Hey Guys,
Planning a hunt over a water hole this weekend. Haven't really hunted a water hole before but have done a lot of treestand hunting.
My question is regarding wind impact on set-up. How would you recommend positioning a blind or changing position with the wind direction.?
From my experience deer would normally approach a food source from downwind and put their nose into the wind working up. So, if you are sitting at the hole either downwind or upwind side, isn't it likely that they will wind you no matter what, unless you can pinpoint exactly what direction they are heading from. But even then, the deer may take a meandering approach, zig-zagging if you will.
Any suggestions other than good scent control? Am I over-analyzing this set-up?
Thanks.
Guess I didn't need your help anyway guys...i bagged a monster muley.
Later
photo
photo
Awsome Buck!!!!!!! Is that a AZ buck? Awsome trophy.. I see you didnt cape it.
Tell us about the hunt. were you in a ground blind, spot and stalk?
Looking forward to the story behind that trophy!
paulc
Looks like we should be asking you for advice, Btele!
Nice buck, and congrats!
He has no gallery to applaud or disapprove of his conduct... Whatever his acts, they are dictated by his own conscience rather than a mob of onlookers. It is difficult to exaggerate the importance of this fact.
Aldo Leopold
That is a monster --- we want more info!!!!!!!
Society in any state is a blessing, but government even in its best state is but a necessary evil. T. Paine
I am old enough to remember when this really was the land of the free. CS
Nice buck, umm to answer your question. Muleys just seem to come in however they want. If your up above then wind isn't an issue. You apparently got it right with that one.
Judge Gideon J. Tucker, wrote in a 1866 ruling that "No man's life, liberty, or property are safe while the legislature is in session."
Dude, you don't just put a photo of a hawg buck like that without some details. Wow. Some of us are heading to AZ in a matter of days and pics like that are what keep us going. Nice job!
"One does not hunt in order to kill; on the contrary, one kills in order to have hunted..." Jose Ortega y Gasset
Brian, That's him!
Let's hear the story!
(This is Jeff from Desertbull)
Well..just had this story typed up and the phone rings...somehow hit delete all and so here we go again..
First of all..many thanks to Jeff with Desert Bull for putting me in the area, giving me the opprotunity to shoot my best buck yet. Killer scouting package. I would recommend having a local scout for you out of state hunters as I am sure you can all relate to spending half of your hunt scouting, like I did in the Kaibab earlier in '05.
Anyway, the hunt was scheduled for later than I planned due to work committments, so i headed for AZ..solo on New Year's Eve Day. Made it to desert spike camp in about 6 hours from San Diego. Great directions and accurate coordinates Jeff! However, I must have passed by at least 5 family camps on the way in..4wheelin, partying fools..enjoying the holiday. So I though I was screwed with all this activity near hunt camp..guess not though. Set-up camp, had a few cold ones, unloaded the king quad, washed up and headed to scout "Water Hole #2". Got there at about 3PM and busted about 30 doves. Checked the wind, made two ground blinds around the larger native scrub bush, one on the South and one on the Northeasterly side. The blind on the South, looked like it was hunted before as there was old rebar in the ground in front of the bush with old decomposed carboard and dry brush making a nice little pocket. This is where I wound up hunting from. Set my little blind stool in there and actually left it for future use, although I am sure it will be gone when i return next year. Anyway, made a mock scrape at the water hole and put some 4X4 down and got the hell out of there.
Got back to camp, shot the bow, had a few more cold ones glassed some hillsides to the east, saw some 4wheelers riding..great...ate some good dehydrated chow...which brought back sweet memories from the Alaska caribou float hunt and road trip back in August/September. Enjoyed the fire, starts and I-tunes..and hit the pillow dreaming of the next morning. Love the desert at night man.
