Home Forums Hunting & Shooting General Big Game with some buds

Gee, you have great deal there! Better than most public land in the west. Enjoy!

10/4 on that.

You are certainly right on that, and I'm sure if I was a local and some idiot flatlanders were flocking in and messin' up my hunting grounds I'd be pizzed also.

That hunt was a classic. I've worked outside all my life and I was 55 at the time. I'd spent several months stair climbing and walking bleachers to get into shape. The elevation where I live is 52' above sea level. IIRC we were hunting at altitudes between 8,500 and 10,000 ft. above sea level. I rode up two days with a guy that was OCD to the max. About every 15 minutes he’d get out a wet wipe and wipe down his hands and face, then put lotion on his hands. We stopped over night to stay on the way up. He took a shower when we got there, one after dinner and another when he got up the next morning. His truck was brand new and spotless. First thing when I unloaded my four wheeler after we arrived it got stuck in reverse and hit his fender weld and put a dent in it. It was down-hill from there.

Six of us stayed in a tent that had 6 cots and a divider between the cooking/dining area and where we slept. The "leader" of the group was a Dr. that had prostate problems, couldn't see with or without his glasses, and did not ever know where his flashlight was. He'd get up every hour and piss in a gallon coffe can. I know where my [bleep] is and he'd want me to hold the light so he could hit the can rather than pizz on the floor. He did the cooking and his cooking was fer' schit. Guy could burn water. There was a young guy that was friends with one of the older men. He did not hunt. He spent most of his time getting drunk and making fun of one of the older guys. Totally disrespectful.


I was told I could not hunt by myself. I got paired with two 65 year-old + smokers that were scared of the dark. We'd get up at four and drive about two miles to a parking lot. They would sit and smoke till daylight and then get out of the truck. They would walk about 100 yds., then have to stop for 5 to 10 minutes to catch their breath. We'd only make a half mile in 1.5 hours walking in. Then about noon they would want to come back and get lunch.

Go back out about two and then an hour before dark head back in. The first morning I went out with them they told me that they only had a cow tag, and since I had a bull tag, they got to shoot first. About 15 minutes after we got set I spied a bull and several cows about 350 yds away according to my range finder. They fcuked around so long, then decided it was too far of a shot, by then, the bull and cows took off. Only elk I saw on the hoof the whole week.

IIRC the third day I said something to the effect that I'd like to go it alone. I had a four-wheeler, a compass, GPS. Once again I was admonished and was told, “look, the only reason you are here is because one of our regular guys couldn’t make it and we needed someone else to come along to help defray the costs”. As I said in a previous post, I could write a book about that hunt.


I learned quite a bit on that hunt. If I ever do another elk hunt, it will be a hunt with a guide that has the right equipment, or I will do a “drop camp” hunt far enough out that road hunters and tourists like me can’t get there without assistance.

My Montana hunt was a ball

Didn’t kill an elk as the Dekkard Flat hunt is a migration hunt, and it was hotter in Bozeman that week than it was in Miami Florida. I think it got up to 71degrees F on the next to last day.
Met a wonderful family that had lived and guided out of Jardine most of the century. I ended up cooking for the camp the last couple days as the cook quit. Introduced them to some Texas Barking Spider beans, tamales and Mexican corn bread. Marinated the loins from the mule deer I shot, smoked yard bird, Fixed egg taquitos, bacon, sausage, pancakes and biscuits for breakfast and generally put on the dog!
But that’s another story.

Ya!


GWB

Damn GW, that first hunt makes me want to puke just hearing about it.

I'll be up bowhunting with my son's future FIL this September. He's from near sea level but he's the kind of guy that can handle it. We'll go as hard as he wants to but the important thing is, we'll have fun. Camp in some beautiful country, take a day or two off here and there to fish, bust our asses going uphill a few thousand vertical in the dark, and hopefully get into some elk or stumble across a buck.

But no matter what, we will have fun!!!

That is the key IMHO. At this stage of my life, killing is a bonus! Its about the experience.

Last hunt I went on, I hunted 7 days on what was to be a 6 day hunt due to circumstances. Before I even went on the hunt, I told my guide, the main reason I was going was to hunt with him and the other guy that would be on the hunt with us. They are both known on this forum, but I have not asked their permission to disclose, so they will remain nameless. I did not take an animal, nor even see the designated quarry. However it was one the best life/hunting experiences I can remember.

Once again, a story for another time. I can honestly say I met wonderful folks, made friend and have pix and experiences I will remember the rest of my days!

Hope I'm around to see pix of ya'll hunt!

ya!


GWB

Well, just grab a bow and come up and join us.

And take yer own damn pics! You can even bokeh if you want.

