# 2014 snatch late hunt...



## berrysblaster

Since I so enjoy reading others real time updates I'll give it a whirl.

I started scouting in earnest this week and have seen mostly just amazing country. The second pic is my current view!
















I have located some pretty good bulls so far but not one that strikes me as 'the one'






I have spent a considerable amount of time on this bull










I located him over the summer and nearly killed him with an archery client but once the rut kicked in he went ghost on me and I haven't seen him since.

Right now he is my number one bull, I would shoot him over a larger bull just for the accomplishment and history of scouting and harvesting a particular animal. I'm optimistic that I'll be able to relocate him on winter ground!

With this start, bring on the cold!!


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## goofy elk

This will be a fun thread!!!!!

Good luck!


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## martymcfly73

If he's not the "one" I can't wait to see which one is!


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## brendo

I'm excited for this! Is it an extended bull? Or do you have a late rifle tag??


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## Fez

Im locked in


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## goofy elk

berry,

That first pics brings up some GREAT memorys!!!!

This cat lived on that middle ridge for a lot of years ..


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## DallanC

Amazing bull!

Its also pretty cool how close you can align google earth with that top picture.


-DallanC


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## silentstalker

Good luck! Cant wait to see and hear about your hunt!


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## martymcfly73

Goof, thanks for inserting a picture of your handsome self. Now this thread has everything.


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## goofy elk

martymcfly73 said:


> Goof, thanks for inserting a picture of your handsome self. Now this thread has everything.


Not " Me" Mcfly,

A client


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## martymcfly73

Even better.


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## Springville Shooter

C'mon McFly, you know what he looks like.------SS


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## martymcfly73

Ror^^^^ I guess I do.


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## swbuckmaster

cant wait to see how this plays out


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## lunkerhunter2

martymcfly73 said:


> Ror^^^^ I guess I do.


^^^^^ROR! X 2-_O-
Yeah we already know what he looks like.


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## Dahlmer

I think you're looking in the right places Berry. Good luck.


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## berrysblaster

This mornings drive turned up 9 bulls, a couple of really pretty ones but none that were eye poppers, I have a u joint going on my truck so I've been a little limited on where I feel comfortable going till I get this fixed. Here are a couple of the nicer ones


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## N8ON

Good luck. I look forward to following you on your hunt. Hopefully you tag out on that bull, he is a nice one.


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## berrysblaster

And my phone won't upload the other video so oh well


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## berrysblaster

Headed up the hill, looking forward to this evening!


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## berrysblaster

Getting warmer


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## T-Money

No updates from this morning? Don't leaving us hanging!


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## berrysblaster

6 bulls all small and 12 cows went to a new area and was a little high in elevation I think...most of the bigger bulls are below the cows and rags


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## bass2muskie

Go get them don't make us wait.


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## berrysblaster

bass2muskie said:


> Go get them don't make us wait.


You guys do realize this isn't the extended right? The hunt opens on the 8th of November


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## bass2muskie

berrysblaster said:


> You guys do realize this isn't the extended right? The hunt opens on the 8th of November


Lol good to know I thought you were hunting the extended. Good luck to you then.


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## T-Money

Well aware, just exciting to see big bulls! Your first pic is looking right in my backyard!


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## martymcfly73

berrysblaster said:


> You guys do realize this isn't the extended right? The hunt opens on the 8th of November


I was waiting for someone to ask why you haven't pulled the trigger.


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## berrysblaster

Tonight's activities only yielded two bulls, one of which looked like a good one. The wind made filming a fruitless effort...


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## martymcfly73

berrysblaster said:


> Tonight's activities only yielded two bulls, one of which looked like a good one. The wind made filming a fruitless effort...


Is this a personal tag or clients?


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## berrysblaster

It's mine mcfly, for better or worse!


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## martymcfly73

berrysblaster said:


> It's mine mcfly, for better or worse!


Good luck! Slam a brute!!!


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## berrysblaster

17 bulls this morning didn't have time to film due to a guided fishing trip I had to get to. 4 were 330+


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## goofy elk

blaster,

You seeing any cows during all this looking around ? ...


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## martymcfly73

Of course not. They re all dead. Here comes the I told you so.


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## martymcfly73

Berry, question here. If you had enough points to draw the late hunt, I assume you could have had your pick of any season. Why the late hunt? As someone who lives, eats and breaths on the unit, why the late over say a rifle or muzzy hunt? Bigger bulls? Just curious.


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## Mr Muleskinner

I was wondering the same thing but assumed that it was because he had clients that took priority during the other hunts.

The question that popped into my head was, other than the fact that you know the unit like the back of your hand, why would you choose the Wasatch when you state that it has been so down compared to the past.

Not picking a fight at all. It's your hunt and I hope that you tag a monster bull.


