When you think of hunting out west, a majority of people dream of screaming elk in September, the iconic mule deer, the holy grail of bighorn sheep, and others. When I moved out to Arizona almost eight years ago, I had only heard rumors of the tiny little whitetail called Coues deer as my uncle had dreamed of hunting them for years. Little did I know I would end up living in some of the best Coues deer country Arizona has to offer. As much as I enjoy sitting behind a rifle, I am a bowhunter at heart. When I began chasing Coues deer also known as the “Grey Ghost,” I quickly found out how they acquired that nickname. These deer seem to simply vanish into thin air.
For the first couple of years living in Arizona, I had the pleasure of stalking Coues deer and learning more and more about them every time. Finally, in January 2016, I was able to fill my over-the-counter archery deer tag on my first Coues deer. It took me several years, and I felt so accomplished when it all came together and I was holding my buck, which scored just over 106".
Though I have never been able to get Coues deer off my mind or out of my blood, once you hunt these animals, it becomes a love or hate relationship. You either end up hating it, or if you’re like me, it becomes an addiction. I scouted hard and found several bucks that were worth keeping an eye on between trail cameras and glassing. Luckily, my wife is very understanding of my passion for hunting and I am able to spend a lot of time out scouting.
During the January 2018 over-the-counter hunt, I located a buck that caught my eye. He had the usual configuration of being a 3x3 on his right side with a webbed left side main beam that turned into his tines. Though the one thing that stood this buck out from the rest was his insane eyeguards. This buck appeared to have six to seven inch eyeguards. After watching and studying this buck, I made the judgment call to let him go as he didn’t quite have the age and maturity I was looking for, knowing this buck could end up being a true giant with his genetics. It was a hard decision to make as I have done the same on several other bucks only to have them vanish and never be seen again. To top it off, this buck seemed to avoid all of my trail cameras and I was only able to turn him up during the rut in January. Throughout the rest of 2018, I searched high and low trying to find this buck but was never able to turn him up.
Fast forward one year to the day from the last time I had confirmed the buck was alive. I, along with two good buddies, was perched up on a vantage point overlooking his rutting ground. The morning was chilly, and the fog had set in thick. Glassing was difficult, to say the least. As the fog slowly began to burn off with the morning sun, we were able to find a buck pushing a doe in between the patches of fog. The buck was a deer I knew well. I had named him “Bully” as he was a giant, super heavy fork. Shortly thereafter, another buck appeared, and right away we knew this buck was special. If you have ever hunted Arizona before, you know that the landscape can obscure your visual to pick apart a buck’s headgear. As I was stalking my way in, Bully realized the other buck was there and he didn’t hesitate on leaving the country. At that point, I knew the other buck would be as special as I thought he was because Bully never turned down a fight.
I was excited and anxious to get an up close and personal look at the buck. I began to hear grunting coming towards me but was unable to get eyes on the buck. As I was scanning, I was able to see the doe about 30 yards off to my west, afraid the buck may push her through without me being able to get a clear shooting window. As I hit my rattle bag, I instantly heard the buck raking a tree from where the doe had appeared moments before. In a blur, the buck got behind the doe and pushed her around a bush to my north. The doe stepped out at only 15 yards. When she turned her head back to look for the buck, I eased my bow to full draw. I settled my 30-yard pin on his vitals and let my body relax as I was slowly pulling back. In slow motion, I heard the click of my release let go as my bow went off. The buck whirled and was gone in a flash, but not before I heard the reassuring thwack of my arrow connecting. With it all happening so fast and being so close, I was never able to see exactly where my arrow had entered the buck.
I made my way out quietly to have a conversation with my buddies about it. As I was walking out, the emotions were starting to catch up with me. After talking with my buddies, we decided the buck was likely dead. Something was different this time versus all the other animals in the past. I was blessed with a baby boy in 2018. My father and uncle are the reason I am a hunter today, and a lot of that has to do with starting me out at a young age. I remember blood trailing my dad’s buck with both of them for my first time. Now, my seven-month-old may never remember this, but I wanted him and my wife along for the recovery of this buck.
When my wife and little boy met us out there, we all walked in together to pick up the trail. I was able to recover my arrow along with a solid blood trail. After a short distance, we found my buck lying motionless. As I untangled his antler from the cactus and grass, it became clear to me that this wasn’t just another buck. This was the buck I had let walk exactly one year prior. Having my family and friends there to experience this with me as I was finally able to put hands on this buck was great. This was by far my largest Coues deer and easily netted over my personal goal I had set. Being able to have my family at my side as we recovered the buck meant more to me than any score on a piece of paper.
Hopefully, one day my son will have the addiction and I can teach him along the way as my father and uncle did for me. Until then, it’s time to study the Huntin’ Fool magazines to draw my next out-of-state tag until I can chase the Grey Ghost again in 2020.
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