isn’t why I hunt. There are many times I have thought to myself, why did I just end my hunt with this buck? Is he what I wanted? Was he what I came to the mountains for? Did I spend my entire offseason dreaming about this particular animal? It’s a double edged sword. I think in the back of my mind, I always want to push the envelope and take my level of accomplishment to new heights. I am the one who decides whether to take the path of growth. This particular season, which I spent with my great friend Chad Roberts, was one of those defining moments on the mountain. In that moment I knew what it felt like and I wanted to continue on that path of growth. Those three days were some of the most memorable of any in the field.
It was mid-April in 2015 when I invited Chad to come hunt with me. You see, Chad is one of the best hunters I know! I actually learn a lot from him and I don’t feel that way about many people. Most people are looking for a handout but not Chad. He’s a dyed in the wool, self-proclaimed desert rat. He’s knows the desert better than any terrestrial biologist with a master’s degree. However, one chink in his armor is that he has never been out of the desert, and I wanted to change that! Chad was eager to accept and I told him the training regimen that was required.
After shooting our new Hoyt Carbon Spyder Turbos, practicing all preseason, putting countless days out scouting the desert, and traversing big ridges in 100 degree heat, it was time to embark on our journey north! You see, I was very familiar with the country we would be hunting. For me it was hallowed ground; a place for ritualistic behavior. I knew where the animals liked to be, wanted to be, and on most days would be. We hadn’t scouted the area we would be hunting at all. We arrived at our destination after a fifteen hour road trip, made camp at 10,000 ft., went for a short jeep ride, and poked our heads into a few high country basins with our big eyes. The next morning was the opener of the 2015 archery deer season and I wasn’t about to let the sea level desert boy ease into this hunt. At 0430 we started traversing a steady paced ridge at about 11,700 ft. We topped out on a cornice that looked like a giant sweeping wave a thousand yards long as the sun cracked the horizon. The rays of sunlight filled the sky and the alpenglow burst over the high basin rock faces with a fiery glow that lit up everything for miles! The Pikas started to chirp, and as their calls echoed over the basin we were already set up in a perfect glassing spot. Almost immediately I spotted a giant framed typical feeding away from us only a mile away! It was one of those moments you stop munching on your breakfast bar to see if your eyes are deceiving you. While this buck looked like a stud, he was deceiving because he had a huge body but we couldn’t put more than 175” to him. However, the more we examined him the more we thought he was a brute. I couldn’t help myself and within the first 20 minutes of light I left my pack and dropped off the crest to get a closer look! The wind hadn’t even started its diurnal shift yet and I have always been aggressive with my stalking, but it was the first day so I wasn’t too concerned. At 100 yards I looked back at Chad and signaled to him “OK?” He signaled back that I was indeed where I needed to be. The bucks in the group continued to feed higher on the mountain going at a quick pace to their beds. After another 30 minutes and a mile of carefully traversing a shale slide, the bucks were on top of another ridge just North of where we originally set up. Chad watched the entire thing go down through his Vortex spotter. I was now a mere 53 yards away and the buck was leaning up against a cliff wall feeding on a Columbine patch. Suddenly, the wind hit me from behind with a pretty stiff gust! I already had an arrow nocked and knew it was a NOW or NEVER scenario! I came to full draw, knowing good and well he was a great buck but not feeling certain if I wanted to end my hunt within the first couple hours of first light on the first day of our hunt! I stood up in one full motion at full draw, took a step forward and leveled my pin. Without another thought my finger dropped the trigger and I watched as the arrow cracked the buck tight in his pocket! He wheeled around on his two hind legs as he let out a long winded huff. It was as if the wind had been taken from him. I stood there watching him run straight downhill 150 yards catching all his gears, when suddenly his back end started to shudder. He fell and came to a baseball diamond stop. Shaking and trembling, I let out the most guttural yell ever! Chad was silhouetted on the ridge to the South of me jumping, fist pumping, and literally screaming with me! When we met up, we were both shaking, high fiving, and laughing. As we walked up on the downed giant we knew we under judged him. At 30.5” wide and 191 green gross, he is my best archery buck to date!