High Country Coues Hunt

Bryant and P.T. had been scouting for their December coues hunt in Northern Arizona.  A handful of great bucks had been seen over the weeks, and the two found themselves set up on a rim above the country they planned to start out on tomorrow when their hunt finally started.  This is the night when Bryant found a buck he said he was going to hunt, and he would only leave with this buck or no buck at all!

A monster coues buck was feeding about a mile away as Bryant called P.T. up and told him to “get over here quick!”  Bryant watched the buck as he slowly fed in the fading light.  As far as he could tell, the buck would definitely score over 100”.  He had extremely heavy antlers, but it looked like something was going on with his right side.  When an out of breath P.T. finally sat next to Bryant, the buck reached the treeline and disappeared!

The next day (opening morning), Bryant was sitting in the exact spot he was the evening before!  After a long morning of small bucks, does, and elk, P.T. called Bryant and told him to head over and help him look at a buck he had just found.

Bryant set up next to P.T. and a decision was finally made to let the buck walk.  A decent 3X3, but not quite what they were looking for on the first day.  The two started working along the rim, setting up every so often to sit and glass the country that lay out in front of them.  Finally, P.T. claimed “I got a buck, a good buck!”  Bryant located the buck and watched him as P.T. packed up his gear and headed out to try and get a shot. 

P.T. chose a location that should put him across a narrow, thick canyon the buck was heading to.  The thick trees made it difficult to identify anything across from him, so  P.T. would move a little, glass, and repeat.  Finally, P.T. spotted the buck about 120 yards below looking straight at him!  P.T. set up on a dead pinion tree he was next to and settled down for a shot.  The buck disappeared at the sound of the rifle!  Not long after, P.T. caught a quick glimpse of a coues deer flag as it was heading away from him through the thick timber!  With thoughts of how he let the buck get away running through his head, P.T. started toward the last place he knew the buck had been.  At the same time, Bryant packed up his gear and headed toward P.T. 

As P.T. arrived to the location, he immediately saw the rump of a deer laying just yards away!  He walked around a clump of oaks and got his first close up look at his great 97” 3X3!

 

The days ticked by, at one point, P.T. watched the big coues Bryant had found the day before the hunt, but Bryant was quite a distance away glassing a separate canyon. 

The second to last day of the hunt was a rough one.  Bryant was battling the flu, and with his wife Cindy McGee and P.T. along, the three sat in battering winds in single digit temperatures.  The same 3X3 P.T. passed up on opening day was below Bryant feeding on some scrub oak.  At one point, Bryant was within inches of talking himself into shooting the buck so he could leave with a buck and put an end to the freezing hunt! Eventually Bryant talked some sense into himself and packed up his gear.  Bryant and his wife were working the rim and glassing when Bryant saw a lone doe with a buck about a mile and a half away.  Immediately Bryant recognized the buck and the mad dash was on to get within shooting distance before the deer disappeared!

20 minutes later, Bryant and Cindy popped up on a rock ledge that should put him directly across from the buck, and it didn’t take long for Bryant to locate him as the buck chased a doe through the thick oak!

Bryant set up and ranged the buck at 350 yards.  Bryant was convince he was never going to get a good shot at the buck when he suddenly chased his doe through the thick oaks and stopped in a small opening.  A slow breath out and the gun went off!  The dull “whomp” was a good sign that the deer was hit, although all he saw was a coues deer flag just as it topped the ridge and out of sight!

Bryant and Cindy waited until P.T. reached their location before they headed into the bowl to search for the buck.  When the bunch reached the location, there were several moments when they though Bryant had surely missed when Bryant spotted the buck lodged in some oak trees.  Bryant pulled his buck out of the trees with a sign of relief!  His buck had 3 points on his left side, and a total of 5 on his left and taped out at just over 114”!

 

 

 

Archery Javelina

Clay Stephens had never actually hunted Javelina for himself.  He had taken folks on their hunts and gone along with friends, but this would be the first year he decided to put in for the archery draw.

