Drew a general unit deer tag in Utah. Wasn't familiar with the area, so planned to go scout over summer, but that never worked out. Luckiky my buddy Matt tagged along to help spot. Hired someone to take us on horseback, but that ended up being a bit of a clownshow when the "hot spots" he showed us the first day really didn't look any good. Second morning we went on opposite side of unit and started glossing hillsides. Within a minute Matt says he sees 3 bucks. They are about a mile away and I could tell 1 was pretty good with binos. I look through his spotting scope and see the buck feeding away. He lifted his head and I could see the antlers were wider than his ears and pretty tall, so I instantly said let's go try to get him.
We drove across the valley, hustled across the sage flat and had to climb onto a knoll that put us about 450 yards from the clearing where we saw the deer. Peaked over, but the bucks were gone. Caught some movement to the left of the clearing and saw about 25 cow elk walking through the quakes. Looked behind them to see a toad of a herd bull chasing satellite bulls off as the herd worked its way through the same clearing and into the dark timber. Looked to the right and saw another good bull on the rim of the same canyon that just looked at us for about 30 minutes. I've shot a few bulls, but this guy is the biggest I've ever seen by far. I loved watching him as he stood there and really wished I had a bull tag!
Our plan was to get back up there and set up for the afternoon. I set up my shooting position and waited for the bucks to come back out.
Well the bucks never showed and we only spotted does and a few forkies that night.
Second day we set up across the valley again to spot the hillside. Nothing but does, so we rode to the top of the peak. Saw some does, and decided to walk down the mountain and glass the drainages on the way down. Jumped a few does and got within 50 yards of a raghorn bull, but no big bucks.
We ran into some hunters who told us they spotted about 40 deer the night prior at a lookout that was well off any main road. We ate lunch and headed to the lookout for the afternoon. As we were hiking up to the lookout a guy on a side by side dives up and we chat. He is hunting spikes , and he offers to give us a ride up to the lookout where he was headed as well. At the lookout he tells us he spotted a big buck a few days prior and tries to explain where it was, but we don't know the area, so he says, he will take us there because he's called everyone he knows , but no one had tag for the unit.
He drove us over to where he spotted the buck and about 30 minutes later I spot a 2 bucks moving across the sage flat we were watching, but they drop into a little depression before I can get a good look. I sneak closer and peek over a rock wall to see them feeding in a quake patch. One of the bucks looks really nice and one is a bit smaller.
I range them at 279 and set up for the shot. I think they might have winded me cause they started walking quickly to the right. The smaller buck goes through a clearing I set up and the bigger one walks out slowly. When my crosshairs are on his shoulders I shoot and WHIFF! No good! Bucks run down a ravine. I get to ravine and look across, but don't see the bucks. I look directly underneath me and about 100 yards away I see the rear end of the bigger buck walk out of sight. The smaller one is looking right at me and I drop him in his tracks. He is a cool little buck. Another fun hunt and got to see some cool country.
We drove across the valley, hustled across the sage flat and had to climb onto a knoll that put us about 450 yards from the clearing where we saw the deer. Peaked over, but the bucks were gone. Caught some movement to the left of the clearing and saw about 25 cow elk walking through the quakes. Looked behind them to see a toad of a herd bull chasing satellite bulls off as the herd worked its way through the same clearing and into the dark timber. Looked to the right and saw another good bull on the rim of the same canyon that just looked at us for about 30 minutes. I've shot a few bulls, but this guy is the biggest I've ever seen by far. I loved watching him as he stood there and really wished I had a bull tag!
Our plan was to get back up there and set up for the afternoon. I set up my shooting position and waited for the bucks to come back out.
Well the bucks never showed and we only spotted does and a few forkies that night.
Second day we set up across the valley again to spot the hillside. Nothing but does, so we rode to the top of the peak. Saw some does, and decided to walk down the mountain and glass the drainages on the way down. Jumped a few does and got within 50 yards of a raghorn bull, but no big bucks.
We ran into some hunters who told us they spotted about 40 deer the night prior at a lookout that was well off any main road. We ate lunch and headed to the lookout for the afternoon. As we were hiking up to the lookout a guy on a side by side dives up and we chat. He is hunting spikes , and he offers to give us a ride up to the lookout where he was headed as well. At the lookout he tells us he spotted a big buck a few days prior and tries to explain where it was, but we don't know the area, so he says, he will take us there because he's called everyone he knows , but no one had tag for the unit.
He drove us over to where he spotted the buck and about 30 minutes later I spot a 2 bucks moving across the sage flat we were watching, but they drop into a little depression before I can get a good look. I sneak closer and peek over a rock wall to see them feeding in a quake patch. One of the bucks looks really nice and one is a bit smaller.
I range them at 279 and set up for the shot. I think they might have winded me cause they started walking quickly to the right. The smaller buck goes through a clearing I set up and the bigger one walks out slowly. When my crosshairs are on his shoulders I shoot and WHIFF! No good! Bucks run down a ravine. I get to ravine and look across, but don't see the bucks. I look directly underneath me and about 100 yards away I see the rear end of the bigger buck walk out of sight. The smaller one is looking right at me and I drop him in his tracks. He is a cool little buck. Another fun hunt and got to see some cool country.
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