Hunting Washington Forum

Community => Photo & Video => Topic started by: bow4elk on December 02, 2009, 04:53:41 PM

Title: He's Back (updated 12/30)
Post by: bow4elk on December 02, 2009, 04:53:41 PM: As some of you know, I've been trying to figure out this buck for the past three fall seasons. I hunted him in '07 but never saw a single deer during the late archery season. Last year I killed a buck in another area before I had a chance to hunt him. Same deal this year. I thought he was dead until Sunday when he randomly appeared on one of my cams. I have three sheds; one from '06, both from '07, and though I spent about 40 hours total searching for his '08 antlers, I came up empty. He didn't seem to grow much this year over his '08 rack, maybe just a bit more mass. I plan on pounding the hills again for his sheds in the coming months. He's a mystery to me but that's the pull that makes these blacktails so fun to unravel and hunt.

First pic - 2009 (last Sunday)
Second pic 2008 (peak rut)
Third pic - 2007 sheds ATL
Fourth pic - 2006 shed with same side 2007 shed
Title: Re: He's Back
Post by: Lowedog on December 02, 2009, 04:56:46 PM: very cool! I still have a tag if you want me to put him on the ground for you! :chuckle:
Title: Re: He's Back
Post by: Schmalzfam on December 02, 2009, 04:56:55 PM: I love his antlers. Really unique...! You'll get him. The advice you give is great so, it'll be time and luck. He is a great deer.
Title: Re: He's Back
Post by: bow4elk on December 02, 2009, 05:05:04 PM: Quote from: Schmalzfam on December 02, 2009, 04:56:55 PM
I love his antlers. Really unique...! You'll get him. The advice you give is great so, it'll be time and luck. He is a great deer.

Thanks for the compliment. I need all the luck I can get on blacktails. They drive me batty!
Title: Re: He's Back
Post by: NWBREW on December 02, 2009, 05:11:20 PM: I think your right bow4elk.....more mass this year. You gonna need to shoot him before he starts to regress. :chuckle:
Title: Re: He's Back
Post by: blacktailer on December 03, 2009, 09:01:09 AM: Great Post!!! I think you're gonna kill that buck next Fall. Be interesting to see what next year's headgear looks like. Doesn't look like he changed much from the 2008 season
Title: Re: He's Back
Post by: Alan K on December 03, 2009, 03:14:56 PM: Now that's some awesome history with that buck!

Is he pretty much purely nocturnal?
Title: Re: He's Back
Post by: WDFW-SUX on December 03, 2009, 03:19:41 PM: Blacktails like him drive me nuts....
Title: Re: He's Back
Post by: PacificNWhunter on December 03, 2009, 08:08:33 PM: Pretty cool, hopefully you will catch up to him next year!
Title: Re: He's Back
Post by: saylean on December 03, 2009, 10:16:00 PM: Thats a sweet series Bow4elk. I hope you get him....you sure seem to have him down.
Title: Re: He's Back
Post by: markts on December 06, 2009, 05:27:38 PM: Love how tall he is, great pic. Good luck in the future. Mark
Title: Re: He's Back
Post by: lewy on December 06, 2009, 05:44:14 PM: I was waiting to see if you got any more pics of that buck! He's a pig! Find them sheds......
Title: Re: He's Back
Post by: Basket Rack on December 06, 2009, 06:37:34 PM: Definitely a unique looking rack on him. He would look good on the wall next to the buck you got this fall.
Title: Re: He's Back
Post by: heavy hauler on December 06, 2009, 07:09:11 PM: i live in tenino if you need help looking for sheds ;) or better yet i have a bow tag still. let me know if i can help :chuckle:
Title: Re: He's Back
Post by: cascademountainhunter on December 06, 2009, 07:14:20 PM: thats an awesome buck!!! wonder how old he is?
Title: Re: He's Back
Post by: backwoods_boy on December 07, 2009, 08:15:10 AM: Quote from: Lowedog on December 02, 2009, 04:56:46 PM
very cool! I still have a tag if you want me to put him on the ground for you! :chuckle:
:yeah:
Title: Re: He's Back
Post by: SGM R on December 10, 2009, 02:42:10 PM: Dark horns, nice and tall---you know his home is thick and deep! Way to stick with him. Dedication will prevail.