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## berrysblaster

Good questions guys really and I'll answer shortly!


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## berrysblaster

Mr Muleskinner said:


> I was wondering the same thing but assumed that it was because he had clients that took priority during the other hunts.
> 
> The question that popped into my head was, other than the fact that you know the unit like the back of your hand, why would you choose the Wasatch when you state that it has been so down compared to the past.
> 
> Not picking a fight at all. It's your hunt and I hope that you tag a monster bull.


This goes a little into me as a person.

First off to answer goof, yes I've seen cows. On the year I'm just south of 900 head total. 500 cows and 350+ bulls...lower than I'm accustomed to seeing yes. End of the unit? No.

As for why this unit, I've had a personal desire to kill a mature bull on my home unit. I'm 25 this isn't going to be my last permit, but I'm not confident in what I'll have to hunt in 6-8 years when I could have drawn a premium permit. So I looked at it, saw that I was still a couple years away from an early rifle and decided that the late was a good option for me. I don't have time to archery hunt, and really don't like the muzz hunt.

As far as size goes, the late does offer a good chance at a truly monster bull, but this is the Wasatch and cannot be expected. If I can't turn up a really special bull in the next 8 days, I'll shoot the first 330-50 bull I see and be absolutely tickled with it. I feel like this is a very reasonable goal.

This year has been a good one for me in a lot of ways, I was able to scout more and harder than I've ever done before. I'm expecting my first child in February (a boy). The stars just lined up and made the whole experience I've had this year exceptional. If I were to eat my permit it would still be a rewarding experience, I don't think this will happen but on the off hand chance I'd be ok with it.

Finally, overall I feel like this was an above average year on the Wasatch. But IMHO the unit cannot continue to sustain the antlerless hunts that it has been hit with since 2011. I felt like if I waited to draw an early or premium permit I'd be hit with the consequences of these antlerless hunts.

Hope this answers your guys questions!


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## martymcfly73

Congrats on the child! Your life will change for the better. I wish you the best of luck!


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## Mr Muleskinner

can't beat that for a year. I have toyed with the premium hunt on the Wasatch. My brother drew it last year and we had an awesome hunt. I hope the same for you in the coming weeks.


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## berrysblaster

With the next two days of weather, I've decided to pretty much take them off. Spend a few minutes with my poor wife and celebrate her B-day, it's the tenth but I likely won't be there!


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## martymcfly73

Happy wife, happy life.


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## longbow

I love "follow me on my hunt" post like these. Berry, good luck. I'd love to see a picture of you with your grubby paws wrapped around his antlers. Now git on out there and git him!


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## longbow

Oh ya, by the way, what the he!! is a snatch hunt? (I was thinking of my college days)


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## Mtnbeer

longbow said:


> Oh ya, by the way, what the he!! is a snatch hunt? (I was thinking of my college days)


Ha, that's what I was thinking too. For once, I didn't want to be the first one to say it.


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## berrysblaster

Woke up early and excited this morning









Thinking with a little bit of this on the ground good things would happen









Hiked into an area to glass in the dark with stars out, soon as it started to get light, this happened









Chock up a wasted morning to Mother Nature! I hope she is nicer on the tail end, I could use some of that karma stuff!


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## goofy elk

^^^^^^^^^ Bummer ! ^^^^^^^^^^^

I'm going up Sheep Creek today, when the clouds lift....


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## goofy elk

Clouds didn't clear out of the head of Tie Fork til 1:40 in the afternoon....


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## DallanC

Sweet spotter. What type of camera / mount do you have on it?


-DallanC


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## berrysblaster

DallanC said:


> Sweet spotter. What type of camera / mount do you have on it?
> 
> -DallanC


Phoneskope with a iPhone 4

After 11 miles between yesterday and this morning, with nothing to show for it but a strained groin, I'm starting to get a little frustrated. I hate striking out especially with these conditions!

I do choose to hunt area that hold few, and now I'm wondering, if any elk rather than places I can see Bulls regularly but will be competing with others.

I'm hoping that this last storm has just pushed them lower from where I was watching them.


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## berrysblaster

On a pleasant note this mornings sunrise on the mountains was pretty amazing


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## berrysblaster

I finally saw an elk! Well 3 of them and they were even Bulls, not any I'd shoot but I found a few away from the typical areas. This was what I was hoping to accomplish, find a pocket of elk that I could have mostly to myself...that's a tough thing to do on this unit!


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## martymcfly73

I've got to hand it to you. This can be a tough hunt. I hope you get the bull you want. You've definitely earned a bruiser.


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## berrysblaster

martymcfly73 said:


> I've got to hand it to you. This can be a tough hunt. I hope you get the bull you want. You've definitely earned a bruiser.


