Post by: Karl Blanchard on October 08, 2014, 10:29:50 PM
September 1st finds me and another buddy in my usual deer haunts. Pre season scouting has turned up some good deer, one in particular has my attention. I had lots of close calls but as of archery and muzzy season, he is still very alive. First live shot is him. My buddy got an arrow in a good 3x4 right off the bat opening morning for his first archery kill and his first arrow ever released at an animal. He was pumped!
Post by: Karl Blanchard on October 08, 2014, 10:36:14 PM
Long story short, the group went 4 for 5 on bucks and with a little drive time to another area, 3 second doe tags were filled. 7 deer in a day and a half. Don't really have details on all the guys and how their hunts played out so I apologize for lack of stories. Don't have field photos from everyone either.
Post by: Karl Blanchard on October 08, 2014, 10:48:43 PM
Post by: blackveltbowhunter on October 08, 2014, 10:53:35 PM
Post by: Karl Blanchard on October 08, 2014, 11:23:43 PM
We were pretty bummed that Dan's dad couldn't get it done for himself but he could care less! He had a pile of elk meat and he didn't have to endure the back pain of bouncing up the mountain roads another day.
This was a hard evening for me. See, this particular canyon was the last place Aaron and I ever hunted together. It was déjà vu! We lost cow called in a cow and Aaron had shot her at close range. Cool breeze kissing the sweat on our necks, sun dissapearing behind a pink haze of mountain sky. I remember as we crested the rim of the canyon we took a short break to admire the view. We talked of the days hunt and of future plans. It was one of the most perfect days I think I will ever experience chasing big game.
Now here I was staring at the same horizon, feeling the same winds, smelling the same sage and pine, feeling the same weight of elk meat on my back, but no Aaron. It was more than I could handle. I collapsed in a pile of camo and elk quarters and just sobbed. Elk hunting for me will never be the same.
After a few minutes, I dusted myself off, hoisted my ass out of the rocks, and finished my climb. Dan met me towards the top to make sure I hadn't got lost or something and again had another moment with a man I consider as close to a brother as a friend can get. I don't ever take his friendship for granted and feel very fortunate that I get to share so many great hunts with him.
Post by: Karl Blanchard on October 08, 2014, 11:27:58 PM
Post by: Blacklab on October 09, 2014, 06:52:24 AM
Post by: rtspring on October 09, 2014, 07:31:08 AM
Outstanding job! I told you time and time again, shoot them in the face they dont take another step!!
I to have been packing around a Special Call.. When Im in the woods it is always with me!!! Never Forget!!
Keep up the great work! Its my time to squeeze the trigger!!!
Getsum..
Post by: Karl Blanchard on October 09, 2014, 07:41:19 AM
Karl,. Only two in the world my friend!!!! GETSUM!
Outstanding job! I told you time and time again, shoot them in the face they dont take another step!!
I to have been packing around a Special Call.. When Im in the woods it is always with me!!! Never Forget!!
Keep up the great work! Its my time to squeeze the trigger!!!
Getsum..
Post by: HUNTINCOUPLE on October 09, 2014, 07:43:43 AM
Post by: elkoholic1 on October 09, 2014, 07:48:50 AM
Post by: coachcw on October 09, 2014, 12:17:26 PM
Post by: deerhunter_98520 on October 09, 2014, 03:29:02 PM
Post by: gotcha on October 09, 2014, 06:25:49 PM
Post by: carpsniperg2 on October 09, 2014, 06:43:57 PM
Post by: buckhorn2 on October 09, 2014, 07:42:49 PM
Post by: buckmaster_wa on October 10, 2014, 08:17:54 AM
Opening weekend of elk. First thing opening day, I decided to pass on a 50 yard shot through some brush at a lone cow. Then later that day (about 2pm) We decided to do the hunt down through the canyon. I told my dad that he is a lucky man to be able to place Karls name on his companion card because Karl is very succesfull at both finding elk and at harvesting them. So we do this little hike and of course Karl finds a lone bull and shoots him in the face at 10 yards. Then Karl and I got to pack that sucker out of the steep canyon in 75 degree heat. That was less than pleasant. I was very happy to have Karl there to assist with the pack out. Even though he is probably the smallest guy in our hunting group, he can pack more weight than anyone else, it is crazy to see a man climb out of hell holes with a pack that weighs more than 1/3 of his own body weight. He is a beast.
