Montana Muley

Tuna Dog · 10-20-2008, 09:16 AM

I've been meaning to post this but haven't got around to it.

I was hunting with my friend of 20 years Jamie Byrne who owns J & J Guide service in south east Montana near the South Dakota & Wyoming borders.

After setting in tree stands for the first couple hours of each day we'd move down out of the timber and use a spotting scope to browse the rocky cliffs and shaded areas near the edges of forest lands adjacent to open cattle grazing fields.

Day two of my hunt we used a stiff wind in our face to sneak within 20 yards of a nice deer but unfortunately my sunglasses hanging around my neck were blown into the bow string just as I was drawing back and needless to say things came unraveled.

Day four started in a tree stand with whitetail deer standing under the stand, milling everywhere around me but nothing worthy of shooting. Mid-morning we moved out into the flat lands bordering cattle grazing fields and started glassing the shaded areas of nearby rocky bluffs. The buck was half mile away and bedded about halfway up on a rocky little butte with about 25 other deer. Fortunately he was bedded downwind of the other deer and the wind was right to try a stalk.

We backed out of the area we were in and moved around out of sight of the bedded deer. As we approached the butte from the backside we spotted a smaller buck we had not seen earlier and quickly realized he was between us and the deer we were hoping to sneak up on. We approached very slowly making ourselves very obvious to him hoping to get the smaller deer to get up and move but not spook. It was a risk that he would spook and take the others with but eventually it worked, although at the time we had no way to know whether the others took off with him, so we continued our stalk on the bigger buck.

We climbed the butte on the backside and slowly worked our way around to within 100 yards of the buck. The wind was blowing in our face at a stiff 30 mph covering any sounds we were making. We set down and took off our shoes sneaking the rest of the way in our stocking feet. As we rounded the butte we spotted the boulder hiding the buck. It was below us and we could see the horns of the deer. A relief that he was still there although I had no idea of what was about to play out over the next three hours.

We had quietly stalked to within 14 yards of the bedded deer and set down waiting for him to stand. Thirty minutes later he stood, stretched and looked around. Looking up the hill right at us. I held my bow directly in front of my masked face hoping to breakup my silouette. I did not draw my bow as only the head and horns were were all that was visable and he would need to step out from behind the boulder to have any kind of a shot. He turned around and layed down again and for the next two and a half hours we waited. Time pasted very slowly as I watched the dark clouds move in and soon I could feel the rain coming through my face mask. The temperature dropped about ten degrees and at times I got chilled and started to shake from the cold. After awhile I wasn't sure I'd be able to smoothly draw my bow when the opportunity presented itself. I was only wearing a light shirt under a light polar fleece but the wind was very cold and the buck was in no hurry to move.

Two hours into our wait we watched the other deer get up and move down the hill to feed. We were hoping the buck would get up to follow but he was content staying put.

Jamie had laid down trying to use the rocks as a shield from the driving wind and did not see the buck stand after three hours of setting. He saw me tense up and knew something was about to happen.

The buck stood and stretched again and I waited, not drawing my bow, I needed him to move out from behind the rock and I didn't want to give myself away by drawing my bow without an open shot. He moved a couple steps to the right and I drew back finding him with the top pin of my sights and released the arrow. Ker' whap...the sound the arrow makes when it hits the target. Jamie slapped me on the shoulder and yelled with excitement as the buck ran down the hill. The arrow went clean through and was hanging slightly on the opposite side of the deer. The buck ran about 400 yards and slowed to a walk moving another 200 yards before laying down.

My first big game animal with a bow and he put us through quite an ordeal. Jamie went after our shoes and we set back down and gave the buck about an hour before going down to admire him. The cold didn't seem quite so bad now but I was still shivering with excitement.

I have been very fortunate to go on some very memorable hunts to some very cool places but this hunt has to be one of the best experiences of my hunting career.

OR_Bo_Huntr · 10-20-2008, 09:20 AM

Awesome buck and awesome story

You tape him yet? 160"

Tuna Dog · 10-20-2008, 09:26 AM

Good guess..he was 162

willametteriveroutlaw · 10-20-2008, 09:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by OR_Bo_Huntr

Awesome buck and awesome story

You tape him yet? 160"

Mid 170's nets high 160's is my guess.. Score doesn't matter as that is a beautiful buck. Congratulations!

Just saw the score congrats.

OR_Bo_Huntr · 10-20-2008, 09:29 AM

NICE

Congrats man!

Nw dukn · 10-20-2008, 09:52 AM

Wow what a stud buck congrats..

fishboys · 10-20-2008, 09:54 AM

What a beast.

Tuna Dog · 10-20-2008, 09:56 AM

Thanks,

After many years of hunting with a rifle I just started with the bow and I'm pretty excited to go again. I still have tags for here at home so maybe....

tracker · 10-20-2008, 10:10 AM

Very nice deer Del!

Jedcraft · 10-20-2008, 10:26 AM

Right on man! Now leave them sunglasses in the truck. Isn't Montana cool?

Tuna Dog · 10-20-2008, 10:38 AM

Yeh, I've been hunting Montana for over 20 years. It's a great place to see lots of animals.

I've hunted this ranch a couple of times and his northern ranch which is just south of Ft. Peck Lake quite a few times. Both ranches are about 50,000acres.

The northern ranch has elk that rival the northern Arizona elk. Quite a few 350 class bulls with a few pushing 400. I had seen them years ago when up there rifle hunting muley's but you couldn't hunt them with anything.

I've already rebooked for a another hunt for next year.

Oh and the sunglasses are toast...the last thing I saw was a sunglass lense fluttering down the draw. No way no how was I going to wear sunglasses during the next stalk.