I'm heading back out to settle a score from last years Oregon blacktail hunt for a PLM California blacktail hunt the first week of August. Let's see some pics of your Columbia blacktails to keep me up at night. All pictures welcome but would particularly would like to see early season fuzzy velvet bucks and scores of you have them. Thanks.

Where are you headed? Beginning of August seems early for a PLM tag. Are you archery hunting or just want a velvet blacktail? blacktail are fun and challenging to hunt.

I will be hunting the Cottrell ranch in Northern CA. Season starts July 15th but they don't start hunting until AUG 1. Yes velvet bucks are what I'll be after. Just really love the look of all velvet animals.

I am familiar with the area. I believe that ranch is off hwy 36 almost in mad river. Very good genetics in that area as well as deer numbers. Will probably be pretty darn hot temps in beginning of August. Prepare for 100 degree days. You should have great success being the first one hunting deer on the ranch for the year. You will be there 4-6 weeks before general rifle season opens in B-zone. Are you flying or driving? I have hunted very near there on public land with great success. Just have to get back in there a little further than others are willing to.

My buddies and I slap a few. Love hunting them.

If I don't get drawn for anything else I may very well head out to Oregon or Washington and try to DIY blacktails.

Great bucks Fireball2!!

Nobody else has hinted blacktails???

Hunt 'em?

Heck, I pet them!



















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A few more friends...











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That's awesome Pharmseller.

Pharmseller, you need to put about 10 lbs of whole kernel corn in the middle of that trampoline and keep a video camera ready ...

They don't seem to mind model 71s...








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Here's a deceased one..... 7 x 57 screwed his day up...
210 lb on the hoof...




This is the heaviest one I've taken... took it back in 1999
235 lbs on the hoof...




both taken in Josephine County Oregon.

the top one again....

You should have seen the big one.

Taking a 308 nap.

A nice one my Pop killed a couple years ago.

Outstanding. Keep them coming please.

Mike,

Love those pics of your pop carrying that old Savage 99!

Those older guys with an older rig they've carried for decades is always so darn cool!

In our family, that would have been considered a magnum... as my granddad and uncles, I think a 30/30 Lever Action was the bread and butter firearm for almost every one of them.... and when I was a kid, they were pretty old then... stuff purchased back in the 20s or 30s... anything from the 40s was relatively new...

but there were some 32 Win Specials,38/55s, 32/40s, & 44/40s in the mix as I recall....

Sure is dark-antlered. Coast or Cascades?

John,

The old guys all used 300 Savages with some mdl 64 32 Specials mixed in. Most of us kids used mdl 94 30-30's.

One of my cousins showed up to hunt with a 3006 and we all wondered why was he hunting with a monster elk gun.

The old man kills a buck every year with his 300 Savage.

from where he layed you can see that Pacific Ocean really well. It's the hemlock it really darkness the antlers.

The kid made the Oregon Youth Cascade Buck book with this one.

He used my 99f in 308. I haven't hunted with it since he turned 12.

Thanks for the info.

Nice buck