Karl and I did not get to hunt together much last year because of my new job, and I truly feel that we are both much more succesfull when hunting together then we are when hunting solo. But, This year it is on like donkey kong and we are goin to tag some stud bucks in Montana. Pics to follow.
Post by: pianoman9701 on October 10, 2014, 10:43:26 AM
Post by: Rainier10 on October 10, 2014, 10:55:01 AM
Post by: Watimberghost on October 11, 2014, 08:14:59 AM
Post by: Karl Blanchard on October 12, 2014, 10:12:43 PM
Post by: Karl Blanchard on October 12, 2014, 10:32:49 PM
Post by: ducknkima on October 13, 2014, 12:28:49 AM
Congrats on the season :tup:
Post by: coachcw on October 13, 2014, 01:38:44 PM
Post by: Becky on October 13, 2014, 03:18:47 PM
Post by: Mr Mykiss on October 13, 2014, 07:01:50 PM
Post by: TRD1911 on October 13, 2014, 09:26:05 PM
Post by: Buck_Nasty11 on October 13, 2014, 09:28:48 PM
Shaky opener for me and the wife. My son had another seizure on Thursday (first one in months) so we were gonna stay home. We got him on seizure med and the doctor said he would be fine so we decided to go and just take him with. He did great! He rode in momma's pack the whole time and had a blast! My knife and pack were very busy this weekend! My wife shot her Buck Saturday evening in the middle of a horrible dust storm. I promised her that you can't kill deer from camp and if she just kept stepping it would always pan out. She made a good shot with a solid 40mph cross wind. I was very proud of her. We had dirt everywhere! I mean EVERYWHERE!!! I even had dirt in the crack of my as..........ah.............never mind. :chuckle: Ended up 5-6 for the weekend plus a second doe tag filled. We need some rain bad!!!!! I'm sure Dan will chime in with some story and more pics as well. Congrats to all the successful hunters out there this weekend, enjoy the fresh venison!
great thread!! looks like you have had an awesome season! i gotta ask where you got the pack to put the little guy in??
Post by: Karl Blanchard on October 13, 2014, 09:46:31 PM
Its a Kelty. Picked it up off of Craigslist back when my wife was prego with our first kid. It has been a great pack. We use it a bunch. I have also just stuck him in my Kifaru on a few hikes this year as well. Not as comfortable for him for the longer outings though.Shaky opener for me and the wife. My son had another seizure on Thursday (first one in months) so we were gonna stay home. We got him on seizure med and the doctor said he would be fine so we decided to go and just take him with. He did great! He rode in momma's pack the whole time and had a blast! My knife and pack were very busy this weekend! My wife shot her Buck Saturday evening in the middle of a horrible dust storm. I promised her that you can't kill deer from camp and if she just kept stepping it would always pan out. She made a good shot with a solid 40mph cross wind. I was very proud of her. We had dirt everywhere! I mean EVERYWHERE!!! I even had dirt in the crack of my as..........ah.............never mind. :chuckle: Ended up 5-6 for the weekend plus a second doe tag filled. We need some rain bad!!!!! I'm sure Dan will chime in with some story and more pics as well. Congrats to all the successful hunters out there this weekend, enjoy the fresh venison!
great thread!! looks like you have had an awesome season! i gotta ask where you got the pack to put the little guy in??
