2022-2023 Hunting Thread

[ImissWallyPryor 9045]

Caught these two just a few days after our season ended. Just as well, because they both could use another year or two. I initially thought it was the same buck, but not so upon closer examination. 
 

 

[BabaYaga 15205]

20 hours ago, JCHIL said:

Classic fuzzy photo but I keep thinking it’s awful large to be a yote?

It's a Yote

[ImissWallyPryor 9045]

3 hours ago, BabaYaga said:

It's a Yote

Go Yotes!

Sorry if that’s rude. 

[cknight 184]

Did anyone else seem abnormally low deer numbers this year? I've hunted the same place in Jack County for the last 17 years and don't know if I've ever seen as few as deer as we saw this year. It might be due to the freeze or lack of rain but we didn't seen any mature deer (doe or buck) this year and we typically have at least have a couple 4.5 year old deer.

I talked to a large processor in DFW and they said they were down almost 40% in the amount of deer brought in this year. They thought the freeze and low fawn survival rates were the culprit.

[BabaYaga 15205]

2 hours ago, cknight said:

Did anyone else seem abnormally low deer numbers this year? I've hunted the same place in Jack County for the last 17 years and don't know if I've ever seen as few as deer as we saw this year. It might be due to the freeze or lack of rain but we didn't seen any mature deer (doe or buck) this year and we typically have at least have a couple 4.5 year old deer.

I talked to a large processor in DFW and they said they were down almost 40% in the amount of deer brought in this year. They thought the freeze and low fawn survival rates were the culprit.

It was bad this year.  Drought really hammered them, then the freeze and still a lack of rain.  

[NotActuallyALonghorn 4968]

Seemed like fewer deer running around around here as well. We were covered up in acorns all season as well and they didn't care about corn at all.

[DalTxHornFan 3085]

We saw plenty of deer in Menard/Schleicher county area this year -- just not as many that anyone wanted to shoot.  The drought took its toll.  If we get rain in the coming year, many of the mature bucks that we passed on should be pretty good in the fall.

We slayed a bunch of hogs, though!

[RMac5 1550]

4 hours ago, BabaYaga said:

It was bad this year.  Drought really hammered them, then the freeze and still a lack of rain.  

Spoke to my uncle today who has lived on the same place for 75 years in Mills County, he said the exact same thing.

[Spaulding Smails 1551]

5 hours ago, BabaYaga said:

It was bad this year.  Drought really hammered them, then the freeze and still a lack of rain.  

Same all around from everyone I've talked to.  Our deer numbers were down in Kimble county.  Same reports from a few others I know out that way.  My uncle reported a 40% reduction in total count YOY based on his deer survey at his ranch in Duval county.  He said they saw very few fawns and yearlings this year.  Their harvest numbers were as low as they've been in 20+ years.

[williemackgarza 1826]

Same in mexico.
Low numbers, hardly any mature bucks, hot and green
Problem was not only the freeze but we didnt get any rain from Feb to Sept.
Then it dumped like 8-10 inches in 2 days. Everything greened up good. Tanks full.
The few weve killed all had a huge layer of fat and all green like hay in their bellies. Super hot still and slow movement. Havent been since mid Dec. we go thru feb so will see in a few weeks.

[Speedtrucker 2063]

We had tons on camera going into the season, tagged 4 big doe and a smaller doe along with a cull buck all in the first 3-4 weeks…

Then it went completely silent for this last month, even the cameras, we’d have a couple of doe pass through every so often and a buck here and there but it’s the quietest we’ve seen.

The hogs have been real random from late December to present as well, we’ll see 40 for 2 nights and then nothing for a week on cam

[deadshank 24651]

We have until the end of February to get our MLDP3 numbers.   With the drought, I thought the biologist’s plan for 24 doe and 18 bucks was overly aggressive.   The chopper survey overall count was down but not drastically so from the previous year.  Of course, it’s a small window of time on which an annual decision is made. Fawn count was way down.  Many doe self-aborted due to the drought.  

So far we are 15 doe in and 9 bucks in. Gonna call the biologist and tell him what he already knows: don’t expect us to meet our quota and pray for rain.

Its been a bad year for deer and rain   Seems a lot like 10 years ago   
 

Thanks, La Niña.

 

Bitch  

 

[BabaYaga 15205]

2 hours ago, deadshank said:

The chopper survey overall count was down but not drastically so from the previous year.

[ImissWallyPryor 9045]

I recorded this huge herd of mule deer two weeks ago east of Rapid City. I missed the first ~50 getting my iPhone ready, and there were dozens more in the field just beyond the stubble that are hard to make out in the video. There were a good 250 total.

