2005 Utah Deer
IDHunter
1/31/07 3:44pm
I know how much I enjoy others photos and stories, so I thought I would share another one from 2005.
My two youngest brothers are the most competitive people I know and are constantly trying to one up each other. So it goes without saying that as soon as I started to take them hunting, their only goal has been to get something bigger than the other. Well, Scott was at a major disadvantage because two years earlier while out hunting with me, our youngest brother Brett took a 28” 180 class buck while Scott was living out of state. I knew that the chances of him getting something bigger were almost as small as my chances of drawing a Utah LE elk tag, which we know is never going to happen.
As soon as we started making plans for this hunt, Scott expressed to me his desire to get one like Brett’s, and that he wouldn’t shoot anything smaller. To make things even harder, I had just moved to Idaho and didn’t have a lot of time to scout for him. On top of everything else, I could only take him out opening weekend before I had to be back at home for work. The one advantage I did have is I’ve spent a ton of time in the area and know where the deer spend most of their time. I wasn’t going to tell my brother this, but my hope was that we could locate a decent buck and I could somehow talk him into shooting it. I knew that it would be pretty hard for him to say no in the moment.
Opening morning came and we were exactly where I wanted to be. As the suns first rays started to appear we spotted a lone bull elk running across a meadow a mile away. A hundred yards directly in front of the bull a good buck jumped up and headed straight into a small group of trees and never came out. We watched the area intently for the next half hour and decided that we should see if we could get in a position to get a shot at him. We quickly gathered up our things and started to move off when all of a sudden I spotted two more bucks feeding 250 yards above us on the hill. They had no idea we were there, which gave us plenty of time to discuss if we should shoot one or not. I explained to Scott that the bigger one was a very respectable buck and he would be happy if he took it. Now that I had him convinced, we spent the next few minutes trying to find a branch in the brush that would give him a steady rest. If we even moved five feet in either direction the brush got too tall to see over, and too thick to see through. Scott tried his hardest to hold the gun steady but just didn’t feel comfortable enough to shoot. A few more minutes passed while he wandered around in our tiny clearing looking for anything that would help while I watched the buck through my binoculars. Suddenly the buck lifted its head and pegged our movements. We had to act quickly or the buck would be gone. Out of desperation I offered to act as his shooting sticks to see if that would keep him steady. I held my breath and tried not to blink until he pulled the trigger. The buck instantly fell dead in its tracks.
The entire hunt only lasted about an hour and a half and we were on the road back home. Although this buck is not quite as big as our brothers, I know Scott’s proud of it, and there’s always next year.
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Paul
My two youngest brothers are the most competitive people I know and are constantly trying to one up each other. So it goes without saying that as soon as I started to take them hunting, their only goal has been to get something bigger than the other. Well, Scott was at a major disadvantage because two years earlier while out hunting with me, our youngest brother Brett took a 28” 180 class buck while Scott was living out of state. I knew that the chances of him getting something bigger were almost as small as my chances of drawing a Utah LE elk tag, which we know is never going to happen.
As soon as we started making plans for this hunt, Scott expressed to me his desire to get one like Brett’s, and that he wouldn’t shoot anything smaller. To make things even harder, I had just moved to Idaho and didn’t have a lot of time to scout for him. On top of everything else, I could only take him out opening weekend before I had to be back at home for work. The one advantage I did have is I’ve spent a ton of time in the area and know where the deer spend most of their time. I wasn’t going to tell my brother this, but my hope was that we could locate a decent buck and I could somehow talk him into shooting it. I knew that it would be pretty hard for him to say no in the moment.
Opening morning came and we were exactly where I wanted to be. As the suns first rays started to appear we spotted a lone bull elk running across a meadow a mile away. A hundred yards directly in front of the bull a good buck jumped up and headed straight into a small group of trees and never came out. We watched the area intently for the next half hour and decided that we should see if we could get in a position to get a shot at him. We quickly gathered up our things and started to move off when all of a sudden I spotted two more bucks feeding 250 yards above us on the hill. They had no idea we were there, which gave us plenty of time to discuss if we should shoot one or not. I explained to Scott that the bigger one was a very respectable buck and he would be happy if he took it. Now that I had him convinced, we spent the next few minutes trying to find a branch in the brush that would give him a steady rest. If we even moved five feet in either direction the brush got too tall to see over, and too thick to see through. Scott tried his hardest to hold the gun steady but just didn’t feel comfortable enough to shoot. A few more minutes passed while he wandered around in our tiny clearing looking for anything that would help while I watched the buck through my binoculars. Suddenly the buck lifted its head and pegged our movements. We had to act quickly or the buck would be gone. Out of desperation I offered to act as his shooting sticks to see if that would keep him steady. I held my breath and tried not to blink until he pulled the trigger. The buck instantly fell dead in its tracks.
The entire hunt only lasted about an hour and a half and we were on the road back home. Although this buck is not quite as big as our brothers, I know Scott’s proud of it, and there’s always next year.
Paul
8,586
CONGRATS!!!!!!!
I didn't grow up hunting at all and picked it up on my own. One year I decided it looked like fun so I bought a tag and was immediately hooked. The first few years I hunted were incredibly hard and I couldn't get very many people to help me out. I decided that I would do anything I could to get my two youngest brothers involved in hunting and make sure they had fun with it. Both of them took two deer in their first two years of hunting. The oldest brother Scott took a two point his first year out, and this 26" buck his second. Brett the youngest brother took a two point his first year and a 28" 180 class buck his second. That hunt didn't last longer than an hour either. Both of them think this hunting thing is a piece of cake. I'm not sure how I'm going to keep up with their expectations anymore.