Speed goat takes a speed nap
 

This is my third antelope hunt and definitely the most challenging. The two prior hunts were archery hunts and wow is there ever a difference from mid Sep to mid Oct. I couldn't keep them away from me in the archery season but merely looking in their general direction, from a mile away, was saying to them: run for our lives, real fast and real far :)

Left home on the 13th to set myself up in the hunting area...….solo and sleeping in truck. Took a walk out into the pasture and three shooters (all over 14") were looking down on me from a knob...150 yards away. They stayed long enough to give me a shot...but tomorrow the season opens.

I though I would be back home for supper on opening day.

It's tough to range on flat land, impossible I might add, a goat that presents itself for fleeting moments at what you think is 500 yards, and is moving further away...but just can't get the rf to lock onto anything...happened a few times.

I was stalking a bruiser and all the while I was thinking "I got this", only to never see him again.

I was running out of steam and living out of the truck for 5 days was taking the fun out of me. For four days I hiked the wilderness exploring, spotting, stalking and generally getting blown.

Called home and told her that I lost my mojo and was coming home a day early...……...goat or no goat.

So I did just that, but as fate would have it I was blessed with a young buck crossing my path at 400 yards, RANGED!!!. It would be the longest shot where I ever took down a game animal.

Oh yeah...it was breezy.

25.06 100GR Speer BTSP 57.7GR RL22

https://i.imgur.com/oQxvWMA.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/peBXfZx.jpg

Congrats. Looks like a good eating buck. Nice pics.

Odd how it works sometimes. You wonder if the hunting gods wanted to teach you stamina, patience and having faith or are they just having a good chuckle? A person puts all that time in and then in the last moments when you think all is lost the goat gods herd a young goat over to your bullet. Go figure.

And the winner is---the guy with the goatee. Congrats R. Nice pics.

Congrats, thanks for sharing. Good job on the field photos too!

Congrats, nice looking animal,

Congratulations!!! And thanks for sharing, I hope to get one some day.

Congrats! Here in lays the problem as to why the lopers get skittish, too many people push them around before the season opens. If people would just sit back before opener and watch from afar and put them to bed and go in in the dark and set up and wait for day break you more than likely would of had a really good shot at getting one of the big ones. We ran into one guy that kept screwing us up on our stocks on lopers. He figured you could just walk out in plain sight of them and get a shot off! The government gave a way too many tags out in the zone you were in the number of hunters out numbered the number of lopers.

Good job and congrats! I always enjoy reading the stories and seeing the pics of hunts.

Congratulations. Nice write up and good pictures. Thanks for posting.

Beauty prairie goat! Congratulations!

BW

Well earned and deserved. Nice goat!

Right On and Good Shootin

Congrats!!

For three mornings I started off in the dark in a blind overseeing a large area. Spotting. I had a way out of the blind to stalk in any direction. At day break every day I could see the dust and procession of pickups a mile away cruising the roads in search of...yeah there were many hunters out there but there are many antelope out there as well. Saw 200+ antelope. It is getting to be a once in a lifetime hunt for many or even unobtainable for some......can't blame guys for not being the most proficient antelope hunters. Lots of guys have never seen a pasture so big you can see your dog run away for a month:). I saw one other hunter outside of a pickup.

Antelope and eggs for breakfast...

Congrats!

Glad you ended up with a pretty decent looking animal there, nice shot, and the meat is down...Thanks for sharing your story and pictures..always in the mood for looking at other peoples hunt and fun...
Zip:)

This is by far the worst I have ever seen hunters in this area. Most years you’d only see about 5 others here. If you think 200+ Antelope is a lot you would have been absolutely amazed at the numbers 8 yrs ago. The last 5 yrs has been very hard on the Antelope. It’s awesome that you got one!

Hmmm this is funny
Almost like someone mentioned this before
🤷*♂️

Congrats!


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Congrats!

LC

Congrats, great looking goat, thanks for the pics and story.

Congrats, tough to beat antelope hunting on the prairies for a good time!

Hey!! Buddy!!!!

Way to go!!!! Best hunt out there!!

Make sure you bring back a big bunch of sage!!

Congradulations!

Congrats on the Lope. Soon my son will have enough points and we can give it a go.

Sleeping in a truck, cooking on the tailgate, no shower, sitting in that damned seat while you’re eating.... it gets old fast.

Nice antelope though!

Congratulations CNP! I don't want to hijack your thread, but I'd like to reinforce your solo method by outlining my own, very similar hunt. Hope you don't mind:

Hunting solo, arrived 2 days early to set up permission and hike into a couple of areas to get reacquainted with spots I've hunted long ago. Set up well before dawn on opening morning, and right at legal shooting time - got hammered by pouring rain and driving sleet! I'm glad I had my travel van with me to retreat to and dry out in!
The roads were muck, so I stayed put for a couple of days, and with my ancient Bushnell spotting scope, kept tabs on 3 different herds over a 6 square mile area. Tried stalking a real bruiser with the biggest herd a few times, but kept getting busted by his ladies.
On the 3rd dawn of the season, I watched a small herd drifting towards a road, but still out of any road cruisers view. I slid in -out of sight behind them, got comfortable in a little hide in the sage brush, and waited for them to become visible from the road. It wasn't long before I could hear a truck stop for a look-see, and that sent the little herd straight back into my lap. Bang/flop at 150 yards, he never even knew I was there - I love it when a plan comes together. At about 13", he wasn't my biggest antelope, but I'm happy with him and very happy with the hunt. There's a certain satisfaction you get from successfully hunting solo. Gutless cleaning method in the field and a 1 mile drag back to the travel van with game bags in my Dollar Store plastic sled was enough to poop this out-of-shape senior out. Buck down at 9 a.m., packed and cleaned up, ready to roll at 3 p.m. Overnighted at the Rolling Hills campground, on my way home to a very understanding wife (missed Thanksgiving & her birthday).
Not bad for a solo senior heart-attack survivor - and with the draw waits being well over 10 years now - probably my very last antelope hunt!
There were a fair number of hunters driving around, but I heard maybe 10 shots during my entire hunt, (including one volley of 6) never saw one other person on foot anywhere and I didn't see anyone else with a permission slip on their windshield as required by that ranch, or mention that they had permission in conversation. I guess they were all looking to catch one crossing the Range Roads, do a 'shoot and grab' on property without permission, or just wanted to look at antelope they couldn't touch!
IMO, while there's not the numbers of antelope there was in the 70s and 80s, there's plenty enough for everyone holding a tag, that plans on spending a few days, and gets permission lined up to hunt with the confidence of not worrying about being challenged.
For what it's worth, I recommend that those seeking permission, do it in person, with a map in hand, not just over the phone. A land owner pointing his finger at a spot and saying "If you're willing to walk a bit, when the shooting starts - they all tend to head for here" - can be absolute gold!

Santa got a freezer full.....great job!:sHa_shakeshout:

speed goat
 

That black faced old goat has a lot of mass. Not a youngun by any means. Well done, nice trophy.

Sounds like a great time....out on your own....peaceful! :sHa_shakeshout: