The magazine article said, “You’d be surprised.  A trip to Africa will cost less than some western elk hunts or Texas deer hunts.”  And, I suppose it does cost less than some western elk hunts or Texas deer hunts, but from my information gathering it doesn’t cost less than any elk or deer hunt I would take.  After having successfully harvested javelina and crossing them off my personal critter wish list I began investigating the costs and options for hunting the next one, elk, for 2011.  

Now, I consider myself a person of modest means, but I have also seen hunters go to Colorado five or more times at a total cost of $12,000+plus on marginally outfitted or DIY hunts and never draw their bows back.  Great experiences I’m sure, but if I just want to walk around where elk hang out I can go to Yellow Stone or move back to Washington State’s Olympic Peninsula.  I wasn’t raised up elk hunting, I dedicated the first 20 years of my adult life to Uncle Sam and I’m not getting any younger.  So, I’m talking about putting myself in the best position to harvest a fair chase elk the first time out.  By booking a high opportunity elk hunt through a high quality booking agent with excellent reputation and a first class outfitter with excellent reputation my costs would be close to $7,000 give or take, mostly give.  While I mulled that around in my head I discussed the hunt with the outfitter who declared it a, “Fat boy hunt,” i.e., stay in a hotel, eat at a restaurant, ride an ATV to the hunting area and begin hunting.  If the price tag didn’t shut the hunt down the description did.  

Time to regroup.  Other than a few inquiries for cow elk hunting as a “training wheel” course, elk hunting went on the back burner.  Then my buddy Crazy Brew from Kansas called one day and talked about going to Africa.  I still owe him a “butt kickin’” for mentioning it.  The thought had crossed my mind before (also enticed by that “less than an elk/deer hunt” discussion).  So, what does it cost?  Never being one to let emotion overcome fact gathering (at least not initially) I researched and put together some numbers for us to ruminate over.  

General notes:  The following estimates are based on a 10 day hunt.  The daily and trophy fees are from 8 operations with good to very good reputations (my opinion).  These costs are associated with booking a plains game hunt through a reliable outfitter or booking agent and not with buying a hunt from an unknown, unheard-of outfitter at a banquet auction.  There are no bargain basement operations.  Often, even these outfitters have specials that provide a significant value to the hunter above and beyond that listed here (savings of up to $2000 or more).  Four of the outfitters are sponsors of a very popular archery forum website.  Three others are booked through a sponsor of that website.  Six are in the Republic of South Africa.  Two are in Namibia.  Both are popular destinations for plains game hunting.  Note that it isn’t always easy to compare apples to apples.  For instance, there seems to be an additional transport charge and tax associated with the Namibia operations.  Also, the low daily fee is not from the same outfitter as the low trophy fee.  Basically, this is a ball park planning figure. 

Daily fees – These typically encompass things like the services of a professional hunter (PH), trackers, food, drinks, lodging, vehicle usage, etc.  They may or may not include pick up and return to the airport or arrival/departure day charges.  

Low:  $300/day = $3000     High:  $495/day = $4950 

Trophy fees – In Africa you typically pay a trophy fee for harvested or wounded animals.  These fees are often on a sliding scale that goes up for the trophy quality and/or physical size of the animal.  The following five animals are those plains game animals, besides zebra, that were discussed as “best representing” Africa on the previously mentioned website; kudu, gemsbok, wildebeest, warthog and blesbok.  I suppose zebra probably represent Africa as well as or more so than any plains game, but I’m not interested in harvesting one. 

Low:  $3000     High:  $5700

Kudu – Mrs. dustyvarmint’s favorite.

 

Gemsbok – my favorite.

Wildebeest

Warthog – only a mother can love that face.

Blesbok

Tips – Just as in the United States tipping for the guide and support staff is customary.  These numbers are based on information from the same previously mentioned website.  Recommendations include $300 plus or 10-15% of the daily fee for the PH and $10-20 per day for the staff or $4 per day for trackers and $10 per day for the cook.    

Low:  $500     High:  $695

So, there you go.  $6,500 on the low end for five animals including food and lodging for eight days.  Hey, that isn’t half bad.  Except for the rest of the story….  For starters you’ve got to get to Africa. 

Airfare

$2210 give or take.

Transfer to and from airport if applicable

Low:  $0     High:  $950

Ok, so there, $8710 for 5 animals.  Except, oh yeah, you may want to bring your trophies back to the United States.  Since they won’t fit in baggage and you aren’t allowed to bring them back yourself anyway you’ve got to have them dipped and packed, crated, shipped and cleared by customs.  Now, if you don’t bring your trophies back you could save quite a bit.  Note, though, that in Namibia you must pay Value Added Tax (VAT) on any trophies not brought back to the states.

Dip & pack

$510 (5-6 animals)

Crating, shipping, customs clearance and shipping to taxidermist

$1500

Taxidermist – If a hunter of modest means wanted to bring back his or her trophies, but cut some cost, this is the opportunity to do so.  Crazy Brew suggested a friend’s thrifty method.  He bought a zebra skin in Africa (which it turns out is cheaper than harvesting your own and having it tanned) and mounted all his trophies in European skull mount style on and around it.  I will attribute a small allotment to taxidermy work. 

Low:  $1000     High:  Who knows? 

Miscellaneous

$100-$200 (overnight stays along the way)

Gifts

Dependent and variable by hunter

Total – Low:  $11,820     High:  $17,715

So, we are looking at $11,820 on the low end.  Is that less than an elk or deer hunt you would take?

happy hunting, dv

If you liked this blog you may like the following: 

• Pronghorn – Rained Out
• Boar Attach – Anatomy Of A Hog Shot Gone Wrong
• dv’s 2009 Turkey Season – Fried Tag

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The following is my trip report from a recent adventure with Powder River Outfitters for pronghorn.  The report is based on a North American Hunting Club format.    

1) Outfitter: Powder River Outfitters booked through Close Encounters booking agent Gary Martin.

