We'd been checking a canyon out all week, I got my deer there opening morning and I knew, after a couple years in this country that there was another one around somewhere. We had driven to the bottom of the canyon and I had turned the rig around, stopped and began glassing the rock bluffs known as the Columbia River breaks.
I don't know how to explain it, it's that feeling you get, that say's "glass here". We have all had it, mine just came while hunting. There it was, the three black spots and the semi- heart shape, that screamed buck! I turned to Martha and said "we got him"! We bailed out of the rig and threw the spotting scope on the hood, sure enough, there he was, a legal buck. Bedded on the side of a hill, was a buck anyone would be proud to call there first.
We were already at what I would guess to be 650 yds., to far for for anyone to try a shot. Now, how was I going to get Martha into gun range. Coming up hill was out of the question, mulies bed so they can watch from high ground, and the wind to their back.
I knew this would take a team effort.( this I'II explain later) My folks were in the area just looking around, you seem to do that a lot when your retired. I raced up the canyon to find my folks, them about 2 miles up the road, and explained to them the situation. They followed me back to the location were the buck could be viewed. This my dad said, "They just had to watch!"
I proceeded to park the rig up the road about 3/4 of a mile up from my folks and got Martha ready for one hell of a climb up the side of one steep mother.
I figured if we could get on the other side of the hill, there was know way to be seen by the deer. All we had to deal with was the wind, this is where we got our first break. In the time it took to get to the top of the hill the thermals had changed. What I didn't plan on dealing with, was the deer we kicked out of the draw on the way to the top. There were doe's going every where I didn't want them to go. This turned out O.K, they all stopped short of the bedded buck, needless to say 1 was sweating this.
Now on top, with the crest of the hill between us and the buck, we began walking down the hilltop towards the buck. This is where the team work thing comes into play. Every couple of hundred yds. I would poke my head above the crest and look at my folks at the bottom on the road. Have you ever hunted with someone that just knew what you were thinking at all times? This is my dad and I, he gave me the signal, hat extended in his left hand meant that we had to go down the ridgetop further.
What I didn't expect tooking over the top was two more rigs parked and watching, Martha was drawing a little crowd! Ducking back below the crest, we hiked on, another 100 yds. We peeked over the top once again. Dad still was giving the same signal, but this time there was 5 rigs parked and watching, one of the five was a white Ford I 50 club cab, with a gold slymbol on the door. I knew right away it was the warden. This put a different twist into the game plan, I brought my rifle to back Martha up if she needed it, but I had no tag, having filled it earlier in the week. I wasn't about to point my rifle at that buck with him down there watching! Sacking over the crest I told Martha what was going on. She wasn't happy about not having a backup.
Once again, down the ridge we went, another hundred yards I peered over the ridgetop, this time things looked different, the rock outcropings and the bushes, I knew we were close. Looking through my bino's I couldn't see anything, then Martha said "I see him." She pointed him out to me and the game was on!
We took a survey of the situation, and came up with having to weave her bullet past a bush,and rock pile! A clean shot but not easy. We had cut the range from 650 to 75 yds.
As she took aim, she told me to undo her safety, she said, "If I do it, I'11 loose it." Buck fever I guess! The rifle roared! I didn't even have time to get my bino's up.
When I did the buck lay thrashing in his bed, giving his last rights. Martha rechambered another round and we sat and watched for a few minutes to make sure he was down. When we were sure, we came over the top of the ridge.
Below there were now 7 rigs watching as Martha tagged her first buck. I kid you not, you could hear those people whooping it up clear up on the hill, I'm sure this a buck Martha will never forget anytime soon!
Click Here