# Committed-After just one sighting



## ridgetop (Sep 13, 2007)

Just wondering how many people have committed themselves to just one trophy the entire hunt after seeing it just one time?
Even it meant tag soup.

On my OIL ram hunt, at first I was just hoping to get a good looking ram that would make a good mount but once I spotted a giant ram two week before the hunt started. That was the ram I was willing to hold out for and even at that, I ended up shooting at a different, slightly smaller ram and missing.
I ended up getting the ram I was after on the 12th day of hunting.

Here's a picture of the buck I held out for this past season. I know it's a crappy picture but that's all you get for now.
The buck was so big bodied, that when I saw it over a mile away with a couple of yearling three points beside it. I thought it was a doe and two fawns, until I got my spotting scope on them. 
I saw this buck in early Sept. and hunted several days for it during the muzzy and rifle hunts but never did see it again. I know a guy shot at it on the rifle hunt but missed.


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## Blackie6 (Jul 7, 2014)

Last year on my LE deer tag I seen a buck for about 30seconds in early July. I spent the rest of my summer with trail cameras and spotting trips looking for just that buck. Never found him again and kind of hurt me later in the hunt when I needed To have those few "go to spots".


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## Schleppy (Jul 16, 2008)

A few years ago, the day before elk season opened, I decided to hike down into an area with a spring to see what was there. I stayed until after dark watching a big bull that would hear a bugle, run in the direction of that bugle, and respond with the deepest gnarliest bugle of his own. There were probably 5 or 6 other bulls in the valley bugling. He started just at sunset and was still going strong an hour later when I decided it was pretty dark and I should hike back out. It was pretty dark but I could see he had good length and mass. With the dominant display he was putting on, I made up my mind that was the bull I wanted. 

I hunted for him the first 4 days of the season without any luck so I decided to go hunt a couple other areas the next few days. I saw several other bulls but couldn't get him out of my mind.

I ended up going back to the area I saw him originally, I saw him with about 20 cows and got a shot at him but missed! I hiked back out of there after not seeing any blood pretty bummed. I shot my rifle at a target to see if it was still sighted in, it was. I didn't have any excuses. I decided the next day at around noon to hike back in and get set up for the evening hunt. I made a blind out of some deadfall and settled in to take a nap until the evening. About a half hour later, in the middle of the afternoon I heard some cracks and noises in the pines right in front of me. He ended up coming out into the clearing to get a drink from the spring. I got him at 60 yds. 

I focused almost primarily on that bull the entire hunt and it was probably my most enjoyable hunt I've had.


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## Bowhunter50 (Oct 14, 2014)

Schleppy, great story, any pics?


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## Schleppy (Jul 16, 2008)

Bowhunter50 said:


> Schleppy, great story, any pics?


Here's one. He didn't take a step after I shot and fell right into the spring. I was hunting alone, the hardest part was getting him out of there...


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## LanceS4803 (Mar 5, 2014)

This guy eluded me all season. Split G-2s and -3s.
Showed back up on camera just last week, in the same spot.


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## ridgetop (Sep 13, 2007)

Schleppy, good looking bull. Congrats.


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## ridgetop (Sep 13, 2007)

I've heard guys say that the reason they stopped rifle hunting deer and started archery hunting, is because killing a buck with a rifle was just not a challenge. I have said many times, try finding a 5+ year old buck before the season starts and then go back and try to just kill that specific buck. 
Now that's a challenge.


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## ridgetop (Sep 13, 2007)

Here's another buck I found in early Sept. a few years ago that really had the "WOW" factor. I found the buck right at dark after a two hour hike into the back country and took this video the next morning after another 1 1/2 hour hike to get within about 600 yards of it. We hunted for it on both the muzzy and rifle hunts but never did see it again. I believe this buck would have scored over 190". Definitely a buck most people dream about.


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## robiland (Jan 20, 2008)

Several years ago, I had an archery elk tag here in Utah, LE. I was out scouting all summer and knew of a few good bulls, but no monsters. Until 1 week into the hunt, a friend and a guide showed me an area that had a few good bulls in it. JUST A FEW
I laid eyes on 2 bulls, and never looked at another. I had close calls on those w bulls, but it never came together. I was passing 330-350 bulls, because of this giant. 1 was estimated at 390, and the other over 400. The sheds were picked up off the giant that same year and it went 417. I had him at 90 yards, but would not follow the other cows across the clearing. The cows walked right by me at 20 yards and never knew I was the there. BUT HE KNEW SOMETHING WAS UP. He turned and walked away. My heart sank. And my tag went to SOUP!!!


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## tallbuck (Apr 30, 2009)

ridgetop said:


> .
> 
> On my OIL ram hunt, at first I was just hoping to get a good looking ram that would make a good mount but once I spotted a giant ram two week before the hunt started. That was the ram I was willing to hold out for and even at that, I ended up shooting at a different, slightly smaller ram and missing.
> I ended up getting the ram I was after on the 12th day of hunting.


Ridge,

Mind sharing the ram you mentioned.... I have the sheep bug and just cannot get enough of them!

Tallbuck


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## brendo (Sep 10, 2013)

tallbuck said:


> Ridge,
> 
> Mind sharing the ram you mentioned.... I have the sheep bug and just cannot get enough of them!
> 
> Tallbuck


If you have the sheep bug you need to go read ridge tops Hunt adventure challenge on monstermuleys its in the 2010 HAC called a quest for the big one. its an epic story!


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## ridgetop (Sep 13, 2007)

tallbuck said:


> Ridge,
> 
> Mind sharing the ram you mentioned.... I have the sheep bug and just cannot get enough of them!
> 
> Tallbuck


Here it is.


