Hunting Reports Week 10/25 - 10/31

Rauly · 10-25-2003, 03:50 PM

Ok lets here the stories.

Rauly

Boedy · 10-25-2003, 05:10 PM

Didnt see a elk until 30 mins after the season closed :depressed:

Wingmaster · 10-26-2003, 02:19 PM

Got my first goose yesterday, a cackler, had a lot of fun hunting but that was the only goose of the day. Had lots of big flocks circle then decide to head off way before ever getting in range.

nitrobass · 10-26-2003, 03:28 PM

Summer Lake for a day and a half. Saturday we chased ducks and couldnt hit the broadside of a barn. Ended up with 12 ducks - mallards, gadwalls, wigeon, teal. This morning we tried for snows and they flew great but most of them were way too high. Probably had 4000-5000 of them come over me, all of them 70-100 yards up. Finally on the last bunch I shot and killed one and that was it for the morning. I'll be there October 31-November 7 if anyone else is going to be there.

Chromaflage · 10-26-2003, 05:14 PM

Nitro - you should be able to pick those 70-yarders off with 3-1/2" mags... :grin:

ORS

The Overfishin Condition · 10-26-2003, 06:01 PM

Hunted the marble unit for deer today, this makes six days with no deer in the field. However, I did see a nice buck behind the grocery store I work at last night. And today, found a big spike bull shed, and saw four cows. But no deer. Where were these cows when I had my cow tag in marble at the beginning of the month? Oh the irony. Good luck all.

nitrobass · 10-26-2003, 07:03 PM

OR I was sporting the 10 guage and it was still pushing it....Probably could have sky busted a limit but was hoping for some low birds. A few low flocks came but not over me...Maybe next week - cold temps in the forecast!

Chromaflage · 10-26-2003, 08:44 PM

Come on, northerns!!!!

ORS

straightweave · 10-27-2003, 05:21 PM

Saturday, AM: Two shots, two roosters. Thank you, UCAP. My first limit on public access land.

The huns were pretty jumpy. We got into two really big coveys, one on either end of the canyon (same covey?), but never had a shot. Saw lots-o huns on the road, but that isn't my kinda shootin.

Spent Sunday talking Brittany Spaniels w/ Tom Medley over in Irrigon. Any Ifishers have one of his dogs? I got on the list for his next litter, but would like to here more.

Labsforme · 10-28-2003, 04:46 AM

Hunted Saturday on the NW goose opener in a new spot for me near McMinnville.I got my 4 cacklers by 11.Lots of flights,pulled them over me with my new Saunders Reload just giving them the real fast cackler cluck.Thanks Travis for tuning it.I wish I could call like Dave,Brad,and Travis.I guess for now I'll be happy with the 3 notes I use that seem to work some of the time.Waiting for my Hardcore lessers to come in.Should be a great season

Bounty Hunter · 10-28-2003, 06:26 AM

Antlerless season started out real slow for me last weekend. Didn't see any deer, but saw several grouse... darn things are fast though...

General Cascade Elk was a bust too. For 5 days we saw 2 cows, 1 spike, and 2 branched bulls, but the big guys were only seen for a total of 4 seconds probably.

Trout Tako · 10-28-2003, 12:16 PM

I got my first deer out of the Santiam unit this weekend, filled my doe tag. Saw 4 other does & 1 Buck. I would have tried to fill my buck tag first but i didnt see him untill after the shot & he was making a b-line for the thick stuff. After 12 years of trying it was finally nice to have success.

tag-a-long · 10-29-2003, 06:17 AM

Finally filled my doe tag last evening. Gotta love the rain... I'll be out tonight looking for the forked horn we saw on the way in...Or one better...

Bait Bucket · 10-29-2003, 03:47 PM

Just back from chasing thunderbirds and jungle chickens for most of the day and for the first time since the season started, I never got a flush. Maybe the cold rain has them holed up. Maybe all the deer hunter traffic in the sticks has them scattered out. Who knows? Oh well. I'll get after them again on Friday.

