Slide Ridge Muzzy Selected!!!!

[jackelope]

Good luck, man. Keep us posted.

[elkrack]

I will be betting this hunt won’t disappoint!! Good luck up there 

[throttlejocky20]

With the way the snow is looking and what things were like in the Entiat you should have an awesome hunt!!!!

[jrebel]

 

Best hunt choice ever.   I would love that tag this year. 

[cougforester]

Tagging!

[deadyote]

Not looking like there is going to be any snow, unless you guys have seen or heard something else?

[jrebel]

It could be snowing up there today.  It was raining at 4500 feet today and cold.  I'm sure it was snowing above 5500.....not a lot, but any will help.

[Romulus1297]

No new snow and the same deer.

[Transka]

I’ll be up Saturday afternoon through Monday talked to you and your boy while you were grouse hunting real good friends with the last house on left going up shady pass rd. Tan Chevy Silverado 2500 with canopy I know of a few spots 😉

[crabcreekhunter]

Might be up that way Sunday to do some burning on the property 24 miles up, might have to make a drive before I start and see what's around.

[Romulus1297]

I've been up there for 14 days. Still fun.

[UBA]

With the lack of snow, u might be able to hunt  entiat side as well. Going to be a great hunt.

[throttlejocky20]

Im sure there have baan some good bucks that have moved into the upper unit you will be fine

[Romulus1297]

The Entiat side is a disaster area. Very few deer and alot of firewood. Trees down everywhere.

[deadyote]

First off I want to say thank you to the people that helped me out on this hunt....Transka, Grade-creek-rd, Alpinemuley, Griz231, and Jrebel.  You guys were a pleasure to shoot questions off of and I'd give you guys any info i have if you ever need it.
 
So like i said before the hunt really started when I saw the coveted, "SELECTED".  I spent more weekends over in the unit than my wife would have liked me to, but she is awesome and a bit more willing when I took one or all of my three boys.  I spent hours on hours looking at maps, google earth, and onyx maps and made plans for where looked good and where I wanted to check out.  Then I could confirm on one of the scouting trips and either eliminate the spot or keep it on the radar.

So as the hunt got closer, I began to get nervous about being able to live up to the standards or the hunt.  Some of the guys sent me pictures of some giant bucks in the unit.  I am such a meat hunter that I wasn't sure I'd be able to hold out for a solid buck.  I reserved a spot at Lake Chelan St Park and got set up two days prior to the hunt starting.  I literally drove into the park and saw 6 does, a small spike, and a 2x2 that had his nose up the does backside.  I figured this was a good sign!!!  I quickly set up the trailer, grabbed my gear, and headed up the hill.  Now the weather was a factor in this hunt because we got just a bit of snow, but not enough to make a difference.  The biggest struggle with the weather was the clouds and fog.  Every day we either had low clouds so hunting up high was really difficult spotting or the fog was so think down low that hunt down there was almost impossible.   

I literally saw deer within 5 minutes of being in the woods.  It ended up being a decent 2x3 with a small 2x2 that I had seen a couple weeks prior when I brought my dad up.  By the end of the day I saw over 15 does and 8 bucks.  Nothing big, but the rut was still on.  A great friend of mine, Jake, showed up that night and was going to help me out with spotting for the first few days.  The day before the hunt we headed out and went all over the place to see if we could locate does and boy did we.  I also ended up spotting a small 4x4 that was running a ridge, but didn't have any does with him. 

Opening day came and I had a plan to go to a spot that I had seen a few bucks during the summer and with a touch of new snow, figured it would make spotting a bit easier.  We we saw a dandy 3x3 right at first light while working through some open timber.  It was so tempting to shoot him, but luckily I decided that I didn't want the hunt to end that soon, so we watched as he stayed right on the heels of his lady.  As we continued up the hill, we came across the largest set of cougar tracks I have ever seen.  The prints were bigger than my palms and I have pretty big hands.  With the 3-4 inches of snow on the ground, it made it pretty easy to see where the deer were coming a going.  That day we saw 3 other bucks and a total of 11 does.

Day 2 - we went and worked another area and the rut was on full swing.  One does we found had 4 bucks with it.  One was a 4x4 that had a frame of a 4x3 with one eyeguard, but 2 points were broken off the 4 side and the eye guard was broke also.  He was a decent buck, but still too early for a meat buck.  Then we were driving to a different spot down low, due to the clouds, and we spot a mid 140's 4x4 with one small eye guard.  Huge body and didn't give a care about us.  We were within 75 yards and he just laid there and watched his ladies.  Finally he got up and slowly walked off with his does.  I got a great video of him and told Jake I hope I don't regret this.  Still too early and the number of bucks being seen just made me hopeful for something a bit bigger.  Now I'm really struggling to pass up deer because the only buck prior to this hunt that I passed up ended up with tag soup.  MEAT HUNTER!!!  By the end of the day we spotting 12 bucks and 27 does and it started snowing that afternoon, so I was getting a little more excited.  My buddy Jake had to leave midday, so the rest of the hunt was solo. 

