David Johnson Wyoming Mule Deer and Buffalo Hunt November 2006

Buffalo and Mule Deer Hunt – Wyoming Nov 2006
IPY Ranch.

A private haven of bulls, bucks and turkey.
Visualize 47000 acres of rolling wild hills, vast fields and rocky bluffs that provide perfect habitat for all sorts of western game. That’s a reasonable description of this better than most, hunting destination. Privately tucked behind the Devils Tower National Monument state park, the ranch offers the lucky hunter unparalleled opportunity to get close to north Americas largest big game trophy. Larger than Africa’s Cape buffalo, the north American Bison is not really a buffalo at all but a separate species altogether. This monster of the prairie towers over 5+ feet at his hump and can weigh well over 2500 pounds. Moving in groups with cows and calves or going it alone, the big bulls are truly a unique North American trophy.

The Participants
Mike Wall, friend and neighbor accompanied me on this years Wyoming adventure. Mike comes from a hunting family, where fall finds them occupying the trees in the heart of Wisconsin deer country. Mostly meat hunters, this close nit group of father and sons have long enjoyed the tradition of family hunting camp. Mike is also an accomplished cook. These skills would come in handy during our Wyoming adventure. Thank again Mike for the fine, home cooked meals!

Planning for the big day.

Preparation for a buffalo hunt begins with firearm selection and days/hours of practice. Bison are large, durable and potentially dangerous game, therefore increasing the need for proper caliber and bullet selection. Mike has chosen the classic approach, a lever action iron sighted 45/70. A modern version of the historic Winchester 1886. Shooting solid lead bullets at a range no further than 100 yards, this lever gun produces enough energy to cleanly take the biggest bull. Shot placement regardless of caliber is still critical. Following up on a wounded bull is not something to be taken lightly.

My personal choice was to return with the same 1977 Winchester Model 70 Super Grade in 458 Winchester Magnum that I used two years ago with excellent results. New this year, is the new Barnes Triple Shock Bullet in 458. This 500 grain flat base all copper metal expanding bullet should be excellent on such big game. With no core to slip or separate, even on impact with large bone and muscle penetration, terminal performance should be excellent medicine for this big beast.

Practice, practice, practice.
It is commonly agreed by most big game hunters that we rarely ever notice or even remember the recoil of our rifle when actually taking game. Most say, “I don’t even remember the rifle going off”. I guess we are so focused on making the best shot, we block out the actual effect felt from the rifle. Try the same shot at the range. You seem to notice everything about the recoil as you punch holes in paper. The bigger the caliber, the more you seem to remember it. Also, in most hunting situations you will most likely fire 1 or 2 shot’s, at the rifle range you may shoot 20-40 shots. Recoil has a way of taking its toll, shot after shot.

Practice with calibers from 338 on up is not for the faint of heart. The 458 was Winchesters largest caliber. Designed for African big 5 hunting, it offer 65 pounds of recoil, which is 5 times the felt push of a 12 gauge shotgun, getting use to focusing on the target while blocking out the result of pulling the trigger is why anyone considering using this on big dangerous game must spend enough time practicing to get competent.

Mike and I put several range days under our belt and established renewed confidence in our ability to hit what we are aiming at. Now we consider ourselves ready.


A nice surprise!

When initially planning this hunt, George White (the highly competent IPY Ranch Manager and an experienced hunter himself), notified me that the ranch held a healthy mule deer population. He commented further that this area of the state even though it was a “Lottery Draw Only Area” I had a good chance of getting a tag. Heeding George’s recommendation, I submitted my name and application. As luck with have it, a few months later I received a letter from the Wyoming DNR office with a tag and license enclosed. Looks like I’ll be busy planning for a mixed bag hunt now. I’ll need to add another rifle to the mix since I sure won’t need a 458 for a mule deer.