2) Owner: Powder River Outfitters, Ken Greslin.  Close Encounters, Tom Close.

3) Address:  Powder River Outfitters, Box 678, Broadus, MT 59317.  Close Encounters, 989 Highway 48, Luck, WI 54853.   

4) Phone: Powder River (406)436-2538.  Close Encounters, (715)472-8253.

5) E-mail: Powder River, pat@davegardnercpa.com.  Close Encounters, tom@closeencountersbowhunts.com.

6) When: August 15-19, 2009

7) Where: Broadus, MT

Guided: Fully   

9) Drop: No

10) Transportation to hunting area: Truck driven by guide. 

11) Accommodations: Mobile homes for sleeping accommodations.  Separate kitchen/dining house.    

12) Trophy hunt only: No

13) Species hunted / harvested: Pronghorn / none.

14) Tools used: Compound bow.

15) Land hunted: Private

16) Cost: Booked at rate of $1300 per person for five day hunt including food, lodging, guiding and trophy care.  Check with outfitter for current rates.  Additional costs:  Travel (shared) $112.00, licenses/tags $246.00, tips $66.00.    

17) Challenging terrain adversely affect hunt: No

18) Did weather adversely affect hunt: Yes     

19) Quantity of game: Excellent

20) Quality of game: Excellent

21) Guide’s Competence: Fair   

22) Guide’s Hunting Ethics: Fair

23) Condition of Equipment: Good  

24) Food: Good   

25) Trophy care: Not Applicable    

26) Meat care: Not Applicable   

27) Number of outfitted / guided hunts for myself: 8

28)  Recommended: Yes        

29)  General comments:  The area around Broadus was suffering from some pronghorn winterkill and the weather through out the summer had been wet.  However, there were plenty of good bucks.  Temperatures were mild and it rained every day but one.  Not good for a water hole hunt.  Spot and stalk was the right method to use in this weather, but the guide and outfitter didn’t seem interested in employing it for anything other than a few hours one afternoon.  After some significant discussions with the guide we fit in about three stalks before heading to the blinds in the late afternoon.  At one point the guide encouraged me to jump out of the truck and shoot a pronghorn – one of my absolute pet-peeves.  The guide didn’t believe wind-direction was of concern.  There weren’t enough blinds in our guide’s area of responsibility to hunt the wind properly.  The blinds had no peep holes to look out of except the saw kerf around the windows.  We left the morning of the fifth day amidst further rain storms.  There was some confusion regarding a $50 difference between the Close Encounters contract amount and Powder River’s contract amount.  I’m still confused on that issue.

Bottom line is I relied on the booking agent (who hunted with us) and failed to talk to the outfitter before and during the hunt to clear up problems that could have made the hunt successful.  The weather did us no favors.  I honestly have no doubt that had the weather been hot and dry shooting opportunity would have been close to 100%.

You can find a more detailed, three part story of this trip here, Pronghorn – Rained Out.

30) Contact me at dustyvarmint@hotmail.com if you have questions I can answer.

happy hunting, dv

If you liked this blog you may like the following: 

• Pronghorn – Rained Out
• Pronghorn - Rained Out Part 2
• Pronghorn – Rained Out Part 3 

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Another season was upon him the hunter thought, dourly sitting in his treestand. Affixing the climbing sticks that allowed him to scale the tree hadn’t gone as smoothly as he’d remembered. Staying in shape was a great source of pride, but he had to admit he was getting older. The work of loading the truck and driving three-and-a-half hours to deer camp was still fresh in his mind. As was the desire to launch a few blunts at the drivers who couldn’t merge or drive more than thirty-five miles-per-hour in a fifty mile-per-hour zone.

Time went at a different pace than before. The year had nearly flown by. He’d thought that the hustle and bustle of a military life would slow down once he retired, but it seemed to pass even faster now. Only just yesterday it was January and he was in the Texas sun hunting javelina amongst the saw palmetto and prickly pear. He’d just returned from an August pronghorn trip on the sagebrush covered prairies of Montana. He asked himself why he was here in the chilly pre-dawn darkness when he could be home in bed with wife and dog. It was a recurring question he’d never been able to answer. He remembered reading the words of an older, wiser hunter who once said, “Mornings are for snuggling and loving.”

The sun eventually broke over the tree tops to warm his bones and lighten his mood. Then off to the left he saw tans and grays ghosting in the lush green. His heart pace quickened as a doe and two fawns made their way into the clearing. Completely unaware of his presence, even at a close eight yards, they sniffed, ate and scratched. He picked imaginary aiming spots for practice and almost burst out laughing as the doe sucked up a mushroom the size of a softball in three easy bites. She was just eight feet from the tree’s base. For some reason he was always tickled when they contorted themselves to scratch their heads with hind hooves. After awhile the trio wandered off. He later learned that his game camera caught pictures of the visitors at the exact moments he was watching them.

A game camera catches a doe’s visit as the hunter watches.

With the doe came two fawns.

Later that afternoon he climbed into a new tree in a previously scouted, but not hunted, location. Despite a detailed gear list he’d forgotten the limited entry permit for an exciting new area so was relegated to this piece of county forest land. The weather was warm and he was sweating buckets while struggling with a new ambush saddle. Once settled the afternoon sun caught up with him. Cat naps mingled with the incessant chattering of pine squirrels. The most daring of the little red buggers climbed to and cut acorns from atop the tallest oak. He’d never seen one climb so high. The sun went down appearing red at the last. He mused upon these sights and enjoyed his walk from the dark woods even through the rough, swampy terrain.

The following morning he nearly effortlessly and noiselessly used his climbing stand in a new tree. It was just a few feet from another that was considered an old friend. This old friend almost always produced a deer sighting for him. Some near, some far, but some none-the-less. Even a fisher once. A while later his eyes caught movement to the right. What he initially thought to be a larger deer and a fawn turned out to be a bachelor group of four bucks. They trooped along in majestic single file, but never came close despite his attempts at some mild early season antler rattling. Time slowly slipped away.

