Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Deer Hunting Kansas adventure - 2015

I was fortunate enough to hunt the same whitetail paradise in Kansas that I did a year ago. This year, my dad (Whelen Nut) and BobinNH accompanied.

Our travel was a bit slow-going with the ice storms that plagued much of central Kansas but we eventually made it and set a bunch of stands in the days prior to the opener.

The ranch is simply the most majestic whitetail property I’ve ever hunted and at the same time it’s easily the most frustrating. The deer are nomadic and even with zero hunting pressure, rarely, if ever, do they do the same thing twice. Due to the lay of the land, "heaven" is most effectively hunted with a north wind, and north winds are generally in short supply so other creative strategies must be utilized.

Dad was the first one to draw blood on an old warrior. With this south wind setup, his perch allowed him to shoot across the river as the deer made their way back from the wheat fields and neighboring properties. He anchored the buck with one shot from his 7600 chambered in .270. Then, as it always seems when he and I hunt in Kansas, I got wet. LOL.




I passed on a couple of gorgeous bucks the first two days but had ideas of something special due to the potential of this ranch. I was undecided on where to stand on the third morning and after we dropped Bob off, had a hair that dad drop me off in the far NE corner of the ranch where I could cover a large pasture, work my way to the river bottom to watch across the river and possibly hit the horns from a good vantage point.

That first rattling sequence set into motion a chain of events that will likely be unequalled for the rest of my hunting days.

Having trouble loading video so screen capture will have to suffice.




The first buck responded in less than 30 seconds, followed by another until I was looking at 4 decent bucks across the river. The one in the video came all the way up into the pasture by me until he was close enough to shoot with the bow before making his way back across the river. When he hit the bank on the other side, he began trotting taking the other bucks in tow – only now I can see two more bucks following including one that I wanted to take back to WI.

At this point, the buck was too far to set up for a shot so I paralleled him down the river, getting to vantage points in the pasture whenever possible. All the bucks had pretty much gone their separate ways but the buck I had my eye on, kicked up yet another buck that was bedded with a doe and a chase by both bucks after the doe ensued down the river. I knew there was a potential spot I could shoot if I could beat them there.

Well, we all arrived at the general location about the same time and I prepared to make a quick shot. Just as I was putting pressure on the trigger, a new buck appeared out of thin air and made for a quick decision. I decided on the new star and anchored him at 260 yards with a 130 Accubond from my 6.5 Creedmoor. Time to get wet again.







Bob saw a bunch of deer too, including one that made him second guess his decision to not shoot. On the fourth day of the hunt, I heard Bob’s 270 bark and knew his aim would be true so I headed his way to commence to dragging. He did not disappoint.




Dad and I did some doe and coyote patrol over the next few days and ended up with quite the trailer load full of venison.



What a great week and a great team. As for the ranch, well, let’s just say there are one or two places left on this earth that aren’t eaten up by outfitters or expensive leases. And, I am so very grateful to call the owner a friend – when the big guy created him, he broke the mold immediately thereafter.

Pops took a lot of photos - some sure to be incriminating so this should be interesting when he chimes in.

Dude,
That buck is a stud.
Congrats to all three of you.

A nice trifecta of bucks, gents. Congrats.

All 3 bucks are lifetime bucks for me. Congrats to all of you!

Awesome hunting tale and pics!

Too bad you guys all shot dinks...



grin

Normally I'm not the envious type, but dang, thats one fine doe.

Excellent!! Amazing he hasn't been seduced by greedy guides..

Oh piss......! What a bunch of great looking bucks Scott! Great reading, great pics, just love those big beautiful bucks. Congrats again to all of you guys....fantastic!


Just looked a bit closer at your buck.....wow what a bruiser. That guy's got it all.

Nicely done for all!
Congrats.

I agree. I can say with great certainty that pigs will fly before that'd happen.

I'll say it right now. This was the best whitetail hunt I have experienced in the lower 48. Only Alberta ranks as its equal. But Alberta does not have Scott and Paul.

