My son Tyler just turned 12 this Oct. Finally legal for big game hunting here in Wyoming. He has been shooting coyotes, jack rabbits, PD's, etc for years, but has been waiting for deer, antelope and elk... Chomping at the bit actually! LOL
Tyler drew a good antelope tag and we bought a general deer tag, which is good for the same area. His Uncle Brian came up from Nebraska to join in on the hunt. They share the same B'day in Oct. Just 30 years apart !
The day started out early, but with only a 15 minute drive to our hunting area, we arrived with plenty of time. We spotted a nice 4x5 whitetail right off the bat and made a good stalk on him in open grassland hills, but he crossed the neighbors fence and was safe. We decided to go try for goats, as the deer were bedding down for the day.
We drove up in the hills and started to do some glassing of the different herds we were seeing to pick out a good buck. We found a 14.5 inch'r with nice cutters and got to within 180 yards of him. Tyler couldn't get steady and I was very PROUD of him when he said "Dad, I can't stop shaking... I am not gonna shoot." Made me know he learned right !
After roaming around for a while looking at different bucks, we headed to town for some lunch and planned to return for an afternoon hunt. My brother Brian had a non-resident doe tag to fill, which we did upon our return to our hunting area. This seemed to settle Tyler's nerves a little and he decided to go after goats again.
We spotted a herd of over 20 goats with 2 shooter bucks bedded down on a side hill. Perfect spot for a stalk. We made over a 1/2 mile stalk from behind them and crested out in a saddle just above and to the right of them. The lead doe stood up and the herd followed. Tyler got on his shooting sticks and readied himself. We waited about a minute for the buck to get clear of the does and he made a great 117 yard shot with his 7mm-08 with 139 SST handloads. DRT !
After taking care of the antelope and getting him loaded and tagged, we decided to head to town. On the way out, we spotted 4 whitetail bucks feeding along with some does and fawns along a creek bottom. Tyler picked out a 4 x 4 that he said he wanted, and we made a plan.
We got out and made a good stalk across the side hill above the creek to 235 yards away. We watched and waited for 5 or 6 minutes and the buck came out of the bottom and cleared some tall grass. Tyler made a great shot again, bang-flop ! Couldn't have been a prouder Dad and Uncle Brian was very impressed as well. Those 139 SST's perform great... Not to mention great shot placement by my son
I would say he had a GREAT first day afield !! Not to mention the memories of the hunt with his Dad and Uncle Brian....
I couldn't stop smiling for the rest of the night !!
Tyler drew a good antelope tag and we bought a general deer tag, which is good for the same area. His Uncle Brian came up from Nebraska to join in on the hunt. They share the same B'day in Oct. Just 30 years apart !
The day started out early, but with only a 15 minute drive to our hunting area, we arrived with plenty of time. We spotted a nice 4x5 whitetail right off the bat and made a good stalk on him in open grassland hills, but he crossed the neighbors fence and was safe. We decided to go try for goats, as the deer were bedding down for the day.
We drove up in the hills and started to do some glassing of the different herds we were seeing to pick out a good buck. We found a 14.5 inch'r with nice cutters and got to within 180 yards of him. Tyler couldn't get steady and I was very PROUD of him when he said "Dad, I can't stop shaking... I am not gonna shoot." Made me know he learned right !
After roaming around for a while looking at different bucks, we headed to town for some lunch and planned to return for an afternoon hunt. My brother Brian had a non-resident doe tag to fill, which we did upon our return to our hunting area. This seemed to settle Tyler's nerves a little and he decided to go after goats again.
We spotted a herd of over 20 goats with 2 shooter bucks bedded down on a side hill. Perfect spot for a stalk. We made over a 1/2 mile stalk from behind them and crested out in a saddle just above and to the right of them. The lead doe stood up and the herd followed. Tyler got on his shooting sticks and readied himself. We waited about a minute for the buck to get clear of the does and he made a great 117 yard shot with his 7mm-08 with 139 SST handloads. DRT !
After taking care of the antelope and getting him loaded and tagged, we decided to head to town. On the way out, we spotted 4 whitetail bucks feeding along with some does and fawns along a creek bottom. Tyler picked out a 4 x 4 that he said he wanted, and we made a plan.
We got out and made a good stalk across the side hill above the creek to 235 yards away. We watched and waited for 5 or 6 minutes and the buck came out of the bottom and cleared some tall grass. Tyler made a great shot again, bang-flop ! Couldn't have been a prouder Dad and Uncle Brian was very impressed as well. Those 139 SST's perform great... Not to mention great shot placement by my son
I would say he had a GREAT first day afield !! Not to mention the memories of the hunt with his Dad and Uncle Brian....
I couldn't stop smiling for the rest of the night !!
.
