MONSTER BLACKTAIL

[Mulieman]

That is a fine buck.

As far as the ear thing goes, lots of people will tell you to pull the ears back in a frontal picture to make the rack look larger. It is a method of "trophy picture taking".

Someday I will take a buck of this caliber. Congrats

[Armadillo]

no ones seen the tail  how can it "not be" a blacktail if we dont really know? Just because the "rack is too big"?

[Armadillo]

no one should be drawing any conclusions except that its a damn fine piece of meat

[gutsnthegrass]

This is a beautiful buck no matter what it is!  It definetly has the characteristics of a mule deer.  I shot a buck on the crest this year that was on the west side of the PCT.  I call him a bench buck even though he had a pure mulie tail, he had a shorter nose like a blacktail and his ears were not as big as most of the mulies I have shot.  These deer are hard to tell just from a picture, and there is so much mixed breeding in these areas.

[jmx369]

That is a beautiful buck. Congrats to the hunter.

[stewcamp]

I think that falls under the cascade blacktail. Look in the Washington record book. It has a category for these. Beautiful buck.

[longstevo]

It's all about where its shot.  Now, if I remember right, the border for blacktail/muley is the Pacific Crest Trail.  At least here on the southern end. 

That's why THIS guy is classified as a mule deer according to B&C.  I felt like I was being interrogated by the horn scorers at the Sportman's show when they asked me where it was shot.  If I had got him ten miles to the west, he'd have gone B&C blacktail.

Washington and Oregon both recognize the 'Benchleg bucks,' or Cascade Blacktail, but not the official record books. 

[Huntboy]

Nice buck either way, it would be nice to get the story from the person who took it.

[ELKBURGER]

Sweet buck Stevo! Is that a wind river buck?

[npaull]

If the deer was shot near Index, it's a blacktail through and through. That's way west of the pass, the habitat is 100% blacktail rainforest, not muley mountains. My family owns a cabin in that area.

Also, I have seen absolutely huge deer (in this same size class) in that corridor on the west side. Very few numbers-wise, but big bucks are there.

[PickNbone]

lets see the ears

[DOUBLELUNG]

C'mon guys.  I've seen "blacktails" as far east as Oak Creek HQ and Cashmere, "muleys" several miles west of the crest.  Genetically, I'd bet dollars to donuts they are all hybrids ("Benchlegs" if you prefer).  You either draw a line, or exclude a zone.  I prefer the line.  If you did away with it, some STUD blacktails would at best be middle of the pack "muleys"; and who wants a hybrid zone "ineligible"?  'taint perfect, but 'taint bad neither.

[Arteman]

That bucks face screams Blacktail, antlers on the other hand???  How many of you guys ever watch the dvd blacktail fever?  It looks like a southern Oregon, northern California blacktail.  Had anybody post the pic of that huge pure blacktail killed in Tillamook Oregon yet?  Now that is a pure monster blacktail!!!

[dirty24d]

i may have just *censored* my pants when i realized that monster was taken 35 minutes from my house. 

 
WOOOOOWWWWW!!!

[blackveltbowhunter]

Congrats thats a pretty buck! That Tillamook Buck is a HOG to!