Barely 28 hours had passed since that first tree climb, but now his heart was warmed. The sun beamed brightly. His step was lifted. Packing up camp and loading the truck didn’t seem such a burden now. During the ride home his thoughts reeled. Which tree would he hunt next? How could he fit in scouting to tweak treestand placement? He had to move his limited entry permit so he wouldn’t forget it next time. All the sour feelings, all the thoughts of hard work were gone. He was happy to be a hunter and hoping the next two weeks would pass with a blur to hurry his return. Yes, it was another season and he was happy for it.

happy hunting, dv

If you liked this blog you may like the following: 

Boar Attack – Anatomy Of A Hog Shot Gone Wrong

No Bird Left Behind - A Turkey Tale

Outfitter Report – Javelina And Hogs In Texas 

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This is Part 3 of a three part blog about my 2009 pronghorn hunting trip to Montana.  You can find Part 2, here.

Day 4 – Action?

Tim took me back to the same stock tank location as Day 3.  As on that day I was concerned that we were setting up a new blind on a new waterhole and that the pronghorn would need time to get used to it.  The reason we hired and used an outfitter was to set us up on established, blind equipped waterholes that the animals had already gotten used to, but I was happy to be there.  A long sit in a comfortably set up Double Bull Darkhorse was much preferred to one of peeking out small cracks along windows in the box blind.  Tim and I agreed to disagree on window arrangements.

 

A chair and bow on the stake. 

 

Eventually a doe and two fawns showed to water.  The doe was calm, but the fawns were cautious and skittish.  She drank, allowing me to practice drawing and snap pictures.  Of course, the action had been slow so I’d left my video camera behind.  Additionally, despite my checklist I’d left the mounting adapter for my tripod attached to the chronograph in the basement.  So, as they fed and the fawns eventually bedded by the tank I snapped pictures with my camera and phone.  I sent some pictures to Mrs. dustyvarmint.  One bedded fawn issued an extended goat sounding bleat to its mother as if to say, “I’m comfortable here and I don’t want to move.” 

 

Other groups poked their heads up over the hill as on Day 3, but wouldn’t come to water.  I glassed long-range bucks and tried to will them to come in.  Apparently, pronghorn mind control is a myth.  A yearling appeared near the tank and kept looking behind it, bleated to its group once and eventually left.  Later in the evening a small six to eight inch buck came to 36 yards, but wouldn’t come to water.  He also kept looking behind himself.  Considering the weather and the luck we’d had thus far I contemplated taking this buck, but he’d need to clear some tall weeds first to give me a clear shot.  I called Gary on the cell phone to see what he thought and we agreed it was a tough decision I’d have to make.  The buck never cleared the weeds and eventually fed away.  A rancher on an ATV rode through with a dog on the back.  Although valuable work tools I despise ATVs in my hunting so it spoiled my mood.  After it went by two smaller bucks ran by at about 150 yards.  Tim picked me up a short time later and the day was done.

 

Day 5

It stormed heavily over night and was raining when we walked to breakfast.  Without the possibility of spot-and-stalk hunting our prospects looked bleak.  The group looked to draw upon Gary’s experience for advice.  With great trepidation and contemplation he told us he thought we should head home.  We agreed.  Our pronghorn hunt was over.

 

A Look Back

On previously unsuccessful hunts I’ve harbored some ill will about the outcome.  This time it was different – I didn’t take an animal.  That was that.  Was I maturing as a hunter?  I don’t know.  I am certain the majority of the party would have been successful had the weather cooperated.  What I do know is that I made some critical mistakes before and during this hunt.   

 

Mistake #1:  I didn’t call, talk to and ask questions of the outfitter.  I was in constant contact with Gary, our booking agent, and discussed things like the number of blinds available and spotting-and-stalking considering the weather.  However, I never talked to the outfitter myself.  Nothing prevented me from doing so.  I recently saw an archery forum post that said, “You can never ask enough questions,” and I believe this to be true.  It is also impossible to know all the questions to ask.  Who would have thought to ask if the box blinds had peep-holes or if an alternate hunting method was used in the case of inclement weather?  Both seem pretty elementary and common sense to me. 

 

Mistake #2:  When it was obvious we should have been spotting-and-stalking or hunting funnels and fence crossings or even using another pronghorn tactic I’d been successful with I didn’t communicate this well to the outfitter and guide.  Rather, I relied on what I considered should have been a common sense reaction to the weather to ensure we were successful.  Additionally, this mistake is tied to Mistake #3, below.  Learning from a previous unsuccessful hunt I had sworn that I would adapt my tactics to the hunt rather than stick to a pre-conceived notion of what it should be like.  I had brought a decoy along and could have used it in two situations; Mistake #4, below.  Additionally, for comparison purposes note that a group of three hunters we were acquainted with hunted twenty miles north of us and endured the same weather.  Two of the three chose to spot and stalk while the remaining hunter chose to blind sit.  The two spot-and-stalkers were successful the first day while the remaining hunter went home empty handed.  Another outfitter I know just a few hours away adapted to the weather by hunting from blinds in alfalfa fields and fence crossings.  His two hunters took a buck and a doe each.

 

Mistake #3:  I allowed camaraderie to interfere with my success.  After an unsuccessful 2007 South Dakota hunt for turkeys I had sworn to myself that I would never let social considerations interfere with my hunting success again.  I know there are many people who enjoy the social aspect of hunting.  While I enjoy some of that my main purpose going hunting is to hunt in the great outdoors and be successful.  As Mrs. dustyvarmint succinctly says, “You can go to Yellowstone if you just want to see some animals.”  And, I could go with her and Lexus vice a bunch of beard-wearing dudes.  Unfortunately, either for financial or legal reasons, it just isn’t always possible to go it alone.    

 

Rather than talking to the outfitter and guide when it became apparent neither was interested in employing alternative methods I relied on a friend and booking agent to settle the problem.  From the outset I had decided to let Gary handle business as I wanted to see just how he did it.  I also didn’t want my decisions to affect the other hunters.  Had I insisted on something how would it have affected them?

