Story By: Sawyer Ekins
At first light, we spotted a herd of about twenty mule deer, and my dad said there were two shooter bucks in the herd. My dad got me set up on my bipod for a 380-yard shot, but I was unable to find the bigger buck due to the tall grass. The does got spooked, and my dad told me they were about to take off and that the buck would follow. The herd took off up over a ridge, and my dad said, “Come on, we have to go after them.”
We took off after them and side-hilled along a steep mountain. We were almost at the ridge when my dad said, “There he is.” My dad got my rifle set up on his pack, which he put on a large boulder, and said, “Aim for the top of his back.” When I pulled the trigger, I asked my dad if I got him, and my dad said he wasn’t sure, but the buck did take a bad step after the shot.
“My buck scored 163 6/8”, which got my dad way too excited—haha!”
The buck went over another ridge with the does, and my dad said, “We are going to sit here and see if he comes out.” After sitting for a few minutes, all the does ran out on an open sidehill, and my dad said the buck was not with them. He told me he thought the buck was probably lying somewhere over that ridge, dead. We hiked around the bottom of the finger ridge, and Dad said, “There he is.”
My buck scored 163 6/8”, which got my dad way too excited—haha!