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Zen Hunting

The Buck of Destiny

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The Buck of Destiny

Is this the buck of destiny? Well it’s not on my hit list…yet.

As I was walking out my front door today I noticed this handsome little two-point buck feeding in the empty lot next door. I barely had enough time to grab my camera and snap this shot as he made a high jump and then fed within 20 yards of our house.

When my wife and I moved out to the country in 2012, we just wanted a yard big enough to shoot our bows in. Little did we know there was a whole herd of deer living along the slough that passes behind our house. We’ve seen up to 21 deer at one time! Below is the biggest buck we’ve seen:

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The best part about having backyard deer is that you can really learn a lot by observing their natural behaviors. Sometimes I try to move about the yard undetected. I watch how they react to different sounds and movements. I observe their daytime routines, feeding habits, and anything else I can learn. The fact is, the better you understand your prey, the better hunter you’ll be.

So, today’s buck was a real treat. We haven’t seen bucks all summer and now they’re here, in the backyard. And just in time, too, because tomorrow is the big day. I’m finally heading into the hills on my first bowhunt of 2014. When I return in a few days I’ll update this blog, hopefully with a bunch more pictures of much bigger bucks.

Zen Hunting

Still Holding Out For the BIG One

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Still Holding Out For the BIG Buck

I’ve had deer on my mind lately…probably because the season is in full swing and here I am sitting behind my computer!

Unfortunately, I’ve chosen the difficult and lonely path of a trophy deer hunter. What this means is I’m holding out for a true, one-in-a-million, mule deer giant, also known as a superbuck. What makes a superbuck you ask? In Utah a “trophy” is defined as any buck with at least a 30-inch spread. But a trophy is really in the eye of the beholder. In my mind, a superbuck is:

  1. At least 30 inches wide.
  2. Has at least 5 points on each side (eyeguards included).
  3. Is a mature buck with a huge body and worn down teeth.
  4. Has long and massive main beams with deep forks.

If the buck doesn’t have at least three of these four qualities, I’ll pass. Passing any big, mature mule deer is extremely difficult. Not only is it rare to find any mature bucks these days, but getting within 50 yards or less is nearly impossible. The biggest challenge is when you come face-to-face with a “good” buck–not a great buck. It’s easy to get excited and fool yourself into thinking he’s bigger than he really is. And what if you don’t get another chance? But when you pull the trigger, it’s all over. Remember the old saying: “You can’t shoot the big ones if you shoot the small ones.”

I didn’t set out to become a trophy hunter, it found me! For decades I was happy to bag any buck. The problem is with human nature. It’s human nature to continually seek bigger and better things. Complacency and mediocrity might be common traits nowadays, but it’s really an anomaly. Human consciousness compels us to achieve more and more, even sometimes to our detriment. For me and my mule deer aspirations, I simply choose excellence because I can. I just love big bucks.

Trophy hunters sometimes get a bad rap. Some people associate trophy hunters with “head hunters” or people that shoot deer not for the meat, but for their headgear. This is sometimes true, but for me, bigger heads means bigger bodies, and that means more meat. Besides the meat, their regal, majestic heads are just beautiful!

I only get to hunt one deer a year; why not make it something I’m proud of?! I hunt trophies not for the glory, but to prove to myself that I can. This year I refuse to settle. No matter how difficult, no matter how much time I must spend afield, I won’t even think about pulling an arrow until I’ve verified a genuine superbuck. My mantra is: One tag, one year, one superbuck!

I’ll probably need some superluck…

Zen Hunting

Holding Out For the BIG One

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Holding Out for the BIG Buck

The archery season is in full swing and NO, I haven’t even gone hunting yet. I don’t hunt the opener for the following reasons:

  1. The deer are under a lot of pressure after opening weekend and go into deep hiding. A week or two into the season and they usually calm down and fall back into their normal summer routine.
  2. The bucks are still in velvet, and I just like hard horns better. Velvet is deceiving. Velvet adds about 30% more false mass to a buck’s rack, making quick judging a little more difficult. When that velvet comes off, well that’s the true measure of the deer’s rack. Plus, velvet has to be carefully preserved in and out of the field, which can be a pain. But in the end, it comes down to personal preference. Some people just love fuzzy bucks.

So, I have three more days to get some work done, and then I’m gone! I’ll pick up where I left off last year, in the Superbuck area. I only spent a couple days there last year, but from what I’ve seen it looks very promising. There’s plenty of feed, water, and best of all, very little pressure.

Wish me luck!