Captured quite a few images of this buck with a trail camera during summer, and had him coming into the camera trap site from June until August when he and 2 other bucks simply disappeared. I figured cats or a bear or two had disturbed them and ... they simply moved on.
A few weeks later, during the September high hunt that year we found him and one of his buddies together. The interesting thing is that in late August (not June or July) this and the other bucks finally climbed another 2000 vertical feet of elevation, and traveled another couple of miles farther into the Glacier Peak Wilderness, eventually ending up in sub alpine habitat. Guess they keep to their own schedules and enjoy the freedom to do as they please when they want to.
Note the missing tail on this buck. As in it probably was torn off or eaten when he was a young fawn. Speculation on my part. But, what in hell could yank that tail off?
The buck was killed by a friend of mine with my Model 700 DBM in .300 Weatherby and a 180 grain Swift Scirrocco II bullet at 60 yards. The buck never knew what hit it and fell to the ground as if it had
been yanked out from under him.