Thanks mcfly, the beauty is I don't expect or even believe I will. But I'm sure giving it hell trying...I know the unit well enough to understand that giants aren't really earned here it's more luck than anything else...very very few people consistently kill Bulls over 350"


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## martymcfly73

berrysblaster said:


> Thanks mcfly, the beauty is I don't expect or even believe I will. But I'm sure giving it hell trying...I know the unit well enough to understand that giants aren't really earned here it's more luck than anything else...very very few people consistently kill Bulls over 350"


This I agree with. Hard work goes so far. I would be ticked if I can kill a 330" bull with my muzzy on that unit next year. I've spent my entire life on that unit. It holds memories of family that are no longer here. My #1 hunting partner in particular. I turned my tag in a couple years ago because I lost him. Haven't had the heart to put back in. I'm hoping next year will be the year when the stars align.


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## T-Money

Getting close to GO time... good luck berrysblaster!


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## berrysblaster

In the wee hours of this morning as I was glassing by light of the moon (probably hate it more than I've ever hated anything) these two Bulls got me awful excited. Then the sun came up and they turned into big 5's I like big 5's but not this much!


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## Broadside_Shot

I'm predicting Berry has the bull he wants located already. I think we will see scouting photos after he gets him. JMO. I would do it that way.


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## hazmat

BroadsideShot said:


> I'm predicting Berry has the bull he wants located already. I think we will see scouting photos after he gets him. JMO. I would do it that way.


Either way this Is an awesome thread good luck on your hunt berry blaster. I to think he has a monster bull pegged at this point. Cant wait to see it all come together


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## berrysblaster

I kind of do and kind of don't...haha I hope it comes together my 'monster' that you guys are hoping for is a ghost at the moment...again a product of the moon I believe! I wish I could say otherwise but I haven't seen a big one in a few days now!


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## goofy elk

The Forest service is starting to lock all the gates on the south end.
Several in Diamond fork were locked yesterday, Little Diamond and
Wanrhodes on that list ......

I took one last wheeler ride over Monks hollow / Long canyon / Teat mnt.
They may have locked those today, if not, Bet their locked monday.
Just a heads up...............


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## silentstalker

Good luck berry. That bull is out there. Keep after it!


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## berrysblaster

As the 'hunt' portion of this experience came to an end last night with another strike out, I felt like I'd put as much effort as I could into preparing. I'd looked at over 100 bulls in the last two weeks a couple of which were probably just north of that magical 350".

In the end, I was unable to turn up a special bull, however thanks to the efforts of close friends and family two or three Bulls in that upper echelon were located. 

The moon has really put a damper on patterning these Bulls and we haven't seen one in 5 days now. So thanks to guys like silentstalker for wishing me luck! I'm gonna need it as the 'shoot' part of this adventure begins!


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## berrysblaster

I might have made a mistake not shooting this morning


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## silentstalker

Great bull but you have lots of time and he wont go far if you change your mind!


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## berrysblaster

Another pic


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## Fez

Good bull Tough decision to pass but your hunt has already be a success. A kill is just the icing on the cake. Like mentioned earlier, that bull wont be far unless he gets bumped out of the area

Good luck and thanks for the updates


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## martymcfly73

Nice bull. You still have plenty of time.


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## COOPERD

Thats a nice bull, did u end up having any competition on your canyon you have been huntin?


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## longbow

:shock: You mean to tell me you didn't thunder-dick that bull on sight??? You sir, have more restraint than I do. Great adventure you're having. Keep the updates coming.


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## berrysblaster

It's over


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## berrysblaster

Man he really was a weird bull...never seen an elk lay this way


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## blackdog

Nice bull!

Thunderdick????
I thought my wife was the only one that used that term.


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## berrysblaster

I'll do a more diligent write up on the puter and not my phone. I'll be the first to say that we made a mistake on this bull, he fooled us. I'm absolutely tickled with him and the hunt. He should fall within my 'reasonable expectation' of 330-50 but is not a monster like I had hoped! I don't plan on taping him and probably never will


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## Kwalk3

Looks like a stud bull. Nicely done!


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## longbow

berrysblaster said:


> I'll do a more diligent write up on the puter and not my phone. I'll be the first to say that we made a mistake on this bull, he fooled us. I'm absolutely tickled with him and the hunt. He should fall within my 'reasonable expectation' of 330-50 but is not a monster like I had hoped! I don't plan on taping him and probably never will


You're happy with the bull and happy with the hunt. And that folks, is the bottom line! Congrats Mr Blaster on a fine bull and an awesome hunt. My hat's off to you sir.


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## silentstalker

Congrats on a fine bull! Looks like he was headed down hill at a high rate of speed when the front wheels went out! Hope to see some more pics and hear the story! Hunting is way more than inches. Its about everything else.