Post by: cedarriver on October 13, 2014, 09:48:03 PM
Post by: Karl Blanchard on October 13, 2014, 09:55:27 PM
Montana is going to be extra special because my baby brother, who I haven't been able to hunt with for over 5 years will be joining us! He is with the 75th Ranger Regiment and is currently overseas. He gets back the end of this month and then will fly into Spokane where we will pick him up on the way to the killing fields! Words cannot describe how excited I am to see him :whoo: I have assembled a highly skilled team of deer assasins for Colorado and Montana this year, it should be good! :chuckle:
Post by: bowhunterforever on October 14, 2014, 02:43:40 AM
Post by: Pathfinder101 on October 14, 2014, 06:06:29 AM
Post by: buckmaster_wa on October 19, 2014, 05:51:08 PM
Opening morning rolls around. My wife is at my side. I have a tag of my own to fill, but my goal is to put her on a buck first and then worry about filling my tag. We had seen 8 legal bucks by 830 am but none of them had presented a shot for my wife. I finally watched a group of deer( with a good 3 point buck in the mix) head into a canyon that the deer usually hold up in. My wife and I decided that I would hike up and around to the top of the canyon and work my way down towards her at the bottom of the canyon. As I crested the top edge of the canyon, i spotted a lone buck bedded down on an open hillside. One shot with the .300 win mag and the buck rolled over in his bed kicked a couple times and was done. As I gathered all my gear and took about 5 steps forward to go retrieve my buck. I look down into the canyon below me, and there is a really wide 3pt buck staring up at me from about 100 yards away. The buck runs off. I get ahold of my wife on the radio and tell her to meet me at the head of the canyon as I have got my buck.
As we got to the truck with our gear, my wife spotted a group of deer headed towards us. We had just heard a shot from that direction just a minute prior to seeing the deer. Upon closer inspection, I could see that one of the deer was a buck and he had been hit in the front leg. Long story short. The pukes that are a disgrace for hunters, did not even think about following up on the buck that they wounded. They turned around and walked back up to the knob that they were sitting on. So my wife and I made a move on the buck. We were able to crawl within 75 yards of the bedded buck. and my wife put him down for good. Pics to follow.
Post by: buckmaster_wa on October 19, 2014, 05:55:05 PM
Post by: jdb on October 19, 2014, 06:18:07 PM
Post by: buckmaster_wa on October 19, 2014, 06:23:12 PM
Post by: jdb on October 19, 2014, 07:01:10 PM
Post by: Karl Blanchard on October 19, 2014, 07:32:30 PM
Post by: Karl Blanchard on October 31, 2014, 02:01:50 AM
Post by: buglebuster on October 31, 2014, 07:36:07 AM
Post by: Karl Blanchard on November 02, 2014, 01:23:20 PM
Post by: buglebuster on November 02, 2014, 01:26:39 PM
Don't usually fill my tag on day one but I just couldn't resist! Horrible pack out in some treacherous country but I made it out safe! The Kifaru is earning its keep this year! Now to find my dad a buck!And a stud buck at that, congrats buddy :tup:
Post by: Karl Blanchard on November 02, 2014, 01:28:46 PM
Post by: Karl Blanchard on November 02, 2014, 01:30:27 PM
Post by: Rainier10 on November 02, 2014, 03:04:30 PM
Post by: Karl Blanchard on November 02, 2014, 03:11:26 PM
That is a day one buck for sure. Good job, find a buck for your dad before the thin air starts to get to you.Too late! It whooped my butt yesterday for 4 grueling miles! :chuckle:
Post by: jackelope on November 02, 2014, 03:49:22 PM
Post by: Rainier10 on November 02, 2014, 08:35:19 PM
I bet, it doesn't take long for the lack of air to take it out of you.That is a day one buck for sure. Good job, find a buck for your dad before the thin air starts to get to you.Too late! It whooped my butt yesterday for 4 grueling miles! :chuckle:
Keep at it and remember, pain is temporary, big bucks on the wall are forever. Getsum!