 

Mistake #4:  I didn’t employ all the tools I’d brought along.  I have a pronghorn decoy that would have been a great confidence booster at the waterhole on Days 3 and 4.

 

I look forward to future pronghorn trips and wish they came along every year.  I hope this blog was both entertaining and helpful to you in your own hunting endeavors.

 

happy hunting, dv

 

If you liked this blog you may like the following:

 

 

 

Introductory note:  The following is the first of a three part blog about my 2009 pronghorn hunting trip to Montana.  In writing it I learned that an unsuccessful hunt can lead to a much longer story than a successful one.  Somewhat counter-intuitive I think.  Part of the way through I also realized that it chronicled events that don’t tend to end up in popular magazines where the result is often a quickly related success story without the description of any pitfalls encountered.   However, even with my relatively small amount of hunting experience I can positively say that things don’t always go as planned or expected.  The weather doesn’t cooperate.  I, the guide and/or the outfitter may not agree on a variety of things.  I may not have exercised due diligence in researching the hunt.  This blog entry keeps dustyvarmint’s Mostly Archery’s purpose of, “Helping you avoid making the same mistakes I have made,” at the forefront.  I hope it helps. 

 

Beautiful Pronghorn

“One-thousand, three hundred ninety-one, One-thousand, three hundred ninety-two…”  I was counting my first pronghorn on a long car trip from Kansas to Washington State at age nine.  Since then I have been infatuated with these multi-colored speedsters.  When the Navy transferred me to Washington from Wisconsin in 1995 Mrs. dustyvarmint was dismayed (and annoyed) that I’d pull off the road simply to watch them run about the prairies.  I’d be thirty-seven years old before I had the means and opportunity to head west in pursuit of what I consider the most beautiful of North America’s game animals with bow in hand.  I missed three awesome bucks before a last night check showed my bow had somehow come off zero.  The next day I compensated for the problem and took my first pronghorn buck although much smaller than those I had missed. 

 

When Super Slam archer and friend Gary Martin began putting together a 2009 pronghorn hunting trip to Montana it didn’t take much for me to sign on.  In addition to hunting pronghorn I wanted to see what habits a hunter of Gary’s caliber exhibited.  How did he interact with the outfitter and guides?  What things did he do to prepare?  What set him apart from the average (or below average) hunter like me? 

 

We’d be hunting with Ken Greslin’s Powder River Outfitters through booking agency Close Encounters for which Gary is a booking agent.  Our group of eight would be the first group to hunt with Powder River for the 2009 season, arriving the day before it opened and hunting three to five days.  Since Gary was going along and I didn’t figure he would be going if he didn’t consider this a good operation I coasted along and didn’t subject the outfitter to my normal Spanish Inquisition of questions.  You’ll see this was a poor decision.    

 

General inquiries on archery hunting forums about population and weather conditions indicated numbers in the area were overall down due to winterkill and the summer had been mild and rainy.  Just like here at home in Wisconsin.  The hunt was intended to be conducted from blinds over waterholes in an area that is historically very dry and very hot.  However, considering the recent weather, I prepared gear for both blind sitting and spot-and-stalk hunting. 

 

Eight of us made the trip in three vehicles.  That gave me plenty of room to throw in the three kitchen sinks I always bring.  The fifteen-plus hour drive from Wisconsin took us through the great state of South Dakota where we primed our bowhunting souls with many sightings of pronghorn on the prairies.  If the pronghorn numbers were down from winter kill we sure couldn’t tell it.  Rain tracked our final leg from South Dakota into Montana and Broadus.  Ken was there to greet us and we quickly moved into the comfortable mobile home that would be our living quarters for the next few days.  He checked our licenses, collected the remainder of our hunt fees and split us among the guides.  Somewhere along the line there was a mix-up in the fees between Powder River and Close Encounters.  We each paid $50.00 too much for which there was no refund.  I’m still confused on the matter.

 

One of the bunk trailers.

 

An older style bunk house. 

 

Having learned to check bow zero upon arrival at camp from my 2006 South Dakota pronghorn hunt it wasn’t long before I was sending a few 100 grain Wasp JakHammers downrange.  My first arrow nailed the cottonwood leaf I’d planted on the target and my next arrow was just beside it.  A few more arrows and I was satisfied.  Camp cook Jane made us a hot and hearty ranch dinner, wake up and breakfast times were determined and I hit the hay.  It rained during the night.

 

Day One – Where’s The Ark?

Three of us were assigned to guide Tim.  I wasn’t aware of it, but the booking agent had cut a deal with the outfitter for a reduced rate for us if the guide assignment was increased to 3 x 1 vice the standard 2 x 1.  This reduced the overall number of blinds a particular guide had for rotation purposes and there was seemingly no effort on the part of the outfitter or guide to make sure there were sufficient prepared blinds. 

 

The intent was for us to be in the blinds by 7:30 am.  Well after day light.  This was odd to me, but I’d only hunted pronghorn once so I let it pass.  Instead of heading to the blinds, though, we headed to nearby Broadus and the guide’s house to get a missing cooler.  It seems there were three of us and Tim only had two lunch coolers.  Perhaps it would have been bad luck to use one of the probably five us hunters had brought along?  Then we headed to the local taxidermy shop to get yet another license none of us knew was required despite the booking agent’s guidance, my having called Montana once, Ken’s license check and our having spent half the previous day in camp loafing about with the guide present.  As you can imagine you could have cut the intensity in the air with a dull butter knife by this time. 

 

dv’s Time Out Corner:  Montana’s on-line licensing system forced us to buy the required Bow and Arrow License and Conservation License before applying for the pronghorn draw.  However, a Hunting Access Enhancement fee is ALSO required.  Next time I’ll call the state management agency twice, instead of just once, to verify I have the right licenses.  Montana was courteous enough to send a reminder to buy the Hunting Access Enhancement fee AFTER my return.