This is 2 miles from where I got stuck in a line of cars 10 years ago waiting for a big herd to cross the highway. A friend was close to the front of the line and saw most of the herd. He claimed to have stopped counting at 200, but he’s a Sooner, so I assumed he was lying. 

Edited January 18, 2023 by ImissWallyPryor

[deadshank 24651]

29 minutes ago, ImissWallyPryor said:

I recorded this huge herd of mule deer two weeks ago east of Rapid City. I missed the first ~50 getting my iPhone ready, and there were dozens more in the field just beyond the stubble that are hard to make out in the video. There were a good 250 total.

This is 2 miles from where I got stuck in a line of cars 10 years ago waiting for a big herd to cross the highway. A friend was close to the front of the line and saw most of the herd. He said he stopped counting at 200, but since he’s a Sooner, I assumed he was lying. 

Kinda hard to sneak up on someone out there.

[ImissWallyPryor 9045]

7 minutes ago, deadshank said:

Kinda hard to sneak up on someone out there.

The Bad River is at the bottom of those bluffs, and it’s pretty heavily wooded. Other than that, you can test your long range skills on pronghorn and prairie dogs.

[686 3404]

We’ve got more coyotes we’re hearing/seeing out at the ranch lately. I picked up a Sightmark Wraith to put on a rifle and try to thin the numbers. I’ve never used night vision so this will be interesting. Probably will use a Fox Pro I have and see if we can call some in.

[RMac5 1550]

Anxious to see what you think about the Fox Pro, I have one that I’ve never even opened.

[williemackgarza 1826]

I use a foxpro shockwave alot. They really work well

[cabowabo 4452]

I did a little e-calling last week from my hog stand.  I put the caller about 20 yards or so from the stand. Problem for me is that owls start flying around the caller looking for their next meal and invariably fly straight at me in my stand.  The last thing I need is a lechuza clawing me in the fucking head.  I usually scream like a bitch and the peel off.  

[T’Boo Ted Marshall 2723]

Shoot. I’ve tried my Fox Pro multiple times with nuttin. Of course we may be drunk and loud at that point.

[686 3404]

I did a little e-calling last week from my hog stand.  I put the caller about 20 yards or so from the stand. Problem for me is that owls start flying around the caller looking for their next meal and invariably fly straight at me in my stand.  The last thing I need is a lechuza clawing me in the fucking head.  I usually scream like a bitch and the peel off.  

Big owls are serious business. We had big owls at our last ranch and they would startle the shit out of you, but weren’t territorial. I firmly believe in the “owl theory” of the “staircase murder” of modern true crime fame. The Natives knew they were harbingers of death. Super sharp claws under a big bird at approach velocity are super destructive.

On a semi-related note: I found a frozen, perfectly preserved, dead barn owl while pheasant hunting in the panhandle many years ago. It was beautiful, I put it in my cooler and called a taxidermist to mount it when I got home, and the response was “you need to get rid of that and we didn’t have this conversation”. I was ignorant of the law, which had never come up before. Interesting that millinery damn near drove some birds to extinction and initiated some of the early wildlife protection laws (that maybe a little out of date now, maybe in another few decades we’ll be able to relax some things). Crazy that hat fashion drove so much exploration and exploitation of this continent. Hats!

[fattyflattie 4636]

1 hour ago, 686 said:

Big owls are serious business. We had big owls at our last ranch and they would startle the shit out of you, but weren’t territorial. I firmly believe in the “owl theory” of the “staircase murder” of modern true crime fame. The Natives knew they were harbingers of death. Super sharp claws under a big bird at approach velocity are super destructive.

On a semi-related note: I found a frozen, perfectly preserved, dead barn owl while pheasant hunting in the panhandle many years ago. It was beautiful, I put it in my cooler and called a taxidermist to mount it when I got home, and the response was “you need to get rid of that and we didn’t have this conversation”. I was ignorant of the law, which had never come up before. Interesting that millinery damn near drove some birds to extinction and initiated some of the early wildlife protection laws (that maybe a little out of date now, maybe in another few decades we’ll be able to relax some things). Crazy that hat fashion drove so much exploration and exploitation of this continent. Hats!

They used to get some in our camp. With the aid of some welding gloves, one of the guys caught it while it was flying around the kitchen going apeshit. Dude had good hold of it, and when that things head spun around 180*, he screeched like a bitch and let it go. I’m talking the highest pitch scream you’ve ever heard.   I thought at least 1 of the guys was going to *literally* laugh himself to death.   

[cabowabo 4452]

7 hours ago, 686 said:

Super sharp claws under a big bird at approach velocity are super destructive.
 

Very comforting.  Thanks for sharing. 