The Hunt

After the two day drive and reacquainting ourselves with the hunting guides, Mike and I prepare for the mornings adventure. Sighting in our rifles is always the first step before the big event. After a few accurately placed shots our confidence levels are elevated to high. Now we will see if all of our practice and preparation will pay off. George divides Mike and I into two groups. Mike will take the most experienced guide and George and I will set off together. It doesn’t take long before one of the teams spots one of the herds in the timber. They are nearly 2 miles from where they had been spotted only hours before. Don’t let anyone tell you that Bison are slow once they decide to move out. Hunting these great beast’s in close cover presents a number of added challenges that are uncommon when they are found in open prairie. Trees and terrain prevent you from possibly seeing all of the herd. Sometimes you hear a sound and ask "are there more behind me"? Once the shooting starts things can change in a moment. As Mike and his guide approach the herd, they are noticed and the herd senses a threat. Moving together, bunching up and presenting a few bulls to face the threat is the first move nature has taught them. As Mike moves into position to take the shot, a bull moves from Mike’s left into his range of fire. It appears that Mike is tracking on this bull as his trophy. The shaggy mane on this guy is really exceptional. Both the front legs and neck fur are the longest and nicest I’ve ever seen. As the bull turns sideways to Mike, the roar of the 45/70 takes me by surprise. Looks like Mike has decided. The bull takes the full force of the shot and buckles on impact. Down he goes. To all our surprise, he gets back up slowly. Mike’s guide instructs him to “hit him again”. The 45/70 obliges with another burst of lead. This time the mighty bull goes down for good.

With blood in the air and one bull on the ground, the attitude of the herd changes from casual to full alert. Fight or flight is now their temperament. You can feel the tension in the air. As they being to move from left to right, I take a kneeling position along side a half grown tree about 10 inches thick. From this vantage point I can see a large hump towards to back of the herd sliding slowly towards of the front. It looks like this big guy is trying to seek out while remaining concealed by the others. In his haste to get away, the bull emerges near the front, now George and I can see him clearly. I hear George say, “that’s the one we want”. No disagreement on my part, so I take careful aim.

The bull is standing now quartering too me. I get the feeling that he’s taking a last look before he decides to take off for the thickest cover he can find. I place the first shot carefully between the neck and shoulder. This will eliminate any real meat damage yet cross through the greatest percentage of vitals. The Barnes Triple Shock hits the bull from about 50 yards with immediate staggering impact. It pushes the bull back nearly a foot and turns him broadside. George, always the prudent hunter yells out, “hit him again”. The second round in my chamber is a 500 grain Woodleigh. These top notch bullets made in Australia are designed for large game and tested on the great water buffalo found in the swamps of Ausi-land. The impact just behind the shoulder low through the ribs removes any question of this bull running off. Down he goes. This triggers a mass exodus from the herd. All that’s left is a cloud of dust and two excellent trophy’s. (The one pictured is my bull. The bases of his horns measure an astounding 14 inches around and each horn is 18 and a half inches in length. This will make quite a mount.)(I know that it looks like I'm pointing my unloaded rifle at Mikes head, but it's actually angled back behind him. Its hard to see in 2D.")(No safety emails please)

With two bulls down within 20 yards from each other, the team calls in the trucks. After pictures and hand shakes the real work gets started. Cleaning two 2500+ pound bulls takes smarts, gear and lots of practice. Lots of ways to get hurt too. We leave this activity to the experts.

With the bulls done and loaded on the truck for C&A Meats (the processing plant in Sundance), we head for the ranch. After changing clothes and rifles we prepare for the deer hunt.

Typically mule deer hunts are all about spot and stalk. Good optics, fit legs, lots of patients and long shots are normally on the menu. On the IPY ranch their mule deer were in full rut. This is the best time to hunt the big ones since they seem to loose their paranoia about being seen. It’s not too hard to spot does and juveniles during daylight hours bouncing around like so many bunny rabbits. This unique trait makes these deer almost comical to watch. Rarely will you see the big bucks other than early dawn or near dark. I guess that’s how they live long enough to become big.