 

Finally we headed to the field.  We saw mule deer and pronghorn on our way into the first blind.  Tim told us to keep the doors and windows on the blind closed and not to stick anything, like binoculars, out.  I was selected based on Gary’s customary virtual coin toss so I scrambled into the blind, Tim passed my lunch cooler in and they were off.  The blind was basically a 2 x 4 and plywood constructed box approximately seven feet wide by eight feet long by eight feet high on wheels.  A creaky old chair glared at me from the corner.  There was a door on one side and small window, maybe eight by eighteen inches, on each side.  Right off I noticed there were no peepholes to look out of.  I donned my black shirt, black balaclava and black gloves and opened one window which overlooked the seep Tim expected the pronghorn to water from.  Otherwise I was forced to peer from the small saw kerf surrounding the windows on the other sides.  The blind was of sufficient size to cause me to run around, stealthily, checking windows like a hamster in a ball.

 

Inside of the box blind.

    

 

An initial look confirmed a nice buck on a northwest slope about three hundred yards away, two bucks among a herd to the east and another buck to the northeast.  Within twenty minutes a doe came trotting to the blind from the south.  She came within forty yards and bedded at seventy-two for quite some time.  After that the various bucks and does moved about feeding and the rain came down in giant cauldrons.  I wished I was out chasing the pronghorns on their own ground and planned many stalks in my mind.  I felt the chances of a pronghorn coming to water in that weather were nil.  However, to leave the blind and “blow it out” didn’t seem like a valid option either.  Tim checked up on me occasionally via cell phone and I sampled some of the lunch.  Having learned over time that a book really helps pass the time in a blind I’d also brought my I-pod with e-books, music and games solitaire and Tetris.

 

A doe (near the center of the picture) beds about 70 yards from the blind. 

 

At about 4:00 pm Tim called to say he was picking me up.  He said if he didn’t work toward picking up the other two hunters he didn’t think he’d be able to retrieve them due to the now very greasy two-tracks.  And, their cell phones didn’t work.  He gave me a gentle tongue lashing for having the east window open while packing the truck.  Having quite a few blind hunting days behind me for a number of species and being quite confident in hunting from a blind I was irritated, but let it slide.  On my previous trip I’d shot or shot at pronghorn from three to thirty-six yards with one side of the blind’s windows open all day long without problem and without the pronghorn ever spotting me inside.  The key was to wear black, stay back in the shadows of the blind and never open windows on the opposite side of the blind.  When I pointed out that the wind was blowing directly from the blind to the stock tank and the seep hole he indicated that, “pronghorn don’t smell.”  Again, that was in direct conflict with my previous experiences. 

 

Anyway, Tim was in a hurry to pick up Ralph and Gary so I enjoyed some fast pasture driving like that I’d grown up with in Kansas including lots of sliding, tight turns and counter-steering.  When we saw a nice buck in a short crop field not 20 yards from the road he asked me if I could jump from the truck and shoot it once it had crossed the road onto my side as he estimated it would do since this was, “big country and I should get my pronghorn however I could considering the weather”.  I let him know I wouldn’t do that and I’d rather go home empty-handed than do that.  He could let me out of the truck and I’d spot and stalk all day, even in the rain, but I wouldn’t jump out of the truck and shoot a pronghorn.  The truck grew quiet for awhile. 

 

We picked up Gary and Ralph with a lot more fast pasture driving.  Neither had seen any pronghorn from their blinds although there were numerous animals in the surrounding hills.  Tim raced back to camp so we could be on time for another of Jane’s hearty dinners.  After dinner I bent Gary’s ear A LOT, took a shower and hit the hay once again.  Gary had agreed with my blind hunting technique and window tactic.  I learned that one member of our party who had been sent to sit on a windmill despite the forecast endured the driving rains for about an hour, but then abandoned his stand and simply sat upon a rock in the rain until he was picked up. 

 

Ok, that’s it for Part 1.  Please check back soon for Part 2.

 

happy hunting, dv

 

If you liked this blog you may like the following:

 

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As you read this blog I’ll be in southeast Montana hunting pronghorn and trying to redeem myself for my miserable shooting performance in 2006.  Hopefully I’ll be ready.  For me, getting ready for a trip starts with a good gear checklist.  And I believe that it can help prevent disaster.  I suppose you could walk into the woods naked with bow and arrow and still bring home game.  However, a good checklist for that frightful adventure would still include five items; bow, arrows, broadheads, release and armguard. 

 

My lucky to have 2006 South Dakota pronghorn.

 

 

I create my check lists in Microsoft Excel and may have several versions for each species.  For instance I might have one for tent camp deer hunting and one for Camp Pug deer hunting.  A key aspect for me is my “three block” check-off method.  One block is checked off when the item is pulled out of some obscure box, readied and packed.  The next block is checked off when the item is actually placed in the vehicle or in luggage ready for airline travel.  Finally, as a sub-group is completed it is lined through.  Nothing is taken for granted and NOTHING is checked off until it is actually in the vehicle or luggage.  The last thing I do before giving Mrs. dustyvarmint an affectionate parting is check my check list for completion.    

 

Due to Wordpress limitations, our blog’s engine, I can’t post a good sample of my Excel check off lists here.  If you want those that I have for whitetail, turkey and pronghorn drop me a comment with your e-mail address or drop me an e-mail from my About (link) page.  I’ll get them off to you.  Below is my check list for pronghorn hunting with the possibility of some varmint shooting afterward.

 

Hunting

Blind (Darkhorse)

Bow w/Quiver

Arrows, 12

String wax

Broadheads

Headlamp & spare batteries

Flashlight, tracking

Bug Spray

Forschner knife & Selector

Wind checker

GPS & spare batteries

Range Finder & spare battery

Release, Scott

Release, Caliper

Sharpener, ceramic

Binoculars

Compass

Walking Stick

Scent killer spray

Blind chair

Predator Call

Pronghorn decoy

Blind hog

Blind stakes

Thermocell, pads, ctdgs

Spare sight pins

Bow stake

Bow sling

 

Clothing, Hunting                 

Pants, camo x _2_

Shirt, camo x _2_

Black out tops x __2__

Gym shorts??

