Merry Christmas!

But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.

Alek's Aoudad

Alek and I got up early Saturday to hunt. He wasn't feeling well, so he went back to bed. I went to hunt the Wood Blind in hopes of seeing a nice White Tail. About 5 minutes after the feeder went off there were 6 Aoudad, 6 Axis bucks, and 3 white tail at the feeder. The Axis were in the process of growing their antlers with one very large male that was literally twice the size of the rest. There were 2 white tail doe and 1 small buck. However, 2 of the Aoudad were very large. I didn't want to shoot because Alek really wanted an Aoudad.

After about 30 minutes all the animals left the feeder. The Axis and White tail moved off pretty quickly, but the Aoudad continued slowly grazing for another 30 minutes as they moved back up the hill to the right of the feeder. At this time a nice White Tail buck came in to the feeder area, but never got inside the fence. He nibbled on some remaining corn and a cedar tree. It was a nice 8 point - the exact same one I had shot at and missed 2 weeks prior. Nope. Wait and come back Sunday morning with Alek for the Aoudad.

I eventually made my way back up to my truck - which was parked on the cliche pit on the road going up the hill. I ran across another herd of Aoudad - this time 4 very young ones. I glassed down towards the mailbox gate - another herd of Axis, nine this time. I also glassed the cleared ridge leading to the spring - a third herd of Axis, a third herd of Aoudad, and a group of White Tail were feeding on the grass. Wow - lots of animals. It was 8:30 AM by this time.

We were definitely going to come back Sunday morning, but Alek and I decided to go Saturday night as well. This time we parked near the South Gate and walked to the blind. We go into position around 4 o'clock. Around 4:15 a small 8 point Buck came in, fed on some cedar, and then bedded down next to the feeder. Good sign. The feeder went off and we had several White Tail bucks and does underneath it quickly, but we also heard the Aoudad. They were back! You can hear them walking - they are very loud when walking on rocks and make a distinctive sound unlike any other animal.

We waited patiently. All the Aoudad came in, including the largest one from the morning. Instead of using his .243, Alek wanted to us my .308. He took aim. It took some time to get a clear shot as there were animals in front and behind of the Aoudad. I told him to aim in the center of the diamond that his shoulder made. The Aoudad's organs are further forward than a deer or antelope - with the heart low and forward of the shoulders.

Alek shot. I saw the Aoudad take the bullet. You could also hear the "thud" - he stumbled, jumped out, and moved off to his right. The other animals broke, but most of them stayed in sight. Had a large White Tail been there we could have easily gotten off a second shot.

We got out of the blind and walked towards the feeder. The animals moved off. No sign of the Aoudad - we couldn't see him down anywhere nor any blood. I survyed two areas I thought he may have went to - let's save these for last and give him time to slow down and stiffen up before we press him I thought to myself.

We started looking elsewhere - where we heard noises and saw the other animals go. This area has some very deep and rough solid rock tubes/cuts made by the water. We looked in these. No Aoudad.

We checked the last two areas. 45 minutes had gone by and the sun was behind the hill. I sent Alek up into a clearing to look and I climbed down into a very deep and very thick cut in the rocks. There was the Aoudad. He started to move, but his back legs didn't work. He was pulling himself with his front legs. I popped off a round into his rear before he disappeared. I quickly caught up to him, he had only gone about 20 feet into a deeper, lower area. He wasn't moving, but still alive. Alek's first shot hit him in the shoulder, deflected and went out his rear left hip/spine - taking out the legs. My second shot went into his rear and gut. I put a final round into his chest. He was dead.

We came back with my friend Bob and the kids to recover the Aoudad. We took pictures where he lay and then dragged him back up out of the ravine - oh boy was this hard.

Alek now has the biggest Aoudad out of group - beating out Bill, Landon, and me.

Way to go Alek!

Tree Cutting 101

I was at the ranch this weekend with a friend, James, and our sons. James came back from hunting #1 Saturday morning. He told us someone had left a chainsaw in a partially cut tree. I looked on the porch. My chainsaw wasn't there. The chainsaw everyone does work with.

