Snow Plow

This is one of those here today gone tomorrow bucks (only saw him once).  He was in one of a few places that I have seen big bucks so consistently year to year that I will keep checking it over and over even though I may not be seeing much.  I had made about 8 or 10 trips to this particular area this year and was unsuccessful in finding a big buck on all but this one occasion.  To see deer in this location I have a fantastic glassing spot that allows me to see tons of country and more importantly it allows me to see into some nice shaded canyons.  I had got set up and only been scoping for about 20 minutes when I saw this buck feeding in the bottom of a small draw with a herd of about 15 or 20 does and a few very small bucks.  My first view of him was from the side and I couldn’t believe the mass, I knew instantly that this was a buck worth the nasty climb for a chance at a photo. 

So I walked back down to my truck, drove a short distance to the one spot I could begin the long climb up to try and get some photos.  Becasue of the bucks location and the lay of the land there really only was one way I could make stalk and not be seen immediately.  The problem was that there were suddenly deer everywhere and the draw I needed to sneak up was no exception.  I sat pondering what to do, and the thought that perhaps I needed to wait for a better opportunity another day even entered my head breifely before I laughed it out.  I finally decided on a plan which included trying to herd the deer blocking my approach over the hill opposite the big buck.  Once loaded with all the camera gear I started slowly moving in the direction of the does trying to keep myself between them and the direction of the big buck.  Should they run east my chances at photographing the big buck would be lost.  This process of herding does was painstakingly slow as I had to move slowly toward them until they became alert then wait until they were done staring at me, then they would move a little at  a time in the direction I needed them to go.  My fear was that if I jumped them they would scatter or bound in the direction of the buck, so for a good 45 min I had to be content to be a doe herder.  Turns out though, I am either good at herding does or was extremetly luck whichever the case the does fed up and over the hill in the direction I needed them to go.  This left a clean shot at a stalk, I’ll be it straight up hill in a foot of snow.  Long story short, after near cardiac arrest I was able to position myself under the tree that I had picked out earlier while glassing as the one that would put my right above the buck.  With final camera preparations complete I began to sneak over the ridge toward where I last saw the buck 1 hour ago.  Call it intuition, or just again really lucky, but I cut this initial stalk short and went back  to the tree I had left  from.  I decided that if the buck had kept feeding the direction he was headed when I last saw him he would be higher up the hill and I would need to top over higher if I was going to have a chance at seeing him.  Now, as I made my way further up the ridge I began to notice deer tracks in the snow with lines tracing the tracks wherever they would go.  The tracks were in the middle and the lines in the snow were about 1 foot or 1.5 feet on either side.  I thought to myself I would like to see the buck that had antlers big enough to make lines like this in the snow.   Well I picked a new spot to sneak over the hill and once again made ready the camera equipment and began what I hoped would be the final approach.  Sure enough my gamble payed off and as I peered over the edge I was looking right down on the buck.  Two things ran through my mind as I began to snap photos.  First was disappointment as I noticed that he was not in fact super heavy as I first thought but rather had very flattened antlers.  Second was the fact that he had snow accumulated on his front tines and that this was the buck that had made the tracks lined on either side that I had crossed several times during my stalk.

The bucks antlers are unique looking and he is a great buck.  I was thrilled at the way the photos turned out and had a party of one all the way back to town.  Just another great experience doing what I love.    

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