Well, after putting myself in for the entiat rifle rut tag for over a decade (unsuccessfully), my 17 year old daughter drew it with just 3 points. I'm not sure what the odds of that are, but they can't be all that great, and I wouldn't blame anyone for being jealous! We haven't been able to devote as much time to the scouting or hunt as I wanted. The fact that I'm writing this from an airport lounge in Minneapolis is kind of a microcosm of my work life right now. But nevertheless, we're heading over there Nov 11-14, and then then 19-20 if she doesn't harvest one this coming weekend. I am completely stoked for the opportunity to make some memories with my oldest before she heads off to college and continues to form her own lens through which to view the world. I'm also stoked to hunt the entiat considering it's about as good as it gets for mule deer in WA, but I'm trying to keep the perspective that that's secondary to the overall experience with the kiddo.
We got some exceptional intel from an avid member of this forum who's a good friend of a good friend (thank you!), so we have a solid game plan. The snow situation appears to be just about ideal, so if we can avoid sliding off the road and don't get fogged in, I feel pretty confident that we'll have a good hunt. We really have no set criteria for what size buck she wants to shoot. I'm probably going to be the one who wants her to pass on the small 4 and keep hunting because, well, that's what I and so many of you love to do! I've really appreciated reading through the threads on this site while deciding what hunts to apply for and especially in preparation for this hunt. So, I figured it was time to share our experiences the other way now that we have an interesting hunt to talk about! I'll post back here with as many updates as I can during/after the hunt. We'll be in a maroon silverado with a canopy. Feel free to say hi if you're in the area because you're one of the other lucky suckers who drew this tag!
Doug