The first day out, Clay had planned to hunt both Deer and Javelina, but shortly into the morning, Javelina took priority as he watched a small herd feed just above a drainage below.  The pigs were feeding in some thick brush, so Clay had to take his time to try to sneak within archery distance quietly.  Suddenly, three pigs busted out of the brush almost at Clays feet!  The pigs ran a short distance and stopped in a small clearing 35 yards away!  The pigs had no longer stopped when Clays bow went off!  The arrow hit the pig perfect, and the pig barely made it five steps before giving out.

 

Even though Clay had been on several successful Javelina hunts, this would be the first time he took one for himself.  On his way out, he was able to glass up a nice Muley buck, but as luck would have it a doe busted him during the stalk sending the deer on a mad dash for a better location.  Shortly after, Clay took a bobcat that he called in.

 

A good day of hunting in anyone’s book!

3 Big Bucks!

Here is a general hunt that takes place in a very tough unit in Northern Arizona.  Bryant McGee and Lee Payne have always had a passion for big muley bucks, and Cole Orosco is a guy that loves to hunt, but this would be his first hunt for a mule deer buck.

We’ll start off with Bryant…  Bryant had been watching a particular group of bucks for a couple years, but has been unable to connect during a hunting season.  Yet…  This group of bucks had two that he had his eye on, but they lived in an area that was very tough to hunt, so luck was going to have to be a huge factor.  These deer resided in an area that was flat and very thick making glassing them up impossible.  The only option was to get in and bust the brush and hope for the best, so it was no surprise when Bryant found himself in some more favorable country the first few days looking for a couple other bucks that he liked.  This more favorable country was full of hunters, and the two bruisers were eating at the back of his mind, so he decided to see if his luck would be on his side.

The day that his luck finally came in, Bryant was working an area that he knew the deer liked to feed.  Bryant always said “You have to put yourself in a position to get lucky”, and that’s just what he decided to do.  As he slowly worked his way through the feeding area, a buck began to bound off just yards ahead!  A second buck joined him, then a third!  Bryant threw his rifle up but the thick trees made the decision difficult, he didn’t want to end up shooting one of the smaller bucks.  Just as the deer started to disappear over a small rise, Bryant realized one of the bucks was one he was looking for, but it was too late.  Two more bucks began to bound of to his left and as he swung his rifle, he realized the back buck was another of the two monsters.  All the deer disappeared over the small rise, but hey appeared to be slowing to a walk.  Bryant regained himself and began to sneak toward them.  This time when he jumped the group, he knew one of the two biggest bucks was to the far left.  He raised his rifle, confirmed that it was one of the bigger bucks and pulled the trigger.  A split second later all the deer were gone in the thick brush.  Thinking he missed, Bryant walked over and began to follow the tracks of the buck he shot at.  Blood!  A short tracking job turned up his buck!  The buck had 4 points on his right side and 8 on his left!  Taping out at just over 204”, this was Bryant’s best buck to date!

Now its Cole’s turn…

Not wanting to go back to work, Bryant jumped in with Lee and Cole to help out.  A couple days later, a good 4X4 was glassed up bedded under a cedar tree at the top of a high ridge.  Paul Carter had shown up to do a little hunting of his own, and jumped in to help Cole get a shot.  Lee stayed on a knob to watch Cole, Paul, and Bryant work within rifle range.  The plan was, Bryant was going to film the hunt, Paul was going to help Cole sneak in, and Cole was going to come out with his first buck.  As the three popped over a ridge directly across from the bedded buck, Bryant made the decision to stay put and film from there while Cole and Paul tried to work their way up the backside of the ridge and pop up at a better angle for a shot.  Part of the way to their new location, Paul and Cole jumped up a small bunch of does and fawns which ran directly over the ridge and just under the bedded buck.  As Cole’s luck would have it, the buck watched the does go by, but never got up.  As Paul and Cole peaked over the ridge, they knew they were at a good angle, now it was time to set Cole up for a shot!  Anyone that has ever hunted deer probably remembers their first buck.  Cole’s symptoms were much the same as the rest of us as we were about to get our first shot.  The adrenaline was high, rapid breathing took over, a little shakiness moved in, and as Cole settled in behind his rifle, Paul gave him words of encouragement, reminding him to get solid and squeeze the trigger.  The first shot hit the deer in the back half of the front shoulder and the deer stood straight up out of his bed.  Now the first shot was probably going to be all that was needed, but Paul and Cole weren’t taking any chances.  The second shot hit the ribcage just behind the front shoulder sending the buck end over end!