I do believe, without a doubt I am fortunate. Not having hunted the west much, I will take your word for it.

I'll be going back up next Thursday thru Sunday or Monday. Hope to take another tom. Gonna set up a dozen snares and re-condition a hog trap.

Here is something that I posted a while back on another forum. Whether my next trip pans out as good, Quien Sabe, but that's why they call it hunting.

...............

Killer Weekend......

It was a killer weekend, and an extended weekend at that. Got away on Wednesday. Thought I’d start the weekend a wee bit early. Killer.

I’ve mentioned before IIRC that I’ve been going to my lease at least monthly for years now.

The buzzards have come to recognize my truck. When they see me coming into camp, they tell all their friends and relatives, “Gdub’s here, we’ll be eating high on the hog pretty soon. Ya’ll come”.



It turned out to be a “roll your own” weekend.




The temps were a balmy 102 in the shade, and a might hotter in the sun (that's 113 F).



Shot four hogs




Just about perfect shot placement. 325 WSM, 200 gr. Accubond, 168 yds. DRT.

Blooded the Merkel


Merkel K1 Stalking Rifle, 9.3 x 74R, 286 gr. Nosler Partitions

Snared two more.



Just find a "pig highway" where they are coming through the fence.




Deer don't go there.



Been doing it for years and never caught anything but hogs. After that, it's just like running a trot-line. My bud and I had 8 snares set out Friday and Saturday nights. Two tripped with nothing, caught two more. An easy and fun way to make meat.



Also did some night time varmint calling, but the fox and coyote didn't co-operate.




223 AI, and XLR 250 Kill Light.

However, the bunnies were more co-operative.



May have found a new pastime. Bunny sniping at night. Just aim for the eyeball glowing in the light.



Well boys and girls, the sun is setting in the west so, see ya’ll later.

ya!


GWB

Prolly would not hunt.

I can cook and skin game, make a pretty good camp bitch, tale a yarn or two and hold my liquor. I maybe not as good as Stick, but I take a pretty mean bokeh!


ya!


GWB

Perfect!! You have a driver's license right? We'll need ya to run into town for more beer, at least once.

yes, I have a DL.

However, I usually hit camp with three 160 qt. coolers, a yeti soft side, and both a yeti and pelican 45 quart coolers full!

if we need more beer, will prolly have to float in in a canoe!

ya!


GWB

OK, so maybe only one trip to town.

BUNCH of good posts in a row GeeDub!

Excellent!

Amen brother. My reasons for doing so on two different places are much the same.

GWB - very nice posts, and pictures!!!

I hunted in Peru - very much like hunting out west for coues deer... Texas is different and the 2 times I've been out I sat in a blind. Not as active, but the way it needed to be done due to circumstances...
As the saying goes - whne in Rome, do as the romans do.
Running those fence lines for hogs must be fun, as well as bunny sniping.

So don't come here. We'll be fine without you.

Spot on and all the way to Canada from my place.

Spot on GW. I, a NorCal'er, learned the public land outside of Leadville Colorado and filled every tag.

I take a somewhat different tack. Friends come and go, but enemies accumulate. Lord knows at my age I do not need any more enemies.

So Bearslayer, you ought to come to Texas a do a hunt and see whether that it would be enjoyable or whether it offends your ethics as a hunter.

I've had the pleasure of hosting a few folks from different states

Here is a tale of one of those instances......

I titled this post, "The Petting Zoo Chronicles" in deference to a certain Alaskan that seems to appreciate all things Texan.

Kinda long, but what the hey!




It’s amazing what a fellow can learn .. Been doing something all my life and found out I was mistaken.

Over the last year I’ve learned that what we do here in Texas is not hunting.




Seems if there are fences, gates, ATV/golfcarts and spin cast feeders it’s something else.

So with that in mind I invited a fellow whose handle is Chas05 to come down for some “Pig Carnage” AKA “fun with guns” at my 1,700 acre playpen (out of 50,000 or so acres) affectionately known as the “petting zoo”.

One thing we do have is pigs!!!!












And fun we did have. And carnage we did wrek. LOL.

A while back Chas05 and I had a PM exchange and got to talking about coming down to Texas and shooting some hoglets.

I asked Chas05 if he had a problem with gates, fences, golf carts, Rib-eye steaks or Jim Beam Whiskey.

I love the opportunity to show folks the Texas I know and love. Chas05 and his son J came in Thursday a week ago, stayed through the Memorial Day weekend and left on Monday. I for one had a ball. Great guys.

We got to the lease late Thursday eve, and had a few brews, ended up staying up way too late listening to tunes and getting acquainted. Slept in Friday morning.
We rode the 4 wheelers over the 1,700 acre pasture that is my lease Friday morning and made plans for the evening hunt.