My 2010 Deer Season...(late post)

[zackmioli]

First of all sorry this post is coming so late, I have been lazy and was hoping to post deer and elk success stories on the same night...oh well I can post the deer success story now and elk success stories in future years. Well once again my hunting group and I spent all of general modern season over in the Palouse chasing whiteys. Got to the property we hunt early Friday morning and got camp all set up.





Had a great meal and then it was off to bed after some BSing around the campfire. Woke up early on opening morning to get up to our spots in the dark, about 20 minutes before legal shooting light. After an unusually slow opening morning we all reconviened at camp for some breakfast/lunch. Headed out for the evening hunt, I am working an eyebrow hoping to kick out something to my dad (who has a doe tag) or my stepmom. Well 5 does end up heading right towards me from the field so I try to get my dad positioned in case they feed down towards him. Meanwhile Maria spooks a buck out of its bed so now we are focused on that.

[zackmioli]

The buck is just standing on top of a wheat field so I work my way towards Maria so we can put a game plan together. This buck has bedded down by now and is skylighted so we have no shot. I decide to slip below the ridgeline and work a bit closer to set up with the binos and gun incase it comes my way. Maria is going to circle all the way around and try and come up from behind it to hopefully get a shot before dark. Well I crawl to exactly 300 yards from this buck but its still skylighted for me so Maria starts her hunt and right as she is coming up on him he catches movement or something and pops up and jogs away. I was able to see him again but decided it wasnt a smart shot with fading light so we passed. Meanwhile my Godfather (Mark) had shot a bruiser of a 5x5, unknown to us at the time. We ended up meeting him and our other buddies on the road as they were loading the deer into the truck. Mark was working a fenceline and kicked up 2 does from a thicket, as they came out they spooked this boy out, he ran up the fence line and stopped where Mark dumped him.

[zackmioli]

The next day I decided to go on a long hike. Went way up to the top of a ridgeline where I could see for miles and just watched groups of does running all over the place. Finally after hiking a few miles I headed closer to camp and went to a draw above the landowners house and spotted a group of 4 deer bedded down. At first I thought they were all does but after moving closer and further examination I spotted bone on one. Couldn't tell if he was legal so I came up with a plan to get close enough to tell. I slipped down into the bottom of the draw and walked it out into the field and then went up the ridge above these deer and started making my way back down towards them. They had moved and noticed me before I noticed them but luckily I just kneeled down and they settled and bed back down. I spotted these deer at 10:30am, it was now 11:00am. I slowly moved closer and closer but with the short cut stubble and the rising thermals it was making it damn near impossible to identify 3 points on the buck. So I kept moving closer and when they would look at me I would just stop and wait. Finally I got to 350 yards and was pinned down for about 2 hours. Then moved up to 250 yards away and got pinned there for another 2 hours. While everyone else was back in camp I was sitting in the middle of a dusty wheat field. Still not being able to put 3 points on this deer I decided I had to get closer so I grabbed my things and crouched as long as possible and ran forward about 40 yards. These deer had gotten so comfortable with me they barely even looked my way. I stopped and waited about 10 minutes and then did it again. Finally I got to about 180 yards away and I identified 3 points, legal. I set up my pack for a rest and get my gun up. Well with the angle of the hill and them being bedded down I couldnt get a shot. I needed him to stand up. So I whistled, grunted, barked, clapped, etc trying to catch his attention and get him to stand. Nothing worked. I am so frustrated at this point. It is now 5:00pm and will be getting dark soon. So one of my hunting buddies comes up the other draw and radios me to see where Im at so he doesnt interfere and I tell him whats going on. He decides to get upwind of them and let them smell him to try and get them up. Well that doesnt work either, these deer are completely content with just laying there. Finally he starts making some noise and they get up. Well the buck stands facing me. I could have taken the shot but didnt feel great about it and he bed back down. So again Rob makes some noise and he stands, broadside, BAM!

[zackmioli]

Right behind the shoulder, perfect hit. All 4 of the deer ran right towards me, they had no idea where the shot came from. I get on a knee as the buck hobbles and stops 30 yards from me, I can see the blood coming out and he is barely moving buck I decide to put another one in him and finish him off. BAM! He walks 20 yards and falls over dead. I shot him at 5:30pm. I worked this deer for 7 HOURS before getting a shot. What a mentally exhausting hunt that was, one I will never forget. By far the longest stalk I or anyone in my group has put on a deer. So glad it worked out in the end. He doesnt have a huge rack but he is definitely a trophy for what he made me go through!
No in the field shots, I totally spaced on it.

[zackmioli]

The rest of the week was spent pushin brush and doing whatever else I could to help out. We ended up taking 2 does as well. I spotted the one my dad shot and helped him drag it out and gut it. That was awesome. Here are some more pictures from our trip including the deer hanger we made this year, it worked great!






camp guard, kodiak.

[zackmioli]

Enjoy!

[ldjbuff]

Great Write UP. Thanks! Good looking bucks too

[PacificNWhunter]

Congrats!

[zackmioli]

thanks!

[DeerThug]

Meat on the pole.  Like the dog in the orange.  remindes me of bear hunitng with the black labs. 

[carpsniperg2]

congrats! thanks for sharing with us. lots of great pics