Bryant could hear the two shouting from his location, and as he walked up on the two, a normally not very talkative Cole was smiling and jabbering a mile a minute.  Cole’s first buck was a solid 4X4 and taped out just over 170”!  Great first buck!

 

You can watch Cole's hunt on MuleyBull Outfitters "Just Hunting "Volume 1" found at:

Amazon.com

 

Now its Lee’s turn…

Bryant and Cole still didn’t feel like heading back to work so they stayed to help Lee on his hunt.  The three had headed up a ridge to help a friend look for a buck that he had shot a few days before.  Things weren’t looking good on recovering the buck so they split up to glass some of the canyons and drainages.  Late in the morning, a buck was located across a canyon bedded under a thick clump of cedars, now the hunt for Lee had begun.  When Lee was located watching a small group of does in the bottom of another canyon, the three headed back to where the bedded buck was located.  The buck was positioned just right.  Everyone could tell it was a buck, but they just couldn’t tell how good a buck he was.  Lee decided to work around the finger ridge to a location just above the buck to try and get a better look.  The wind had begun to pick up as Cole and Bryant watched Lee sneak into position.  As they watch Lee set up for a shot they though, “must be good enough”!  The buck came rolling out of his bed at the sound of Lee’s shot, and for the first time Cole and Bryant could see what kind of buck he was.  Lee had just shot a great 4X4 that taped out at just over 175”!  Congrats on three great bucks in just a few days!

 

You can watch the video of Lee's hunt on MuleyBull Outfitters "Just Hunting Volume 2" found at:

Amazon.com

Coming August 2014!

Terry's Bull

The bull finally made it to the edge of the alley cut for the barbed wire fence that ran through the thick cedars.  Less than an hour ago, Terry watched the bull with P.T. Carter and Bryant McGee as he walked into a thick clump of cedars to lay down for the day.  Guessing the bull to be in the mid 370 range, it was just what Terry was looking for.  A plan was devised!  Terry was to go around the bull and get into position above him to set up in what was just about the only clear shooting lane in the country.  Guessing the bull would leave uphill, P.T. was going to wait for Terry to get into position, then slowly work toward the bull hoping to push him out of his bed.  If the bull did go uphill, then Terry would have a shot as he entered the clear-cut fence line. 

So here we are, the bull stopped at the edge of the alley and slowly took a look around.  Clearly he was in no hurry, P.T. held up to his end of the plan perfectly, not pushing the bull into a dead run, but got close enough to make him uncomfortable.  The bull got up and trotted a few yards then continued toward Terry and the fence line at a moderate walk.

Terry clicked the safety on his rifle to the off position as the bull took the few short strides that would carry him the rest of the way to the barbed wire fence.  The bull stopped once more and casually looked around trying to decide whether or not he really wanted to hop the fence.  At 80 yards, Terry settled behind his rifle.  Having a bull of this caliber this close, and in the crosshairs forced a little buck fever to set in on Terry.  The rifle boomed!  The bull stood where he was looking toward Terry!

“Shoot again!” were about the only words that could come to Bryant’s mind.

The bull stood and watched Terry and Bryant as Terry fought with his rifle.  Something was wrong!  Not only was the bull completely fine after Terry’s shot, but Terry couldn’t eject the empty cartridge from his rifle!  Finally, bored with what he was seeing, the bull hopped the fence with no effort and walked into the thick cedars on the other side!

