This is my favorite kind of email!!! I will try and get the shooter to post a few more details about the hunt. Congrats Big 'A'. He is a beauty!!!



"Subject: My Mulie
From: "*********" <*********@**********>
Date: Sun, December 12, 2004 9:42 pm
To: s1@artactical.com
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Hey Sam the .300 worked well out in Texas. Thanks!"

Details from big 'A'


"Well the first time I saw the deer he was about 250yrds away. He just simply
appeared out of nowhere along with about 10 does. In all actuality he was
just hidden the entire time by a slight fold in the land. Anyway, I was
sitting on top of an old abandoned train trestle glassing when he came out
of the draw. He was facing right at me and all I could tell was he was wide
and had good mass. Knowing the trophy quality of the area, I held off on the
shot until he would turn his head and give me a side view. By this time all
the deer are looking my direction and he refuses to look side ways. Knowing
I would have to take an offhand shot from atop the trestle, I slipped out
the back, off the trestle and onto the ground. With my bipods unfolded and
my belly in the dirt I'm suddenly feeling much better about taking the shot.
Only problem is he still won't turn his head. He is fixed on me and is about
to get gone at any moment. Still I hold off on the shot because I want to
see forks before I shoot.

Finally he turns his head to look at the does which are by now , leaving the
area! The word "shooter" immediately came to mind. Just as I'm about to
unleash the beast he bolts and heads for a coulee 400yrds away that another
of our party is glassing. My heart sinks as the second biggest Muley I've
ever seen is about to be shot by someone else.

I sit and wait for the shot but it never comes. I started thinking maybe
Paul had glassed the coulee and moved. I start removing heavy clothes and
strike out cross country to see if I can catch up with the deer. I made it
all the way to the coulee they dropped off in and I began glassing only to
find two does in there.

I eventually find Paul as he is standing on top of a butte 500yds away with
his hands outstretched above his head signaling, "big deer"! Paul is
pointing as if he saw where the deer went so I made my way over to him. Paul
says they are right over there under that rock outcrop. I was straining with
my 10x42 Nikons to pick out any deer at all due to fog that was beginning to
roll in. I finally found him about 200yrds below the rest of the deer. He
had cut a single doe from the herd and was now tending her.

Paul asked what I wanted to do, I replied, "Kill him from here but the wind
is gonna make it tough." I ranged him at 648yds which is do-able but we had
a strong varying crosswind of about 10mph and gusting to 20. I know my
limitations and the conditions were exceeding them. Besides we had
options......

We decided to drop off to the butte to the west and work our way south
through another draw. That draw in theory would get us up and behind the
rock outcrop that the deer were now under. This would allow for a 200yrd
shot and eliminate wind worries. The stalk went as planned and after about
1 mile Paul and I found ourselves slightly above the deer but not on the
outcrop we wanted to be on. The problem was, the deer were about 75yrd in
front of us and beginning to bed down. I assumed the big buck and the doe he
was tending were just over the crest of the hill out of sight. We could not
gain anymore elevation to see over the crest because the wind would blow our
scent to the whole herd.

We were pinned down by the wind and the deer and only had one more option. I
turned and whispered to Paul that we should back out and circle downwind of
the deer and just walk in amongst them. The idea was to get them out of
there beds and shoot the buck on the fly as he made his escape. The plan
worked to perfection! Well almost.

As we backed out I told Paul to go first and shoot first since he had never
taken a Muley. I would play clean up if he missed his first shot. As we made
our way into the middle of the herd I was surprised at just how well the
Junipers and Yuccas hid our approach. We got within about 50yrd before the
first deer started to get gone. After the first five bounded over the top of
the outcrop to our left, I looked straight ahead and about 100yrds out was a
doe standing all alone. Due to her location and the fact that she was alone,
I knew it was the doe the buck had been tending when we glassed them from
the butte back across the valley.

At this point I knew the buck had to be bedded close to the doe somewhere
and I told Paul to get ready. I made my way from behind Paul to beside him
so that I could shoot as well. Once in position I raised my rifle instead of
the binos to try and find the buck through the grass. Paul followed suit and
just as I was about to lower the rifle and move forward I saw the buck move
his head. It doesn't take much head movement on a buck that wide to make
allot of horn movement, if you know what I mean! The words, " there he is,"
hadn't even escaped my mouth and the doe bolted with the buck in tow. With
both Pauls 7mm Rem Mag and my .300 Ultra bearing down on him, the results
where almost anti-climactic. Turns out the pressure of going first got to
Paul. As I saw his bullet skimming the tops of the grass through my scope
and cleanly missing behind the deer, I fired one shot. The bucks reaction
was instant! Bang... flop! He clearly didn't like the 200gr Accubond
connecting with his shoulder blades. Walking upon the deer Paul was sick and
I was elated, though I tried not to show it too much. This is my biggest
muley ever and the best part is, I saw one allot bigger. I'll be praying
that the Texas Panhandle has an easy winter this year (grin)!"

Not a bad size elk. what?? thats a Mule Deer?? Heres something my wife will never say. GooD Lord that's huge.

Nice job.

Don

Good story and great buck. "A good man knows his limitations," Dirty Harry,Ha.

Congradulations! Nice Buck!

Congratulations on a great buck!
Wayne aka WAMBO