Good luck
Title: Re: He's Back
Post by: Kent Hunter on December 12, 2009, 02:05:25 AM: Stay after him Bow4elk!! You'll prevail. Like you, I LOVE hunting blacktails. That buck is a dandy!!
Title: Re: He's Back
Post by: patton1 on December 13, 2009, 06:46:45 PM: Great buck. I'm sure you'll get him. With all the good tips and advice you give on this site, you're bound to get him. You really seem to know those blacktails.
Title: Re: He's Back
Post by: bow4elk on December 14, 2009, 08:53:07 PM: Quote from: cascademountainhunter on December 06, 2009, 07:14:20 PM
thats an awesome buck!!! wonder how old he is?

Well, based on his 2006 shed (the weathered one), he was probably 3 1/2 then, so he's probably going on 7 years old. Here's another pic from the other day, passing through.
Title: Re: He's Back
Post by: Alan K on December 14, 2009, 08:56:00 PM: Nice!!! His gland is still pretty stained in that last pic too.
Title: Re: He's Back
Post by: lewy on December 15, 2009, 04:09:43 PM: How far have you documented that buck moving? Does he just winter were you pick up the sheds and get the pics? You have got some great history on that deer :tup: nice work!
Title: Re: He's Back
Post by: bow4elk on December 17, 2009, 06:00:31 PM: Quote from: lewy on December 15, 2009, 04:09:43 PM
How far have you documented that buck moving? Does he just winter were you pick up the sheds and get the pics? You have got some great history on that deer :tup: nice work!

I wish I knew more about him. I just I've only got a handful of photos and they are completely random, both in location and time of year. He just shows up enough here and there to drive me nuts. But I don't have a single photo of him in velvet so it's very possible he moves into this area to winter or rut or both.

I typically find that with every clue I find I need to look back at my notes and shed pile to figure out the puzzle, or to see what's missing. Sometimes it's a year before I make the connection. Sheds match up with cam pics and that starts the gears turning. I cringe to think how many times I've been watched by blacktail bucks. Every single time I step foot into my hunting areas I am conflicted about being there. On one hand, I need to scout but on the other hand, it's one more day of spreading scent around and disrupting things. The more days per year an area is left alone, the more secure it will be and more likely to attrack bucks. Sloppy scouting can make a mess of a good thing. I honestly thought this buck was dead because it's been a full year since I've picked him up on a camera, and I run them year-round all over the country he's living in. I have between 600-700 active camera days in this general area in the spring and summer. I have about 8 photos of him. Do the math... :chuckle:

I went out during the recent snow to look for tracks and current travel activity. 3 hours, only cut one track - a doe I jumped on the way out. I assume they were just sitting tight to wait for the warm front to move in.
Title: Re: He's Back
Post by: lewy on December 18, 2009, 06:47:21 AM: Nothing tougher to figure out than a mature bt buck. Looks like all the pics you get of him are at night too.....
Title: Re: He's Back
Post by: Dipsnort on December 18, 2009, 09:28:00 AM: I'm rooting for you to get him next year. Sounds like you have a location that few others hunt. Is that because it's private land or because it's difficult to access?
Title: Re: He's Back
Post by: bow4elk on December 18, 2009, 04:38:45 PM: Quote from: Dipsnort on December 18, 2009, 09:28:00 AM
I'm rooting for you to get him next year. Sounds like you have a location that few others hunt. Is that because it's private land or because it's difficult to access?

Almost all the deer, including this one, I have posted are on public land. I work hard all year every year to find places few others bother to hunt, but like I've said in the past, I've never once seen any of the bucks I get on camera. The buck I shot this year was a great example. I have three summers and two falls & winters of him on multiple cameras but the only time I ever saw him with my own two :o was that fateful day on 10/24 at 18 yards. I work hard at scouting and hunting smart, and I'd like to think it's starting to pay off :chuckle:
Title: Re: He's Back
Post by: bucklucky on December 18, 2009, 05:12:19 PM: I bet the next pictures you get of him if anytime soon will be with no head gear. I finally got on my masher buck yesterday only to find his big ol' roman nosed white face , huge double throat patch and silver dollar sized pedicles with no horns :'(
Title: Re: He's Back
Post by: Ripper on December 18, 2009, 05:57:07 PM: This is really cool Bow4elk. You deserve a lot of credit for all the work you put in. I believe that if anybody gets him It'll be you. I wish I had the time to spend scouting and documenting info like that. I've never hunted just one or two specific animals before. Looks like I have a new goal!
Title: Re: He's Back
Post by: bow4elk on December 18, 2009, 08:06:47 PM: Quote from: bucklucky on December 18, 2009, 05:12:19 PM
I bet the next pictures you get of him if anytime soon will be with no head gear. I finally got on my masher buck yesterday only to find his big ol' roman nosed white face , huge double throat patch and silver dollar sized pedicles with no horns :'(

