Thursday, September 23, 2010

Buck Fever


We were suppose to be on the Clearwater right now enjoying friends and fishing while munching on cookies all day. Instead we are scouting for Mule deer bucks, and we have a major problem. Steelhead fishing is getting in the way.


The tag drawn is in East Biggs, and what this means, is a lot of privite property, and the rivers of this unit hold the best odds to finding public lands to shoot on. From the John Day to the Deschutes we have been prowling.

1st stop. Ummm no deer here.. Just this nice wild hen!

Cedar keeps an eye out for deer on the bow of our little jet boat.


Marty called this one. My line was swinging, he said, "did you feel that?" I turned my head and said "NO" before I had the chance to turn my head back, I said " but I felt that" and the line took off. No deer here either.


This Steelhead buck had the classic "cock" look of a Solar Salmon and not the classic look of a hat rack of a mule deer buck. Dang it.






Sunrise on the John Day arm. There has to be some big canyon bucks out there.
We did see a number of Does from our steelheading vantage points. After checking in with Ron Walp, who is our hunting partner and mentor, he finds two nice bucks and has us look through his spotting scope. Boy am I glad we will be in his hunting camp!