pintoshot

Flairball-your points are well taken. And, I am sure there are many Ranches that fit the bill you describe. It's the others that cross the line. Out here, to find a nice buck is like finding a needle in a haystack. Then, you have to pattern the dang thing enough to give yourself a chance. Most of the true trophy bucks are largely nocturnal and you may never see them ecept in the summer-early fall with extended daylight hours. Whitetails are a bit easier out here because they don't range very far (though they do range a bit farther than one would normally expect in the wide open wheat country.).Muleys however can bee seen today, and in the next county tomorrow. The point is, on public and wilderness lands large trophy bucks are like ghosts and you most certainly would never see one enough to "name it' or pattern it, unless you were a full-time scouter or guide. Alot of us have to pattern bucks on the fly, that is to say on a 2-5 day hunt on which you are doing an incredible amount of spot & stalk. In all my years of hunting out west I have never seen a tree-stand while hunting. Out here tree standuse is rare except by a few bow hunters. Our country is full of topography and relief. Most hunting is done in spot & stalk style.There is some blind hunting but mostly in natural cover such as in elk hunting a tree lined meadow. It's mostly active hunting as opposed to sitting & waiting, though there is some of that too. So I guess my reality of what hunting is, is just different because of the conditions we hunt in here in the northwest. In all my logged miles of hunting I have never known a buck by name. Nor, could I ever be positve from year, to year, that the buck I'm looking at, I may have seen before (when younger). No, its a very "pure" form of hunting that my experience has been gained from. And, after seeing some of "what else" goes on in the hunting world, I am very grateful for it's purity. Hunting is getting a bit too sophisticated for my tastes. Give me a good rifle, some public land or wilderness, a good pair of boots, a knife, survival gear, binoculars, knowledge of wind direction and a few animals and call it good. And yes, I do have a couple of farmer friends who's land is bordered by public hunting land that I use from year to year. But it isnt fenced. You ever see washington wheat country? Now that would take some miles of fencing.