Twenty-six years is a long time to wait for anything, but that is roughly how long I waited to draw my first Arizona antelope tag. I will admit that for various reasons there were years in there that I simply purchased a bonus point, but for the most part, the draw just did not favor me. However, when I got ready to apply for the 2017 hunt, I had several friends who told me that my 26 bonus points would virtually guarantee me a tag. While I had never considered myself a “horn hunter,” I wanted to be sure that I gave myself an opportunity at one of Arizona’s true antelope trophies.
I have the good fortune of being related to Chad Rhoton of A3 Trophy Hunts, Ltd. Chad is my nephew, and I have known him since he was a kid running around the White Mountains south of Eagar, Arizona. I watched him as he has built A3 into the premier big game outfitter in Arizona, so when it came time to submit my application, I called Chad to get his advice. Without hesitation, Chad told me to apply for the hunt in unit 5B and to make sure I purchased PointGuard just in case something came up and I was unable to use my tag. I followed Chad’s instructions, and when the draw results came out, I found myself in possession of permit #2 for the hunt in unit 5B.
It was then that I realized the last 26 years had taken its toll on me physically. I recognized that I was 40 years and 80 pounds past my prime, and I began to wonder just how I could make the most of this once-in-a-lifetime hunt opportunity, so I called on Chad again. The bad news was that Chad and his wife had also drawn antelope tags, limiting his ability to provide his personal assistance. The good news was that Chad said he would make sure I had the right kind of help to make this hunt a success, as long as I could make the shot. I went to my gun safe and pulled out my most reliable rifle, a Savage Long-Range Hunter chambered in 7mm Remington magnum, and began working up loads for an expected long-range shot. By the time the hunt came around, I was consistently ringing a 12” gong at 800 yards, but that was from a bench with little or no wind and no mirage, so I set my personal limit at 400 yards, assuming I had a decent rest.
A week before the start of my hunt, Chad met me out in my unit and spent two days with me, showing me where I should be focusing my scouting efforts and helping me understand how to judge a quality buck. Larry, an old Arizona hunting buddy who had recently relocated to Texas, also drove out to help me with this hunt, and we soon realized I would have no problem finding antelope, but judging them was a whole different matter. It was not difficult for us to tell a little buck from a mature buck, but we were having a very difficult time identifying the difference between a mature buck that was just “pretty” and one that had record book potential, so I called Chad again and explained our dilemma. He understood perfectly and let me know that he had just the guide to help me make the right decisions on this hunt. The next day, I got a call from A3 guide, Tyler Mott.
Tyler was everything you want in a guide. He was young, strong, and enthusiastic. He was from Flagstaff and knew my hunt unit very well, but most importantly, he knew where to find antelope and how to judge them. Like Chad, Tyler helped Larry and me understand where in the unit to focus our scouting in order to find a quality buck. We glassed mature bucks every morning and every evening, but the day before the hunt, I still had not found one I felt was worthy of my 26-year wait. Tyler then showed me photos of several bucks he had found and asked if I might be interested in any of them. There was one buck that really piqued my interest. He was not the biggest buck, but he was big enough and had those perfect heart-shaped horns with beautiful ivory tips. I told Tyler I would like to see if we could find him again.
Tyler told us the general area this buck had been hanging out in and agreed to meet us there that evening to see if we could locate him. Larry and I showed up a little early, and it wasn’t long before we had located a buck with two does, but they were a ways off and we were not sure this was the right one. Tyler showed up shortly thereafter and confirmed that this was the buck we were looking for. Our buck had two does with him, and Tyler agreed to sit on them until dark to see where they bedded while Larry and I went and scouted one last area. We met up again right after dark, and Tyler said he had watched the buck bed in the prairie. We decided we should make a play for him the next morning.
We met up just before sunrise on opening morning about a mile south from where Tyler had last seen the antelope. As soon as it was light enough to start glassing, we spotted the buck and two does up and feeding right where they had been the night before. Tyler asked if I felt comfortable with a 300-400 yard shot, and I told him I was comfortable at those distances as long as I had a good rest and time to set up. The country was relatively flat, open grassland, but there was a string of trees on a small rise to the north of the antelope. Tyler felt that if we could get to those trees, I should have a 300-yard shot. I said, “Let’s do it,” and the hunt was on.
We left Larry at our glassing point to keep an eye on things, and Tyler and I drove around until we were about a mile north of where the antelope were and began our stalk, using small ridges as cover. There was little wind and all was well until we bumped a couple of mule deer bucks who moved into the string of trees we were trying to get to. We were afraid they might push our antelope, but they moved through without disturbing things and we continued to stalk in. When we got to the trees, we slowed to a creep. As we got close enough to see over the last swale, we could pick out the two does but could not locate the buck. We were not sure if the buck was bedded in the grass, obscured by trees or brush, or concealed by some other undulation in the landscape. The does made it difficult for us to move without being seen, but with the help of Larry on the spotting scope over a mile away, we soon figured out that the buck had bedded behind a large juniper tree. Our best option appeared to be waiting patiently and hoping that when the buck stood up he would feed out toward the does and give me an estimated 150-200 yard shot.
We sat down and tried to get comfortable in an area that was covered with volcanic rock. It was difficult, but I did my best to find a comfortable shooting position using Tyler’s spotting scope tripod for a rest. What we hoped would be a short wait turned into an hour and a half hour trial of our patience, but we knew it was coming to an end when we spotted a coyote working its way into the picture. Tyler told me to get ready as we saw one of the does break and run to our right. We assumed the buck would follow, but he came out to our left, about 120 yards away. I tried to swing my gun to pick him up, but he spun around, running back toward the doe on our right. I tried again to readjust, but just as I picked him up in my scope, he spun and with all the speed you expect from an antelope, he headed away from us back out into the prairie. At that point, I felt like if he would just stop within 400 yards I could still take him, but he never stopped long enough for a shot. Instead, he turned again and sprinted back toward us, disappearing behind the large juniper tree that had originally blocked our view of him. However, as he came out the other side of the tree, he suddenly stopped, giving me the opportunity I needed. I quickly found him in my scope and dropped him where he stood. It was not until it was all over that I found out that Tyler had stopped the buck by “flagging” him - raising and lowering his camo shirt to expose his white undershirt. My anticipated long-range shot turned out to be a 65-yard shot!
As I walked up to this antelope, I could immediately tell he was my buck-of-a-lifetime. He was long and heavy, had great cutters, and was beautiful. I know there are bigger bucks out there, but this buck was everything I ever hoped for and well worth my 26-year wait. My thanks go out to Chad Rhoton and Tyler Mott of A3 Trophy Hunts and Texas Larry for their help in fulfilling my dreams. It would not have happened without them.
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