Neck cooler

Belt

Boots x _1_

Socks x _4_

Jacket x _1_

Miscellaneous T-shirts, etc.

Bandanas x _1_

Underwear x _4_

Ball cap x _1_

Balaclava black

Balaclava camo

Gloves, black

Gloves, camo

Backpack

Field dressing towel

 

Other

Hygiene Bag

Toothpaste

Toothbrush

Deoderant, hunters

Chapstick, hunters

Lotion, hunters

Electric razor

Sun screen

Camera, spare batteries & card

Video camera

Video camera tri-pod

Cell Phone

Cell phone charger

Towel

I-pod & charger

Notepad w/pen

Shower shoes

Book/s & magazines

Wallet & Money

Allergy & Headache Meds

Pronghorn Tag

Bow & Arrow License

Conservation Licsense

Contract

Money for outfitter & tips

 

Camp

Ice

Coolers x _2_

Nalgene bottles x __2__

Duct tape

Sleeping Bag

Pillow

Sheet

Trash Bags

 

Food

Snickers

Propel mix

Kashi bars

Soda

Water

Jerky

Animal Crackers

Gorp

 

Clothes, Regular

Tennis shoes

Socks x _2_

Underwear x _2_

Trousers x _2_

Shirts x _2_

Jacket

Hat

Belt

Rain Top

 

Varmint

17 HMR

.204 Ruger

17 HMR Ammo

.204 Ruger Ammo

Shooting Sticks

Sling

 

happy hunting, dv

 

If you liked this blog you may like the following:

 

No Bird Left Behind - A Turkey Tale

Outfitter Report – Javelina And Hogs In Texas

Boar Attack – Anatomy Of A Hog Shot Gone Wrong

 

Feedback, Questions & Comments 

I’d like to hear your tips, feedback, comments or questions.  Please leave them below.  

 

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In this blog I ask for reader participation.  Think of it similarly to some popular television programs and magazine articles where the shot is presented and critiqued.  

 

It was January 24, 2009.  I was in Texas to hunt the next critter on my personal list; the javelina.  In a target rich environment I was lucky enough to harvest my limit of two javis the previous two days. 

 

My first javelina.

 

 

Fellow hunter John and I pose with my second javelina.

 

Since baggage space on the return flight was limited and I’d taken a number of hogs on previous trips I asked the outfitter if it was possible to take a large (for me) hog from a ground blind.  That would be a new adventure for me that I didn’t figure likely to happen.  Therefore baggage was safe.  He thought we could accomplish it…

 

It was sunny and in the 60’s.  Rob put me in a Primos Groundmax Eclipse blind with the wind in my face.  The set up was perfect.  There was a feeder 25.5 yards directly in front of the blind with a tri-pod stand on the other side of it.  Hopefully the hogs’ attention would be on that.  Immediately to the left of the blind was a larger prickly pear cactus.  About twelve yards slightly to the right and in front of the blind was a very large brush pile.  The blind fit right in. 

 

I’ve hunted from just about every model Double-Bull blind and an Ameristep Brickhouse.  This was my second time hunting from the Primos Groundmax Eclipse blind.  In my opinion it let in too much light from the “peek” top windows, the nylon material was too thin which let in more light and the light streamed in the zipper.  I stuffed the “peek” top windows with whatever I could find to darken them.  I also put on my “black out” shirt, balaclava and “Michael Jackson” left-hand-only glove to help blend into what is supposed to be a dark blind interior.  

 

Having been “busted” in the past by various animals I prefer to leave blind nettings in and shoot through them.  I practice with my set up this way.  The Eclipse’s netting was much coarser than any I’d ever seen before.  It was so coarse that it was difficult to focus on an animal without moving your head around.  This is kind of like looking out your screen door at home.  You reflexively move your head around to focus on the distant object.  However, I had shot a small raccoon, about the size of a loaf of bread, at 12-15 yards through the netting the evening before at a different stand. 

 

The feeder was set to go off at 5:00 pm.  Just before that time I started to hear the grunts and oinks of feral hogs approaching behind the brush pile to my right.  A few visibly crossed from right to left, but quickly entered the cactus and brush near the tri-pod stand.

 

When the feeder went off five or more hogs rushed out to it from multiple directions.  All were black.  There were three in the 100 pound range and two larger in, what I would later learn, the 160 pound range.  I watched them closely with my rangefinder and determined that of the larger hogs one was a male and the other was female. 

 

I watched and waited for the male hog to give me a broadside or quartering away shot.  Eventually he was quartering away at the 9:30 or 10:00 o’clock position.  I picked a “whitish” looking area directly behind his leg and a little less than 1/3rd the way up the body.  I picked my bow up and tried to aim.  I couldn’t tell where I was aiming.  Since my head was stationary while aiming the coarse netting was preventing me from focusing on the target. 

 

I quietly let down and carefully studied the hog and his surroundings.  I pulled back up again, picked the same spot, took extra time to find my anchor point and released.  The hog lunged forward on impact and took off into the 11:00 o’clock direction.  I could see the fletching and the arrow looked a little low.  The other hogs came back in to feed.

 

I called Rob on the radio.  He started to head in my direction and asked me to check blood.  The radio traffic scared the remaining hogs off.  I found decent blood right away.  Rob believes in following hit hogs right away, especially on afternoon hunts, to avoid dangerous pursuits in the dark.  The following will reinforce his reasons for this. 

 

The blood trail was good and continuous.  Easy to follow.  However, I was concerned that it looked dark and red more like blood from a vein hit than lighter and frothy from a lung hit.  I found a small piece of unidentifiable fleshy material.  We found a pool of blood approximately sixteen inches long, five inches wide and just under one-eighth inch deep.  The hog just kept going. 

