Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Deer Hunting AXIS: The summer deer

Just got back from a blast of a free range Axis hunt with member JGraider. JG is definitely good folks and a real pleasure to hunt and be in camp with....The deer are unequalled in beauty...and as table fare!

My buck....Garden variety Remington .30-06 150 grain Hornday...



JG's buck.......definitely had the prettiest hide Ive ever seen! 7mm-08 with a 120NBT






And a big old pig...just for good measure!





( the pig is the one without the hat and t-shirt...BTW....)

Very nice Tom. As you know, one of my favorites.

I've only hunted them during Texas deer season (Nov/Dec). Are they hard horned at various times throughout the year?

Yeah Scott...apparently they shed their horns on their birthday, and they basically breed all year long, so at any time you will see them in all stages of development-antler wise. That said, the bulk of them will shed velvet and the best rut time is june/july. Both the ones we shot were fully formed and on the verge of shedding their velvet. Saw a few hard horned ones as well....

This was a new deal to me, as this was my first time chasing them. I enjoyed it so much, it will definitely not be the last time I go. I wound up killing the only buck I had a good shot at, but I saw a handful of really big bucks that were just too quick for me. I told Ingwe several times how amazed I was at how wild these axis were, as they were seldom more than a few steps away from dense brush.

Tom proved to be all I thought he'd be.....fun, knowledgable, and had no trouble killing what he was shooting at, as all were one shot kills. We also had some time to tell stories at midnight one night in the bush, as we had to deal with some flash flood issues.

Nice pics Ingwe, and I'm glad you made it home safely.

The meat is a lot better than a deer!!

They are one spooky SOB to still hunt. I had decent sized (8-10 point) whitetails watching me at 30 yards, while the Axis gave me the 'fugg you' bark and hauled ass. I never saw the Axis, just heard them. I could have killed the whitetails about 10 times.

I hunted them on Molokai, and they impressed me no doubt. Every bit as spooky and hard to hunt as mature mule deer bucks, which I think are spookier than whitetails.

That one Ingwe shot looks like a really big, mature animal. Nice work!

Thats been my experience too Scott...many, many times...

Axis remind me a bit of coues deer....wily and skittish, especially the old guys....

Looks like fun guys -

Nice work. I bet Johnny is fun to hunt with

FWIW, I had those 120's running a very mild 2800fps, and was pretty sure shots would be under 250 or so due to immense amounts of brush, and I wanted less bloodshot meat. I hit that buck right through the shoulder, bullet lodged underneath off-side skin, and weighed 80.4gr. Perfect performance IMO. We guessed the buck weighed 200lbs live, and he dropped like a prom dress upon impact.

Creedmoor Johnny?

Hello Jud.....7mm08.

Looks like a good time - glad you fellers had a good hunt.

Thanks for the kind words Johnny...I'd like to share a camp with you again...anytime!

Besides the stuff above, an eater sized pig was also shot for the guides MIL...

Looks like y'all had a blast. Congrats and great work. Hunting big free range herds is always a blast. They seem to be spookier than whitetail on average to me. I hope to be going here shortly myself. Just waiting on the bulk of them to get hard horned, the rut to kick off, and it to get really hot. Were most still in velvet?

I'd say 90% of the bucks I saw were in velvet. I probably saw 10 bucks total in 2 days.

Here in South TX, Axis bucks are likely to be "in hard antler" most any warm/hot month & at that same time some may be "in velvet".

Note: He in Bexar County one of the TX Master Naturalists, makes "invasive species chili" with 1/2 Axis scraps & 1/2 feral pork. = Nobody can eat just one large bowl.
(Three bowls with cornbread muffins is more my speed.)

For NON-Texicans, look up any real recipe for TEXAS RED CHILI on-line & substitute the axis/pork for the beef.
(The pinto beans are cooked separately, for those who want them to add to their bowl.)

yours, tex

Nice bucks.. They are a blast to hunt... I hunted them in Molokai first.. Now Texas... My trip this spring was not as successful as others.. Managed a small buck and a doe.. But still a great hunt with an old friend... Also a turkey gobbler.. Will try for a photo when I have my other computer running.. My I pad won’t let me send photos..

I'm really looking forward to trying the meat. I've never eaten any.