Well, the first thought we had was which moron did this and why didn't they tell anyone? Anyway, we removed the chainsaw and finishing cutting down the tree with a machete.

Next time, tell someone.

The deer that Landon shot and the deer that Ron should have shot!

Well, deciding which deer to take is always a challenge! Below are two deer from last weekend. Landon tried to hold-out for the big deer we had been seeing, but got an itchy finger and got this nice 10 point - which BTW appears to be the BEST deer so far on the Ranch. So I would have to chalk this up as a big thumbs up for Landon - way to go.

The deer that is still standing is a heavy 7 point that Ron saw. This would have been a great deer. Maybe next time.

Kyle Kimery Ground Checks a Sika!

James and Kyle returned to the Hackberry for the first time this season and they were ready! First, James got a new Polaris Ranger so J. wouldn't have to pull him out of the creek bed at #3 for a third time! Second, Kyle was ready with his .243 Winchester this morning. He bagged a mature 4x3 Sika at #3 at over 160 yards! It ran about 40 yards before dropping. James and Kyle are 100% for the season thus far - wow!

Time to check the Hog Trap

Here's a picture of an awesome hunter in training! Up and ready to go at 5 am.

Saw a Sika doe at the photo blind hopping like an antelope, got buzzed by 20 buzzards over our heads that sounded like a helicopter, but nothing to shoot, so back for some lunch...















The hog trap was a hit with the kids. While Alex and little Bill are hunting veterans, it was Cameron's first animal to take with a rifle. He was a bit nervous, but excited and proud in the end...it tasted good!






















After a long day, it was into the blind by 3:30 for a 2 hour nap, then awaken to experience MAJOR buck fever for the first time and get whiffed by a nice 7pt WT buck. All in all a great trip. We're going back this weekend for more fun...

Kid Deer from this Past Weekend

Sarah's First Deer:



Little Bill's First Buck:

Pics from Brett's Hunt

The one that's in the freezer

The one that got away

Hunting at The Hackberry Ranch

Brett's First Bow Kill

Brett put some meat into the Zogas freezer this weekend, which is more than dad can claim. The scene began Friday evening at the box blind when we saw a few nice bucks come in at dusk. I thought there were two eight pointers, but Brett swore that there was actually a third deer that was a 9. All of them were nice bucks, but none of them really got into position for Brett to shoot. We left the blind a little frustrated that evening.

We hunted the same blind on Saturday evening. This time I had the video camera as I was convinced that it was going to be Brett's night. The Ameristep Intimidator blind that we set up a few weeks ago actually has little video camera ports that are at knee height and very convenient for the job. We were ready for the boys to come back. After watching a doe for a while, a nice buck came in. Sure enough, Brett had been right because this guy had nine points. He hung around quite a bit, but just as Brett pulled back, the buck spotted the action and ran off. Brett was pissed as he let down on the bow. The buck stayed at about 50 yards and studied the scene, but slowly walked off. So far, I'm impressed with the scent-free clothing and believe it's because of this (and the wind) that we are not getting busted by smell.

The doe returned shortly and Brett had to settle for her. She jumped the string as can be seen in the video, and the shot ended up hitting her in the hind leg. The interesting thing is that the shot put her down after she hobbled for about ten feet. When I deboned the meat, I found that the arrow actually cut right through the femar bone and hit the artery. Not textbook, but we have the meat to complete the hunt.

If I can figure it out, I'll post the pics (vidoe grabs) of the buck and the doe.

Ron's Dybowski Sika

Ron got a nice mature Dybowski Sika the morning of November 20th near the #3 stand. He weighed 165 lbs, had 3x3 antlers, and an extremely thick and large neck. Congratulations Ron!!

Here is Ron's brother-in-law hunting with him at the Cave Blind, they saw some good Spanish Goats!

2006 Stoltman Axis Deer

Carla's Deer: February; Spot & Stalk off the South road; 247 yards; .308; 31" Length

Eric's Deer: June; #4, 300 yards, .300 RUM; 33" Length

Alek's Pig from August

128 lbs boar, shot #3 (192 yards) with a .243.