king' s outdoor world - Index

king' s outdoor world - Hunting Illustrated Magazine Dec/Jan 2008 - Coyote Crazy! - Index

minutes when hunting the desert.
The next morning, Freddy
found a large set of mule deer tracks.
Those tracks really excited him and
they began aggressively tracking
that buck. A few hours later, a shot
sounded out from Mike’s direction.
He’d shot a heavy and unique fourpoint
buck just shy of the thirty-inch
mark. This lifted everyone’s spirits
and motivated Scott to continue
forward. Scott and Freddy stayed on
that set of tracks until darkness set in.
Back in camp that evening,
I spoke to Freddy about the big buck
they were following. He told me that
he felt that they were on a really large
buck. I asked if he was confi dent they
would fi nd that buck. He answered
that with perseverance and patience,
they would. I relayed this to Scott
and he agreed to stay focused and
press on.
The fourth day began much
like the one before, covering many
miles in a cat and mouse game with
a smart old buck. Scott wasn’t
accustomed to this style of tracking
with long days and few deer spotted.
His last hunt in Mexico consisted
mainly of road hunting and limited
walking with non-tracking guides.
I told him I was confi dent he’d fi nd
a good buck if he kept positive and
kept hunting.
Later that afternoon, a storm
front moved in and saturated the
desert with heavy rain. This was just
the boost we needed. As darkness
arrived, I waited at our pre-discussed
pick up spot. Hours passed and still no
guide or hunter. I drove up and down
all the neighboring roads, but there
was no sign of them. The storm had
knocked out all radio communication
and hampered us. I had faith in my
guide and knew they would be fi ne.
In the early morning hours, I returned
to camp and picked up supplies for
our overnight campers.
I quickly drove back to
search for Scott and Freddy, arriving
at daylight. The radios began working
again and we located them. We met
and discussed the game plan for the
day. Freddy was excited and felt he
was closing in on the buck. They’d
Even with stubbed main beams, Scott’s
heavy desert muley still scores 185 gross
tracked the buck until dark the day before
and found themselves many miles from
our pick up spot. Freddy felt it would
be wiser to stay put and sleep instead of
walking many miles in the dark through
a sea of thorny cholla cactus. They kept
a good fi re blazing as they settled in for
the night.
A few minutes later, they
walked off and disappeared into the
desert with eager determination. As the
day wore on, Scott began wondering if
he would be going home without even
seeing a buck. Then, things began to
change. Freddy told Scott that they
were getting close to the buck and to
be ready. They snuck about 200 yards
further and peeked directly into a cholla
forest in front of them. There they found
a group of six does mingling with three
to four decent bucks. The torn up dirt
of the
5SOUTH BORDER5
and vegetation indicated that there
had been some intense fi ghting.
Suddenly, from behind a large cholla
cactus walked out an extremely heavy
buck. Without hesitation, Scott
carefully settled the crosshairs on him
and squeezed the trigger. The buck
hit the ground instantly while the
remaining deer disappeared into the
thick cholla-fi lled desert background.
Scott was overcome with
joy as he approached the bruiser buck.
He had amazing mass throughout and
great length on his back forks. This
older mature buck taped out just shy
of 29-inches. His large Roman nose
and battle-scarred face told the story
of his existence. His main beams
were apparently broken off while
he was still growing horn and were
only about 20-inches long on both
sides. His backs were spectacular,
with a G-2 measuring over 21-inches
long. Scott’s buck would still score
185 inches. I couldn’t help but think
that with longer main beams, he’d
approach the 200-inch mark.
A short time later, another
shot rang out nearby. Martin had
also connected on a great buck over
30-inches with extremely long eye
guards. As we drove over to see
Martin’s deer, I was thankful they’d
both been successful. Scott outwardly
expressed his satisfaction with the
hunt. He commented on the great
food, cozy accommodations and his
exceptional guide. I was fl attered and
grateful, but he earned it. By doing
so, he’d joined a brotherhood of men
who’ve hunted those wild expanses
South of the Border.
August/September 29