. Then the next comment was “you know you’ll get off on the Trespassing” and I said yes, but we have to hire 3 lawyers!
What the heck i will share the past. Remember only horses for human foot traffic in the area. Private Land Owners can change the demographics for all with the B.L.M…
In conclusion: The DA of Wasco County didn’t want anything to do with it, as we had the evidence that we were innocent of Trespassing on Young Life.
Comments made by the others hunting BLM, old combat veterans “why didn’t you have a firefight Frank?” It was in jest, but reality we were held at bay with handguns, which should have been kidnapping!
The above story now leads into why a hunters or outdoor people should have a Garmin GPS and onXmaps HUNT Mapping Software. The technology that I used back then took a great deal of time and resources to get it done. Now it takes about 15 minutes to have the advance technology on your computer and your GPS to be 100% sure of where your hunting.
Many of my hunters have waited 10 to 20 years to draw a premium tag to hunt deer, elk and especially pronghorn. I don’t put the sheep or goats in the picture as it might never happen and at least in the State of Oregon, the ODFW Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife will help you in locations of goats and sheep. Funny though that many sheep and goats work between private and public land!
The mapping software can be used as a tool to find the private land owners when you see a herd of maybe a 100 Pronghorn in the Alfalfa and most likely get permission to hunt for free!
Many figure they don’t need this type of equipment that paper maps will work just fine for them!
I have given an example of government paper map in the below picture and a picture from onXmaps HUNT so you can compare the difference.
This is what Brett thought he was hunting with National Forest cross fences and coming in from the 160 road working north.
What Brett ended up on was one of the south corner triangle pieces below the Ochoco Creek Rd. with no corner fences. There were no signs either on the land and it was all open timber. Brett was ticketed with a word from the Game Officer he could pay restitution of up to $6250.00 (FOR REAL) to the landowner. Brett offered to put of No Trespassing Signs, the landowner took the signs from Brett and he went to court. He did show the Judge in that particular county a Government Map, which helped a little, but still paid a fine to the court.
I am now informed that landowners do not have to post their lands. So in areas such as National Forest that has private mingle within and no fences, it is your responsibility to know the private (At least Oregon).
onXmapsHUNT has maps for almost every state in CONUS and the great state of Alaska has a map.
I recommend this product with utmost confidence that you’ll have memorial and successful hunts and trips without hassle.
