Scouting Tucannon 1014

[yelp]

I gotta a Blue mtn A tag with his name on it...

[piledup]

That looks like a nice bull. It's good to hear the bulls are bugling. Was the bull out of velvet already? Couldn't tell by the picture.

[EastWaViking]

He was out of the velvet. 

[EastWaViking]

I gotta a Blue mtn A tag with his name on it...

...Unless I get him during archery season with my C tag!

He actually wasn't that big, maybe 280-300.

[yelp]

Did you see any bears or sign of any...I usually see a few in there.  Meadow Creek is a good place to look.

[EastWaViking]

No bears, some old sign here and there.

[piledup]

I gotta a Blue mtn A tag with his name on it...

...Unless I get him during archery season with my C tag!

He actually wasn't that big, maybe 280-300.

You got two tags?  Lucky you.

[EastWaViking]

No, I have the archery tag, Yelp has a rifle tag.  It sounds like he has had that tag before though.
Am I right Yelp, is this the second time you have gotten drawn?

[yelp]

I was fortunate to get a bull tag in the Mt. View adjacent to the Tucannon in 2001. 

My family decendants homesteaded on Pataha Flats out of Pomeroy in the late 1800's I have postcards of relatives that assisted Game dept. with the elk that were brought into Pomeroy via Railroad from Yellowstone.  They quarentined the elk in Pomeroy and push the elkon horses like cattle up to the Wenaha...probably via Tucannon etc...It is cool that my relatives were apart of what we see today.  It came full circle for me to be able to harvest a bull that my family helped bring into the Blues 100 years ago.

I used to camp at Camp Wooten years ago.  I also know several of the locals and I am really good friends with the biologists in that area.  That being said one of my friends dad drew the Tucannon Rifle tag last year...he didn't connect...he saw lots of bulls but he had a hard time getting to them...an age related issue. But in talking with my friend he said they hunted east of Godman and then hunted north in those thick north facing slopes (didn't burn in the fire)in upper tucannon and saw a ton of nice bulls in the 320-350 range..He said  Anyways the governors tag holder was in that drainage last year and was chasing a 8x9 that would score in the 390's  but it was too small for him I guess.  anyways I deer hunt all over that area. Another buddy of mine drew 10 years ago and nailed a dandy...6x6..  The common denominator in all of these hunts was getting in the thick areas where these bulls are hanging...especially thick cover next to spring areas where they will wallow.  I remember one year I found an area that had 20 wallows and 35-50 rubs....hot spot city....

I drew Blue Mtn A rifle whitetail tag this year.....can't wait.

I hope you get a good one they are in there...

[bucklucky]

Governors tag killed that bull, 387 is what it scored.

[yelp]

Do you know the hunter?  I don't want to put my foot in my mouth. 

[yelp]

The reason I say that is I heard rumors that he apparently hired several guys to locate big bulls in Tucannon, Dayton, Wenaha and other GMU's during archery, muzzleloader and rifle seasons?  Is this the same guy you know?

[bucklucky]

Ho, Richert? No I dont know him but I do wish he was a Taxidermy customer so I could mount his bulls!! He live near here and had a picture with the score written on it at the archery shop.

[jackelope]

yelp...my wife's family homesteaded on alpowa ridge, and some are buried in the pataha flat cemetery.
small world.

[Opportunist]

I ran into my old high school horticulture teacher the other day and found out he has drawn the same tag you have. I'm glad to hear he drew out, I told him to hunt east and north from godman also. So if you run into an old gray haired retired school teacher from Kelso high school go easy on him!

 Good luck on the hunt!