We woke up to near blizzard conditions. The wind-chill was sub zero and the
snow was blowing horizontally across the prairie. We discussed our deer hunting
prospects and decided to bag the morning hunt. Visibility was nearly zero.
But rather than go back to bed, or sit around doing nothing, I asked Frank
if I could call an elk for him and he agreed. So Frank, Elaine (Frank's wife)
and me bundled up and headed for the ridge to call elk. When we arrived at the
ridge the weather was just terrible. The snow was blinding and the wind made
it feel like January in Alaska's interior. But we pushed ahead and spent the
better part of the morning trying to call one in. We never did get a response
due to the high winds - the elk couldn't hear our calls.
After lunch Parker, Dale and I headed out to hunt deer. The wind was still
howling but the visibility was getting better. The deer were out but really
jumpy. We spotted a small mulie and lots of pronghorn. Even a decent whitetail
buck that was hiding in the reeds jumped up and gave us a look (pictures below).
An hour before dark we spotted a big mule deer buck and I made a stalk. The
stalk didn't last long. A small buck picked me off and I froze. But what really
spooked the deer is a bobcat which exploded from the bushes and chased a small
doe mulie. The draw I was hunting in exploded with deer and over twenty mulies,
including some real nice bucks, took off for the prairie. Despite the weather
it was a fun day with lots of animals seen.
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