I just returned from Wyoming with a camera full of pictures.
My partners on this trip were Smiley (the original Wayne Hoffman) and Dennis Castle from Ohio. We were visiting Vance Brewer on the ranch he manages near Daniel.
None of us had a buck tag, so this would be a hunt for does only. I like horns as much as the next guy, but I also love to eat, and this was a perfect hunt to fulfill that need.
I'm headed north today to check on bear baits, so won't drag this one out for you. I'll keep the commentary to a minimum, and just share the hunt through pictures.
My first two days were spent sitting in a blind on a water hole I had hunted last year. But this year it wasn't being used much, so on day three I moved to the blind that the following pictures were taken from.
(http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y80/Jlasch/Wyoming%20Antelope%202012/Antelope2012042.jpg)
(http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y80/Jlasch/Wyoming%20Antelope%202012/Antelope2012035.jpg)
(http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y80/Jlasch/Wyoming%20Antelope%202012/Antelope2012027.jpg)
(http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y80/Jlasch/Wyoming%20Antelope%202012/Antelope2012043.jpg)
(http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y80/Jlasch/Wyoming%20Antelope%202012/Antelope2012046.jpg)
(http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y80/Jlasch/Wyoming%20Antelope%202012/Antelope2012026.jpg)
(http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y80/Jlasch/Wyoming%20Antelope%202012/Antelope2012014.jpg)
Nice bucks that unfortunately you couldn't shoot! That's the way it usually happens!
good stuff! love the grouse. such unassuming little things
I want to do that someday! :coffee:
love the buck and grouse pic.
(http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y80/Jlasch/Wyoming%20Antelope%202012/Antelope2012040.jpg)
(http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y80/Jlasch/Wyoming%20Antelope%202012/Antelope2012014.jpg)
(http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y80/Jlasch/Wyoming%20Antelope%202012/Antelope2012064.jpg)
(http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y80/Jlasch/Wyoming%20Antelope%202012/Antelope2012070.jpg)
(http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y80/Jlasch/Wyoming%20Antelope%202012/Antelope2012073.jpg)
(http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y80/Jlasch/Wyoming%20Antelope%202012/Antelope2012074.jpg)
(http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y80/Jlasch/Wyoming%20Antelope%202012/Antelope2012019.jpg)
(http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y80/Jlasch/Wyoming%20Antelope%202012/Antelope2012014.jpg)
(http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y80/Jlasch/Wyoming%20Antelope%202012/Antelope2012075.jpg)
(http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y80/Jlasch/Wyoming%20Antelope%202012/Antelope2012080.jpg)
I had purchased two doe tags, so my hunt wasn't quite over. A day off cutting meat, and I headed to a new spot just west of Vance's home.
(http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y80/Jlasch/Wyoming%20Antelope%202012/Antelope2012099.jpg)
This was a willow bottom along a creek, and I suited up in my ghillie for some spot and stalk attempts. I was into antelope all morning, and after a break for lunch, found a lone doe that I followed until she feed out into a large pasture.
Nothing I could do but wait and see what happened.
(http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y80/Jlasch/Wyoming%20Antelope%202012/Antelope2012094.jpg)
I think 2012 might be a very good year! :D
Maybe Smiley will have more time than I do and will jump in and tell his story. But I'll spoil the ending for you. ;)
(http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y80/Jlasch/Wyoming%20Antelope%202012/Smiley_8_16_12_doe_e.jpg)
Perfect shot Joe.
Love antelope hunting AND antelope eating...
QuoteOriginally posted by KentuckyTJ:
I want to do that someday! :coffee:
Big time ditto!
Great photos Joe...and some fine shooting as well.
Thanks for including us!
"none of us had a buck tag" :banghead: but y'all started filling the freezer nicely...well done!
Seeing Vance is about a lot more than just hunting. Food is a major ingredient of any visit. We ate steaks, grilled chicken, Dungeness crab, and a fantastic standing rib roast. I was too busy eating to take pictures of most of it, but did manage to snap a couple of the roast as Vance and Sandy did the honors.
(http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y80/Jlasch/Wyoming%20Antelope%202012/Antelope2012102.jpg)
(http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y80/Jlasch/Wyoming%20Antelope%202012/Antelope2012106.jpg)
:campfire:
Thats Awesome. Many congrats. Gotta love good friends.
Nice antelope and the prime rib don't look bad either.
Good pictures!!
Mike
Great hunt!
In the last pic of you, do does have "nubs"? Sure looks like very short antlers. Also very deceiving seeing that deep chest and the kill spot being so high.
