Leaving tomorrow

Called it quits early today. I had five dead to rights, inside 200 yds, and couldn't hold steady enough take a shot. No, it wasn't buck fever, the wind was simply screaming across the flats !! Over 45mph. It's supposed to calm down tomorrow, and I know where they're at.
 
I found 'The One' yesterday. It's a narrow strip of BLM and I didn't spot them until the group was already alert to me. I'd been driving along some two-track that used to be an official Wyoming Hiway about 75 yrs ago, and was paying way more attention to the ruts than looking for game. Prongs at the top of his ears and about an equal length over that. Have no clue to total score, but really don't give a flip either.

Two days left.
 
Two days hunting, two minutes in a football game, just ask a Bengals fan. Altelope back strap coming up.
 
Gunner46":3v25dq0k said:
I found 'The One' yesterday. It's a narrow strip of BLM and I didn't spot them until the group was already alert to me. I'd been driving along some two-track that used to be an official Wyoming Hiway about 75 yrs ago, and was paying way more attention to the ruts than looking for game. Prongs at the top of his ears and about an equal length over that. Have no clue to total score, but really don't give a flip either.

Two days left.
Click to expand...

Sounds as if you're stationed on the cusp of a successful hunt. It is already interesting. We are each pulling for you.
 
On man.... I want to hunt antelope in the worst way.

Good luck tomorrow!
 
Gunner- Sounds like you are having a great time. I am truly happy for you. It is as it should be. For me antelope are the Rodney Dangerfield of the big game world, "they don't get no respect". As you related your tale I thought back to a variety of different opportunities I've had over the years, and the times I learned all those things your are talking about. Well, some of them any way. .... I too had a long obsession with the antelope. I know there are theoretically tougher animals to hunt but none I enjoy more. Its fun just to see the big one, and see what a bruiser looks like. I hope you get a crack at him, but if not you've already had a wonderful hunt (sounds like). Good for you! Officially jealous, and happy for you. Bits of trivia for you... if I recall correctly. An antelope leg bone is something like eight times stronger than that of a cow, the horse is the only other animal in NA that will run literally til its heart explodes if driven hard enough. ....... Yup fascinating, and fun in the most beautiful of country. CL
 
"The One" is in the cooler.

I left the motel before dawn this morning and took the dirt hiway, then two-track back to alllllmost where I tagged the buck on my On X Hunt map. About a 1/2 mile from where I last saw him there was a high knoll in the road, so I stopped well short of that and pulled off to the side of the skid mark of a road (Just in case some other fool decided to trek that way).

I tossed the Alice pack on and walked a few hundreds yards just cresting the knoll, dropped down a little to not be sky-lined and just took a seat to watch another Western sunrise.

It wasn't but a few minutes before the sun broke over the Black Hills, to my right, and pretty much shut out any chance I had at seeing anything in the direction. Wind was pretty in my face and surprizingly mild, maybe 8-10.

It wasn't long before I made out a couple of Lope wayyyy out there. Too far to worry about.

Ya know what? It gets pretty freakin' chilly out here in the morning and I was drawing the hood just a bit in tighter when I caught a flicker of a flash of color out of the corner on my right eye. If you've been in the field for more than couple days, you know what that flash of color means. I threw to bino's up a saw SUN ! They were useless. If I used my hand to shield the glare and squinted, I could just make out a small group (5-6) working in my direction.

That was a long 30 minutes.Yeah, they kept coming closer, but that did me a ton of good looking into more Sun than Lope.

They were still a good 800+ out from me, when I pulled out my phone to check the On X. This isn't a big BLM tract and I wanted to be sure everything was still legit. Ok, still good. Switched the layer over to Topo. That gave me a better idea of lay of the antelopes travel path. I still couldn't see well, and I didn't even know if there was a buck in the group. But, if I dropped back over the knoll and made my way across the back side I thought I'd be able to circle in behind them by, provided they kept moving. at their pace, and the sun would be at my back then.

I tossed my crap into the pack and lo-balled it back off. When I got around to where I thought I should be, I found a low run of ground I could scoot along by just ducking over at the waist.When it ran out I shucked the pack, pulled out the bino's and knee crawled up the last few yards.

Who sez you have to take a 400 yd shot on a Lope? There they were, maybe, MAYBE 75 yds and clueless as a new recruit the 1st minute at Marine Corps boot camp, and all 6 of them showing me their posterior. I didn't need any optics at this point.

And then I learned yet another lesson on Antelope hunting. They will drive you crazy, by not raising their heads, when feeding. I swear, all 6 of them were doing it on purpose... just to piss me off !

After about 3 1/2 weeks brain-time of inwardly cussing at them, the far left one looked up.

MR."The One" !!!!

Oh no, after all these years this can't be this easy. I rolled the back pack around as slowly as I could and bunched it up for a rest. And Thank God I learned a long time ago to never, ever, ever have your scope cranked up to 10X. Set at 3.5. He was quartering facing away to the right. Put the crosshair right behind the back rib and let my MC training follow through.

He flinched forward a little and I caught a ripple of hide before the recoil took my sight picture off target. AND THEN HE JUST STOOD THERE!!! The girls? They took off hell bent for anywhere but here, kicking up dust, he just stood there.

I didn't even think to chamber another round because I was so dumbfounded. He's hit... HARD. Now just drop, dammit !

Step, wobble, step, step, wobble, kinda step, flop !

Now here's the pisser of all injustice in the cosmos..........I lost my d@mn phone crawling around. WTF !!!

NO PIC"S. I mean.....Really?????? :(

I'll take a good measure on him when I get back home, but he's at least 15" on both sides Best guess), and bases bigger than I can grip.
 
Superb account of a fantastic hunt. Congratulations. Sorry to hear about the loss of the phone. That happens in the field.
 
Great job Gunnar and a life time of memory's even with out pictures. Did you take someone out to where you shot and ring your phone so you could find it?
 
Sweet!!!!!! I'm doing the happy dance for you!!!! (y) (y) (y) sorry about the phone. Post pic of the mount when you can. Man!! Outstanding job. Thanks for sharing. CL
 
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