 

At what I judged to be about the 300 yard point the guide heard a noise in the brush.  Rob carried a 9mm Browning Hi-Power and the guide carried a Kimber .45 auto.  We circled the noise with Rob on the left; I and the guide on the right.  Rob could see the hog and thought he was expiring.  There was no opportunity for an arrow in the thick cover.  The guide and I could not see the hog. 

 

Next we heard a rapid succession of four shots and, “He’s got me!”  We could see nothing although we were within 8-12 feet.  However, Rob could still talk which we took as a good sign.  We crowded into the brush and found the hog still alive, but floundering.  There was no shot opportunity for the guide or myself as Rob was on the opposite side of the hog in a tree.  Shortly the hog expired. 

 

The hog had charged the outfitter.  Rob had kicked and shot at the charging animal with the remaining four rounds in his gun – he’d forgotten to reload after using it last.  Note the blood on his knee in the picture.  That is the hog’s, thankfully, not Rob’s.  The hog ‘missed the hook” with his tusk, but delivered a good blow to Rob’s left knee.  We found 2 of the four bullets had entered the fleshy, left side of the hog’s head from nearly directly above it.  Neither looked fatal.  The skull is currently in Texas so I haven’t had a chance to examine it yet.  To add another element of danger a porcupine appeared in a small bush a few feet to my right.

 

Rob and I pose with boar that attacked him.

  

 

We found that my arrow had entered much further forward than I was aiming, exactly underneath the chin of the hog.  The broadhead had lodged up into the point where each half of the jaw meets.  The arrow was broken in half, but the broadhead was completely intact and ready for use after resharpening. 

 

The hog weighed 162 pounds with smaller than expected tusks for its size.  In the end I was extremely relieved that no one was hurt and sorely disappointed in my shooting. 

 

Equipment notes:  I was using a 67.5 pound Reflex Highlander at 26.5 inch draw length and shooting 384 grain Gold Tip arrows at 262 fps.  The broadheads were 100 grain Slick Trick magnums with four blades and 1 1/8″ cut diameter. 

 

Experience/practice notes:  I shoot archery all year long; 3D and paper targets.  I’ve killed three hogs prior to this along with other exotic, pronghorn, bear, javelina, turkey, whitetails and small game.

 

Shot notes:  In retrospect I don’t believe the “whitish” looking area I was aiming for was right for a quartering away shot.  I believe I should have been aiming at an imaginary point on the inside of the far shoulder which would have put the facing side aiming point farther back.  This would be in an attempt to get both lungs.  I also wonder if I picked the wrong “whitish” spot considering the problem with the net.  There was likely another “whitish” spot on the rear, rounded portion of the jaw.  Did I focus on that?  I don’t know.

 

For an extremely high quality Texas hunting adventure contact Rob of Fair Chase from dv’s Links Page.  Additionally, you can find my trip report here.

 

Let’s hear your feedback.

 

happy hunting, dv

 

Feedback, Questions & Comments

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Coming up on Mostly Archery

• Preparing a European Skull Mount

Fried Tag, mmm…tasty

Well, another Wisconsin turkey season has come and gone.  I’m left with a perfect record – no Wisconsin turkey….and tons of GREAT memories from afield. 

 

Wisconsin’s spring turkey season is really a series of six, five-day seasons which run Wednesday through Sunday in one of seven zones.  Permits are awarded from a draw, even for residents.  I drew first season which was a first for me and then I bought a left over sixth season tag.  Additionally I participated as a guide in my first Adaptive Sportsmen, Inc. turkey hunt. 

 

First Season

After the mind-melting experience of not even seeing a turkey near where I deer hunt at Camp Pug during the 2008 spring season, despite having a nice tom on the game camera only three days before my arrival, I applied for a zone closer to some friends’ hunting cottage further south this year.  Myself and friends Butch and Gary, all of us local West Allis Bowmen members, would be hunting together.  Gary and I had tags while Butch was our guide and primary caller.  I was excited to be hunting with Gary who recently completed the sixteenth archery Super Slam.  I wanted to see how a hunter of this caliber acted in the field.  What were his mannerisms, how did he use his equipment, what could I learn from him? 

 

With limited vacation I could only hunt Friday, Saturday and Sunday.  So, Friday morning we were out early.  Gary and I were in my friend Seth’s Double Bull Dark Horse while Butch sat up behind us to call.  He can do a mean excited cackle on his diaphragm call and we had lots of gobbling in multiple directions.  Eventually, though, another hunter walked into and scared off our most promising courter.  We set up again in another location for awhile without luck. 

 

That afternoon and evening were fairly uneventful.  We tried calling some birds to us on public land that liked lounging about at a bird feeder in someone’s yard.  They’d answer up as they traveled away, but we couldn’t bring them in.  Misjudging another gobbler’s location on a ridge we bumped him setting up. 

 

Saturday morning was our most exciting.  We set up where we thought the gobbler that the other hunter bumped on us the previous morning was strutting.  Two hens came in separately.  One of them is pictured below.  I got sick of listening to the gobbler in the distance so I started cutting him off with a weak excited cackle.  Eventually he got tired of being interrupted and came to investigate.  However, he stayed out about 45 yards in some brush and then disappeared into a cat tail marsh.  Butch and I think the B-mobile decoy may have been a little aggressive.

 

A hen came to see us.

   

 

 

After a while I saw movement in the cat tails and bumped Gary alert whispering, “Turkey in the marsh.”  Gary looked and said, “Turkeys don’t have bushy tails.”  It was a coyote.  From previous conversations I knew that both of us really wanted an archery killed coyote.  We tried lip-squeaking (which I am terrible at).  That had no effect.  I tried my best dying rabbit imitation with a turkey diaphragm.  Probably too low and raspy.  The coyote took a few tentative steps in the right direction, but then spun and left.  Mid-day included a nine mile run for me in preparation for an upcoming half-marathon (read Half Marathon Down, here), some excellent grilled brats and some time in the hot tub.  Saturday night was uneventful.

