Lots of changes in life this year. The boy is in college over in Bozeman and I took a new job a few hours south of my old stomping grounds. For the first time ever, I didn't get a chance to hunt with my boy at all. When he had time to get away from school and hunt, I had work commitments that couldn't be avoided. I did see a good buck while waterfowl hunting with some friends prior to rifle season, so I put him on that buck and off he went. Of course it seldom works this way, but the buck was bedded in exactly the same slough that I had seen him in a few weeks prior. The boy walked down to the slough, kicked him up, and shot him at a little over a hundred yards as he departed. Nice 150" 5x5!!


I looked around a little, but just wasn't seeing much for deer around my place. Lots of guys from MN, ND, SD, and WI, but not much for deer. Decided to head back to a familiar area and found this guy. Not a monster, but a nice buck considering the time I had to look for one. Turns out that we found a much bigger one the next day, but who can tell? I'm pretty happy with the one that I got and he tastes delicious. Shot him at a little over a hundred yards as he vacated a little old woodlot that he was chasing a doe in.

Now for some ND archery deer hunting!!

Nice job guys.

Haha! Shoulda seen the one that my buddy missed!!

Congrats on a couple of dandy bucks!

Thanks! Managed to get away for a few days and shoot an antelope in WY too. Bloodied the 7-08 this year.

Congratulations

Did he think he was shooting at a cougar?

Congrats Ranger!

Did you make it to WY for elk?Deer?

Well done. Looks like a good season for you both!

Thanks - Burned all of my WY deer points on what should have been a good tag and then it didn't snow in the mountains at all. Didn't see a single deer worth shooting, but did find some amazing ground to hunt for next time in a different area. Saw a couple of dandies in there.

Congrats to you - all really fine animals!! Really like both of those whitetails, just beautiful bucks!

Good stuff! Pretty bucks, congrats to you and your boy.

Where at?



grin



Sweet pics and bucks!

Thanks Sam! This river breaks country is sure empty of deer. Just not much worth looking twice at. Hope they come back eventually, but the hunting pressure down this way is ridiculous! Sure wish there were permits instead of over the counter tags.

Good pair of bucks. I ate tag soup this year, I had a nice nontypical scouted out and saw him a half dozen times but could never get a shot. I guess he will just be a little bigger next year.

We did not see much rutting activity here on the south side of Montana for Muley but some reported it in whitetails.

It is bad pretty bad everywhere I can think of to go anymore!

This area is worse than any place I've hunted in Montana. Steady traffic from day one of antelope season through the last day of deer/elk. Frustrating, to say the least. Things were good up north, very little pressure. Could be that I just need to stay away from the inundated public ground.

Some good deer you got there.

Very good bucks! Well done. Someday I want to give hunting whitetails in that type of country a try.

Nice bucks!!

It's a fun way to hunt them. I love sitting in a stand or still hunting, but the open slough country is hard to beat for spot and stalk and jump shooting.

I think it would be a hoot! One of these I'm not gonna turn my deer tag back in when I don't draw.

Ranger1: Now that my non-resident VarmintSons have completed college and are working out on the "coast" they no longer qualify for resident Montana Hunting licenses.
So needless to say they don't front the $900.00 plus for their normal Big Game Combo licenses.
Miss Hunting with them.
Both sons did get home to SW Montana here for Thanksgiving week and they got to see LOTS of game and game birds and one went on a Hunt for Elk & Deer with two of his resident buddies.
They saw Elk and Deer but no permission thereon.
Please pass on the appropriate congratulations to your son and to youself from me - nice Bucks both!
Hoping in the future you and I can enjoy more Hunts with the young ones.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

Nice critters, thanks for sharing! I thought for a minute you were going to say your buddy was Pat S. Grin

Doesn't Montana offer cheaper licenses to returning family members?

Well done, Ranger. Congrats to you and your son.

Very nice deer for you and your son.

Great bucks. Son's nice big symmetrical rack. I always find it amazing that big wt bucks can hide and survive in a depression he middle of a field, a small coulee, in a small fence row, weed patch, slough without being seen.

Have you seen the wt population down up there due to the EHD like the rest of Montana?

thanks for sharing

Great bucks, though that is kind of the norm for your deer hunts. Congrats.

Montana does have a born in Montana/native discount program.

Thanks all. Ribka - population is decent up there, very poor in the Missouri Breaks. Deer hunting in general isn't nearly as good as it was prior to the die off. Many times the hunters in the Breaks as I've seen anywhere else. Sad to see the herd being decimated like it is.