This picture is taken from approximately 1.5 miles away through my spotting scope.
I watch this guy with his little buddy bed up under a buck brush in a stalk-able location. Only problem is there are some does bedded right where I would like to go. I decide that I can go higher than them, so if they blow out, they will run down instead of towards these bucks. Then, hopefully the buck doesn’t get alarmed and stays put. I get back to my ATV, when I notice this buck is up again and feeding. I watch him for another 30-45 minutes and he beds again, this time down lower where the does were bedded. Nothing I can do about the extra eyeballs, I decide to come in from below. I get to within 120 yards of the bedded deer. As I am taking my pack off, I am seen by one of the does feeding. I stay motionless for a few minutes and she goes back to feeding then beds up again. As I get closer, 70 yards or so, she again sees me but this time blows out with the 3-4 other does/fawns with her. So…..when a doe blows out……all the deer in the vicinity blow out. I walk up, in the open, to try and get a better few of this buck. Unbeknown, the buck was still bedded up in the buck brush and bust out at 50 yards!!! SON OF A B****H!!!! I figured they all left or I would have continued my original stalk plan and would have been within range. Unbelievable, never in my short hunting career have the bucks stayed when does blow out. Yet another archery lesson learned. Aw well!
That evening I decide to go North of this location where I have seen both bucks as well as elk. My buddy is supposed to be showing up late that day, so I wanted to see if I can get an eye on some celk (cow elk) since he has the tag. I am travelling to where I want to start glassing when I come across a herd of elk in the skyline.
This picture is taken approximately 3-4 miles away, again through my spotting scope.
I decide I need to get closer and hopefully glass up some bucks for me to try for. Once I got closer, I was seeing animals everywhere. Herd of celk laying to my left, bucks to my right. Unfortunately, the bucks were in a spot where they could see me coming. Not to mention the wind was wrong. The way I would need to stalk in would have put the wind at my back, so I opted to sit tight and take plenty of pictures.
Continued pt 3