 

Our Sunday morning location was busted by some inconsiderate hunters driving past us on county property where vehicles are not allowed.  We moved elsewhere, but flushed a tom and four hens from the roost. 

 

Although I didn’t successfully kill a bird I had a great time and made GREAT memories with good companions.  Compared to 2008 I am a mentally enriched and happy dustyvarmint. 

 

Adaptive Sportsman, Inc Hunt

ASI provides outdoor opportunities to physically challenged outdoors men and women.  Among other events they have a fall deer hunt and spring turkey hunt at Badger Army Ammunition Plant.  As guides we help scout, set up blinds, escort hunters afield and call if necessary.  My Camp Pug hunting partners, Hunt Master and Gravel, are old hands at this who come prepared with grub hoes, plywood platforms and shims to make the wheelchairs stable on the often uneven ground. 

 

We’d had rain all night long and the day was chilly and blustery.  However, after a little blind calling turkeys started filing into the field.  Some would answer, but none would commit.  Eventually, though, one set his head and neck forward, wings out and back and started to charge in.  Closer, closer he came.  I followed his movements with my little tripod mounted video camera and finally set it up to catch all the action near the decoys while I continued some coaxing calls.  However, just as the tom entered the corner of the camera’s picture my hunter, Jeff, opened fire. 

 

Bam once!  The turkey flies up and tries to come back in.  Bam twice!  The turkey flies up and tries to come back in a second time.  Bam thrice!  The turkey flies up and is gone.  I later ranged the turkey’s location at thirty-seven yards at the time of the shot.  Jeff told me the night before he liked to shoot them at 100 yards.  I thought he was kidding!  Seriously, though, he said he got “turkey fever”.  It happens…

 

We had more gobbling including one bird that startled us with an answer only twelve yards behind the blind.  However, no more shot opportunities came that day.  We broke for lunch and headed back out later in the afternoon, but cut the evening hunt short to attend to some medical concerns.  The next morning we encountered a few hens and had a coyote visit us, but we saw no toms.  Another good adventure with GREAT memories.     

 

Adaptive Sportsmen Hunters and Guides gather for a picture.

 

 

Last Season

Late, or last, season can be somewhat unpopular.  Success rates, provided by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, plummet during this time when the mosquitoes and ticks make a vengeful emergence, the vegetation starts to become heavy and the temperatures rise.  I could only dedicate Saturday to hunting as Sunday night was a much anticipated bowfishing outing with friend Seth.  However, Mrs. dustyvarmint noted that if I got going soon enough I could probably hunt Friday night.  Who wouldn’t cherish a wife like that?  I was also excited to try out my new Horn Hunter Blind Hog for carrying the blind, chair, decoys and equipment.

 

The Horn Hunter Blind Hog loaded for business, turkey business.

 

Friday night I set up within 75 yards of a known roost on a logging road used by the turkeys.  It was uneventful without so much as a gobble, but sooooo relaxing.  I know some hunters can’t stand being stationary and would rather “run and gun”, but I enjoy sitting solitary in the comfort of the blind, listening to and staring out at nature.  I can nearly feel the burdens of life slipping off my shoulders.

 

Butch and I once again teamed up on Saturday to hunt near where we encountered the hens, jake and coyote during first season.  We heard some gobbling, but it was too far away to be of any use to us.  In hind-sight we should have at least moved closer, but if we had we wouldn’t have encountered the doe that come to see us.

 

This doe came to see us. 

 

Another shot of our visiting doe. 

 

She would come in nervously, settle down to feed, run out to a comfortable entry point, settle down to feed again and come in, run out nervously and then do it all over again.  I began calling like a turkey and scratching in the grass to give the decoys some natural back up and to calm her.  It was a great encounter.  Had this been deer season, though, we’d be eating jerky by now…

 

After that we didn’t have much luck.  I went to check game cameras and do some mid-day work at Camp Pug which is only a half hour away.  The mosquitoes and ticks were out with a vengeance in the evening.  It was gratifying to watch the mosquitoes fall to the ground in the blind once we had the Thermocell warmed up.  We heard no gobbling.  A tree fell in the woods and it made a crash.  We were there to hear it…

 

Again, no turkey, but great memories.  It is off to Kansas or Texas for next spring’s turkey season, but for now season is over and thoughts change to bowfishing and chasing pronghorn in Montana this fall.

 

happy hunting, dv

 

Feedback, Questions & Comments

I’d like to hear your tips, feedback, comments or questions.  Please leave them below.  

 

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Coming up on Mostly Archery

• Boar Attack – Anatomy of a Hog Shot Gone Wrong
• Preparing a European Skull Mount

Caveat Emptor Hunter

How comfortable were you when booking your last hunt?  Did you feel like you were talking to a used car salesman?  How many “90%” success assurances have you gotten from outfitters?  Did you check references?  Where did the references come from?  If you had a bad experience did you tell anyone?  If you had a good experience did you tell anyone? 

 

From my perspective the outfitting business still seems like a Caveat Emptor, buyer beware, environment.  While reviewing Outfitter Reviews and surfing forums I frequently see hunters stung by bad experiences.  Don’t get me wrong.  I am certain the majority of outfitters are hard-working, honest folks just like the majority of us and that they also get stung by poor customers.  That isn’t the focus of this blog, though. Read the rest of this entry »

Following is my trip report from a recent adventure with Fair Chase, Ltd. for javelina and hogs. This is a modified North American Hunting Club format.

1) Outfitter: Fair Chase, Ltd

2) Owner: Rob Kiebler

3) Address: P.O. Box 1679, Azle, TX 76098

4) Phone: (972)-523-5621 (cell)

5) E-mail:  See dv’s links page.

6) When: January 22-25, 2009

7) Where: El Indio, TX

Guided: Fully

9) Drop: No

10) Transportation to hunting area: By truck driven by guide and/or outfitter. Read the rest of this entry »