Shoot That Deer

By Ralph Schuette

It was 6:30 on November 8th, the third day of my seven day Colorado deer season. Due to scheduling problems, aka: working requirements, it was my first morning of the season on the mountain. The eastern horizon was just starting to turn light blue when I looked up on a ridge and saw a monster buck in silhouette against the morning sky. Since my arrival on Sunday afternoon, and the evening hunt that ensued, I had come to realize that spotting a big buck in this area was not uncommon, but this was one you dream about. We ranged him at 547 yards, and through the “Big Eye,” as my guide called it, of a spotting scope he was magnificent. The guide conservatively estimated his width at 34" plus. He was a pure typical with great mass. It appeared that this was the same buck that my guide had seen at first light the opening morning of the season while scouting this same pocket. In that instance, he had been within 200 yards, but alas, I had been 2,000 miles away doing that work thing I mentioned. Now, I would love to tell you that I took a steady rest, and having practiced at 600 yards, calmly dropped the buck in his tracks, but that was not the case. We watched, waited, planned, even prayed for a way to approach, but the gusting wind and terrain were on his side. We had already passed up more than several good bucks, but walked away, so as not to end up pushing this one out of the country. All of us in camp spent the next several days and nights dreaming about him. We discussed at length the blessing of even seeing such a creature. What are the chances of being in the right place at the right time, and there even being such an animal in existence? How many times will a deer step out between two trees for a few seconds while you happen to be looking in that direction? Patience, persistence, and diligence are all well and good, we have heard it all before. Lets add to that, the time, money, and help of good knowledgeable people to put you in the area to begin with.

My journey to this deer paradise began 8 years ago when I started collecting the seven preference points needed to acquire a tag for this Northwestern section of Colorado. Each year as my points grew, I would plan as if this were the year. Time spent studying The Huntin’ Fool would lead me to my specific choice of areas and seasons. Then the dreamin’ and waitin’ was on! This year I was extra excited, due in no small part to Jason Carter’s comments about the potential for big deer in the 2005 Colorado season. Then it happened! I got my tag!

I don’t think the envelope even hit the floor before I was on the phone to the Carter’s for guide advice. Jason recommended Rim Rock Outfitters in Rangely, Colorado. The camp is owned and run by Monty Elder and his wife Rebecca. I was to find out that a finer and more professional couple, with superb guides and a first rate area may not exist. Monty is everything one could ask for in an outfitter and, with the very capable assistance of his wife, everything runs perfectly. They have a standard clause in their contract that states something about ‘the hunt being over after you take your animal.’ After staying with them and eating Rebecca’s cooking for several days, I could see why that was necessary. Requesting to extend my reservation was tempting, it was that good!

I was assigned Joel Hogan as my guide and we hit it off right away. Joel has been a resident of Rangely and an avid hunter his whole life. In addition to his extensive knowledge of the local area and people, he is a renowned sportsman and conservationist. He is intimately familiar with the area, the local people, the history, and the critters that live there. Joel lives for the outdoors, he loves it, and it shows. I found him to be an upstanding Christian sportsman and family man. I couldn’t have asked for any more in a hunting companion and guide.

Each day we would depart camp in the dark and be in position in the hills at first light. For several mornings this meant one particular pocket where we hoped to view, once more, the big fella that was haunting us. We never saw him again. Deer are everywhere in this spectacular unit, and we saw them literally morning, noon, and night.

During our initial discussions about my expectations and desires I had stated that I wanted to hold out for something in the 30" range or something special. I further stated that I would be satisfied to go home empty if that did not work out. As I soon learned, Joel’s ability to field judge animals proved to be extraordinary. Someone with this acquired skill is a privilege to have along side on any hunt. As with any good guide, his estimates were meant to be accurate, and hence, were usually the minimum that the animal would tape.

Joel mentioned that his intentions and hopes were that we would find something that would only require him to say “shoot this deer” and not have to hope it grows on the ground walking up to it. I had meant what I said about 30 inches or nothing, but now I had a problem. I had been spoiled by Mr. Big. Maybe I had set my sights too low. This may seem unbelievable, it certainly was amazing to me, but we passed on big deep forked 27 inch 4x4’s in the 170 class everyday. The excuses were many. Weak backs, crab claw fronts, no brow tines, thin, narrow but tall, wide with mass but……. This went on for days. Sometimes one or the other of us would just say, “Let’s get out of here before we talk ourselves into killing this deer.” They were beautiful and very respectable trophies, but we had been spoiled.

