Wyoming Doe Antelope Hunt

[pre6422hornet]

It has been a looooooooong time since I have been out west. 12 years to be exact. The last time I hunted Colorado was in 2002 and took home a beautiful 32 1/2 wide 5x3 and said I would not be back until I arrowed a Pope and Young whitetail. Well that happened in 2007, along with the arrival of our first child, then a move to illinois, then a second child, a move to Missouri, and then a third child ( we really need to find things to occupy our time when we move :grin: ) Stuff happens fast when you decide to grow up.

Anyway I put in for Wyoming Antelope Unit 47 ( Medicine Bow) for (2) DOE/FAWN tags. I figured for the price it was a good way to go and do some scouting. If I saw decent bucks, then next year and years after that I would put in for bucks.

Well I drew BOTH doe tags. I couldn't believe it. I already have (2) .270's ready to go with loaded rounds, dialed in, etc.. One being my classic stainless M70 with 3x9x40 burris FFII and the second is my 1949 M70 with custom stock and 4x Burris signature. Gear is being prepped. 4 wheeler gone over.

I talked with a ranch owner tonight and gained access to his ranch and he told me that by the 2 or 3rd week the best time to hunt is Tuesday-Friday.

I can't wait....

He did give me 3 rules to hunt his ranch by:

1. Don't shoot by the any livestock
2. Close the damn gates
3. If you see a coyote, don't miss it :lol:

I chuckled at the last rule and he said " I'm not joking".....

Any words of wisdom greatly appreciated. My style of hunting previously was tracking in the snow... somehow that doesn't seem like it is going to happen on this hunt.

 

[DrMike]

No words of wisdom, but I'm surely excited for you. Congratulations! Man, I'm wishing you every success, Pat. I'm almost excited enough to drive down just to video your hunt.

 

[wildgene]

... lot of antelope wandering around out there, stop & have a beer @ the Trampus...

...does are does when it comes to speedgoats, the difference between a big doe & a medium doe is about 3lbs. of meat. Pretty easy to figure out where they move & set up a ambush, you really don't need to shoot them @600yds. They're much better eating if they haven't been running...

 

[Guy Miner]

More words of wisdom from Wildgene!

Enjoy your hunt!

Guy

 

[Vince]

Have fun and congrats on the tags. I look forward to reading about your hunt and do hope you keep us updated.

 

[.280 Remington]

And I'm going to tag a long with Pat and help be the camp "caretaker". I will not serve him my chili until the last night.................... :lol:

 

[JD338]

Pat,

You are living the dream buddy. Congratulations on the tags.

JD338

 

[sask boy]

Pat congratulations on pulling those doe tags. I am sure looking forward to your story along with the photos :wink:.
I read you are shooting a 270win wondering what load you are going with?
Have Fun, Shoot straight & be Safe.

PS. Hope the Chili is good 8)!

Blessings,
Dan

 

[pre6422hornet]

Thanks Fella's. Mike I am going to bring extra T.P. for the trip home. I am afraid of that chili!!!!

Dan, I am running 130 CTBT's over 49.5 of IMR4064 in the classic stainless. They are right at 3050 fps out of that rifle. That gives me a point blank range of 325 yards ( -4.0 at 325).

In the 1949 I am running 140 BT's over 50 grains of IMR4064. Again right around 3000 for speed. Point blank range is darn near identical. I like the simplicity of having two rifles with the same trajectory. Makes quick thinking very easy, especially when the shot is on the line.

Dr. Mike there will be a ton of pics and GoPro video taken...

Gene I am not one to pass up a great place for a beer, I will definitely stop in there.

 

[6mm Remington]

An antelope hunt has to be one of the funnest hunts out there and the great eating meat is only a huge plus. Congratulations on the tags and I hope you enjoy yourself. Shoot straight!

 

[DrMike]

And I'm going to tag a long with Pat and help be the camp "caretaker". I will not serve him my chili until the last night.................... :lol:

Man alive! Don't let Brian know of this. The saga of the Spider Monkey is legendary around these parts. And the vivid aroma of the exciting account lingers in some quarters to this day. :shock: You may need more than TP; perhaps a case of Febreze!