Post by: coachcw on November 03, 2014, 06:17:13 AM
Post by: Whitpirate on November 04, 2014, 06:24:13 PM
Post by: Rainier10 on November 05, 2014, 11:01:11 AM
Congrats to whoever shot the second one on the right, nice buck, hopefully it was an easier pack out than the one on the left.
Post by: coachcw on November 05, 2014, 12:47:39 PM
Post by: gunnarnewt on November 05, 2014, 01:02:31 PM
Post by: Karl Blanchard on November 06, 2014, 01:49:29 PM
Post by: irishevox on November 06, 2014, 01:55:35 PM
Post by: bowhunterforever on November 06, 2014, 10:06:26 PM
Post by: Karl Blanchard on November 07, 2014, 07:27:44 PM
Post by: coachcw on November 07, 2014, 08:45:39 PM
Post by: Whitpirate on November 07, 2014, 11:57:02 PM
Great job pal!
Post by: Mr Mykiss on November 10, 2014, 01:37:14 PM
Post by: Jingles on November 10, 2014, 02:34:09 PM
Post by: Karl Blanchard on November 10, 2014, 05:17:22 PM
After we get back from Montana, my dad and I will take off for a few days of late muzzy to fill our Washington deer tags and my second doe tag. Then I am gonna get real serius about trying to find a bruiser buck for Coach to shoot. I will have a few days of comp time left and plan on burning it all in December looking for a wall hanger.
Post by: Mr Mykiss on November 12, 2014, 09:32:24 AM
I will have a few days of comp time leftYou must've started with a giant pile of it!!! Me jelly... :'(
Post by: Karl Blanchard on November 25, 2014, 09:49:00 PM
Michael has had a whirlwind of an Army career so far. Upon graduation from College he attended language school, where he learned Pashto. From there it was off to Ranger school and then immediately up to Anchorage where he deployed for the first time as a Platoon leader, where he earned a Bronze Star. After returning, he applied to Ranger Regiment, was accepted, attended RASP (Ranger Assessment Selection Program) and was assigned to 3rd Battalion 75th Ranger Regiment where he again deployed. With all of that crammed into 4years it didn't leave much time to hunt and his fire for the pursuit of big game had dwindled. My goal on this trip was to fan those flames and get my hunting buddy back! I think it worked because he is going goose hunting with some buddies this weekend and is already talking about next years hunt options. He again deploys back to Afghanistan in April (bad month around the Blanchard house) and will have leave in September so I'm thinking Archery elk in Montana or Idaho.
I still have my Washington multi season deer tag and a second doe tag to fill in the next few weeks and then Slayfest 2014 will be in the books and then research and planning for Slayfest 2015 will begin.
Post by: Karl Blanchard on November 25, 2014, 09:59:42 PM
Post by: Karl Blanchard on November 25, 2014, 10:03:35 PM
Post by: Karl Blanchard on November 25, 2014, 10:05:59 PM
Post by: Karl Blanchard on November 25, 2014, 10:10:59 PM
Post by: Karl Blanchard on November 25, 2014, 10:13:24 PM
Post by: Karl Blanchard on November 25, 2014, 10:15:11 PM
Post by: Karl Blanchard on November 25, 2014, 10:19:47 PM
Post by: Karl Blanchard on November 25, 2014, 10:22:56 PM
Post by: Karl Blanchard on November 25, 2014, 10:28:19 PM
Post by: Limhangerslayer on November 25, 2014, 10:46:04 PM
Post by: blackveltbowhunter on November 25, 2014, 10:49:02 PM
Post by: Karl Blanchard on November 25, 2014, 10:56:11 PM
Your second to last pic, red face or not I recognize him! not sure about west valley slumming with selah/whoville. Even if he lives cle elum nowlol! Ya he's got facial hair like you! Haha! How was Idaho?
Post by: fishngamereaper on November 27, 2014, 07:44:44 AM
Post by: BOWHUNTER45 on November 28, 2014, 04:18:56 AM