Don takes the season's first white tail buck!

Don took this white tail buck at Spider Blind.  This is a good representative buck for the area.    There are also some pics of him at the feeder.   In addition, Don took a photo of an Axis buck at the South Road feeder.  This would be a good first Axis buck for someone.  I saw a similar Axis buck Monday morning on the ridge above the Spring (Swimming Hole).

Don has been a very busy boy....

Here is an Axis that Don took earlier this week. The boar is from 2 weeks ago. The Axis was spot and stalk. And don't worry, Don is taking his second Axis from Fred's or Roberto's quota.

Don Gets His Axis!

Don took this nice Axis down South. Congrats Big Daddy!

Sika and Hog!

We had a good time at the ranch this weekend. Darryl, Mario and his two sons (Noah and Roman), Alek, Ella, and I were down. Ella got a hog Friday evening with a 243 Win and Darryl took a really nice Dybowski Sika Saturday morning with his 25 WSM that we had seen on a game cam.

Rachel's Hog From This Weekend!

Rachel took this with a headshot from a 22 LR with 60 grain subsonic loads with open sights.

Hackberry Elk!

We were up June 30th - July 3rd.  I had my friend Kevin Norman on a ginormous Axis buck and Boar down South, but we could never get on them.  We tried for 3 days in a row.  The thunderstorm thwarted the Axis hunt and Kevin's inability to shoot (two different times) foiled the hog hunt.  We named the hog "Big Kevin".  Both animals were hunted "spot and stalk" and are still alive and well.

I put Alek out Sunday night at #1.  We had a big thunderstorm that evening while we were hunting.  I heard two shots, about 10 minutes apart.  I thought, hmmm, Alek must have shot two pigs. Well, he comes to pick me up and I asked him what he shot.  "Elk" is his reply.  What type of Elk?  "Bull Elk".  So we headed to #1.

The Elk was a 5x6 mature bull, with a small scoreable point that technically made him a 6x6.  Alek was sitting in the rifle blind at #1 and the Elk was grazing from left to right about 60 yards in front of him.  He shot the Elk in the shoulder with my 8x57 Mauser and it went down, but got back up and ran.  He couldn't see it anymore, but it heard it fall down.  He waited about 10 minutes and then went looking for it.  It wasn't moving, but was laying upright.  He wisely tossed a small rock at it's hindquarters and shouted at it.  It tried to stand up so he shot it again in the lungs.

Needless to say, it took us a few hours to field dress it, load it, and get it into the cooler.  We estimated the hoof weight at 800+ pounds.  It took 4 us, after he was field dressed, to get in the back of a pick-up and that was barely.

We gave the hindquarters to JR and two the remaining parts of the Elk we took to Rhodes.  We plan to do a European mount.  We are having the backstraps and loins steaked, and the remaining made into hamburger and chili meat.

Gary @ Rhodes estimated him at 4+ years old and said he had grown-out all the way with maybe a 1/4"-1/2" to go max.

Alek was very proud of the trophy since it was the firsts animal he had taken while hunting alone.  He said it wasn't even more exciting than the 4+ hour Kudu stalk we did last Summer in RSA.

Congrats Alek!!!

Ella's first hog!  125 lb sow.  She took the shot at 80 yards with a 64 grain 223 Remington from her Ruger bolt action with a 16.5" barrel.  Perfect shot placement behind the right shoulder, exited the center of the left shoulder - double lunged - ran 60 yards and fell over!!!

The Judge's buddy gets his Aoudad at the beginning of March!

Adrian Gets His Aoudad

"Took this baby saturday AM at the far back blind. Came out from the back creek bed and I smoked him, about 200 yard lung shot. First Aoudad 26" both sides."  Adrian

Saturday Morning Hackberry Grand Slam!

While Darryl continues to be "Aoudad-less", Abel and I were able to complete a Grand Slam this weekend.  He took an Axis and Turkey at Photo Blind; I took 3 hogs down South.

Graham's Aoudad!

George's son took his first Aoudad recently - way to go Graham!

John Waller and his Pigs

Unfortunately, they didn't make it to the market and didn't go "Wee wee wee, all the way home"

Allison, Buster's better half, gets her first deer!

She took this nice mature 9 point at #4.  Big body!  

Mr Sulu (AKA Kurt Chan) Ground Checks to Hogs

Google Map Locations for Ranch

http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?hl=en&ie=UTF8&msa=0&msid=204480760976090218370.0004a00d2467ce7a56675&ll=29.949506,-100.037384&spn=0.041349,0.077162&t=h&z=14

Sika and Hog from this weekend

Darryl and I had two friends up at the ranch this weekend. I got a nice mature Sika at #3 Thursday morning. HUGE body - weighed over 200 pounds. Antlers were 20"+.

Patty's first buck

We had a regular couple's retreat at the Hackberry. Pete/Chele, Mark/Patty, Eric/Carla - no swinging, just hunting with the gals. Even Don and Fred showed up late Friday. Patty shot her first buck ever at the North Blind. Nice deer, Patty.

Not as big as Bill's

I had to stick this buck after I rattled it into the Double Feeder. He was walking away up the hill when I rattled. He turned and immediately trotted into the kill zone. First buck I ever rattled in.

Bill's gets a nice 8 point at the North Blind!

Opening Weekend 2010

Below are two of the deer from opening weekend in 2010. Mark's girlfriend Patti got a nice 9 point at the North Blind and I took a 3 year cull deer from the Cave Blind. Fred Howard also took a whitetail doe near #3. All in all, a successful weekend. Pete and I even had our better halves with us - Michelle and Carla.