Congrats to Good Friend Cade J. on his 2013 archery buck!! I gave him some video and pics that I had of the buck and he edited into an awesome video. We are excited to get his mount back to him. Enjoy the story and video.
Well it finally happened I got a deer with a bow! My stars finally aligned. Eight years of trying finally paid off! About a month ago my hunting buddy T.C. and I were headed out to glass a place where he had been shed hunting in April. He said he had seen a ton of deer sign up there. Also a good friend of his gave him a specific place to glass from. Big thanks to Layne! We setup at the base of the mountain spotting way up where we picked up a few does. Then T.C. say hey there’s a buck. Only about 200 yards in front of us two bucks come high tailing it out of a wash. One looked nice and wide. We think possibly the one I shot. He was running away pretty fast so we couldn't see how nice before they disappeared. Then last week T.C. and Layne were out there and spotted up a bunch of nice bucks. They were able to get some great pics and video of my buck that I’m very excited to have and I’m sure T.C. will be posting. They ultimately decided to go after another big buck, but couldn't close the deal before some coyotes chased them off. I at the time was up in Flagstaff hunting with my cousin. I put on this sick stock on a bedded three point getting with in what I thought was 30 yards. I shot right under him because he ended up being 40 yards. Not only did I miss once but he ran out to what I thought was 60 yard, which ended up being 50 and missed again. He ran out to 80 stopped and jumped my string with another miss. This was a low point in my bow hunting career. I even texted T.C. and told him I had a cheap bow for sale that it was practically brand new (nearly four years old now) never shot anything. He jokingly told me it was because it was a Hoyt. As it end’s up greater things were meant to be.
Fast forward a week later on Saturday T.C. goes to Flag with another buddy of his to hunt so I decided I will go out there and try and find these bucks. I spot for two hours from my Zuk while it rains lightly. I don't see a thing. I am spotting a mile and a half up the mountain where I think these bucks will come out. When it stops raining, I decide I better get farther up the hill if I am going to be able to get on them before it get’s dark. If they even are going to come out at all. I am not too optimistic in seeing anything since that's about how things go for me when I bow hunt. When I get halfway up the mountain I am really surprised when I see four bucks pop out off the top. I watch them for a while trying to figure out where they are going to feed off of and come down. I finally come up with a game plan. I decided that they are going to feed down into the next canyon. I pick a yucca plant right on the skyline and a little outcropping of rocks. I figure if I can make it there before it get’s dark I will have a chance, but everything is going to have to work out perfect. Since light is fading fast and I hope the bucks have fed off into the next canyon I take off at a pretty fast pace. It is quite the hike I am pouring sweat as I try to make it through the canyon in time. When this antelope buck that we had been seeing popped up out of nowhere between me and these buck. He takes off making his warning call and snorting at me. I am thinking here we go again he's going to run over this hill and scare off the bucks. There is no turning back now though, I have just spent the last hour climbing this hill so I pushed on to my reference points. As I sneak up to the rock out cropping and peeked over the rock I am behind, thinking I’m going to see anything, bam there they are! Feeding about 80 yards in a little flat at the top of the canyon. As I sit there trying to decide how I’m going to close the distance. They started to feed right down the ridge towards me! I decided that I am going to try and make it to this bush between me and them. As I slide up the rock outcropping, bam again! I see these antlers pop up maybe 30 yards away right behind the bush I am trying to get to and they look huge. The widest heaviest buck I have ever been so close to and possibly seen in real life feeds right around the bush right at me. I am stuck in this awkward crouching position trying to figure out how I'm going to draw and shoot. He's feeding closer and closer as I try to calm myself. I don't move as my calves begin to burn. I decide that I'm just going to have to shoot how I am. There is this small fallen dead cedar tree between me and him. He has to angle around it to keep feeding down the ridge. I am thinking about how my dad had just told me I need to use the force and not range him because of last week's fiasco when I had ranged a tree too close to me and missed. I had told him no way that next time I was going to take the extra time to range the deer to make sure I had the correct yardage. I have to chuckle to myself as I don't dare use my range finder because he's so close I feel I can reach out and touch him. My heart is pounding. I'm now thinking please let me make this shot. As he turns broadside to go around the dead tree he puts his head down to feed. I draw back and settle my 20 yard pin on him. He still has no clue I'm here. When I let it fly! I hear a thump and he takes off like he was struck by lightning. As I watch him bolt away I see what I think is my arrow buried to the fletchings in his side. Come to find out later is was just the blood pouring out the side. As I watch him disappear down the canyon ridge losing sight of him I try to fight the sinking feeling I get when I imagine the worst. A bad hit and not finding him. The other three deer just stand there. Another big four point and two smaller bucks looking at me. I can read their minds they are thinking what the heck just happened. As I sit there deciding how long I should wait. I get out my camera and take some pictures of the other deer. Unfortunately at this point it is too dark for my camera to pick anything up. I wait patiently for these deer to wander off so they don't hook up with my buck and push him off back in the tree. It's pretty much completely dark at this point. I realize all I have is my phone for a flashlight, which is running dangerously low on battery life. I go up to where I hit him to try and find some blood. I don't really look for my arrow since I still think it is stuck in his side. I see his tracks where he bolted, but no blood or arrow. Still trying to push back the fears, I'm staying confident that I will find him since I feet that it was a pretty good shot. I decide since it was a little farther back than I wanted I would let him lay. I hike back to the truck about an hour away in the complete dark because I am trying to conserve the battery on my phone. I only hit a couple of cactus's and try not to think about mountain lions and other wild things stalking me in the dark. I call T.C. and asked him to come help me track him. Even though he and his buddy haven't slept in about 20 hours they are ready to go. I have to drive back into town to pick up some flashlights and batteries. I get back out there at eleven. I am thinking we should wait until morning since I think it will be tough to track at night, but T.C. is worried about losing the meat. We decide we will go see what we can find and then if we have too we will take up the search in the morning. After slopping around in the mud on a few different roads. We almost getting stuck trying to find the best way to get as close as we can in the truck. We finally get about a quarter of a mile away. As we start the trek straight up the mountain we begin to count off the feet as we are all getting pretty tired at this point. When we get to the spot where I had hit him, I obviously hadn't looked very good because right away we find blood and my arrow. It has made a clean pass through with some good red blood on it. There wasn't much blood at first so we go down to a tree where I last spotted him. I started to cut down the canyon trying to pick up any blood. When I hit a big spray of blood. I call to the others and they come a running. At this point we know he is going to be close because there is blood pouring out in a nice trail. About a hundred yards from where I shot him he's piled up! Oh man am I pumped he is huge buck! I have barely seen bucks like this let alone shoot one with my bow! Although I could have found him earlier I am thankful that I had to go back and wait for T.C. and my new friend Andrew. They showed me how to cape and bone out a deer since I had only gutted and drug my deer to trucks before. Saving me from most likely being there all night and long into the next day. We had a little photo shoot and everyone is happy to have a great end to fun filled day of hunting... especially me! I rolled up to my house at four a.m. and quickly drifted off to sleep dreaming of giant bucks.
I would like to thank everyone for their help. I still can't believe everything worked out perfectly like I imagined it as I was making the hike up the mountain. Eight years of blood, sweat, and tears was finally made worth it. Oh, and my bow isn't for sale anymore. Now I can’t wait for my buddies at bct to do my mount for me.
