Quit now while you are ahead, a great buck.
Too late, I have had the blacktail bug for many years. There was another topic started before I left about completing a deer slam in Washington. This mulie completes the slam 4X4 Blacktail w/eyeguards, 3X3 Whitetail w/ eyeguards, and this toad. I guess I am going to have to try to get the 4x4 whitetail to get the 4 point slam! Some of you asked for the story, and I am happy to oblige. It has been busy around here, or I would have gotten it up sooner.
I will try to give the short of the long. I spotted him the evening before by chance as I was glassing from over 900 yards. He was bedded in the mountain top rocks. I wasn't sure how big he was but I could tell he was legal. I studied the topography of the land for about 1 hour, and tried to imagine how I would approach getting into this difficult landscape. My partner asked if I was going to approach that evening, and I replied there was not enough light to reach him. So back to camp I went and I went over and over the possible entries into the rocks above. At daylight we began the descent up the mountain and reached the ridgeline about a hour later. As we approached what I had anticipated as a entry point into the bowl, we encountered rock shale shoots (one after another). Fearing we might spook every deer within a couple hundred yards we tried to walk slowly and cautiously. It was a lot further around than I had anticipated, but we made it. But to no avail, the deer wasn't to be found. I was a little deflated, having made such a difficult journey and not even a doe to show for it. However we did find some enormous deer tracks, and knew this would be a place to return. Tired and exhausted from the hike the mountain we sat on rock face wall and watched the next 3-4 ridges for activity. After approximately 40 minutes, my leg had lost feeling. I stood up for a little stretching and pondered a more direct route of the mountain. My buddy whispered that he had spotted a deer moving a couple ridges over. Shortly thereafter I spotted the deer he had seen. Immediately I saw a large rack, counted 4 points and said shoot. He had moved out of view of my partner and as I pulled my rifle up I lost him. The buck continued down the ridge to the tree line, when we lost him. We could here him moving thru the rocks, and it sounded like he was coming our direction. Moments later he was standing at the bottom of a ridge, coming along the tree line. 1 shot form the 300 winmag at 165 yards sent him tumbling into the thick underbrush.
The story doesn't end there, getting down from our position to him was another story and I found myself sliding down the hill in the rock shale. 5 hours later we arrived back at the truck. This was a awesome hunt, and a memory that will play in my mind for 11.5 months. I have to thank my friend for the invitation, and thru his many years of experience giving me some great advice.
