2017 revisited just for you Foxi
The season started off with a South African visitor coming along to do some shooting.
Nice summer day in the mountains proceeded to give us a hail storm in the middle of our afternoon.
Soon after this a close friend of mine decided it was time to go sheep hunting in the Rockies. He barely escaped with his life after being severely mauled by a Grizzly Bear. Three separate attacks and crawling and walking (stumbling) out 14Km +/- on his own and then driving some more before being airlifted by some kind people to hospital.
Weeks in ICU and in other units of the hospital and I quit counting surgeries. I got plenty of exercise walking up to visit.
His sentiments on one of our walks in the hospital during rehab... Note the button he is pointing at.
Good humour through it all, but we got a real scare and a huge education. One day when he is better we will tell the tale in full.
Now I was off to help on an Elk Hunt.
Did I tell you it was unseasonably " warm" this year?
Along with forest fires and drought conditions we were in for a tough go. Access was so limited, due to fear of fires, that it made the hunt tough.
I did plenty of Google Earth scouting to figure out access routes.
This was the Official HOT SPOT in Canada that day.
Where I was located we had that beat by 2.5 degrees. You do not hunt in this crap in Canada. This was nuts.
The sunset over some Mule Deer. British Columbia was on fire. The fires actually ended up coming over the Eastern Slopes and causing havoc in some areas of Alberta. Scary to be down wind.
Eventually after waiting over a week for the temperature to drop to a balmy 18C, my buddy could wait no longer and took this good Bull Elk.
In the pre-season before my Pronghorn Season started I saw a few likely suspects.
Early in October is Bow Season for Deer and my Pronghorn Antelope season.
Anyone every having visited southern Alberta will recognize the hills. These are the Sweet Grass Hills that are on the 49th parallel. The Canada USA border. Two weeks before there was a good dump of snow, as you can see.
One great stalk and we got some pictures of this young Coyote. Totally unafraid. I took a playing card from Christophe and did a rabbit squeak and got this quizzical look on film. Great to just watch him from about 7 yards. I did not allow him to chew on my boots like some twit in that video.
Look closely under the barbed wire fence and you can see Two Whitetail Bucks hiding from the wind. It was gusting up to 100KM/H That day. No chance with the bow.
One of the Bucks I was watching and considering.
This is all low fence country. Everything can migrate except the cattle.
Eventually I recognized I would not be able to do the hunt that I wanted to do. ie. Km's back in some more remote country because of my knee injury that I had suffered two weeks prior to opening day. But, there was no chance in hell that I was losing 12 years of priority and wasting my tag by not hunting.
I crawled across the prairie dragging my bum leg and wearing holes completely through the coveralls. Gotta say, it was one of the tougher hunts.
Walking stick to aid me I started the drag back to the truck.
Apparently it was painful.
Plenty of rest stops
Then back at it. (note to self: If you do not want goofy pictures of yourself, never give your friend your camera with the BIG lenses.)
This hunt was memorable for a variety of reasons. You will note the Springfield Rifle I have. It is a 30-06 and was my Grandfathers Rifle. I actually used this same rifle on a Trophy Antelope 40 years ago. It was my first big game animal I ever took. Sadly, an over zealous wildlife officer took it upon himself to confiscate my first trophy because of where I had placed the tag. After forcing the tag off the horn I was charged, end up receiving a $25 fine. I lost my first animal and learned a lesson about the rules.
So, the rifle and I got it done right this time and with all that learning I never encountered a Wildlife Officer on my entire trip.
Funny enough, the Antelope ended up winning my local Fish & Game award for the biggest Antelope. It was a great hunt because of so many factors including the company I was able to keep during the hunt. Without help there was zero chance this would have been pulled off.
A friend out stalking a deer with his bow.
A Mule deer early in the season.
My smallest hunting buddy carrying his own rifle in the field for the first time.
-25C and a friend in the tree stand while I covered the ground on a drive. Lots of close encounters with does and small bucks. No luck with a trophy that day.
Wild Horse breeding herd. (actually Feral) Always fun to see them when you are out in the woods.
Learning to be quiet and stalk in closer for a better look. I'm sure the binoculars at 20 yards were a great aid.
Then I really put them to work out on the edges of some grains fields.
Today was the day for an upgrade to .22 shooting for both of my spotters
Some little guys fighting. Phone shot through a spotting scope. (hands were frozen on this one)
Onward to the final hunting component of the year.
At last light one evening I lay down in the snow after creeping up within 200 yards of a herd of Whitetails. As my eyes watered with the cold wind I finally sorted out the buck I wanted to take.
I watched and waited as the clock ticked down as he slowly meandered among the herd. Finally, he came clear and provided a broadside shot.
