WOHOO!!!!! First big game archery animal!!!!

Well it's been a good 5 days now but after 2 years of nothing I finally got my first big game animal with a bow!!!! A muley, and the biggest muley i've shot at that. This is easily the greatest hunting year of my life so far!

So I was hunting elk up near park city. Had been every weekend of the archery hunt this season (not in the same area) but due to starting college this year, and possibly having gotten a little ahead of myself taking too many classes, it's been hard to find time to do any scouting or hunting. Well I really wanted to take an elk with my bow and was in this area the previous weekend and heard some elk activity around me but never got one in sight. saw lots of sign and could tell that they were long term residents of the area though. I actually saw this same group of bucks of the one I shot but they were a ways off and I had my mind set on getting an elk with my bow. well as you may know the archery hunt ended in Utah for both deer and elk last Friday the 14th. so I left snow college immediately after my history class on Thursday and made it out for the night hunt near Park City on Thurs. (actually left a half hour before class got out, I was anxious :) had the car packed up and waiting right outside the building). I've always kinda laughed at the eastern and southern hunters who sit in stands all day long and call it hunting, but i figured i hadn't had any luck in coming on three years my way so Thursday night I sat at a water hole that had fresh elk sign around it. Had some does and fawns come in but no hornage. Friday morning, last day. I'm driving to an area where I was told I can take a short 15 min. hike back to some beaver ponds that often produce. I'm getting there later than I'd like to and it's just starting to get light enough to see when I pull around the corner to where I was planning on parking the car to start my hike. Sure as crap my deciding to stop at McDonalds and being 10 minutes late worked out to my advantage as I see on the horizon the same bucks I had seen the weekend before. I have NO idea why but I completely ignored them and immediately was thinking how I could hike into my area without disturbing them, after a minute I figured I may as well take some photographs.. then I started thinking, ya know, that's not a huge deer but i've always been jelous of those guys who have the big 2-points on their walls... maybe I should try a simple stalk and see what happens (oh yeah, I thought it was a 2-point at this point.. and didn't see the eye guards). So I began my hike up the tree line and down to the river bed where I was very well covered, and had now closed the distance to 100 yards and that's when it hit me that this is really happening and I was stalking closer and closer to nearly getting within shooting distance. I had now spotted 3 bucks total. the big 2 point that I then found out was a 3X3.. then two small spiky 2 points. As I go to make my next move I spot another buck in between me and the group. I looked the 2 bigger bucks over and I could swear they are completely identical in every way, can't find a single difference. I contemplated the 50 yard shot as I had practiced that far but really didn't feel comfortable with how bad I was shaking from the buck fever and my inability to control and steady my heavy breathing. (remember, I've never shot a trophy deer like this, to me this was a cover page buck that I was looking at, haha. I thought for sure Ryan Hatch would be callin me up asking for pictures and stories for next weeks edition of muley crazy. Okay not really, I realised it wasnt a huge deer, but I was still exstatic about what was happening!!!). So I decided to sit and watch what would happen. The wind was not in my favor but it was not against me either but I felt safe that I was covered plenty well from their sight. Well the 3 bucks fed down to the other big 3 point and they all started feeding my way!!! I was freaking out! Well one of the big bucks (I have no idea if it was the original one I saw or not cause they really were identical) started on a quick trot quartering towards me. In a matter of seconds he was 25 yds. away and stopped for a split second feeding at the base of a big bush. I don't know how many times I ranged him cause I couldn't believe what was happening, haha. Well judging by how fast he came in, and how he had stopped along the way to eat a bite then kept going I knew he wouldn't be standing broadside at 25 for very long.. this was meant to be!! I pulled back with the biggest grin my ugly mug has had in years and he immediately caught me in the corner of his eye, I didn't know what to do cause I thought he was gonna run and didn't want to make a wounding shot as he ran away so I sat for a second (oh yeah, I was kneeling cause he came in so quick and unexpected and didnt have time to stand up.. barely had time to get off my belly and kneel without spooking him) well he just stood there so after a second or so I let 'er fly.. I think it took about 10 seconds or more to connect, and I watched as he was turning around to run back the way he came causing the arrow to hit him head on (I accualy didn't realise it hit him in the front til I walked up on him, i thought he ran after he got hit but apparently not) I immediately started hootin and hollerin, I know that's the worst thing to do but like my brain was working at all at this point, haha. I quietly run to the other side of the river so I can see where he runs to.. well he bedded probably 70-80 yards from where I hit him at and I was in dis-belief! I walked back to my car thinking that I was gonna wait a half an hour to walk up on him. well a couple minutes past and I was on the blood trail holding my arrow that was broken off right at the broadhead, haha. I was trying to heighten my tracking skills so I ignored where I saw him bed and tried to follow his every step there. I was afraid cause there would be a little blood, then no blood for 5 yards. then a fair amount of blood (not a lot but not a little) then 10 yards of no blood. luckily the trail wasn't long cause I looked across the river which he had crossed and saw some horns stickin outa the grass.. WOOHOOO!!!!!!! I was quiet and had an arrow ready to draw incase I saw any movement from him.. well once I noticed he was laying on his side I just ran at him. I never realised that he was this nice til I touched those antlers!! I had the strongest tingly feeling throughout my whole body and could barely comprehend what had just happened!!! Well it worked out great cause he had died 20 yards from a road, haha.. unfortunately I was alone but I took some pictures of the buck and threw him in the back of the truck.. Threw him off in the shade being as it was only 7:30 AM and went to my beaver ponds to look for some elk.. heard tons of bugling but nothing ever came in. Well the temp started rising a little bit after 2 hours or so so I decided to go back down and take care of the biggest buck in my bag to date! AND WITH A BOW TO BOOT!! This is a life dream of mine to take a big game animal with a bow, never been so excited in my entire life!