carnaby
Member
OK, I was chomping at the bit to get out for a day of hunting, so I loaded up the rig and headed up to Stevens Pass here in Western Washington. The high buck season was on and I figured what the heck. I decided to follow the Pacific Crest Trail north till I found promising regions to the west to move into.
Well, it was a nice hike. I didn't see a darned thing. I had no idea where any deer might be. I didn't see one sign, no droppings, no positively identified hoofprints, no scratchmarks, no beds, squat. I made a couple short incursions into the bush which amounted to nothing, and I got past lake Valhalla after about 3 and a half hours. I went about a half hour past Valhalla and decided to turn around. My knees and feet were starting to ache, and it was obvious that I'd never be able to get a deer out of there by myself even if I could find one to shoot. So just before turning around to head back, I figured I could at least take one shot to sight in my rifle. I picked a nice big stump on an upward slope for backdrop at about 50 yds (open sights), lined it up on a mark on the stump, and squeezed off a round.
The shot hit the mark, I considered the shot for a minute then turned to head back up the trail. Then I hear "hey!... hey!" from down the trail opposite the way home. A woman was hiking up the trail towards me about 100 yards down, well around the corner and out of site. She was about 50 or so years old. I said "Hello, how are you doing," and she just looked at me and said "you supposed to have that here?" Well, it was hunting season and last time I checked this was America. Anyway it was a strange question. We talked for a minute, but it was clear she wasn't into my company, so I just headed for home ahead of her.
I met a few other travellers on my way back, most fairly friendly and not seeming to care about my Winchester 30-30. It also became apparent that I am not in good shape for that sort of hike. The last hour was pretty tough, and the last 20 minutes was torture. My left knee was crippled and my feet were blistered and sore. I haven't been in that much pain for a while. My body was ruined for a day or two after and is still kinda sore.
Note to self: don't go into high buck season again without scouting first, without being in better shape, and preferably without a companion who knows what he's doing. It seems it would be ideal to hunt an area like that on a 3 or 4 day trip with pack animals.
Has anyone successfully done the high buck hunt in Washington State? Where do you go? Is there any place during this hunt that you can have success on a single day hunt? Please spill the beans if you know anything.
Well, it was a nice hike. I didn't see a darned thing. I had no idea where any deer might be. I didn't see one sign, no droppings, no positively identified hoofprints, no scratchmarks, no beds, squat. I made a couple short incursions into the bush which amounted to nothing, and I got past lake Valhalla after about 3 and a half hours. I went about a half hour past Valhalla and decided to turn around. My knees and feet were starting to ache, and it was obvious that I'd never be able to get a deer out of there by myself even if I could find one to shoot. So just before turning around to head back, I figured I could at least take one shot to sight in my rifle. I picked a nice big stump on an upward slope for backdrop at about 50 yds (open sights), lined it up on a mark on the stump, and squeezed off a round.
The shot hit the mark, I considered the shot for a minute then turned to head back up the trail. Then I hear "hey!... hey!" from down the trail opposite the way home. A woman was hiking up the trail towards me about 100 yards down, well around the corner and out of site. She was about 50 or so years old. I said "Hello, how are you doing," and she just looked at me and said "you supposed to have that here?" Well, it was hunting season and last time I checked this was America. Anyway it was a strange question. We talked for a minute, but it was clear she wasn't into my company, so I just headed for home ahead of her.
I met a few other travellers on my way back, most fairly friendly and not seeming to care about my Winchester 30-30. It also became apparent that I am not in good shape for that sort of hike. The last hour was pretty tough, and the last 20 minutes was torture. My left knee was crippled and my feet were blistered and sore. I haven't been in that much pain for a while. My body was ruined for a day or two after and is still kinda sore.
Note to self: don't go into high buck season again without scouting first, without being in better shape, and preferably without a companion who knows what he's doing. It seems it would be ideal to hunt an area like that on a 3 or 4 day trip with pack animals.
Has anyone successfully done the high buck hunt in Washington State? Where do you go? Is there any place during this hunt that you can have success on a single day hunt? Please spill the beans if you know anything.
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