The Stalk Was On !
Cover Story - By Lee Blankenship
Scouting in July and August in 100 degree heat for “ THE ONE ” is tough . The usual bachelor herds were almost nonexistent . The deer were spread out and the bucks were in tiny little groups , sometimes solo . The bucks I was finding were small or just not what I was looking for . I had three weeks to find a buck , pattern his daily routine , figure out his watering areas and his bedding area . I was getting nervous .
It took us a couple hours to locate the buck but when we did we were not disappointed . He was without a doubt , a buck that I was going to hunt . My father in law nicknamed him “ Lefty ” because of the trash on his left antler . We snapped some pictures of him and backed out .
Being short on time we set up several trail cameras to figure out Lefty ’ s travel route and watering hole .
The next three weeks were very disappointing . I couldn ’ t find Lefty anywhere . My trail cameras had several pictures of the buck he was with and several other bucks but no Lefty . With only a week left I was starting to get really
On my 10th scouting trip , my father in law Duane and I were sitting on a ridge glassing a small bachelor herd of buck and for some reason I got the urge to turn around . On the ridge behind us , about 1000 yards away right on the sky line were two bucks , one of them didn ’ t need a second look . He was almost three feet wide , with a few extras . I scrambled to get my scope on him and got a short video of him as he went over the top . We picked our jaws up off the ground and headed in that direction . nervous . I was sitting in front of my computer looking at trail camera pictures when my wife Chelsea came in and put her hand on my shoulder and said “ He is there , he is just camera shy .” My wife ’ s support is one of the reasons I have success bow hunting year after year . I know all the early mornings and the late nights , coming home exhausted , with sweaty cloths and dirt rings around my nose and eyes has tested her patience , but she knows hunting mule deer is my passion and that is what gives me peace . Needless to say , she is the reason for most of the success in my life .
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