It took some time to get Terry’s rifle unjammed, but the moment had passed.  Buck fever claimed yet another victim.  The good news is, the elk hunting isn’t over yet.  When buck fever gets the best of a guy, nobody is harder on him than himself.  With words of encouragement, because this isn’t the first time, nor will it be the last that buck fever makes an appearance, the elk hunting continued.

The next evening put Terry within about 50 yards of a nice 6X6, but with one more day left, Terry opted to keep looking.  The next morning, with Terry’s son Gary along, the group found themselves heading off a bull as he worked up a ridge above a deep canyon.  After looking the bull over, Terry decided to take a chance at redemption!  The bull fed through the cedars when finally he moved into a small opening offering a shot.

This time Terry’s shot would be around the 250 yard mark!  Terry settled in behind his rifle and laid the crosshairs behind the bulls shoulder as he squeezed the trigger.  This time when the rifle went off, the unmistakable “whomp” echoed through the canyon!  The bull took a few short limps in the opposite direction before spilling over!  Redemption!  Terry ended up with a nice 6X7 and a load of new stories to share at the campfire!

Baily's Lion

Baily Bates was a young lady that had an itching to chase a lion, so the MuleyBull guys teamed up with the guys from Six Shooter Molly’s Guide service to see what we could make happen…

A winter storm had finally moved out of the area, leaving a fresh batch of snow across Northern Arizona.  Perfect for cutting a fresh lion track!  The day started early, 2 a.m. early!  Everyone was out fighting the subzero temperatures running roads in hopes of cutting a track.  Somewhere between 3 and 4 in the morning, P.T. Carter, Clay Stephens and Bryant McGee found what they were looking for.  A couple phone calls were made to get everyone to meet up at the same spot while the two continued checking roads to find the last place the cat had crossed.  As the daylight began to creep in, the crew began to wake up and climb out of their idling trucks ready for the chase ahead.

As the first dogs hit the ground, the hounds let out quick bays as the smell of lion filled their nose while they worked tracks lined out in the snow.  The dogs were moving at a fairly good pace, a good sign for the day ahead.  The lion traveled several miles when Rick Murphy from Six Shooter Molly’s turned back to move a truck around to a location that might be closer to the direction the hounds were trailing.  Shortly after Rick caught back up with the gang, the dogs blew up and started to get ahead of the hunters.  When everyone finally caught back up with the dogs, they had the lion bayed up in a cave less than a hundred yards from the Road Rick had moved his truck to!

The lion was too far back in the cave for any shots or pictures.  Eventually the lion shot out of the cave and topped the rim with dogs hot on his trail!  The dogs put the lion up a large pinion tree just a short distance away, and as the hunting crew caught back up with the action, they were finally able to get their first good look at the lion!  Pictures and video were taken as the dogs put up a concert of their own.  The lion suddenly jumped from the tree and headed back to the rim it had just left!  Again, the dogs did their job by putting the lion on a ledge in a crevice that could be seen from above giving more opportunity for pictures, but more importantly giving Baily a shot.

After the cameras were stowed back into packs, Baily prepared a shot with her dads pistol.  At the sound of the first shot, the racket coming from the hounds switched from rapid barks to long drawn out bawls.  The one shot from Baily’s pistol was all that was needed, now all was left was to get the big cat out.  Clay Stephens hefted his way down the crevice and was able to lug the lion out!

The smile says it all as Baily posed for the last pictures of the day!

Kylie's Junior Hunt

Kylie had finally drawn her very first big game tag ever.  In her pocket she held a tag for the “juniors only 18b deer hunt”, and she couldn’t wait to get started.  She had practiced her shooting off a bench, off her knee, sitting, and off a bi pod religiously leading up to the hunt and could probably shoot 95% of the hunters out there today.

