I don’t know what it is about Wyoming that puts me under its spell and draws me back every September to bowhunt. Perhaps it is the un-obscured beauty of the open prairie or the scent of sage upon the western wind. Maybe it is the way the cottonwoods reach for the temperate autumn sun or the way the native antelope and mule deer dance across the landscape, punctuating the prairie with the exclamation of excitement and wonder. Whatever the reasons, for four consecutive years I have returned to this amazing state, bow in hand, to experience its triumphs and agonies. This September was no exception.
My hunt began on August 31st in a blind known as the Solar Well on the famed Spearhead Ranch some 60 miles from Douglas. I was carrying one of my Black Widow recurve bows on this hunt, a 58" SAV take-down that hits hard and propels a carbon arrow with authority. I had practiced for months with this bow and felt confident that I could easily hit my mark at typical Spearhead hunting distances.
I watched through the windows of the blind throughout the day as antelope does and fawns and flocks of sage grouse came and went to the waterhole in front of the blind. There were even two magnificent bull elk that crossed the pasture to the distant south, their strides taking in yards with every step. Despite this variety of animal activity, the only thing I killed on my first day of hunting was a Louis L’Amour novel. I started and finished "The Road to Seven Pines" in the 13 hours I sat in the blind, alternating between reading pages and peering out the windows for antelope bucks.
Day two of my hunt was different in several respects from the previous day. First, I changed blinds and found myself in a location I knew well, The Video Store. Second, September 1st was the opening day of deer season. Thus, with both antelope and deer tags in my pocket, I had the option to shoot either one that presented me with a good opportunity. Finally, wildlife was everywhere on this morning and I could sense that today might just be my lucky day.
It was 7:00 am when the bucks appeared just over the hill in front of the blind and began to cautiously make their way to the tiny pool in front of my location. There were four of them in all, mule deer that varied from tall fork horns to a nice 3 ½ year old 4 x4. Having taken previous bow mulies that were 3x3s and 3x4s, my goal on this trip was a 4x4 mule deer or better. Since there was an acceptable candidate among this group, I watched him diligently as he marched with the other members of his bachelor group toward the water and ever closer to me.
One of the deer in the group, a tall tined 3x3, nervously bobbed his head in the direction of the blind some 80 yards away. Finally, he separated from the others and turned toward a rocky outcropping to bed down.
The other three bucks kept coming, with the 4x4 in the lead. When this deer was 60 yards away, his body language told me he was committed, so I readied myself for the shot within the shadowy concealment of the blind.
The buck came in from the left and like all animals I had seen at this blind, stooped to drink with a slightly quartering toward angle. Although this is often a shot I pass on taking, the angle was not severe and I had taken it successfully three other times from this location, retrieving beautiful animals at the end of short blood trails in two previous years.
When the mulie was settled and relaxed, I drew the 48# Black Widow recurve, carefully aimed at the crease behind the shoulder and unleashed a Magnus tipped carbon arrow. The arrow stuck its mark, causing the buck to jump and kick straight backward before bolting away. He ran only a short distance before walking and then lying down in the grass about 200 yards away. As he walked away, I could see the arrow hanging out of his off side, with a substantial blood stain mid-way of the body, and clearly excellent penetration. My guess was that the buck would stay put until he expired which I expected to be in short order.
There had been two other bucks with this deer, however, and as social animals sometimes do, they made their way to their fallen comrade, got him up, and urged him over the hill and out of sight. I could not believe my eyes. I knew where I hit this buck and could not comprehend that he could have the strength to get up follow the other deer up the hill and out of the valley where he had fallen.
At this point, I knew I needed help and placed the red flag that is designed to summon a Spearhead guide, in the holder on top of the blind. It was almost two hours before help arrived, but after explaining what happened to one of the capable guides, he radioed base camp and several other guides and hunters who had already filled their tags arrived to help search for the buck.
One of the other hunters spotted the buck lying in tall sage only 50 yards off the ranch road. His head was up, but he was clearly mortally wounded. Still, he managed to get up and try to make his way toward deeper cover.
