For the first time in years, I rolled solo opening weekend in MT. My dad and some other family members decided to hunt elk in a different unit, and I didn't splurge for an elk tag this year, so I decided to stick with my usual deer spot. I also had a complicating factor in that my wife and some friends booked a vacation for mid November that included me, so hunting the rut was out of the equation this season. So recognizing I probably wouldn't get to make 2 trips over, I went fully intending to notch my tag on opening weekend.
The weather was crazy! Rain, snow, and everything in between, and a windstorm that was buckling trees all around me. I literally witnessed at least 40 trees come down and heard many more. Fortunately, The storm eventually subsided and I was able to take a nice buck on top of one of my favorite ridges. I definitely missed my friends and family when it came time to pack the buck out though!
I ended up deboning him, shed every ounce of weight I could, and was able to get all the meat and the cape/Antlers out in two trips. From shot to truck my total time was 9 hrs, which wasn't bad considering the steep, nasty terrain and the distance to my truck.