[BabaYaga 15205]

On 1/17/2023 at 3:43 PM, DalTxHornFan said:

We slayed a bunch of hogs, though!

Man, I remember my days as an undergrad on 6th street as well.  Good times...

[Lazarus Bocanegra 303]

I shot my first buck a few weeks ago.  On the approach to the blind that morning, I could see a big owl sitting on top of the blind, silhouetted against the sky by the night fires.  I wasn't keen to get too close to the blind with it up there, and I was worried that running the owl off might spook the deer.  When I finally closed the gap, it alit with absolute silence and was gone over the brush.  Pretty cool to experience that.  There would be blood on my hands shortly after

 

[BabaYaga 15205]

9 hours ago, 686 said:

Big owls are serious business. We had big owls at our last ranch and they would startle the shit out of you, but weren’t territorial. I firmly believe in the “owl theory” of the “staircase murder” of modern true crime fame. The Natives knew they were harbingers of death. Super sharp claws under a big bird at approach velocity are super destructive.

Look at this gal, giving me the stink-eye.  The old cabin used to be covered in cedar shakes.  They dried out so much they were like balsa wood so we tore them off and put up siding.  The piles made prime owl hunting grounds and they nested in the big tree in the background.

Mama there decided it would be a good idea to lay her eggs on the awning there.  We had to put boards crossways because every time she'd lay, they'd just roll off.  I knew they were there, but every GD time I'm roll up at night they'd scare the piss out of me taking off and those giant wings of theirs.  

[BabaYaga 15205]

4 minutes ago, Lazarus Bocanegra said:

I shot my first buck a few weeks ago.  On the approach to the blind that morning, I could see a big owl sitting on top of the blind, silhouetted against the sky by the night fires.  I wasn't keen to get too close to the blind with it up there, and I was worried that running the owl off might spook the deer.  When I finally closed the gap, it alit with absolute silence and was gone over the brush.  Pretty cool to experience that.  There would be blood on my hands shortly after

 

Nice.  We used to have a crappy tripod blind with no window coverings.  Owls made a home out of it.  One season the floor was completely covered in owl scat.  Bones and fur everywhere.  We just tore it down and tossed it.  

The little bone/fur pellets are morbidly interesting to pick apart.  

[deadshank 24651]

1 hour ago, Lazarus Bocanegra said:

I shot my first buck a few weeks ago.  On the approach to the blind that morning, I could see a big owl sitting on top of the blind, silhouetted against the sky by the night fires.  I wasn't keen to get too close to the blind with it up there, and I was worried that running the owl off might spook the deer.  When I finally closed the gap, it alit with absolute silence and was gone over the brush.  Pretty cool to experience that.  There would be blood on my hands shortly after

 

Owls are studied by aeronautical engineers as they have almost no sound when they fly.

 

[cabowabo 4452]

24 minutes ago, deadshank said:

Owls are studied by aeronautical engineers as they have almost no sound when they fly.

Which makes it all the more terrifying watching them fly right at you through a thermal scope.  

[deadshank 24651]

2 minutes ago, cabowabo said:

Which makes it all the more terrifying watching them fly right at you through a thermal scope.  

Yep.  I had one try to fly into the blind.  I was looking out the blind window with my 'nocs as there was just enough light to see the deer.

He shit on me and I shit on him at the rally point.  I got a full day's cardio workout in 15 seconds.

[hookemATL 11602]

What do you call childcare for a couple baby owls?

A hootnanny. 

[BabaYaga 15205]

3 hours ago, cabowabo said:

Which makes it all the more terrifying watching them fly right at you through a thermal scope.  

[cabowabo 4452]

3 minutes ago, BabaYaga said:

Man, ya'll are fucking me up in the head really bad.

[deadshank 24651]

25 minutes ago, BabaYaga said:

Got the 8 piece combo with gizzards to go. 

[deadshank 24651]

20 hours ago, cabowabo said:

I did a little e-calling last week from my hog stand.  I put the caller about 20 yards or so from the stand. Problem for me is that owls start flying around the caller looking for their next meal and invariably fly straight at me in my stand.  The last thing I need is a lechuza clawing me in the fucking head.  I usually scream like a bitch and the peel off.  

The first time my wife went to the blind with me was at a lease I was on down in McMullen county along the banks of the mighty Nueces.  It was real late MLD February and I took the Fox Pro with us to do some predator calling as we were tagged out on deer.  

She had never been hunting or in a blind and had no idea what to expect.  I put the Fox Pro up off the ground in a mesquite tree about 4 feet up and off the blind by about 50 yards.  I cranked that thing up with the wounded rabbit squeal and I told her "the birds of prey will come to it first; owls and hawks."  Naturally and as all wives do she wanted to argue with me; never mind she had never been hunting.

