Since I shot my muley doe last Monday I've been trying to fill my antelope doe tag & it's been brutal! The heat has been a real challenge. Monday was hot & I had a decent shot at a doe antelope but she broke & ran just as I flipped the switch. They are so fast that it was just an air pocket shot when the 200 gr cast slug from my 357 Maximum got there.
Thursday I went back, the heat went up to 98 degrees & I was pinned down for 11 hrs while a herd of 29 head stared, bedded, fed, & then stared some more at 3 well drillers 1/4 mile away. When they finally left I stayed 3 more hours but they were not going to the water so I left, fried, thirsty, hungry & frustrated. We were playing a little cat & mouse game & they were kicking my Obama!
They had a lot of real estate to work with & I had to figure out how to either catch them at the water, which they go to 3-4 times a day or hope they would feed close enough I could "punch" one with one of the revolvers. I had already taken the muley with my 357 Maximum & was hoping to fill the antelope tag with my old model 44 flat top with iron sights if possible.
There were at least 2 times both days I could have shot bucks, small bucks but at least I could have put down an antelope but the doe's were having nothing to do with it. It was like they knew they were protected. There was one really nice heavy weight in the bunch, possibly approaching record book size, even he was dummer than Kim Jong Pelosi.
I really needed a change of luck & maybe my 12 yr old grandson Caleb would turn out to be the answer.
We left at 5 am, me driving, him napping for the 140 miles to my little honey hole after a quick stop for breakfast. I knew the antelope had 2 choices, either hay field A or hay field B. I chose to go to hay field B & had Caleb drop me off along an old fence line & then he rode the 4 wheeler back to the truck after we were sure there were no antelope in my chosen field. I set up my Bog Pod, tried to get a few range finder readings, but no success, all the hay bales had been picked up in the last 2 days, bummer! My instructions to Caleb were to stop at the truck, climb in the back & use the glasses to see if he could spot any antelope. If he could, try to circle below them, walking slow & see if they would bump to the north, it worked, sort of.
An hour passed, then another hour, then I spotted one of the several bucks strolling my way all by himself. He was far enough out & there was so much mirage that I couldn't get a reading on him. I would guess maybe 600 yds. Another hous passes & I am fried to a very, very well done, it's 101 degrees! Sweat is running in my eyes, I keep taking off my hat & glasses & wiping the sweat that's burning my eyes, I've having a great time. Nobody said it was going to be easy right.
I see 6 antelope heading for water & then another 9 head. I glass my truck off in the distance & know that Caleb is enjoying the air conditioning. Then he must have spotted the antelope because I see him walking towards the reservoir, it's on! They move away from the water without drinking & another buck appears out of no where, I could have nailed him at 45 yds (ranged) Caleb sits down in the shade of the little well house where the guys were working thursday & the little herd slooowly starts working my way in the blistering heat.
I wipe my brow & eyes one more time but still can't get a reading, they are too far out. Fifteen more minutes pass & the lead doe breaks into a little trot & I shoot her with the range finder at 122 yds & she slows to a walk broadside. I would shoot her if she would stop walking but no dice, she's tailing the buck. The next doe stops & I know I'm dead on at 100 yds with the 357 Maximum, the iron sighted 44 is out of the game at this distance. There's a difference between shooting a target at the range at 100-120 yds & shooting game at that distance. I've done it when I've felt comfortable, on this shot I didn't feel comfortable using the iron sighted 44. I had double lunged the muley doe at 90 yds & she ran a little bit from the 200 gr LBT cast, but only a little. This time I was going to take the high shoulder shot. I held just under the top of the back & lit the Remington 7 1/2 & she caved in like she had been hit by a rocket. Both shoulders gone with an exit, it really "punched" her ticket. Just like a Navy SEAL, Hell Week was OVER!
Dick