Woke up at 5:00AM, felt really good, ate some caribou pepperoni sticks, packed some food and water for the day as I was planning on an all day stand on the water hole. Rubbed some charcoal from the spent fire on the face and hands, loaded up the king quad and rode off to the hole. Parked the quad a good .25 mile from the trail head in and walked. Got in the blind..wind was perrfect! Morning started to wake up th birds. Man, the quail were really talklin...chi..koo..koo....chi..koo..koo. First the doves, then some other woodpecker type birds, then I a covey of about 20 quail came in at about 7:30AM. I knew the deer were listening too but I had to stand up slowly and video tape the quail. As I was filming..the birds busted...wasn't me...then i heard footsteps...I knew it was a deer..so I put my composure togther and dropped the video camera slowly to the ground. Just as I was putting the camera down...I see antlers bouncing over the bush to my left and straight towards the hole...holy sh$@ batman..these anlters were massive and tall!! My heart immediately started pounding and my mouth got dry...i was definately high on the beast...Right as he cleared into the open..he was advancing to the water hole broadside...i let the camera down on the ground and started to pick up my bow with my left hand ever so slowly...as i raised the bow, the broadhead caught the brush and then popped loose only to thwack the only part of my arrow rest not covered by moleskin. The buck stopped in his tracks broadside not yet at the hole. The stare down was on. It was only 5 seconds but it seemed like an eternity. He was huge and I could really now see his spread and tine length. His neck was swollen and I swear I could smell him. This was surely the biggest buck I have evr had this close of an encouter with. So just as i was starting to come to terms with spooking this giant...he turns his head like nothing happneed and headed straight for the hole..only to put hi head down into my mock scrape! Yeah baby...i started to draw back from 30 yds..and he caught me but it was too late...i released the carbon shaft tipped with a 100 grain muzzy from the Matthews death machine..right through the front shoulder, pump station and out the other shoulder. Knocked him over...violently stumbled 30 yds and was down...we call this shot the "Sutherland Special"...my buddy pins all deer through the front shoulders..the muzzy's always seem to go through to blow the heart out and minimize tracking. I usually go for double lung to save the meat and ensure the pass through..but I didn't want this dude going anywhere....needless to say...ground shrinkage did not apply here...i again list my sh$@ when I approached the buck. I was in disbelief and was having monster buck video flashbacks...unreal...this is why we hunt man...not much can compare to the way I felt that morning. This was the first and last deer i saw on this trip and that was just fine with me. He was awesome, was ruttin hard..rubbin cactus at his bases..his tarsals were wet and stnky..but man did I love that smell on this morning!
After field dressing, I dragged him back to camp via the quad...constantly looking over my shoulder and grinning...got back..took some photos with the tripod and proceeded to dress him out alaska fillet style into quarter game bags...cirtric acid the whole bit...loaded the meat into a large igloo pre-oaded with 5 bags of block ice..lined with poly...packed up camp..and I am making this all sound easier than it was..I almost passed out a couple times from the excitement, over-exertionand dehydration. Solo missions can wear you out a bit. So then Hit the road..high as a kite on this hunt..called everyone I know and before I knew it I was back in SD. Meat was in great condition and was just finished up the butcher today. Oh yeah..he weighed about 150 field dressed...that's what my cabela's scale read just before the cactus arm almost decapitated me...lesson learned...felt bad about the cactus arm too as it was probably twice my age.
Gonna go with the Euro mount, just because that's what I like. But I will do something a little different to showcase this rack, since it is the best yet. Gonna attach a stand to the bottom of the skull anchor and put the rack on a shelf or mantle. The rack will be positioned looking straight forward and upright like it was looking right at you. Not like most Euro mounts that are positioned skull downward. I think it will really compliment the nice symmetry on this guy. I should be getting back my caribou racks soon too..it's funny, I live in a 700 SF condo at the beach and it's gonna be full of racks..hopefully the artificial ones too every now and again!!
Alright..sorry for the longwinded story, but i am eternally stoked. '06 has already rocked! Good luck to all in the field. Thanks again to Jeff. Happy New Year and may the spirit of the beast live on..
Brian
SD
Great write-up, Brian! That was a blast to read.
Nicely done.
He has no gallery to applaud or disapprove of his conduct... Whatever his acts, they are dictated by his own conscience rather than a mob of onlookers. It is difficult to exaggerate the importance of this fact.
