Idaho White Tail Thread 2023

[Seabass]

I can’t wait to get out. We’re playing in the state championship in Pocatello Saturday. If we lose I’ll be hunting Sunday. If we win I’ll probably probably be awake until the wee hours of Sunday morning😂.

[Machias]

My wife got a nice big fat doe on Saturday.  I'm getting a bunch of bucks on camera, but I have 9 does out in the back pasture every night and no bucks checking them out yet.  Passed on a forkhorn last night.

[Born2late]

Here is my 2023 Idaho buck usually hold out for longer in hopes of getting a bigger buck but I have always wanted to kill a buck standing off this particular rock after having taken my niece in there and watching her do it. Fun hunt with family and friends.

[fishngamereaper]

 

Getting some pics of good bucks
Can't wait to get over there tomorrow... timing should be perfect.

[elkboy]

Awesome, Born2Late. End of the day, they're all trophies,  on the wall, on the plate,  or in our memories.

[TeacherMan]

Had a buck run right at me on the Highway last night chasing a doe. Big ol 5 point. My daughter was like what’s wrong with it, it’s eyes are shiny green 😂 I literally stopped and let it run past us, thought it was going to go over the top of our rig.

[Machias]

 

[fowl smacker]

God is good! Idaho is a wrap.  It was a bit different this year, it never got to freezing temps when normally it gets to single digits.  The majority of bucks we saw weren't chasing does.  Yesterday was so foggy you couldn't do any glassing.  Saturday I saw 4 does. Sunday saw 3 does. Monday saw 2 nice bucks, 2 small bucks, and a handful of does.  Tuesday after the fog finally lifted at 2pm I saw 1 tiny buck and 4 does.  Today....today was different.  I saw 18 does and a spike by 8:45 AM.  I was actually discouraged, how could I see 18 does and no decent bucks with any of them?  I made it to my spot I like and started glassing only seeing one solo doe bedded down.  I started my glassing grid going slow, I'd scanned the area good already and started over again when I saw what looked like antlers 550 yards away.  I couldn't tell if they were or not because I saw no deer attached to them until they moved several minutes into my stare.  This was at 9:20AM.  Definitely antlers, but still no deer.  He was bedded behind brush, a tree, and a little hump.  I laid down with my pack as a rest, getting all situated and as comfortable as I could get (I'd watched 2 bucks bed down 8:30 until dark earlier).  I was in this for the long haul.  As I lay there I'm praying lord please make this buck stand up, over, and over, and over.  For an hour and 20 minutes I layed there watching antlers through my scope then giving my eyes a few second break, then back to the scope.  Finally at 10:40 he started moving those antlers around a little.  I flipped my safety off just in case then it happened, he stood up.  I was ready and immediately pulled the trigger with my cross hairs behind his shoulder.  I ejected the case and chambered another found him again and he appeared to be in the downward dog yoga position so I put it in the same spot and squeezed another round off.  He lunged and disappeared.  I felt good about my shots.  Sent a text hoping one of my buddies would get it and bring the 4 wheeler to assist.  Now to start my hike down the hill (mountain).  I get to my landmark tree and start looking for blood and I'm not seeing any, at this point panic is setting in.  Could I have missed?  550 isn't that far of a shot for me especially with a rock steady rest.  I walked 20 yards in the direction I saw him take off in, still no blood, SERIOUS PANIC now.  I decide to turn around and start a grid, as I turn he's lying dead about 20 yards further back and behind a tree.  He didn't go 10 yards from where I first hit him and both shots were within 2" of each other.  Not my biggest whitetail but I'll take him any day.  I snap some pics, gut him and start the impossible drag up hill to the closest road (which is about 200ish yards uphill.)  Luckily my texts reached their destination and Matt came to the rescue to help me drag it the last 60-70 yards to the quad before I went into sudden cardiac arrest.  Loaded it up and headed for his truck because the road we were on didn't go up to mine.  Ran into Walt and his boy so they went to grab my truck while I started skinning and breaking him down.  So thankful for great friends and nice bucks!  Sorry this is long, wanted to paint the picture.

[Machias]

Awesome, congrats and nice write up!

[Shooter4]

God is good! Idaho is a wrap.  It was a bit different this year, it never got to freezing temps when normally it gets to single digits.  The majority of bucks we saw weren't chasing does.  Yesterday was so foggy you couldn't do any glassing.  Saturday I saw 4 does. Sunday saw 3 does. Monday saw 2 nice bucks, 2 small bucks, and a handful of does.  Tuesday after the fog finally lifted at 2pm I saw 1 tiny buck and 4 does.  Today....today was different.  I saw 18 does and a spike by 8:45 AM.  I was actually discouraged, how could I see 18 does and no decent bucks with any of them?  I made it to my spot I like and started glassing only seeing one solo doe bedded down.  I started my glassing grid going slow, I'd scanned the area good already and started over again when I saw what looked like antlers 550 yards away.  I couldn't tell if they were or not because I saw no deer attached to them until they moved several minutes into my stare.  This was at 9:20AM.  Definitely antlers, but still no deer.  He was bedded behind brush, a tree, and a little hump.  I laid down with my pack as a rest, getting all situated and as comfortable as I could get (I'd watched 2 bucks bed down 8:30 until dark earlier).  I was in this for the long haul.  As I lay there I'm praying lord please make this buck stand up, over, and over, and over.  For an hour and 20 minutes I layed there watching antlers through my scope then giving my eyes a few second break, then back to the scope.  Finally at 10:40 he started moving those antlers around a little.  I flipped my safety off just in case then it happened, he stood up.  I was ready and immediately pulled the trigger with my cross hairs behind his shoulder.  I ejected the case and chambered another found him again and he appeared to be in the downward dog yoga position so I put it in the same spot and squeezed another round off.  He lunged and disappeared.  I felt good about my shots.  Sent a text hoping one of my buddies would get it and bring the 4 wheeler to assist.  Now to start my hike down the hill (mountain).  I get to my landmark tree and start looking for blood and I'm not seeing any, at this point panic is setting in.  Could I have missed?  550 isn't that far of a shot for me especially with a rock steady rest.  I walked 20 yards in the direction I saw him take off in, still no blood, SERIOUS PANIC now.  I decide to turn around and start a grid, as I turn he's lying dead about 20 yards further back and behind a tree.  He didn't go 10 yards from where I first hit him and both shots were within 2" of each other.  Not my biggest whitetail but I'll take him any day.  I snap some pics, gut him and start the impossible drag up hill to the closest road (which is about 200ish yards uphill.)  Luckily my texts reached their destination and Matt came to the rescue to help me drag it the last 60-70 yards to the quad before I went into sudden cardiac arrest.  Loaded it up and headed for his truck because the road we were on didn't go up to mine.  Ran into Walt and his boy so they went to grab my truck while I started skinning and breaking him down.  So thankful for great friends and nice bucks!  Sorry this is long, wanted to paint the picture.

