Post by: hunting4sanity on October 11, 2013, 12:58:12 AM
At home we had finally finished onion harvest and it was time to head to Wyoming with my sons, Derrick and Spencer, to hunt antelope. When we got to their unit we found some snow and muddy roads. One area we had planned to hunt still had snow drifts over the road that no one else had driven through, so we hoped we would have the area to ourselves. The other areas we had tried had some very spooky antelope, even at distances well beyond 1,000 yards if the antelope spotted us they just took off. Even this snow drifted area seemed to have very alert animals, so we did a lot of long range glassing and stalking, just to find that even unaware antelope had always fed or wandered off to areas where we couldn't close the distance enough for a shot opportunity. We did find one willing participant and while a 50 yard shot and a 20 yard drag to the two-track road was tempting, we settled on just taking his picture.
Derrick took a picture of his feet while we rested, that was one of my favorite photos from the hunt, it may not show much to the casual observer, but to me it reflects some long stalks, sore feet and time spent with my sons. During the time we were there, the snow had pretty much melted away, but the tracks in the mud showed "our area" was still only being hunted by us, so we hiked in again and things took a turn for the better. After another long stalk resulting in a white butt disappearing into the distance, I headed back to get the truck while my sons went over yet another ridge. As I drove further into "our area" I spotted two bucks in the distance and as I watched them I was wondering if there was any chance my sons had seen these bucks? As I watched through my binos one of the bucks suddenly collapsed, I kind of laughed to myself and thought, 'I think they saw them.' Naturally,we always want a bigger buck than the last one we shot, but Derrick decided as tough as it had been getting close to antelope in this unit he wasn't going to pass up an 80 yard shot and notched his tag.
While Derrick and I cleaned and hauled his antelope to the truck, Spencer headed over the ridge to see if a group of 8 they had earlier seen in the distance was still in the area. Just after we got to the truck, Spencer called on the radio and asked if we wanted to come over his direction with a couple of backpacks. That call sounded like we had some work ahead of us, the kind of work that when it's done leaves you with a big ol' smile and a sore back. He had followed that group of 8 for quite some distance, slowly getting closer, watching the one buck in the group chasing does and feeding. He had everything ranged, 347 yards, adjusted for the wind and was about to take the shot when one of the does stopped running from the buck, apparently the rut wasn't over yet, he waited a little longer and figured at least the buck would die happy.
Happily exhausted and sore, we slept well that night and then drove 986 miles home the next day. I wanted to drive around an extra 14 miles just to make it an even 1,000 miles in a day, but my sons quickly let me know that wasn't happening. Sorry about the long-winded story, but Wyoming provided some great memories in a rather short amount of time. If I look at that antelope meat on a cost per pound basis the trip might not make sense, but any other way I look at the hunt with my sons it was priceless.
Post by: bowhunterforever on October 11, 2013, 02:21:44 AM
Post by: Michelle_Nelson on October 11, 2013, 02:51:31 AM
Post by: Taco280AI on October 11, 2013, 04:46:19 AM
Post by: Widgeondeke on October 11, 2013, 06:34:46 AM
Congrats :tup:
Post by: washingtonmuley on October 14, 2013, 09:33:45 AM
Post by: dscubame on December 02, 2013, 05:52:15 PM
Post by: splitshot on December 02, 2013, 06:54:26 PM
Post by: bobcat on December 02, 2013, 06:56:43 PM
Post by: splitshot on December 02, 2013, 07:19:25 PM
Post by: deltaops on December 03, 2013, 03:14:00 PM
Nice pics and congrats. The memories will last for sure.
Post by: go4steelhd on December 03, 2013, 03:29:26 PM
Post by: bearpaw on December 03, 2013, 03:57:39 PM
Post by: cohoho on December 03, 2013, 10:06:47 PM
Post by: dscubame on December 04, 2013, 09:39:05 AM
Post by: steen on December 04, 2013, 05:11:43 PM
Post by: Curly on December 04, 2013, 05:36:32 PM
I notice you guys are wearing orange hats and camo clothing. And you say the goats were skittish if they spot you even at 1,000 yards.
So, not having hunted speed goats much, and apparently they have good eyesight, I wonder .........would it be any better to wear orange gloves instead of an orange hat? (I think WY law says you need to wear one article of orange clothing). Or are they color blind like deer and elk and they are just spotting movement? 1,000 yards away and they are spooked would make for some difficult stalking.
I know it is probably a silly question, but I had to ask cuz I'm probably going speed goat hunting next year and it is just one of those things I was wondering about. (Would having an orange square on the back side of a shirt be better, for instance?)
Post by: Bob33 on December 04, 2013, 05:55:13 PM
Nice goats!Gloves will not satisfy the hunter orange requirement.
I notice you guys are wearing orange hats and camo clothing. And you say the goats were skittish if they spot you even at 1,000 yards.
So, not having hunted speed goats much, and apparently they have good eyesight, I wonder .........would it be any better to wear orange gloves instead of an orange hat? (I think WY law says you need to wear one article of orange clothing). Or are they color blind like deer and elk and they are just spotting movement? 1,000 yards away and they are spooked would make for some difficult stalking.
I know it is probably a silly question, but I had to ask cuz I'm probably going speed goat hunting next year and it is just one of those things I was wondering about. (Would having an orange square on the back side of a shirt be better, for instance?)
Pronghorns do have exceptional eyesight. I've seen some spook at 1200 yards. I've also been able to get within 100 yards of them on several occasions.
Most of the time, you can get within 400 to 600 yards of them while being seen. After that, you should plan on using terrain whenever possible to stay hidden while getting closer, or allowing them to come closer to you.
Post by: Curly on December 04, 2013, 06:00:47 PM
:puke: or :drool: or somewhere in between?
Are they any better if they are feeding on alfalfa or just out in the sage?
Post by: Bob33 on December 04, 2013, 06:16:40 PM
Another question: How did they taste?I've heard stories of bad antelope meat. I can only tell you from personal experience that I've killed and eaten the meat from over 60 pronghorns , taken in three different states, and have never had a bad bite. It is by far my family's favorite game meat over elk, moose, and deer.
:puke: or :drool: or somewhere in between?
Are they any better if they are feeding on alfalfa or just out in the sage?
I really don't know why it's so good for us, and others report it being poor. We don't do anything special. I've killed them and left the hide on for three hours on rare occasion, and it was still good.
:dunno:
Post by: DeerThug on December 04, 2013, 06:30:06 PM
As for the meat i had some that were ok and some that my dog would not even eat. all were skinned on the spot cut up and were on ice within an hour so not sure what made ok and bad meat as they were all treated the same.
Post by: Curly on December 04, 2013, 06:39:36 PM
As for the meat i had some that were ok and some that my dog would not even eat. all were skinned on the spot cut up and were on ice within an hour so not sure what made ok and bad meat as they were all treated the same.
That is the same thing my father in law said about the pronghorn he got in NM (his dog wouldn't even eat it). Could it have been in the rut?
Post by: bobcat on December 04, 2013, 06:40:26 PM
Post by: Curly on December 04, 2013, 06:52:32 PM
I'll go with the orange vest or hat.
Post by: JohnVH on December 04, 2013, 07:01:07 PM
Love hunting lopers!
Post by: finnman on December 12, 2013, 02:36:50 PM
Post by: Bwana Bob on December 12, 2013, 02:52:56 PM
Did I meet you and your crew at the fountain of life campground in Thermopolis in Sept?