One thing she couldn’t practice was patience and persistence, at least she couldn’t practice them until her hunt started.  She got on bucks day after day, but time after time she was unable to get a shot.  The buck would disappear before she could get into range, other hunters would bump the deer and spook them before she could get into range, elk would be jumped during the stock and the deer would leave with them, other deer would spot them before she could get into position, the buck wouldn’t give her a good shot, so on and so forth.  But Kylie did show she had the patience and the persistence to keep it up.  She was the first to be ready, and she was the most willing to go again after a blown stalk.

Just after lunch one day, a group of bucks was glassed up a couple miles away, feeding along a ridge.  The hike took about an hour when the group finally was getting into position, but the bucks were nowhere to be found.  Suddenly a small buck raised his head revealing himself just a few yards from the hunters on the same ridge they had hiked onto!  The deer had fed around a bowl and ended up on the same side the hunters had planned on shooting from!  The small buck finally spooked and took off toward the bottom of the draw.  Luckily, even though the rest of the bucks spooked with him, they had no idea why the small buck had run off.  The bucks scattered in all directions, with the biggest of the four heading in the general direction of the small buck.  He crossed the drainage below and came up on the slope opposite of the hunters before he stopped to have a look at what was going on.  Kylie set up on her bi pod and calmed herself down for the shot.

The shot looked to be around 250 yards and Kylie squeezed the trigger.  The buck jumped and ran at the sound of the shot with the dull “whump” returning to the hunters.  The buck topped the ridge and out of sight.  Knowing the buck was hit the celebration began.  Eventually everyone made their way to where the buck stood during the shot and found a blood trail Stevie Wonder could follow!  The buck had made it just over a hundred yards before collapsing and rolling a short distance down the hill!

Kylie had her first buck!  A nice 3X4!  Wish I could have started off with a buck that big!

 

You can watch this hunt on MuleyBull Outfitters "Just Hunting Volume 1" found at:

Amazon.com

1st Day of the Archery Hunt...

Right off the bat, Clay sat at the bottom of a steep slope watching a couple bucks chase does around on the bald mountain above.  Clay was traditionally a rifle hunter, but had held out for a big buck that never gave him a shot during the general hunt, so he practiced up with his bow and started to scout for a spot to shoot his first archery buck. Now, day one of the archery hunt, the deer above him were a few of the deer he had seen during those scouting trips, the only trick now was to get within bow range.

Clay backed off and headed back to the truck, from there he drove to the backside of the mountain from the deer and began his ascent on foot.  When he left the deer, they were close to the only scattered trees located on the hillside, and he hoped they would still be there, as the rest of the country gave little cover.  Clay neared the location the deer should be in, and he slowed his pace to a crawl watching for anything, expecting at any moment to see deer watching him through the tall grass, blowing his stalk.  Finally Clay caught movement directly ahead as a buck chased a doe toward him.  The deer veered uphill and eventually turn back the way they had come, still too far for a shot.  Clay slowly worked his way toward where the deer were, occasionally a buck would chase deer back over the horizon then disappear again.  When Clay finally worked to a position where he could see the deer he was still about 90 yards away.  The two bucks wouldn’t stay still, they were taking turns chasing each other off, then pestering a doe as she tried to feed in some of the tall grass and low shrub.  At times it looked like a buck would chase a doe within range before they would zig or zag and head back to the main herd.

Finally one of the bucks chased a doe toward Clay again, this time when the doe cut and headed back toward the rest of the does, the buck stopped broadside, looking directly away from Clay toward the rest of the deer.  Clay ranged the buck at 45 yards and drew his bow.  The buck never knew Clay was there and when Clay released his arrow, the buck exploded downhill toward the location Clay had first glassed the deer up.  The buck only made it about 80 yards before he piled up behind some low scrub oak.

The remaining deer had a hunch that something had just happened as they stood surveying the area as Clay sat quietly watching the spot his buck had disappeared into.  Eventually, the remaining deer filed out one at a time not sure what was going on.  Clay sat on the hillside for about 20 minutes never seeing his buck get back to his feet.  He finally got up and began working his way to the shot buck.

Clay had his first archery buck!  Great start to an archery hunting career with his first archery buck ever showing 4 points per side.  Congratulation Clay.