George decides not to wait until the next day to start our deer hunt. Forecast’s predict a change in the weather over the next few days which could have a dramatic impact on the deer hunting. Long ago I learned to listen to the expert advice of my guides. They know the area and animal habits much better than I in their respect areas. So within an hour of completing my buffalo hunt, I’m reconfigured and actively on the trail of the classic western deer. Scouting in the ranch pickup is much easier than walking or even horse back. Believe it or not I have found that familiar vehicles don’t seen to concern most animals. But when the occupants exit the vehicle, they switch to condition red. Possibly, the animals become conditioned to casual “work around the ranch” type traffic and no longer consider it a threat. We effectively use this to our advantage.

Over the first few hours we are able to get close to a number of bucks. A few would have been shooters in a number of other states. Since I already had a nice Montana Mule Deer, this one had to be exceptional before I further impact my already shrinking wall space at home. After nearly completing a perceived circle around the inside of this huge ranch, we came upon a clearing backed by forest and filled with knee high prairie grass. Casually walking towards the back of this field was the nicest mule deer I’ve ever seen in person. Comments from the guild seemed to clear up any misunderstanding about the quality of this trophy. “I know you’ll come back here to hunt in the future, and when you do don’t expect to get one bigger than this”. That’s all I needed to hear.

Without making too much noise, I open the door and slid out of the truck. Making my way to a point that would offer a decent shooting lane was my first goal. Not being detected and getting a solid rest was my second. To my amazement this buck ambled towards the back of the field and laid down. This was a new one on me. In plain sight this buck laid down and faced the trail. I’m sure this way he was secure with the woods behind him and the ability to see anything approaching from the front. Since I did not approach him and keep out of site, I’m not certain that he was even aware I was there. With no hurry up shot needed, it became a “ok, now what do we do”. Since he was laying down, his vitals were not visible due to his position and the height of the prairie grass. The only portion visible was his neck, head and antlers. One of the two guides suggested that he spook the deer to get him up, then I shoot him. I wasn’t took keen on that approach since the time it would take for the buck to get up and run away was a bunch faster than me getting on target and making the perfect shot. I’m not into spraying bullets hoping for 1 good hit. Plan B was technically more difficult but more my style. Either we could wait for this deer to get up on his own, no matter how long that would take and hope he doesn’t wait until its too dark to see or I could make a very precise shot, hitting the backbone in the neck. This is at best a three inch wide target on something that could move, turn or look up down without warning at anytime. The shot either will be immediately effective or will be off enough to wound. If the deer is able to get up, a solid follow up shot would be very critical to anchor him.

The rifle I chose to bring that day was a Remington 700 Sendero. It happens to be the most accurate and trusted rifle I own. Combined with the Hornady A-Max 178 grain bullet, I would put this combination up against anything out there at 100 to 500 yards.
A true sub minute 200 yard combination this is. Thanks to its McMillen stock, trued Remington 700 action, Harris Bipod and excellent Nikon 6.5x20 power scope.

After considering all the circumstances, I felt that the spine shot was the best option. Watching the deer for a while gave me time to pattern his movements. This added to my confidence. I didn’t need a sudden movement to blow the shot. Calming myself by slowing my breathing, reducing unnecessary movement and focusing on the spot I needed to hit, I was ready. At one point the deer looked left and then returned to his more natural position facing front. He paused for just a brief moment looking directly at me. That’s when the rifle jumped in my arms. The impact rolled the deer on his back making him rather hard to see. I quickly reloaded expecting him to jump up, but that never happened. The shot was exact and immediately fatal. The trophy was mine. As I shared congratulations with the team, it became apparent that sometimes things just seem to work out. I guess it is the counter balance to those frustrating times when nothing seems to go your way. Savor these moments, they don’t happen often enough.