Kook, some does do have short "antlers", and others don't have any at all. They are kind of rubbery though, and not quite like those on a buck. The two that I took both had them, but most I saw did not.
As for the kill spot being high, you must be assuming I hit exactly where I wanted to. :rolleyes:
Truthfully, I would have preferred a slightly lower hit, and a little more forward. But as it was, it took out the back lobe of both lungs.
Thanks for the insight. I know nothing of antelope. Just ingrained in my head to shoot behind the joint in the front leg. Then I noticed how low the chest is vs. a whitetail.
Nice cutters on the one buck!! Congratulations on the fine does! Good shooting!! :thumbsup: :thumbsup:
Cool
Great pics and hunt Whip,Thanks for sharing
Congrats Joe...and nice pics!
Great hunt! Thanks for sharing.
Too cool! :thumbsup: :thumbsup:
Awesome!!
:bigsmyl:
Well done. :archer2:
Looks like a great time Joe
Congratulations and good shooting on the pair of antelope, Joe. Excellent tablefare, too.
If the bear baiting is for your own tag, good luck on your long-awaited Wisconsin bear hunt.
NICE! Way to go Joe! Cool pics too
Way to go Joe!
Love the pics and congrats on the goats.RC
That looks like you had a good week Joe. Congrat's.
Congrats, I love antelope chops.
Great shooting Joe. Hope the rest of Your season goes as well as this.
bretto
Thank you so much for sharing and congrats! Could you please share your setup for this hunt?
Looks like you are off to a great start.Good hunting and good food,nice pics. :thumbsup: congrats!
Man oh man, I want to do that one day!
Congrats bud!! Way to work it!
Bayhunter, I used a Robertson Fatal Styk, 55 @ my 29" draw. CE Heritage shafts with a 175 grain VPA and 100 grain insert.
OK, Yesterday was my last day of work. I'm ready to hire my retirement consultant!!
Way to go Joe!! Congrats 2X
Nice tagging there Joe! Great photos too. What camera did you use? How does that antelope taste compared to the rest of your menu? Pretty awesome to double up like that with one from the blind, and one from stalking. :thumbsup: :clapper:
Antelope is on my short to do list!
Way to go Joe, Congrats on a couple of great animals and nice shooting. :bigsmyl: :wavey:
Tracy
Thanks for the photos Joe.
Congrats on the fine trophies and good table fare.
Theres nothing like sharing a hunt with good friends.
Joe,
Looks like you had a great time!
Thanks,
Josh
Great job you guys.
All great fantastic pictures and the sharptails to booty. You guys know how to live :thumbsup:
Great hunt! Good to "see" you Joe. :D
Neic job guys Congratulations
Joe, looks like your season is off to a great start. Thanks for taking us along :thumbsup:
Congratulations Joe on a great hunt! I sure love that antelope meat!!
Good times you lucky dog. Hard to beat that company. Happy for you guys. Those are some fine looking animals.
Thanks for sharing your hunt, gotta do that some day...
-Jeremy :coffee:
Waaaay to go Joe!!! Looks like retirement is really agreeing with you. Look forward to hearing about the rest of your adventures this fall.
Awesome, congrats!
Way to go Joe. Man that looks like a fun trip.
Nice pics! Thanks for sharing.
We need a Gillie suit pic!
Great job joe! I couldn't be more happy for you! :readit: :notworthy:
Nice job, Joe! And Smiley as well! :archer2:
Nice job, congrats!
Pronghorns are fun to hunt. I filled out on day one. I should have got a third tag so I could still be hunting. Good eats too!
:thumbsup: :campfire:
Just back from bear baiting - 3 out of 3 were hit, so things are looking good up there. I'll head back up again on Tuesday for a quick trip, and then again next Sunday to stay and bait daily prior to the opener on the 5th.
I cut the antelope into roasts and a bunch of great looking trim meat. Still trying to decide what to do with that, but am leaning toward canning it. I got a new canner last year that needs breaking in, and I'm thinking these girls would be really goooood!!
Thanks for all the nice comments. I wish I had taken the time to get a picture of the ghillie suit set up, but didn't do that. Too busy chasing girls!!
Great job Whip :thumbsup: :clapper:
This is what this Forum is about
Had to revisit this thread and add...
Pics like these are very common when hunting these critters....even if the pics are only in your mind...
(http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y80/Jlasch/Wyoming%20Antelope%202012/Antelope2012014.jpg)
:biglaugh: :biglaugh: :biglaugh:
Great photos! That must have been a fun hunt.