I squeeze the trigger with my now frozen finger and watch him drop instantly. Hmmm. I quickly reload (Africa training) and continued to watch for a moment and nothing. The other individuals in the herd would wander up to him on the ground and jump back. Start to bolt and then return. This confirms that he is on the ground. I wait another few minutes and then start the walk back to the truck to drive through the drifted snow to recover the beast. (Note: my severe knee injury hampering my stomping around on foot too far)
Within minutes I arrive at the scene with high beams on and ..... I can not see him. ???
I start the lighthouse search pattern, circling and I still can't see him. Thinking I have lost my mind and ability to navigate I stop, check land marks and determine that I'm in the low spot where I should be. I back the truck up to a higher vantage point and leave the lights in the suspected fall area and start the search on foot with the added assistance from our head lamps. Lamps plural, as my two hunting partners of the day are in on the search now. Snow should make this simple with a rather distinct contrast with red and white.
I walk back to the 200 yards to the shooting position, to determine the exact angle of the shot from my body outline in the snow. I lay down and determine a distant land mark and walk in a direct line to the back stop and find the bullet path in the snow fifteen yards behind the deers position. It was an 18 inch path about an inch wide from the expanded bullet.
Retracing very slowly along the bullet path I encounter the interference I have created with my lighthouse search pattern with the truck. @#$%^&*. Although, there are so many deer tracks it is hard to distinguish what is what.
I finally find a pin head size dot of blood and three hairs in some undisturbed snow.
There is nothing else.
We expand the search pattern and circle and circle for hundreds of yards in every likely direction.
We go back to the truck and I search the field with head lights in the unlikely areas. Nothing....
Incredulity has shifted to dejection and then I am angry with myself and I can not comprehend what has occurred. The shot was from a bipod at a relatively short distance taken from a solid prone position.
I returned the next day. What a difference the sun makes. I re-search the entire area on foot. You can see so much more with daylight. Still absolutely nothing.
With walking sticks I slowly cover the closest trees and eventually determine this Buck has left no trace of injury beyond the pin prick of blood and three hairs.
How he would drop like a stone, stay on the ground not moving for five minutes and them magically get up and disappear I have no idea.
This story all leads up to the culprit being discovered on the next hunt.
As I got out to hunt I noticed my bipod was loose. Wondering how that would happen I grab a screw driver and tighten it. It won't tighten. Out comes the front lug from the fore stock. WTF!?
I ended up repairing the faulty lug by remelting the plastic stock, re-drilling the hole and installing some steel backing that the screw can actually bite into and hold. Future purchases of any plastic stock are on hold.
Slide forward to the next hunting day. Again step out, note the bipod of loose. Double WTF!
I attempt to screw it down tighter and the bi-pod falls off.
The weld broke free.
I have to give the Harris bipod a little leeway here. I have used it for years without any issues and I routinely use it as a crawling aid and put significant weight on it as I stalk game.
I think I have discovered the multiple culprits for the earlier poor performance. Not to shift blame, I am the operator of the tools and need to ensure they are in working order. This was a big lesson. I have never encountered anything like this in my life before.
Thankfully my brother in-law is a master at welding. He did a superb job repairing the weld and it was better than new. I re-checked the zero on some targets and had my confidence back in the machine and the operator. (I think)
On the last day we were able to hunt the freezer was calling and the trophy hunt was over.
The family success. Taken at 200 yards. One and down. Very happy hunter.
Last day at last light (20 minutes left) this buck came trotting across a fallow field in search of friends. I got down into a good prone position, settled the bi-pod and made damn certain everything was in order.
He stopped at the tree line and stood broadside at 380 yards. I sent a 180 grain TTSX from the 300 Win Mag and it felt like a good shot.
At the shot I heard the loudest "Whack" I had ever heard instantly after the deer was hit and noted is reaction. He jumped the fence and entered the woods and disappeared from sight. (Lingering doubts from weeks earlier. Until I see proof on the ground.) Thoughts screaming through your head as you do the follow up; "That sound was strange, was it a bone?", "I hope this is not a repeat", etc.
I had set a waypoint of the shooting position and again had to drive around to the opposite side of the field for recovery. Fallow fields that have melted will swallow you and your truck like a Muskeg.
Double walking sticks to keep me upright on that recovering knee I eventually found the location of the bullet impact. There was plenty of sign; blood and hair. Now, into the trees. Again, so many deer tracks that it took some considerable effort to determine which tracks were his and the direction of his egress.
After I followed the trail ten yards it turned into a track that a blind man could follow. He went exactly 40 yards after bullet impact. The bullet had passed through and had hit a frozen poplar tree square on and that is what created the incredibly loud whack I heard. Another new one for me.
No selfies in the dark. A quick antler shot in the shed will have to do.
Venison in the freezer and some rattling antlers for my young spotters.
There you go Foxi. Horses, Deer, Antelope, Elk. I skipped some Moose pictures though.
