Finally got a black-tail buck

[andr3wxmma]

This season I went in with the goal of harvesting a black tail buck. I've killed whitetail before but something about the challenge these black tails bring excites me. Last year work really limited my opportunities and i only got to hunt the late season and let the only buck I could have ethically shot(Small spike) walk. I planned on scouting hard to maximize my chances and even purchased a few trail cameras. Well august rolled around and i was in the Vail scouting every chance I had. I saw a lot of doe and a couple decent bucks in a cut that a user from this site pointed me towards, he said he was seeing a couple bucks in it every day during last late archery season. Well then work decided to strike and said I was going to train in a desert in California from the last week of august until first week of October. I left my trail cameras up the entire time I was gone and the last pic i got of a buck was first week of September but it still captured tons of does ( assumed bad placement was at fault). Fast forward to the first weekend and I was in a spot a picked out for the wind direction of that day about 45 minutes before first light. As its almost shooting light and I'm starting to see movement in the cut, a diesel truck rolls down the road above me and stops not 60 yards from me and parks. I don't think there's any chance he couldn't see me posted up in my blaze orange. a Few minutes after parking you could hear him clear his throat and spit and about then is when i could just see the outline of a few deer going over the opposite end of the cut into the tree line. I came back to the cut that night to hope they'd work into it before dark but only saw a couple does. Next day I tried the same plan of attack but saw 0 deer in the morning and a doe and a small spike in the afternoon. Next weekend I had Friday - Sunday to hunt and got in early each day but only saw some does, a few unidentified deer still hunting, and a spike who got his ass beat by a doe in front of me. This Sunday i took @JakeLands  generous invitation to hunt with him I ended up leaving base at around 2am to get up to where we planned on meeting on time. We get there with hopes the rain would  keep the deer out in the open. We started biking in to the spot he thinks will be ideal at around 0430am and were met by torrential downpours almost immediately, i had solid rain gear but it made no difference and i was wet in little to no time. We continued hunting through the rain and put on a lot of miles but just didn't see the deer we had hoped for.  I learned a plethora of blacktail knowledge during this hunt. I had a four day pass from work for the 28th - 31st and planned on hunting all four days hard. Friday right before release formation I learned they rescheduled my promotion board to the 31st and yeah I had a pass but getting promoted took priority even over hunting. Saturday I went back into the area Jakeland and myself had hunted the weekend prior because i was sick of the Vail crowds and being able to drive everywhere(after talking to him and making sure he wasn't trying to fill his tag in that area). When heading into the prime spot i wanted to sit on in the morning I noticed that a deer had been dragged out from this spot. I decided to still give it a try but saw nothing. Sunday I figured id give the Vail another try and went back to my preseason cut but only saw a fawn all day. Monday I planned on only hunting the morning and using the afternoon to prepare for my board the next day. On my way out on Monday I saw a track in the mud of a buck chasing a doe pretty close to a gate and made a mental note of the cut they looked to be heading towards. Tuesday rolls around and I do all my required board procedures and earn my promotable status to be a Staff Sergeant. I finish with everything and get my platoon leaders permission to leave at around 3 pm and I speed home and changed into hunting clothes and hit the road. I get to the vail around 415 and knowing I don't have much time and the wind was blowing perfect so I decided to sneak into the cut i saw the bucks track chasing a doe the day prior. I slowly sneak up using game trails, trying to be as quite as physically possible while stalking through thorn bushes bigger than me. When i get to the cut I see the far side is much greener and offered a better chance to catch a deer feeding, so i decide to sneak about 30 yards from the edge to a stump / brush pile I could see that side and the low ground that offered a good cover travel route for any deer moving. Right before i get to the area i wanted to be at I catch movement. Its 2 big bodied deer moving through that low ground, I pull up the scope  and see ones a 2 x 2. Theyre moving fast and about to go out of sight so i grunt to get him to stop and he pays 0 attention, I try whistling but nothing, finally he slows down a little and  i take a shot as hes a few steps from going into a blind spot. He was quartering away at a severe angle 80-90 yards away, I was shooting off hand but felt confident in the shot. He disappears instantly. I was pretty sure he dropped in place but didn't want to risk anything so I waited 15 - 20 minutes. I head over to the spot and had a small heart attack when i was 15 yards away and couldn't see him but he was laying right there but was blending in pretty well. I decided to gut him and take him out whole because it wasn't that far from the truck, I've also never done a deboning in the field because its illegal in my old state to birng the deer out not whole (minus the ponch guts) (Vermont). I had a video downloaded to my phone in case i needed to do it. Well dragging that deer through that old clear cut was a terrible decision and took about 3.5 hours but i got it done. Got him to a butcher this morning before work and he weighed 125 on the hook headless, gutless, and without inner loins. This hunt was also special because it took place a few days after the anniversary of the man(my grandfather) who was with me when i shot my first deer's passing. I used the gun he gave me to make the kill and his old knive to do the cleaning.

[Duckhunter14]

Congrats on tagging the buck. Very cool you were able to use your grandpas gun and knife. 

[Rainier10]

Congrats on tagging the buck. Very cool you were able to use your grandpas gun and knife. 

[archerykraze]

Nice job, thanks for the write up!

[JDHasty]

 

[pd]

That is quite a story, Staff Sargent!

Yes, that is blacktail hunting (and, sadly, hunting with a large population of hunters).  Congratulations on sticking with it to the end.  Nice looking forked horn there.

[Hilltop123]

Congrats!! Just out of curiosity, which is harder? Whitetail or Blacktail?

[Blacktail Sniper]

 

Good job!

[WapitiTalk1]

Awesome... Nicely done! 

[pianoman9701]

Congratulations on both the deer and promotion! Would love to see a pic of the gun and knife.  You did your grandpa proud.

I'm from NH and we had to drag them out whole, too. I think blackies are a lot harder to hunt than whiteys. How about you?

[JDHasty]

"125 on the hook headless, gutless, and without inner loins"

That is a large two point. 

[savagehunter]

Three thumbs up

[elkspert]

Nice Job.

[WSU]

Nice.  Sounds like you earned it!

That's a good sized 2 point.  I had one give me the slip yesterday that wouldn't have weighted 125 with head, legs, guts and an extra 25 lbs strapped to it.

[JakeLand]

Good job! Way to stick with it