As I turned my truck onto the highway and headed out of town the day before the 2010 season opener, I continued to run though the mental checklist that every backcountry hunter is familiar with: do I have enough food, water, the right clothing? Hunting the backcountry makes you more critically aware of your equipment because a gear failure or simple forgetfulness in such extreme conditions at best leads to costly delays in daylight and, at worst, can become life threatening. Over the course of the summer I had only laid eyes on my unit twice and spent only a single morning scouting. Despite the low levels of pre-season scouting I had put in, the one morning I did spent scouting was very promising, turning up 6 4x4 or better bucks and 9 6x6 or better bulls; needless to say, my spirits were high. Although I’m usually a pre-season scouting fanatic, this summer had left little time for anything besides opening up our business in Fort Collins.
I had planned to get to the trailhead early enough that night to be able hike in and hopefully locate a couple of bucks for the next morning. Well, life being what it is, a slightly late start combined with weekend traffic turned into a few hours and the late summer mountain thunderheads began to build. Not only would this hike in be done mostly in the dark but in the rain and mud as well. Before I started grumbling too much, I remembered that I was finally going hunting. The storms continued to build around me during the three-hour hike into the mountains and the rain kept pouring steadily. Given the weather conditions I was grateful for my Sitka Stormfront Lite jacket and pants and my new
Bivy 30 with built-in rain fly. By the time I reached camp, way below my intended campsite due to the lightning all around, I was glad to be cutting my hike short and crawled into my tent. Even though the rain continued through the night I stayed completely dry and warm in my
Fly Creek UL1and
Big Agnes bag.
The next morning, waking before dawn and grabbing a quick bite to eat for breakfast, I was back on the trail headed for the basin where I had located the best buck from my "extensive" pre-season scouting. As dawn began to break around me, I begin picking apart the basin with my binoculars. At first the basin was empty but after about 30 minutes the bigger buck I had located during scouting appeared as he began descending into the basin along with 5 other bucks. I only had 4 days all season to hunt so I wasn't going to be very picky, and two of the other bucks in the group were shooters on this hunt, both 4x4's in the mid 130-140 range. The biggest buck of the group was no giant but he was a nice deer that I was guessing would end up in the mid-170 range.After I was able to reposition into a clump of trees in the bottom of the basin in front of the feeding bucks, the waiting began.
After half an hour, the bucks were about 150 yards out and feeding directly towards me when suddenly the entire group raised their heads and begin looking into the trees below them. Then they were off and back up the ridge; soon they were safely over the Divide. Right as the deer cleared the skyline, two other hunters emerged from the trees directly below the bucks. I thought to them, “It could have been that easy, but you’re not that lucky! And neither am I, apparently…”
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| 2011 High Country Mule Deer Hunt |
After regrouping and gathering up my pack, I was back on the trail and headed to a long ridge about 3 miles away that held a series of basins that looked very promising during scouting. About halfway in I decided to grab a little more food and started glassing a large bench that I would need to cross. On my second pass of one of the small draws that dropped away from the bench, I picked up a small buck on the edge of a group of trees. As he fed along 3 other bucks emerged from the trees and luckily for me they were headed up the hill feeding along slowly. There were 4 bucks in the group including a nice wide 4x4 that I was guessing would end up in the 180 range and two other smaller 4x's and a forky. As the bucks continued up the ridge they fed along a draw that was no more than 50 yards wide at the widest. I could also get in front of them as they fed up the hill by dropping down the ridge and side hill for about a quarter mile but during this time I wouldn't be able to see the deer.
After I dropped my pack and made it across the slope, I begin easing my way over the edge of the draw, hoping to see a buck before they saw me. My luck held and I was able to pick up the deer, which were still about 100 yards down hill but still feeding up the draw. I found some cover behind a small group of trees and began my second wait of the morning. During my wait I ranged most of the landmarks in the draw. As soon as the sun cleared the ridge behind us and the bucks were in the sun, they become much more determined to gain elevation and get to their beds. Still feeding but moving up the draw much faster, I could see that they were going to pass my cover between 30-40 yards and as long as the wind held this would be a done deal. There was one buck out ahead of the rest of the group by about 20 yards—a nice tall 3x3 but most of my attention was fixed on the big 4x4 in the back of the group. The 3x3 moved up the draw and stopped right next to a pine I had just ranged at 40 yards. I thought to myself, “What a slam dunk shot!” as the buck had his head down feeding and was turned broadside. I looked back down the hill at the rest of the group and could see nothing but the tops of their antlers, and I thought if I were going to shoot this 3x3, now is the time with no eyes to catch my draw.
Just as I started to think I would have no trouble taking the bigger buck if I only held my position for a few more minutes, I felt the wind switch around to my back, and knew that this favorable situation was going to change very soon. Focusing again on the lead buck, I watched as he looked back down the hill for the other bucks, putting his head on the far side of his body. I thought to myself that it doesn't get any better than that, and felt myself go into auto pilot as I drew, focused on a spot, and sent the arrow on its way. As soon as I saw the location of the hit, I felt the tension of the hunt drain away and knew that my 2011 deer season was over. I was even able to see the buck go down not 60 yards away as he tried to climb out of the opposite side of the draw; the
G-5 Tekan II and Easton
Flatlines had done their job perfectly.
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| 2011 High Country Mule Deer |
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After a couple of not so great pictures, I had broken the head on my tripod that morning so they were kind of tricky. I quickly cleaned and quartered, buried the quarters in a snow drift and went back to grab my pack and drop off my camping gear to free up room for the deer. I left camp set up about half a mile from my buck right at treeline for my hunting partner Josh, who was headed into hunt as soon as I was out of the mountains. Someone has to work at the shop, after all.
The entire boned-out buck fit in my
Bivy 30 and right before I got back on the trail to leave, I looked at my watch and couldn’t believe that it was only 9:30 am- what a morning! After 5 hours of hiking and a dangerously long stretch without water, I made it back to the truck.
As any backcountry hunter knows, after the thrill of overcoming the odds and taking an animal, the second most amazing feeling is seeing that animal in the back of your truck after a long pack out.
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After a long pack out, this was the best smile I could muster |
With only 4 days to hunt and only one morning spent scouting, I hadn't headed into this hunt with very high expectations, but with a little bit of luck and some long miles I was back home for dinner on opening day. Although my buck wasn't the biggest by any measure, I was proud of my high country mule deer, and already anticipating the next hunt.
Tyler Matthews
Gannett Ridge Hunting Equipment
