dmurphy317

Over the last two weeks I hunted for bull elk and mule deer with some surprizing results. I wish I could say I filled my tags but I can't. The 5 day bull hunt saw me seeing more deer in 5 days than I have seen in 5 years in that unit. Close to 2 dozen deer in a unit managed for elk, I've only seen a total of 5 deer there in previous years. I only saw 3 cow elk the whole week. I did help the guy camping next to me clean his 6x7 that went close to 1000 pounds, I would guess the rack would be in the mid 300's. He got it the evening of the 4th day by pretending to pick pinion nuts under some trees, the elk herd came in all around them and he shot it at about 30 yards. I'll be filing that one in my bag of tricks for next year.

Opening morning of the deer week I had 2 small bucks walk right past me at about 40 yards, one was a spike and we have a fork antler minimum so only one was legal but just barely. Both were still young and since I had seen a nice 4x4 on that same ridge the week before I decided to let him pass. As it often goes, those were the last bucks I saw for the rest of my hunt. I saw deer each of the first 3 days but they were all does after the first 2. I then found out that my employer had called a manditory meeting on the afternoon of the 4th day. I was able to hunt for a couple of hours that morning but then had to strike the camp and head home.

The meeting turned out to be about the economy and how the company was going to impliment strategies to reduce costs and overhead. In other words, preparing us for no pay raises and possibly layoffs by the first of the year. I should have stayed in the woods and finished my hunt.

All in all I consider the hunt a success. I have now found where the deer hang out in the unit and will know where to go and where to spend my timefor the next deer tag I draw. I also have a new strategy to try the next time I get a bull tag during the pinion season. My youngest son still has a cow tag for later this month so hopefully we will have another chance at some meat this year, he is looking forward to his hunt as this is the first elk tag he has ever drawn.

I hope everyone else is having a good hunting season.

Semisane

Well, meat is nice. But any hunt you enjoy and come back safe from is a good hunt. Better luck next year. Do you have to wear a special "pinion nut picker" costume for that ruse? I would think camo would be a dead giveaway that something is fishy about that there nut picker.

dmurphy317

I'm not sure about a special costume but I would guess that your being half nutz would help.

Underclocked

bronko22000

Semi - I believe the proper pinion nut picker costume for you would be a pair of hot pink tights and a forest green shirt. And you need a 'Robin Hood' hat complete with feathers.Shoes are optional. But for you, I would suggest a pump of some sort.

Murphy - glad you had a good outing. Maybe you will drop something next year.

cayugad

Even though you did not score, it would still be nice to be out in the woods walking around. Perhaps next year I will book a elk hunt out west somewhere and let them do all the work for me..

Semisane

Dang Bronko, you been sneaking around my hunting lease and checking me out??? Can't hunt bare foot - the pumps are patent leather in hunter's orange,and the feathers are from a nice wood duck I took out of the Honey Island swamp where the Loup Garou lives (never hunt there on a full moon).

Anyway, we don't have pinion nuts, but deer sure love pecans. Maybe I'll dress as a pecan picker (shorts and a T-shirt).

thumper50

The next time I see a nutpicker in pink tights and a green shirt in the woods I am going to give up hunting!!![:'(][:'(][:'(]

SuperKirby

Wait, when you say "nutpicker," what exactly are we talking about. Because if it's whatI'm thinking, I've seen a few of them in pink tights. Maybe not in the woods necessarily, but that doesn't mean theyaren't out there.

Vince