Oregon Antelope

[bullfrog]

Pulled an antelope tag this year. First time I've hunted them in Oregon with a rifle. Took ten years to draw the tag. Most units take anywhere from 7 to 12 years to draw. I was hunting in the malhuer river unit. My Dad and his long time hunting buddy Bob came along for the ride. The weather was brutal. Extremely hot without an ounce of shade to be found. We saw 10 bucks the first day. 3 of them were to small to be legal, I passed shots on 4 of them that were borderline shooters and the rest were to far or movin to fast. I blew what I thought was the perfect stock on one of the nice bucks. I accidently spooked some cattle on the way to the antelope herd and that made the antelope take off and run. That rounded out day one.
Day two was just as hot, but not as eventful. Didn't see a legal buck all day. I did however make a good stock on 2 does and 2 fawns that we spotted from over a mile away. Thought there would be a buck bedded with them also but...
By day 3 I was getting worn out. I put a lot of miles on the old boots and was tired of being hot and thirsty. We decided to go back to town to get some more ice and hunt a different area on the way back. On the way, I saw a buck run just over a hill from us. I jumped out of the rig, loaded up the .270 and ran off after him. He ran through a swale and up another hill and stopped. He was a long way out, but I set up the shooting sticks and held the cross hairs a couple inches over his back. Whack...I shot him in the gut. I heard the bullet hit, but I didn't know for sure if I hit him or not. He didn't react, just walked a couple of steps. I worried that I shot below him so I aimed a little higher and led him because he started to walk off again. Down he went. When I walked up to him I saw that the second shot had broken his neck. Glad that I put him down, but it pretty much ruined the cape. The range finder later revealed that he was at 410 yards. He ended up being the best buck we saw.
Here are a couple of hero shots plus a couple of the bucks that I passed. Can't wait till I draw another tag. Except that I'll most likely be in my 40's by then.







All in all it was a perfect hunt.

[ACLakey]

Very nice, sounds like a great trip for sure.

[acloco]

Excellent. Might try to hunt a goat this fall as well.

[Verminator2]

Good job! My dad forgot to buy his antelope tag so we didn't get to hunt

[bullfrog]

Good job! My dad forgot to buy his antelope tag so we didn't get to hunt

Ouch buddy. Sorry to hear that. Wouldn't be so bad except it takes so long to draw the tag. Oh well, they don't really taste that great.

[race4hills]

[quote="bullfrog" Can't wait till I draw another tag. Except that I'll most likely be in my 40's by then.
quote]

Whats wrong with hunting in your 40's, heck I am looking forward to hunting in my 50's in a few more years! Nice speedgoat you got there.

[bullfrog]

Don't get me wrong Race, hunting in your 40's is great...it's just that i'm still having trouble getting used to the fact that i'm now in my 30's. Maybe I should look at it a little differently. Like, by the next time I draw an oregon antelope tag I'll have several monster mulies and a couple of giant 6 point bulls on the wall of my office. That sounds a little better.

[Melvin Eades]

bullfrog,

Congratulations on your hunt. The challenges make the success that much sweeter. Good shooting for that distance, looks like some good country for coyotes too.

Thanks for sharing and with pictures too!

[Rick in Oregon]

Bullfrog: Congratulations buddy! Nice buck there to be sure, nice shooting also.

Hunting in your 30's is excellent, very mobile and energetic. Hunting in your 40's is good; more experience, slower, more careful stalks. Hunting in your 50's is okay, youger guys come along to help with the pack out and heavier camp chores, and you buy a nice light mountain rifle cause your old favorite now feels like an M60. Hunting in your 60's....can't say, as I didn't draw a single tag this year!

Glad you had a great hunt, thanks for sharing with photos. Gotta love the ole .270 Win eh?

[YoteSmoker]

Hunting in your early 30s at 8-10,000 ft = wishing you were in your early 20's again. Can't tell you what its like past 33 yet, but it ain't looking to promising