Throughout the winter of 2016, I found myself looking over mule deer on their winter range in Utah with hopes I might be able to recognize some of the bucks from the prior hunting seasons. On one of these trips I distinctly remember seeing a buck I had never seen before. The deer showed great potential being that he was of a younger age class, had a unique set of non-typical antlers and matching cheater points on his rear forks. I later named this particular buck “Prospect” as I faced a difficult and character defining decision in the near future to let him live. I did this in faith he would continue to grow and reach the full stature I believed he could. Read More...
The thought of “the big buck that got away” is what draws many of us back to the mountains year after year. Encouraging daydreams allow us to believe that big bucks seen in the past somehow avoided harvest and these thoughts are what drive our pre-season scouting efforts. The buck my Dad and I had in mind for the upcoming year was a deer we named “Maverick." Dad hunted this buck during the 2014 season and we both knew he had the potential to blow up in size if not harvested. Read More...
Another year has arrived, with my dad and I both drawing general archery deer tags in our home state of Utah. After a successful 2013 season, the challenge of killing another giant mule deer in the high country was upon us. July’s scouting trips produced many young bucks in all the basins we typically hunt, but it appeared that finding something special was going to be tough. Every year we seek out new areas in order to stay ahead of the competition and it wasn’t until ten days prior to the hunt that fate gave us a buck worthy of punching a tag on. Read More...
While unsuccessful in the 2013 draw, Dad and I were both fortunate enough to draw non-resident deer tags in the state of Wyoming in 2014. Acquiring more than one deer tag in a single year can either be rewarding or disastrous. With Utah’s archery season opening two weeks before Wyoming’s, the decision where to spend precious scouting time could possibly make or break our hunt. Read More...
This story doesn’t start like the typical high country mule deer hunt should go. Unfortunately, there wasn’t a summer full of scouting, fitness, and shooting the bow. Instead, my job had me back east doing sales all summer. My dad was still in Utah and able to do a bit of scouting for us as we both drew Utah General Archery Deer tags. This was going to be another tough season on public land as we choose to do it the hard way.I knew if we stuck to my rule of “Hunt Smarter, Not Harder”, we would be successful. Read More...