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## muleymadness (Jan 23, 2008)

That sheep sure looks good Ridge! Yes I've held out for one particular buck and got my chance 4 days into the hunt and proceeded to MISS him entirely. Not sure I hit the hill he was standing on, I then killed a different buck on the 2nd to last day. Think someone else might have killed the monster I was after but never saw pics...not not sure exactly what happened to him.


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## JuddCT (Sep 7, 2007)

I crested a ridge and sat down to glass a small bowl in a area I love about a week before the archery hunt and saw this guy









Here is a closer look









I followed him all season and never got a chance. I hope he shows up again this year.


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## TopofUtahArcher (Sep 9, 2009)

Yep, I did in Wyo 2 years ago and it bit me in the bud cause a guy from up there used a gun during a bow only hunt to take him. You may recall my Hunt adventure Challenge on Monster Muleys. I like the challenge of matching wits with a specific animal if I can.


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## ridgetop (Sep 13, 2007)

Judd, did that buck have a drop tine on his left side?

UtahArchery, are you saying that buck you were after was poached?


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## ridgetop (Sep 13, 2007)

Here's another cool buck I really wanted a couple years ago. He had a huge drop tine. I spotted it on July 24th and then took the pictures three days later. I never did see the buck again after multiple trips into the same and surrounding canyons. 
But on the 4th day of the muzzy hunt, I ended up taking another great buck in the same canyon, in which I had only seen one other time that summer. It is my best muzzy buck to date.
It's really hard to hold out for "the one", when you go day after day without any sign of it.


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## COOPERD (Sep 16, 2007)

You guys have some awesome pictures


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## BPturkeys (Sep 13, 2007)

I am thinking to build your memories on the one that got away, or that huge one we saw once, or we hunted for him for 6 days and never saw him again is stupid and a sign of nothing but an ultimate horn hunter. It seems to be some kind of badge of honor among some to say they ate tag soup. Dumb! Simply because a certain buck is 10 or 12 points bigger will not make your hunt and especially your memories of hunting any better. Any nice mature buck presents challenges and should be worthy of your time and efforts. 
To just walk aimlessly around the woods, ignoring other fine bucks and the challenges they will present in hopes of killing that ultimate trophy, is, well....


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## ridgetop (Sep 13, 2007)

BP,

Saying that I'm the ultimate horn hunter is a stretch but I'll take it as a compliment all the same.
Me thinking you need to just stick with the turkey and road hunting and leave the "real" big game hunting to those that are willing to work hard for their game and enjoy the challenge.;-)


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## JuddCT (Sep 7, 2007)

ridgetop said:


> Judd, did that buck have a drop tine on his left side?
> 
> UtahArchery, are you saying that buck you were after was poached?


Yes and a good looking one at that. It has always been a dream to take a buck with a dropper. Hope he shows up again this year.


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## brendo (Sep 10, 2013)

BPturkeys said:


> I am thinking to build your memories on the one that got away, or that huge one we saw once, or we hunted for him for 6 days and never saw him again is stupid and a sign of nothing but an ultimate horn hunter. It seems to be some kind of badge of honor among some to say they ate tag soup. Dumb! Simply because a certain buck is 10 or 12 points bigger will not make your hunt and especially your memories of hunting any better. Any nice mature buck presents challenges and should be worthy of your time and efforts.
> To just walk aimlessly around the woods, ignoring other fine bucks and the challenges they will present in hopes of killing that ultimate trophy, is, well....


please explain why your memories of chasing every nice buck in the woods is soooo much better than someone that targets one animal? Good luck, your logic makes no sense.


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## BPturkeys (Sep 13, 2007)

brendo said:


> please explain why your memories of chasing every nice buck in the woods is soooo much better than someone that targets one animal? Good luck, your logic makes no sense.


So brondo, after you have "targeted" your dream buck I assume you would not spin off him if a bigger buck showed himself. You wouldn't go after him instead? Don't you see that the part of the hunt you would be missing by blindly pursuing the first buck...the final close, the successful finish, would add much more to your memories than the thrill of a big bowl of tag soup? This same argument holds true even if the second buck isn't bigger but is still a nice mature buck. 
You will never convince me that a hunt culminating in harvesting a nice mature buck isn't a better thing than 6 days of wondering the woods never to see that mystic buck again. In fact, I might go as far as to say that sitting on some ridge top glassing, glassing, glassing, trying to spot that monster you saw three weeks ago isn't even real hunting. I say, the hunt, a real hunt, does not even start until you start pursuing an actual animal. I like the idea of setting your standards for a shooter, and, when one is spotted, start a hunt after him. It's like, "well son, I have some great memories of sitting on this ridge for hours waiting for this one buck to show himself again, I never saw him again, but believe me, I am a hero cause I had a bowl of tag soup" or it's like, "son, while hunting deer last week, I located a really nice mature buck and after watching him, stocking him, getting fooled by him a time or two, I finally triumphed and here are the pictures, and the memories will not be forgotten."


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## brendo (Sep 10, 2013)

Bp. I have never been commited to one animal during a hunt maybe some day I will maybe not. if I see something I like I will go after it. But judging someone by the way they hunt and saying there memories amount to nothing cause they don't do it the way you do it is DUMB!


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## ridgetop (Sep 13, 2007)

I'm sure less than .01% of the hunters out there would hold out for just one specific animal. 
I haven't been one of them in the past. 
Personally for me, it's all about the "wow" factor. 
I usually have a small list of 2 or 3 bucks that I'm only willing to tag.
If I happen to find another one during the hunt that I have never seen before but has the "wow" factor. I will be more than happy to put my tag on it 
and
even though I tend to throw out scores describing a deer and elk as a reference, the "wow" factor far out weighs any score the animal might have.


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