Day 3 - FOG down low, so I was able to head up high above the fog and play in the snow.  I set up on a glassing point that overlooks a huge area and put the glass to work.  Right of I spot 2 does with 5 bucks.  Nothing bigger than a 2x2, but the does had what they wanted.  Not long after that, I glass what looked to be a stud buck about 2 miles away and down in the bottom.  I decided within about 2 seconds that I was going to go after that buck and he was in a spot that I could get to.  I had to drive on a road that Transka had warned me could get really sketchy, but with only 6 inches of snow I thought no worries.  I chained up the truck anyways, just in case.  GOOD THING I DID.  I got half way up the road and I have never been so spooked to drive a road.  Luckily and thank GOD, I was able to back out and reevaluate my plans.  That buck was unfortunately safe from me.  Bummed out, but not finished I hiked into another hole on the other side of the ridge and spotted more bucks with does.  In total I saw 8 bucks and 19 does for the day. 

Day 4 - FOG still here, so I went back up high to see if i could relocate that buck and go get him.  I decided that I'd hike to go get him, but I never did relocate that buck.  I did find 5 small bucks with a single doe within 200 yards of my glassing spot, but they were all small bucks.  Watching them spar and run around was a blast.  I ended up spotting a really nice 3x3, huge 2x2, and another bigger framed buck that I couldn't get a good look at, but between the 3x3 and the bigger buck I made a move.  The snow was really loud, so I slipped off my boots and put on another pair of socks and walked really slow.  I knew they were just over a ridge near a small outcropping and once I got to the rocks they'd be 200 yards out and there was enough cover to get within range.  I got to the rocks and it took me over an hour to make it the last 50 yards.  I was hidden by some trees, so when I peaked around the trees and expecting to see the deer bedded all I saw were empty beds.  Wind was right, sun was behind me, so they must have heard me and decided they didn't like it.  They didn't spook too far because I ended up seeing them again just one ridge from where they were supposed to be.  I'd be back!!!  Total for the day was 10 bucks and 21 does.

Day 5 - Clouds were low again today, so down low hunting.  Today was going to be a short day due to having to be back on the west side for the afternoon.  I decided that I could only shoot a deer before 9, so that would allow me enough time to process the buck, get back to the trailer, take a shower, and drive back home.  Saw a couple bucks with some does and at 8:56 am I saw the big 4x4 from earlier in the hunt.  I told myself I had time.  He was 103 yards away and standing behind a tree, but knew I was there.  I slowly worked to the left to see his vitals.  Just before I could see his vitals, he decided that he would walk straight away and not give me a shot.  No guys I won't take a Texas Heart shot.  Did that once and learned from my mistake!!!

Day 6 - Last day to hunt I thought I had figured out where the 4x4 was hanging out, so he was my plan, but I told myself that if I saw the busted up buck again, I'd shoot him too.  I found a small bench on a ridge that had buckbrush below it and timber above it.  I parked the truck above it and started hiking.  It was about half to 3/4 of a mile down hill to where I thought they were hanging out.  Within 100 yards I spot a spike with a doe and passed.  Thinking I should have shot it because I just wanted the meat.  Not another 100 yards another spike with a doe.  Dang it!!!  Stop tempting me.  Finally I get almost to where I want to be and I spot the broken buck with about 8 does and 2 other smaller bucks.  There about 30 yards from a nasty thick patch of willows and the busted up buck is rutting hard.  I get up to 125 yards, lean against a tree, and rest my muzzle loader on a branch. The busted buck gives me a nice broadside shot, so I squeeze the trigger.  BOOM.  Then nothing happens.  The buck still has his nose up the ladies backside and the does could care less also.  I think, I missed?  The deer not doing anything said, "Yeah dummy you jerked the trigger."  So I reload and get a better rest and wait for the buck to get into the open again.  About a minute later, another perfect broadside shot, and BOOM.  This time the buck jumps and dives into a hole.  The does are still standing there and then guess wat happens.  The bigger 4x4 that I wanted walked out of the willow thicket.  And i mean W.A.L.K.E.D!!  if a buck can laugh, he was.  I took a video of him walking away and had to just laugh with him. 

I made it down to my buck who went a total of 40 yards because of a perfect heart shot, which is good an bad becasue I was really looking forward to a heart dinner.  I thanked God and the buck for providing me with meat for the family and took some pictures.  I got the buck all quartered and layed out on the snow to cool off.  Funny thing was that the does didn't leave that spot for about 30 minutes after I started cleaning the buck.

I got the buck back to the trailer, had a celebratory glass of whiskey and started breaking down camp.  I know I didn't shoot the biggest buck on the hill, but I had a blast on this hunt.  I got meat in the freezer and I learned a new area that I will definitely be back to for bear next year.  Over the summer I saw 7 bears and almost got my 12 year old a beautiful jet black bear.  There is also a ton of cougars in the area.  I saw 11 sets of tracks during the hunt.  The one thing that really surprised me was that the buck to doe ratio is at least 3:1.  There is also a ton of small bucks that are going to be good bucks in the near future. 

If someone can help me figure out how to resize a picture off my phone, then please help because I'm not smart enough to figure that part out.  Or I can email or text the picture to someone who knows how to resize it and they can post it. 

Thanks again for all the support and pointers on this hunt that I'd do again any day!!!