Home Forums Hunting & Shooting General Big Game First antelope hunt imminent.... advice?

I have 3 Excel spreadsheets for outdoor trips. One is for camping, one is for hunting from the camper, and one is for llama packing. They list everything that I could possibly want on a trip, followed by 2 check boxes. I print out the appropriate one, check each item that I want for the trip, and start loading, checking off each item as its loaded. It's greatly reduced my incidences of getting to camp without ammo or toilet paper.

I just about always start with firearms, ammo, licenses, tags, and knives. Everything else is considered gravy.

Not my screw up, but one of our party of 6 left the silverware at home for a 7-day white water fishing trip. At every meal, the comment was "this sure looks good, I wish I could eat it." That one will follow him to his grave.

Another was a 12-day hunting trip, and we neglected to include our menu. Ate good on the front end and poorly on the back.

That's how I start, too. Then things like tire chains, tow chains, tools, cash and other things that could keep you on the road or help get you back on it. (A friend had a $1,000 tow charge off a pass I had emphatically told him NOT to take.)

Cameras and other non-necessities were always way down the list, and way below clean underwear.

Some desert roads can get really nasty with a lot less rain than you might think possible. They aren't really roads with a solid bed. They're just places where vehicles have beaten out the plant life.

We have the same thing.....minus the llama list. Helped a ton.

Years ago, had a friend you could not win with. He always got stuck.

He would always ask if I thought he could make it. If I would say no, he'd get stuck, and he'd blame me for daring him.

Next time I'd say 'yes, but.......'. Then, it was 'you told me we could make it'.

I always saw walking a little further to the hunting spot as no big deal, compared to walking somewhere to call a wrecker.

that is some beautiful country down there. good luck!

If hunting off of roads where vehicle access not too far I have used this to get animal skinned, deboned and on ice quick.

My buddy and I on a WY meat hunt got it down to 25 min per animal from shot to meat in the iced cooler.

https://jet.com/product/detail/5d62681301644143b8420e1d4d1863fb?jcmp=pla:ggl:wm_dur_gen_sporting_goods_a1:sporting_goods_hunting_hunting_accessories_a1:na:PLA_876534655_44326999615_pla-335670434297:na:na:na:2&code=PLA15&pid=kenshoo_int&c=876534655&is_retargeting=true&clickid=77cc19f9-907e-436b-a351-e7707d9831d4


not too difficult to weld one up yourself

Thanks ribka! Getting gear ready & packed up now, leave tomorrow early.

Good luck! Take some photos. Give us the story of how it goes.

Will do! I'm bringing my fishing gear, and my old Martin guitar. I'm making a vacation of it!

Jeff,
don't forget the canna.

Turn on, tune in, drop out.

Timothy Leary

Well, Lord only knows what's rattling around inside that old Martin...... I bought her in the mid 80's. Probably best not to cross international borders with it.

On the road. Weird energy. Whatever the opposite of "mad at 'em " is, is where I'm at. I did look at some pix last night so now I can tell the boys from the girls.

Saying goodbye to my dog- who really really wanted to go camping- gave me these powerful flashbacks of my Lab Lucy we put down a couple years ago. A salute to her bravery, dignity, and love of the hunt. To Lucy!

Dogs always make it real clear that they want to go hunting.
I bring mine those occasions when the situation permits it.

Always wanted to chase chukar with Lucy at Steens, but in her prime I had two jobs and two young kids... not much free time. So it was grouse, quail, and pheasant. By the time my life was opening back up she was pretty broken down. And chukars are not an old dog's game.

Almost to Burns. Thinkin of you 1Minute!

You should just be home in time for Burning Man...

Please drive safe.






Dave

Went to Plan B on the camping spot.



It's all good.

Just doing a light camp tonight; might relocate pending tomorrow's scouting. Stormy! Wind, lightning, occasional scattered big drops.

Lightning?
Stay low.

Today was day 2... I'm making progress here. Got into 2 small herds today. One had no buck at all, the other had a buck even I was hesitating on <grin> but as I was trying to get closer, they saved me the decision by vanishing.

I can say that the reports of their great vision are not exaggerated. WOW!

Gassing up in French Glen just now, was talking to a hunter. He said he's hunted them many times in Wyoming, but this was the first time in Oregon, and he said with a bemused chuckle, "this is completely different!" He hadn't seen anything. Can't confirm or deny that, Just passing it along.

Having a great time getting to know these critters, especially now that I'm figuring out where they are! Yesterday, opening day, I saw 8 doe deer, 3 buck deer, 3 coyotes, and at least 10 sage grouse, a few at heart-attack flush distances. They've got their own little evasive pattern when they fly, eh? Different than the ruffs and blues I've flushed/killed. On one of the sage grouse flushes, a triple, a hawk came in right over me and tried to grab it midair. That was cool to see. But anyway, saw no 'lopes on opener.

Well enough of this I got to get gear ready for tomorrow etc. It's cooled down and tomorrow is a big day. I know where they are, nobody else seems to be hunting that area other than desultory road-hunting...