AZHunter
Iowa Boy At Heart
I always realize I'm rarely on here anymore. Then I log in after a great hunt and realize I need to spend more time here because it reminds me of my Iowa roots. I'm still processing so much from the last several days and there is so much to celebrate and honor. First and foremost, I'm still so thrilled to be able to hunt with my daughter, Sydney, again and to have both Syd and my son, Jacob, with me. We couldn’t get Sydney’s tag filled before she had to go back to UofA and that’s my one sadness. However, after her taking several years away to find herself in life, I was beyond thrilled that she wanted to deer hunt again and I got to be with her. It was a very strange feeling to be the center of attention for filling a tag after Syd left back for school. My buddy tagged out on a nice Coues buck Sunday morning, and we shifted focus Sunday night and Monday morning to finding me a buck I'd be happy with. We traveled deeper into a spot Sunday afternoon, and we weren't disappointed. I knew where I wanted to be Monday morning, if we didn't find something Sunday night. I ended up glassing up a young-ish 2x2 with about 30 minutes of shooting light left. It was a legal buck, and I could fill my tag on a Coues buck for the first time since 2005. He just didn't make my heart sing and I didn't really want to kill a young buck just to fill a tag, no matter how much I wanted meat in the freezer. I hem-hawed enough to waste shooting light and the sunset decided for me for the night, anyway. As we were packing up and heading back to camp, I got a text from another dear friend who reminded me the next day was Veteran's Day. That kicked a dust storm of emotions I wasn't expecting. I knew I had to do something to honor dad and his buddies, so I knew if I saw that buck again, it was my sign from God, dad, and Goose.
It was hard to get up Monday morning, but we got up and hit our spot early to make sure nobody beat us there. We finally glassed up my 2x2 from the night before, but I realized in the daylight, he just wasn't what I wanted. Right around 0815, I glassed up a buck, but couldn't make out any detail. Christian told me I needed to shoot that buck, so we got everything set up for a longer shot. Jacob was amazing at calling out scope adjustments for me while Christian was ranging. It was a group effort keeping me calm and steady and I appreciate everyone involved. It turns out my scope, rifle, and I have some issues we need to resolve, and I missed more than I want to admit, but I finally connected. It also took more shots than I want to admit, but I finally put him out of his misery and took my biggest Coues buck to date (76-7/8"). There was absolutely nothing flat about where he was and one of my shots was prone laying uphill. I'll let you figure out how many times I kept sliding downhill. We had work to do, and I appreciate everyone's help in getting great photos and the deer field dressed on a steep hill.
I managed to keep all my emotions in when I recovered and tagged my buck. Back at the UTV was a different story. I had finally met my last post-surgery recovery goal from two years ago. Challenge Accepted Day ~800 and I packed out most of my own deer down a crazy steep, loose-rocky hillside and I felt strong and steady doing it. I sent a text to one of my dad's buddies that I'm close to and that's when the emotions overtook me, and I had to step away. I did my best to honor my dad and the rest of Task Force Black from Nov 11, 1967 on Nov 11, 2024.
Glassing Coues Country
So happy to have my kids with me.
Sydney lining up for a long shot. Unfortunately, she missed.
Me and my Coues buck
Me, Jacob, and my buck
Me, Jacob, and my buddy, Christian
The view from my buck
Packing out heavy and wearing my "Sky Soldier" hat as a tribute to my dad and his buddies.
It was hard to get up Monday morning, but we got up and hit our spot early to make sure nobody beat us there. We finally glassed up my 2x2 from the night before, but I realized in the daylight, he just wasn't what I wanted. Right around 0815, I glassed up a buck, but couldn't make out any detail. Christian told me I needed to shoot that buck, so we got everything set up for a longer shot. Jacob was amazing at calling out scope adjustments for me while Christian was ranging. It was a group effort keeping me calm and steady and I appreciate everyone involved. It turns out my scope, rifle, and I have some issues we need to resolve, and I missed more than I want to admit, but I finally connected. It also took more shots than I want to admit, but I finally put him out of his misery and took my biggest Coues buck to date (76-7/8"). There was absolutely nothing flat about where he was and one of my shots was prone laying uphill. I'll let you figure out how many times I kept sliding downhill. We had work to do, and I appreciate everyone's help in getting great photos and the deer field dressed on a steep hill.
I managed to keep all my emotions in when I recovered and tagged my buck. Back at the UTV was a different story. I had finally met my last post-surgery recovery goal from two years ago. Challenge Accepted Day ~800 and I packed out most of my own deer down a crazy steep, loose-rocky hillside and I felt strong and steady doing it. I sent a text to one of my dad's buddies that I'm close to and that's when the emotions overtook me, and I had to step away. I did my best to honor my dad and the rest of Task Force Black from Nov 11, 1967 on Nov 11, 2024.
Glassing Coues Country
So happy to have my kids with me.
Sydney lining up for a long shot. Unfortunately, she missed.
Me and my Coues buck
Me, Jacob, and my buck
Me, Jacob, and my buddy, Christian
The view from my buck
Packing out heavy and wearing my "Sky Soldier" hat as a tribute to my dad and his buddies.
