Sometimes you get no bang for your buck

Paul and I were sitting for less than five minutes when the big ears of a mule deer doe showed above the crest of a small hill that marked the edge of a shallow draw. She made her way south over the hill and soon was followed by a half-dozen more deer. Among them was a heavy-antlered forked horn, but it was the buck at the back that caught my attention.

He wasn’t a trophy by record book standards, but the buck was a dandy nonetheless. His antlers carried only three points per side, but they were wide, tall and heavy. The buck had stained them a deep brown color that stood out in stark contrast against the golden hues of the dry cheat grass in which he stood.

Paul and I had selected our position to take advantage of the cover offered by one of the few bushes on the flat that were large enough to serve that purpose. From there, we hoped to spot a buck or two but were surprised to see deer so soon after taking up our position.

Paul slid me his shooting sticks, and I began setting up for the shot while he measured the distance with his range finder. It was well beyond my self-imposed limit of 300 yards, and since the deer seemed intent on walking in my direction, I settled in to wait. Then, for no apparent reason, the lead doe suddenly turned west, and the other deer followed.

I expected the deer to turn back south, hopefully within shooting range, but when that didn’t happen, we had to move. Because the area was so wide open, Paul and I waited until the deer dropped into one of the many shallow draws sprinkled throughout the area we were hunting.

When they dropped out of sight, Paul and I took advantage of the opportunity to move, covering the rocky terrain as quickly as possible. Our goal was to use one of those draws to cover our movement as we traveled west to intercept the buck when he and his companions turned back to the south.

We crossed three shallow swales before dropping into one that was deep enough to give us decent cover and allow us to move quickly. But we hadn’t traveled far down the draw when Paul spotted the buck and we dropped behind some brush. Through my binoculars I could see only the buck’s ears and antlers; the shot would have to wait until he cleared. When the buck did move, however, he bolted from the brush and offered me no shot.

Though Paul and I were disappointed in the result, we couldn’t help but smile as we briefly discussed how things played out. We also relived the events that took place earlier that morning, when I missed a beautiful buck with double drop tines. The only thing my wife could say when I later related that story was, “You need to shoot more.”

Paul and I had the opportunity to attempt another stock later that morning and got a laugh when Don, our other hunting partner, tried to turn a small herd of deer our direction. Reflecting on the day’s events, Paul said it was among the most enjoyable of his brief hunting career.

It was a good day, and I did manage to take a meat buck home for the freezer. Paul took home a nice 4 x 5, and Marty, another member of our camp, bagged a 29-inch four point. For both, it was their first deer.

Freelance writer Doug Nielsen is a conservation educator for the Nevada Department of Wildlife. His “In the Outdoors” column, published Thursday in the Las Vegas Review-Journal, is not affiliated with or endorsed by the NDOW. Any opinions he states in his column are his own. He can be reached at intheoutdoorslv@gmail.com.