Took a walk today just to see if there were any obvious sheds yet in a couple different areas..now you've got my fire lit!! I've been buried in deadlines for work for the past three weeks, but as of today I'm taking the rest of the year off till Jan 4. :whoo:

I found three does chowing on blackberries this afternoon. Just sat and watched them to see what they were eating. I have never found a shed in blackberries but I look religiously because they seem to eat them all winter long.
Title: Re: He's Back
Post by: lewy on December 21, 2009, 06:45:46 AM: I have found a handfull of bt sheds in the blackberries, the really pound them in the winter for a food source.
Title: Re: He's Back (updated 12/30)
Post by: bow4elk on December 30, 2009, 07:37:22 PM: Not sure why but I got more photos of him over the past 10 days than I have since the summer of '07, all at night or early morning before daylight. He's been feeding in this little clearing, which is 1/2 between where I found his first shed from 2006 and his match set from 2007. I'm going to try to keep tabs on him weekly from here on out. I want these sheds! This is a public land buck and today I found an arrow about 40 yards from here. It's only a matter of time.
Title: Re: He's Back (updated 12/30)
Post by: lewy on December 31, 2009, 10:41:56 AM: Im root'n for ya!
Title: Re: He's Back (updated 12/30)
Post by: Huntbear on December 31, 2009, 02:03:26 PM: build ya a fence and bait inside, to protect him from the bad hunters...... oh, wait, you can not do that.. :chuckle:
Title: Re: He's Back (updated 12/30)
Post by: GUscottie on December 31, 2009, 02:04:58 PM: I am rooting for ya...I love the non-typs...they are by far and away my faves
Title: Re: He's Back (updated 12/30)
Post by: SGM R on January 01, 2010, 08:58:39 AM: Anyway to bookmark these threads, because I can't wait to read the end of this storyline..Nice job Bow4elk
Title: Re: He's Back (updated 12/30)
Post by: bucklucky on January 01, 2010, 09:56:55 AM: I cant beleive he hasnt dropped yet! I just saw a 7 inch spike that dropped one side yesterday :yike:
Title: Re: He's Back (updated 12/30)
Post by: boneaddict on January 01, 2010, 10:03:55 AM: We are pullin for ya!
Title: Re: He's Back (updated 12/30)
Post by: bucklucky on January 01, 2010, 10:17:20 AM: Oh by the way, can I have those sheds once you find them. Hed make a real nice display :chuckle:
Title: Re: He's Back (updated 12/30)
Post by: RoyBoy on January 05, 2010, 11:51:06 AM: thats a beaut! i'd like to see him in the woods. like said above ^ i wonder how old he is? :dunno:
Title: Re: He's Back (updated 12/30)
Post by: haus on January 06, 2010, 10:28:43 AM: Quote from: bow4elk on December 30, 2009, 07:37:22 PM
This is a public land buck and today I found an arrow about 40 yards from here. It's only a matter of time.

Was it a slicktrick 100 with part of a blade missing? :rolleyes:

Hey that squirrel had it comin' he wouldn't stfu :chuckle:
Title: Re: He's Back (updated 12/30)
Post by: bow4elk on January 06, 2010, 11:22:52 PM: Quote from: haus on January 06, 2010, 10:28:43 AM
Quote from: bow4elk on December 30, 2009, 07:37:22 PM
This is a public land buck and today I found an arrow about 40 yards from here. It's only a matter of time.

Was it a slicktrick 100 with part of a blade missing? :rolleyes:

Hey that squirrel had it comin' he wouldn't stfu :chuckle:

No slicktrick. Muzzy. And that's all I'm saying ;)
Title: Re: He's Back (updated 12/30)
Post by: carpsniperg2 on January 06, 2010, 11:24:55 PM: great to find those sheds. great looking buck.