[ 10-29-2003, 04:48 PM: Message edited by: Bait Bucket ]

The Overfishin Condition · 10-30-2003, 12:37 PM

Well after the early AM this morning I was pretty certain this was gonna go down as day seven without seeing a deer in the woods. The wind was howling pretty good in the klickitat area I was hunting, and since I was going it alone, I decided not to hike too deep, not wanting, or having the time before school to pack one out too far. Anyway, I decided to go take a peek towards some private property that we used to hunt. No sooner do you hit the areas that are private, then you start seeing animals. I probably saw a dozen deer, including one nice looking forky, and 100 turkeys. The weirdest thing, about six of the deer were feeding and bedded down with about 40 turkeys! What a mess it would have been if I had shot one of those deer, turkey's and does woulda scattered everywhere. Anyway, I re-entered the woods on some public property as close to the private area as possible. I was hunting along some powerlines next to a heavy pocket of brush when I heard and felt the thumping of a bounding deer. Whoops, haven't seen a deer in the woods all season and I just kicked him out a few yards ahead of me, from thick brush, to thick brush. I continue up the hill, rifle semi-shouldered, ultra-ready, ultra-quiet, and discover that it must've ran either accross the powerlines, or into some more open oak. All the sudden, I hear crashing again, I had an instant to be upset, because I thought I had pushed him off again, and then a head popped over the hill coming straight towards me! It was a doe, about 15 feet away followed by a smaller, yearling spike. It's two point or better so just as the spike passed I crouched and got ready to shoot, lest a shooter buck should follow them over the hill, but alas, not today, maybe tomorrow. Funny thing, I don't think either of the deer saw me as they passed withing 10 yards!

Wingmaster · 10-30-2003, 06:53 PM

Got out of school early on Wednesday so I headed out to the field I hunted saturday, found about a thousand geese just loafing around. I scared em out and got my decoys and blind set up real quick, then the rain came in. Just as I thought I was only gonna get soaked I heard some honking. A nice big flock was coming right in. I gave em a a few honks back, and sure enough they circled right in, I took two out in three shots. Had a few more flocks come over but nothing real close. So I ended up with a pair of cacklers, not too bad for a short afternoon hunt.

steelhead22 · 10-31-2003, 01:21 PM

I just got back from Sauvie's Eastside today. We drew poorly on the Westside, so East we went. Lucky for us, it was the right move. 2 limits (mallards and widgeon), done around 10am. It was really nice to finally get into some birds. Also, today was the most incredible morning flight I've seen in a long time. Judging by sheer number of birds you would think it was December. I don't know a lot about where the migration is at at this point, but all the mallards we shot were big old Northerns. It's great to see, looks like good hunting came early this year.

Small Fry · 10-31-2003, 01:32 PM

Wednesday 10/29/03 morning 5:45 finds me in my chosen spot. The wind is blowing quartering down hill in the direction I expected the elk to come from. Not much I can do but sit tight and hope for the best. 6:10 I decide to move uphill a bit where I can see the low spot in the 7-foot fence where the elk should cross. I can hear several bulls bugling off in the distance. I figured it must be hunters calling. Bulls shouldn’t be bugling this late in the season. I sat and watched a group of deer feeding in the clearing below including a respectable 4x4, His neck is swollen and he is busy chasing a doe, this goes on for about � hour. Fast forward to 7:15. Something catches my eye to my left. (which isn't the direction I expected the elk to come from) I look thru the low hanging limbs and I can see elk legs moving up the fence line about 150 yards away. I quickly work my way across the next draw and up on the next small ridge. Just as I poke my head up a cow spots me, I froze until she went on about her way. I watched several more cows and then a very respectable 6x5 moves thru, then another cow and then a 5x5 moves into the open and stops momentarily. Several more cows and that’s it. I can hear the bulls start bugling again, (note to self, It wasn’t hunters I heard). Several above me and one below me. Since I can hear one below I decide to stay put.
A few minute go by and another cow and a calf go by. 10 more minutes go by and I see three more elk coming. First a cow and then a calf and bring up the rear is a spike. I wait for him to step into the opening in the trees and. Well the rest is history. An hour and a half into the season and I have my spike.

The next morning finds me back in the same spot with my muzzleloader. � hour after daylight the deer are working their way into the clearing. I slowly work my down the tree line toward them. Bam and my season is over.

The Overfishin Condition · 11-01-2003, 09:37 AM

Closing day of deer season went by, and I saw ten deer, none of which, looked to me to have so much as a spike. Most of them would have been pretty harvestable, all except for that one little problem. So I finish modern season not seeing a deer in the first 6 days in the woods, and in the last two days, hunting a new spot, find 12 deer... darn. It's late buck and battle ground unit for me now. Is there any promise for anyone out there in the BG unit, what with it being cut down so much? Good luck all.