 

[wisconsinteacher]

Good luck. I hope to get west in the next few years. Enjoy your time and shoot straight.

 

[jdmason480]

Howdy!

Pronghorn are my favorite animals to hunt and eat. I've taken 25+ over the past 35 years.

Here's a great book on the creatures: http://www.amazon.com/Built-Speed-Y...id=1408201827&sr=1-1&keywords=built+for+speed

I've hunted everything from oversold public to exclusive private hunts. I'm hunting this next weekend in New Mexico on a private ranch that I've hunted the past four years. This time I'm bringing a friend who has never hunted antelope before.

My two fundamental observations are that antelope see really well and they're very curious. The corollary to the first observation is that, like the rest of us mammals, they mostly pick up on movement. For example, one time I stationed myself by a fence post near a watering hole and hung out with a buck 25 yards away for over an hour only shifting my weight when he wasn't looking. He never knew I was there.

Two stories demonstrating their curiosity.

Last year I walked out into the prairie just before shooting light. Saw a herd probably 800 yds in the distance. They just looked like gray forms in the low light, but when I got optics on them they had already seen me. I sat down out of their view and waited. Long story short, they meandered up to within 200 yds in about five minutes investigating where I had disappeared to.

A dozen years ago I was walking out in the prairie and came upon two does about the same distance away. I walked towards them behind the cover of one of the cholla cacti that dotted the flat terrain and then to the next one. They would let me get to within four or five hundred yards before scampering off a little further. We did this for an hour or so. Then, I stopped behind a cactus, waived my cap and sat down. Took that doe at about 250.

Other successful tactics.

One of my favorite hunts was when I spied a buck and doe bedded down - again about a half mile away. The prairie undulated a bit so I planned a route up a crease where I could approach unseen. Got within about 300 yds and then crawled up out of the crease to where I could get a shot. It took two hours to crawl 30 yds since I only moved when they were looking in another direction.

On busy public hunts I have been successful locating the highest point away from roads, walked up there and waited for the road hunters to scare them up my way. I have also road hunted on occasion. When we approached animals in the truck we would drive up parallel to them, stop and let a hunter out on the opposite side and continue on. The antelope would fixate on the vehicle and often circle back around to where the hunter was let out.

Lastly a story about optics

Hunting in WY a few years ago I walked up to the top of a hill and saw some antelope 500 yds off. I cranked my scope to 14, laid down prone and watched them. In a couple of minutes I caught some movement in my peripheral vision which turned into three bucks and a doe 50 yds to my left. I moved the weapon 90 degrees, and I'm not proud to say, took a shot at the patch of fur I saw in my scope. Missed. I adjusted the scope down to 4 and didn't move. The antelope walked straight up to me and I got a nice clean shot at 25 yds.

I know it's a long post. Hope something in it helps.

Best of luck!

 

[FOTIS]

You will be hunting my neck of the woods!

 

[Luv2Hunt]

They taste a lot better off the irrigated meadows but the hunting is more fun in the sage.
The above info from jdmason will be real helpful if you put it to use. Case in point: several years ago we had one last tag to fill in our group by a young man who couldn't for the life of him stalk within range of his shooting ability. He was pretty disappointed and already trying to figure the tag-soup story to tell when he returned with no antelope but a lot of empty brass. After missing (again) early on our last morning, I went to the truck and dug out a white Wal-Mart bag and tied it on a stick. Spotted a nice little group waaaaay out in the distance that seemed calm and set the kid behind a small knoll that if he stayed prone would keep him out of sight until the goats were pretty close. I set the stick up against some sage about waste high for flagging and the wind went to work. I told him I would pick him up on the way out. Returned to camp where the rest of us tore down camp and loaded up. Picked him and a decent goat up on the way out.
You can shoot them or you can hunt them; I much prefer the stalk.
Anyway you measure, antelope are a lot of fun.