"Those birds won't come to that call!"

"Yes. They do. Why wouldn't they?"

"Well, birds don't have ears!!!"

"Uh, why do duck calls work?"

tone

And as according to Hoyle, within minutes the hawks and owls were dive bombing that thing.  One hawk landed atop the Fox Pro and started furiously clawing at it.  The wife was shocked by the affair.  Later we had six dogs come out in formation with the lead peering his head out of  the brush, looking both ways, then woofing back to his platoon of troops.  The other coyotes would skeedadle across the sendero one at a time and only after the lead would first look both ways, look back and give approval to the others secreted away in the brush.  It was really something to watch their military sneak formation work.  This was the second time I've seen coyotes do this maneuver.

Also, two pairs of bobcats came out and milled around for a spell.  I had never seen bobcats paired up like that.    

No shots were fired.

I didn't get any action either. 

 

 

[Anastasis 23390]

11 minutes ago, deadshank said:

The first time my wife went to the blind with me ...

I didn't get any action either. 

Not how I hoped that post was going to turn out. 

[deadshank 24651]

Just now, Anastasis said:

Not how I hoped that post was going to turn out. 

you were hoping for titties mashed up against a steamy blind window?

[Anastasis 23390]

Just now, deadshank said:

you were hoping for titties mashed up against a steamy blind window?

Are you telling me that you weren't?

[deadshank 24651]

4 minutes ago, Anastasis said:

Are you telling me that you weren't?

Yes I was.  But I’m a realist. 

[MalibuSheriff 1088]

On 1/15/2023 at 8:59 PM, RMac5 said:

Went through Coleman this afternoon, stopped in at Rancho Pizza and got an Italian sausage. Looks like the owners are putting in a bbq place on the corner, just down from the pizza joint and steakhouse. Rancho Q appears to be the name. I’m sure it will be good, everything they put out is incredible.

Their pizza is badass.  I miss those long road trips that pass through Coleman either to a buddy’s ranch or O.H. Ivie.  In Dallas, my first boss out of college was an older guy originally from Coleman and he was salt of the Earth kind of dude.  Tip top.

The dove hunting out there used to unbelievably good.

[RMac5 1550]

Their pizza is badass, wish I could get their dough recipe. I do business with their hospital and go there every two weeks but it’s usually Monday or Tuesday and the pizza place is open like Thursday thru Sunday.

[freyguy 4245]

sitting in a blind in Whitsett. Never been here before. My first impression is folks get up at the crack of dawn so they can shoot off every firearm in their house.

It's like ww3 has started

[freyguy 4245]

or we happen to be right next to El Guapo's compound.

[Revolution512 1480]

On 1/17/2023 at 3:43 PM, DalTxHornFan said:

We saw plenty of deer in Menard/Schleicher county area this year -- just not as many that anyone wanted to shoot.  The drought took its toll.  If we get rain in the coming year, many of the mature bucks that we passed on should be pretty good in the fall.

We slayed a bunch of hogs, though!

We are in El Dorado on 5,000 acres, it was terrible both numbers wise and quality. 

[Speedtrucker 2063]

I use a foxpro shockwave alot. They really work well

Nice, my wife’s BiL has the bullet hp and it seems to work pretty well.

I’m interested in a caller finally but I ain’t paying $350 for one…

[fattyflattie 4636]

3 hours ago, Speedtrucker said:

Nice, my wife’s BiL has the bullet hp and it seems to work pretty well.

I’m interested in a caller finally but I ain’t paying $350 for one…

I’ve been studying them a bit. Good to hear real world experience. Think I’m going to dive into it this year; we are seeing more and more predators of all types.  Quail is down (don’t think this is why) but they can play the scapegoat and it gets me down to the ranch more in the off season. 

[686 3404]

Had a good morning; activity was just enough, birds weren’t coming in real close but we did ok. Close to Sabine NWR

[Speedtrucker 2063]

I’ve been studying them a bit. Good to hear real world experience. Think I’m going to dive into it this year; we are seeing more and more predators of all types.  Quail is down (don’t think this is why) but they can play the scapegoat and it gets me down to the ranch more in the off season. 

Yeah that’s kinda why I’m finally ready to pick up a caller. Coyotes repopulated big time this past summer.

With his we’ve called yotes back after dropping one, same with hogs we’ve called them back 3, 4 times in a row some nights. He’ll switch up the distress call and then into the hog feeding again and they’ll come marching right back up despite a dead hog 2 feet away

[deadshank 24651]

Member’s son took this 6.5 year old, 144 & 2/8” buck this morning.  If his broke off right eye guard was intact and the same size as the left eye guard  the he’d have an extra 3” on him.  Not a bad buck.