Aldo Leopold
Man, that's awesome!
This guy is still at the same waterhole
And I filmed this guy last Saturday getting busy with a whole buttload of does in the same unit.
Dude, that is so awesome! Congrats. Chock another up for the SD boys. Hope to add a couple more to that list over the next few days. Yup, Jeff knows his stuff fo shizzle'. Coues, was that the same buck that you sent the pics of? The one chasing the does?
Awesome buck! Congrats to the both of you!
"One does not hunt in order to kill; on the contrary, one kills in order to have hunted..." Jose Ortega y Gasset
Nate, When you guys come out, I would highly suggest you consider sitting over some water. Maybe take turns, one guy glassing from up high, the other sitting in a blind?
We have not had a drop of rain since August.
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Brian, can I use one of your pictures and story for the website?
Great write up. There is nothing like getting a great animal on your own.
Congrats!!!!!
paulc
Jeff,
No problem, feel free to use the pics and write up.
Brian
Jeff,
And from judging the scouting photos, I would estimate that the other buck you posted in velvet is most likely taller and wider than the buck I shot!
Brian
SD
Nice buck. Congrats
Mike Souza
This Brian guy looks familiar.
Brian, that's an awesome buck. Great photos and great read. That's the way to get it done.
I've used Desert Bull Scouting Service in the past, and it always pays off. They provide a great service for the guy that's too busy to scout out of town.
Brent
Go Get 'em, One Track
Gimedat Camo
Wilderness Compadre
Wacuzzy Broadheads
Thanks for the tip Jeff. I've been thinking the same thing.
"One does not hunt in order to kill; on the contrary, one kills in order to have hunted..." Jose Ortega y Gasset
Congrats on the nice buck, great story to boot. Taking a good buck in southern Az is a great accomplishment. Congrats again. Ed F
What a brut!!! Nice write up. Gets the old blood flowing again.
Surgeon General Warning: Doing anything, anytime or anywhere can be hazardous to your health.
Brent,
Long time no see old buddy...haven't hunted laguna in a while..but still follow you and Sdhunters threads..just to get the updates..and a few laughs because I know what laguna is all about...anyway...congrats on a good pig hunt too bro...see you around amigo.
Thought you and the guys here might be interested in my Alaska caribou float hunt trip..which was about 1 year in planning...drove from san diego..picked up my buddy in Vancouver, BC..fished and hunted the whole way up...flew into the colville river...100 miles west of dalton highway..uguided..total success...spent 2 months on the road..anyway..here is the link to a slide show..also if you or any of the other guys here need info on it...i pretty developed a fullproof checklist and have all the info...let me know.
http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/btele4/album...m/ph//my_photos
All the best in '06
Later,
Brian
Wasn't able to pull up the thread. Looking foward to seeing it. Sounds like an incredible trip. Last time I saw you, you introduced me to your fiance. I'm assuming she went with you on this trip, or it didn't work out.
Go Get 'em, One Track
Gimedat Camo
Wilderness Compadre
Wacuzzy Broadheads
Awesome buck, great story.
Brent,
I am suprised you can't open the link...anyway..yeah we're still together..not married...so still can get away with going on trips like that without her..plus..can't bring the little lady on a trip like that man...too rugged...she understands...but i now owe her a trip to somewhere tropical...i guess i can live with that.
Lates,
Brian
I used Desert Bull on my first hunt ever to Zona. With Jeff's help, we are on the javy's, and I had stuck my first big game animal. Plus, I have shared camp with him a couple of times, and honestly, I consider him just as much of a staple as food and water.
That buck is one heck of a toad. Many congrats. I appreciate a person who does things his way. Your mount sounds killer. I will be in Zona, back with the boys next year. Until then, everyone shoot straight.
Coues, that 4x better be on your wall by the time I get there in 07.
Joey
The less a man makes declarative statements, the less apt he is to look foolish in retrospect. - V.T.
Nobody can offend you, unless you give them permission to do so.
When you judge someone, you do not define them. You define yourself as someone who needs to judge.
nice buck. good job.
BORN TO HUNT
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