Bryant's Buck

After helping good friend Robert Wise with his coues buck, now it was Bryant's turn.  Like Robert, Bryant had pretty much always been a mule deer hunter, but this would be Bryant's fourth coues deer hunt, and he had plans of topping Roberts 103" buck.

Deer after deer were glassed up with lots of does and smaller bucks and on the evening of the second day, a decent buck was glassed up.  The bunch watched the buck until dark, but Bryant decided to pass in hopes of finding something a little better in the coming days.  On the morning of the third day, Bryant glassed up the same buck as he was trying to chase some does around in the brush.  Bryant still decided to hold out, but tried with no luck to get another buddy to shoot the buck.

More and more deer were found every day, and late on the fourth morning, Bryant finally glassed up a group of five bucks feeding high up on a hillside, and one looked good enough for a closer look.  Tomorrow would be the last day of the hunt, and all he had was the morning of the last day to hunt before he had to head to California, so Bryant and a friend with an unfilled tag jumped on the side by side and headed around to a location that the two would begin their hike.  Meanwhile, Robert stayed where he was and kept an eye on the feeding bucks.

After a 45 minute hike, the two found themselves across a drainage from the bucks.  Immediately Bryant Glassed up two bucks as they worked across a open hillside toward a saddle.  Neither of the two bucks were what Bryant was looking for so they continued to search for the rest of the deer.  Quite a bit of time had gone by, and the pair was thinking the rest of the deer must have gotten out of the country without them seeing them, when Bryant finally glassed up the left ear and left antler of a bedded buck.  Bryant decided this buck was a shooter and set up for the 275 yard shot.

When the gun went off, the buck came rolling out of his bed and a smaller buck jumped up and began looking around nervously.




Bryant had his coues buck, but he would never the end from Robert for not topping his buck.

Coues #1 for Robert...

Robert has always had a hankering to go after a good coues buck.  He grew up and has always lived in mule deer country, and mule deer has always been Roberts first choice for a hunt.  2011 found Robert with a coues tag in his pocket, now he was going to get his chance.

The morning of the first day of the hunt, Robert and his hunting party glassed up something other than coues deer.  The crew watched as four lions, a female and three yearlings, hunted along a hillside for about 30 minutes before they finally disappeared into the drainage below.  It was no wonder no coues deer were found that morning.  Four lions in the area would have any of these little deer hiding out.

At about mid morning, a couple bucks were finally glassed up.  Turned out to be a small 3 point and a spike.  Robert decided to hold out, since he had five days to try and find a good buck.  A quick lunch and a nasty hike put the bunch up on a high rim trying to glass up some deer in 40 mile per hour wind!

Robert glassed up a good buck feeding in the thick brush below, and that's when things got crazy for Robert.  Buck fever set in, Robert could hardly contain his shakes or his breathing.  A couple buddies tried to calm Robert down, going through some breathing exercises, and telling him "it was okay, it happens to everyone".  Robert was so excited he fumbled with his gear dropping his binoculars and nearly knocking his rifle over.  Stumbling and tripping, Robert finally sat down to try and relax.....

Okay, maybe that's not exactly how it happened...

Robert glassed up the buck and started to look for a way to get a little closer for a shot.  The buck was feeding in a small wash, and we were all in the only high spot that would allow us to see the buck in the thick brush.  With no other options, Robert set up for a shot.  Laid across his pack on top of the rim, he was probably as steady as if he were at the shooting range.

As Robert was set up, we watched the buck as he fed through the brush.  This is where a little frustration probably set in.  The buck would hang out behind a thick spot and feed, but any break in the brush that would allow Robert a shot, the buck moved through quickly, then hung up behind another clump of brush.
This went on for quite a while before the buck finally stayed in a small opening long enough for a shot.  And that was all it took.  The gun went off, it looked to us like Robert had hit the buck, the buck stepped behind some scrub oak and tipped over.

Robert had his first coues buck!  At 103 1/8", his first buck will a tough one to beat.

Not a bad start to a coues hunting career...