After yet another enjoyable and beautiful morning of viewing and passing on numerous bucks, we met up with Joel’s son, Todd. Having grown up with Joel, it was no great surprise that Todd is an accomplished hunter in his own right. Todd had requested to accompany us for the evening hunt, and provide an extra set of eyes, which was fine by me.

I have always been led to believe, through stories and articles, that the best hunting is on private land and/or limited access with some type of lease or trespass fee. Rim Rock Outfitters has thousands of acres that are just that. The hunting is amazing but they also adjoin thousands more that are open BLM. Now it was 3 o’clock in the afternoon and we were proceeding into yet another canyon, this time on BLM. Several days earlier, as a lover of the outdoors like his father, Todd had been out scouting around these canyons and had seen some good deer sign.

As we were slowly making our way through the bottom, we spotted some deer at about 200 yards. At first it looked to be just another big buck. But, as he turned his head, something appeared to be hanging from his left horn. The conversation that ensued was cryptic at best. Joel told me to get ready to shoot, while he and Todd discussed what we were really looking at. There was no time for the “Big Eye” and really no need at just 200 yards. I prepared to get ready to shoot and therefore only made out bits and pieces of the ensuing conversation, but it was enough to get me excited. First, they thought that it was a bush next to the deer that was blending in with the horns, then the possibility of something tangled in with the horns. Shortly after that theory, Todd said, “Dad, he has extra stuff!” Then came the words I had been waiting for. I know that Joel said them softly, but it sounded like he shouted them to me. “SHOOT THAT DEER!”

We had discussed just such a possibility and I was not about to second guess two such seasoned deer hunters, but I had not even gotten my glasses on this deer yet. I was still trying to find a place to get rested when the order came. It seemed that my two companions were getting very excited, which did not help me to stay calm for the shot.

After sitting down in an acceptable spot, I found the deer in the scope facing away from me. I waited until he turned slightly to the left and then I caught a glimpse of what they had been talking about. He was high, wide, with great mass, and a drop tine that hung down what looked like 9 inches. Looking at the horns through the scope and not concentrating on the shot is not what we are taught, but it was right there and tough to avoid. I pulled my attention back to the proper subject, shot placement, and proceeded to do as I was told. “SHOOT THAT DEER!”

The animal walked about 100 yards after the shot, and finally piled up in a dry rock stream bed.

Walking up to the animal was the most amazing moment of my hunting life. All I could do was stare at what God had blessed us with. He was so much more than we had even dared to estimate or ask for. Ground shrinkage was no problem, we had ground growth. The thoughts of being in the right place for fleeting moments, and the discussions of the previous days, all came crashing down. We had been truly blessed and we all said so. Yes, we had worked hard, walked, searched, and had done our part, but at this moment in time we just felt blessed.

This senior monarch of a deer measures 36 5⁄8 inches across, 32 inches outside the main beams and his green score measured in camp is 240. There are 10 points on the left and 9 on the right. One drop tine measures 12 inches and the other measures 7 inches. He was a fine old man with no teeth remaining in his mouth. Colorado Division of Wildlife aged him at 10 to 12 years old. A true trophy by any standards.

This hunting adventure was a success long before we connected with this buck. The blessings were many. With new friends, beautiful country, bountiful hunting, and great food. The deer we were granted was just a wonderful plus. I wish to thank the Carters’, everyone at Rim Rock, and my family for indulging my hunting passion.

Rim Rock Outfitters, via Monty and Rebecca, have some of the best hunting I have ever even read about. It is truly unbelievable and just seems to be getting better. Every one of the clients that I met at camp took home very nice bucks and enjoyed their experience and guides as much as I did. We were all amazed and commented on how those numerous 27 inch bucks that we turned down will just get bigger and better. Monty, Rebecca, Joel, and I discussed the fact that with adequate winter moisture, and proper game management, there is reason to believe that hunters will be turning down multiple 30 inch bucks next year, looking for something special.

As Jason Carter wrote, the best deer hunting of our lives is probably available right now!

Amen to that!