Scott and Paul Kane are the two best whitetail hunters I've had the pleasure of hunting with. That includes outfitters.....

The landowner? Really I cannot say enough. He is a highly successful businessman, an intelligent,and knowledgeable hunter and rifleman.He is rightfully proud of this ranch and I think it is what it is because of his concern for the land and his careful stewardship of the animals. He is over whelmingly generous,and I am grateful to him for offering me the opportunity to share this wonderful experience.

I always knew, looking at their various posts over the years,that their was more than luck involved in the bucks Scott and Paul kill everywhere they go,and my suspicions were confirmed watching them in action. I kept telling them both that they are a "Force of Nature" when it comes to hunting whitetails.

Their attention to detail and knowledge of the ranch and the deer's habits was detailed and impressive and they were equipped better than many outfitted hunts.Ladder platforms, Double Bull Blinds, folding chairs,bipods, saws, ropes, kayak for river deer retrieval....on and on it went. They hauled all this gear down from Wisconsin in a 10 foot flatbed. Their preparation and knowledge of the ranch were responsible for our success. No question about it.

In addition to that you could not ask to hunt with better people. Period.



Hunting this place is like eating an elephant.It's comprised of rolling prairie and upland cover loaded with draws and coulees,dotted with cedar and plum thickets; and river bottom habitat with high grass,thick, heavy cover and food fields.My impression was that you could kill a monster anywhere.

But these bucks are not easy. They are sharp eyed, man wise, and very elusive;and know how to use cover and terrain to their advantage. If you are not set up right in your stand and approach, they will "make" you and you will not see them.

I saw a lot of deer,both while hunting and scouting. This made me picky and I actually passed up a couple of bucks bigger than I shot. I thought to myself that these bucks were big enough that if things broke fast I'd probably end up shooting one if I did not have the time to look them over closely and that's exactly what happened, as I killed mine in a heavily wooded draw,off hand at about 60 yards.

Pauls buck is a toad. I was very impressed with the body size and head gear of this buck. You cn barely get your hand around the bases of this animal. He likely dressed in the vicinity of 230 pounds. A real stud.

Scott's buck blew me away. On first site through binoculars(Scott was dragging him on the other side of the river), I figured him to gross about 160 B&C,,and he could easily exceed that. A rare animal that many people never get to see on the hoof. Fabulous buck.

Scott's being modest. I saw where he shot from and knew the circumstances. He did an outstanding job of killing that buck. When things are happening fast,getting your act together quickly to hit a buck that will not stand around for long is the difference between killing a great buck and going home empty.Great shooting by Scott.

All in all this ranks among the very best deer hunts of my life. I am grateful to the landowner, Scott, and Paul for letting me experience this wonderful hunt.

No comment on the incriminating pictures yet but I think I know what's coming...

Nice to job gentlemen. All excellent deer! Looks like a wonderful place to spend some time and from the sounds of it the company wasn't half bad either.

Congratulations on a GREAT hunt in Whitetail Heaven.

hey sus, great write up Scott, what a trip for a fantastic trio, I'm very glad it met everybody's expectations....what a hunt!
Bob I sure hope Scott gave you proper grief as I'm sure you had it coming!
I look forward to hearing more about the hunt.....
well done boys!

I knew there wasn't a guide involved when I saw the pics.


A guide would have surely placed you guys at the hindquarters for the long-arm effect!

Great bucks...............when you taking me??

^^^^^^^^^


This. One more time!

Great post & pictures Scott. Appears you guys had a heck of a good time and killed some fantastic bucks!! Good stuff - looks like the new rifle got some action?? Appears to have good hunting Mojo:)

This rates as the "Campfire" deer hunt of the year. Scott, great story and pictures.

Doc

Bob, having met both Paul and Scott and being able to call them friends, I consider myself lucky. But you know that already! Paul is one of the nicest guys you can shake hands with.

One or two nice buck and you can call a guy lucky. Two or three a year, I think we can figure that out. The both do it consistently when others don't!

Congrats to yourself Bob, as I suspect your buck is quite a bit bigger than you're leading on.