What elevations were you at?

[knighttime25]

Well I'll probably take the cake for smallest whitetail buck. Solo hunt last weekend, never hunted Idaho before this year or shot a whitetail and this guy was teasing me at 300 yards. Decided to take the shot after only seeing does and fawns for multiple days. Had a great time, learned a lot and definitely will be back. My son laughed when I showed him the horns and asked why they were so small 

[JakeLand]

Here is my 2023 Idaho buck usually hold out for longer in hopes of getting a bigger buck but I have always wanted to kill a buck standing off this particular rock after having taken my niece in there and watching her do it. Fun hunt with family and friends.

good times and nice buck uncle beaver !! Thanks for a awesome week with you

[fowl smacker]

God is good! Idaho is a wrap.  It was a bit different this year, it never got to freezing temps when normally it gets to single digits.  The majority of bucks we saw weren't chasing does.  Yesterday was so foggy you couldn't do any glassing.  Saturday I saw 4 does. Sunday saw 3 does. Monday saw 2 nice bucks, 2 small bucks, and a handful of does.  Tuesday after the fog finally lifted at 2pm I saw 1 tiny buck and 4 does.  Today....today was different.  I saw 18 does and a spike by 8:45 AM.  I was actually discouraged, how could I see 18 does and no decent bucks with any of them?  I made it to my spot I like and started glassing only seeing one solo doe bedded down.  I started my glassing grid going slow, I'd scanned the area good already and started over again when I saw what looked like antlers 550 yards away.  I couldn't tell if they were or not because I saw no deer attached to them until they moved several minutes into my stare.  This was at 9:20AM.  Definitely antlers, but still no deer.  He was bedded behind brush, a tree, and a little hump.  I laid down with my pack as a rest, getting all situated and as comfortable as I could get (I'd watched 2 bucks bed down 8:30 until dark earlier).  I was in this for the long haul.  As I lay there I'm praying lord please make this buck stand up, over, and over, and over.  For an hour and 20 minutes I layed there watching antlers through my scope then giving my eyes a few second break, then back to the scope.  Finally at 10:40 he started moving those antlers around a little.  I flipped my safety off just in case then it happened, he stood up.  I was ready and immediately pulled the trigger with my cross hairs behind his shoulder.  I ejected the case and chambered another found him again and he appeared to be in the downward dog yoga position so I put it in the same spot and squeezed another round off.  He lunged and disappeared.  I felt good about my shots.  Sent a text hoping one of my buddies would get it and bring the 4 wheeler to assist.  Now to start my hike down the hill (mountain).  I get to my landmark tree and start looking for blood and I'm not seeing any, at this point panic is setting in.  Could I have missed?  550 isn't that far of a shot for me especially with a rock steady rest.  I walked 20 yards in the direction I saw him take off in, still no blood, SERIOUS PANIC now.  I decide to turn around and start a grid, as I turn he's lying dead about 20 yards further back and behind a tree.  He didn't go 10 yards from where I first hit him and both shots were within 2" of each other.  Not my biggest whitetail but I'll take him any day.  I snap some pics, gut him and start the impossible drag up hill to the closest road (which is about 200ish yards uphill.)  Luckily my texts reached their destination and Matt came to the rescue to help me drag it the last 60-70 yards to the quad before I went into sudden cardiac arrest.  Loaded it up and headed for his truck because the road we were on didn't go up to mine.  Ran into Walt and his boy so they went to grab my truck while I started skinning and breaking him down.  So thankful for great friends and nice bucks!  Sorry this is long, wanted to paint the picture.

What elevations were you at?

3.5 to 4.5k feet

[Born2late]

Here is my 2023 Idaho buck usually hold out for longer in hopes of getting a bigger buck but I have always wanted to kill a buck standing off this particular rock after having taken my niece in there and watching her do it. Fun hunt with family and friends.

good times and nice buck uncle beaver !! Thanks for a awesome week with you

You too bud, was fun seeing your face after almost kissing a bear😂

[andrew_in_idaho]

I went out in unit 23 this last weekend, where we saw dozens of whitetail essentially the same weekend of the season last year. I saw exactly 0 deer. I’m assuming since the whitetails tend to be less migratory that there was a lot of winterkill in the McCall/New Meadows area. Didn’t even see much sign.


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