I thought it might be difficult for me to close in on the buck and get a finishing shot with my recurve. Not because the recurve isn’t capable of completing such a task, but because my range with a recurve is limited to 20-25 yards and this appeared as though it might be a 30-40 yard follow-up shot. Thus, I armed myself with a compound bow for a finishing shot.
After several hours in the hot Wyoming sun, I finally managed to get a follow up arrow into the wounded mule deer buck and finish the job. When I approached the deer, my first question was about arrow placement of my initial shot. As I thought, it was right in the crease low and behind the shoulder. However, the broadhead had hit a rib on entry, deflecting and making an almost right turn into the body of the deer. This initial shot would have certainly been fatal, but ethics demanded immediate follow up and a finishing shot in order to quickly bring the animal to bag.
As I kneeled over the buck in the dense sage where he fell, I was struck by multiple emotions. I was not only grateful to have met my objective of harvesting a 4x4 mule deer with a bow, but also struck by the reality of just how challenging hunting with a bow can be. There are no guarantees…only proficiency and luck. To be successful, you need a measure of both.
Day three saw me in yet a different blind. This one was known as Double Trouble because it offered shot opportunities at a waterhole that expanded into two different pastures. I had seen a massive pronghorn buck in one of the pastures the day before, so I was anxious to see if he would come to water today, possibly offering me a shot.
I was reading another Louis L’Amour novel, "The Proving Trail", when at 8:45 am the procession of wildlife began. Somehow between pages, four mule deer does and fawns managed to slip into the waterhole undetected. I watched them as they peacefully drank and casually turned away to browse and then bed in the security of the dense sage of the pasture.
At just before 1:00 pm the big antelope buck I had seen the day before showed up and seemed to be headed toward water. I exchanged the novel for my recurve and waited.
The big buck was a dandy and with tall ebony horns and excellent cutters, he would easily score 70 + P&Y inches. The only problem was that when he came to water at only 16 yards away, he was quartering sharply toward me. No shot. Although I hoped he might reposition and turn his body more parallel to the blind, he had other plans and simply turned and trotted away, leaving me shaking my head in frustration. So close, yet so far away.
I returned to my book only to discover that I was suddenly exhausted. The encounter with the buck combined with the events of the previous day had left me sleepy. I closed my eyes for a quick nap and upon waking up at just after 2pm, discovered two antelope on a distant SW ridge that seemed to be headed my way.
Glassing the goats I could clearly see that one was a buck. He was not the bruiser that was the subject of my earlier encounter, but he appeared to be respectable, so I decided to watch and to be ready in the event he offered me a shot.
Throughout the day, the sky threatened rain. Gray clouds seemed to be forming overhead in greater density as the afternoon progressed and knowing that rain on the prairie meant a distinct slowing of antelope activity at the blinds, I decided to take this buck if given the right opportunity.
It seemed to take forever for the antelope to commit to water and to finally make their way toward Double Trouble. However, at 3:00 pm the buck came to drink, lowered his head, and stood perfectly broadside. At 14 yards I sent a carbon arrow from my Black Widow through the chest cavity of the buck and watched as the blood soaked projectile buried into the ground on the opposite side of the waterhole. I breathed an audible sigh of relief.
I looked at my watch and waited 20 minutes before exiting the blind, retrieving my arrow, and looking for the buck. Walking in the direction the antelope had run, I quickly spotted him lying motionless some 200 yards from where he was shot. I approached him cautiously, but it was obvious even from a distance that he was done. Needless to say, after the events of the previous day I was even more grateful for the well-placed shot and the short blood trail that lead to this beautiful, unique animal.
As I waited for my ride back to camp, I allowed myself to be caught up in the sights and smells of Wyoming: the sound of the grass shifting in the breeze, the pungent aroma of sage, the incomprehensible visibility of the prairie, and the amazing array of wildlife. This is the place I choose to experience September and as a bowhunter, it is unimaginable there could be any other place quite like it on earth.