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## ridgetop

berrysblaster said:


> I'll do a more diligent write up on the puter and not my phone. I'll be the first to say that we made a mistake on this bull, he fooled us. I'm absolutely tickled with him and the hunt. He should fall within my 'reasonable expectation' of 330-50 but is not a monster like I had hoped! I don't plan on taping him and probably never will


Congrats on your bull. I don't blame you at all about not scoring your bull. I haven't scored the one I shot last year. Most people think it's a 330+ bull and that's fine with me.


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## hazmat

nice bull berryblaster congrats.that is crazy he curled up like that probably not by choice but that picture alone would be an awesome memory


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## N8ON

Thanks for letting us follow your hunt. Congrats on a great bull.


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## berrysblaster

First off, I'm exhausted. That's it, the end. Somehow I'm still married, that is probably the most significant part of this whole experience. My wife finally resigned herself to being a widow this week. I've been on the mountain 3-5 times a week since the last week of June. Since Mid August that number probably jumped up to 5-7 times as a very unhealthy average. This past 10 days I hunted nearly every day except for the two I took off to celebrate a birthday that happens in two days. I'd leave around 5 A.M. and return sometime around 8 every day. The days would go something like this, get up, leave, drive for an hour to some unknown chunk of gorgeous mountain real estate, glass till 8-9 AM then head to work. Work till 3 then head back out and glass. Usually I'd hike around 2-3 miles per day to get to glassing areas.

It was more and more apparent as the days wore closer to the opener that this was going to be one of the more difficult, if not the most difficult hunts I'd ever take part in. Sightings of bulls, at least quality bulls went down as the temps went up and the moon got brighter. The 3-4 days before the hunt saw 0 bulls that were over 330 and very few that cracked 300. I knew they were in certain areas but they were out after dark and in before light.

I was fortunate to have access to some private property, and opening day found us on it glassing a bull that my father had seen the night before. He is pictured above. I waffled on this bull all day. In the scope he looked really good. Not the largest I'd seen, but good. Then I'd film him and in one frame he would look like a great bull, probably high 340's, and the next he would look considerably smaller. One of the trickiest bulls I've ever looked at. I passed opening morning with the intention of returning that evening to look at him again.

We headed back to the draw he fed into at 3:30 and he was up and moving, again, looked in the scope and thought he looked like a 330ish bull which I was going to pass. We figured what the heck lets make a move on him get close and really look him over. So my father, uncle, me and Don Mecham headed down the ridge just out of sight. Got to 491 yards and set up. He was behind a pine at the time so we waited for him to step out into the green grass of a small spring. I was ready to shoot just in case. He made his way out of the pine and all four of us looked at him and thought he looked way better than our original assessment so I decided to take him.

This is where things went just a little south. The canyon he is in is 'unfriendly' to put it nicely. He was above the snedge and it would have been quite pleasant to have made a good clean shot and put him down right there. I'm confident out to 500 yards so I thought this should be no big deal. Well, that was not the case! First shot, nothing. Someone behind me said they thought I hit high, so I started to work down the bull. 2nd, 3rd, and 4th shots were not hits. My 5th shot, I held right on his shoulder and shot, this one took off both his lower front hocks. He stumbled/fell right down into the nasty and laid there till we found him and I snuck in for a 20 yard finishing shot. I'm not overly proud of this effort. Upon further examination, I was hitting low my first shot had to have blown under his brisket by no more than an inch. I think I over compensated for a down angle shot just a touch the wrong direction. From there I went the wrong way based on what my spotters thought. In the end I got the job done but for the bulls sake and our physical well being I sure didn't make my feel goods proud.

He died wedged between these trees








and ended up down here wrapped up in the ball posted above.

When got him down and in a place we could work on him, we took a couple of pics got a 6 wheeler as close as we could to him(private property rocks in this aspect) and went to work.









































He was certainly not the type of bull I was hoping to harvest, but having my father with me along with some of the finest friends and family anyone on this earth could hope for made it more than a special occasion that I have absolutely zero regrets with. My 11 year old brother got his first real experience with hunting elk. A few bruises, some thorns, getting really scared on the ride out (it was a little steep and the tires came off the ground a couple times) and I think he is hooked.

This was as rewarding a hunt as I've ever been on, I went into it on my terms and hunted it the way I wanted. I came out totally satisfied. It was as emotionally rewarding an experience as a person could hope for and it culminated in a wonderful harvest with the best of companions.


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## goofy elk

AWESOME---- Congrats!


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## longbow

berrysblaster said:


> He was certainly not the type of bull I was hoping to harvest, but having my father with me along with some of the finest friends and family anyone on this earth could hope for made it more than a special occasion that I have absolutely zero regrets with.


Can you have a better hunt than that? I don't think so! Congrats berryblaster. Well done!


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## silentstalker

Congrats on a great bull!


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## middlefork

Nice bull!

All the effort put in on the front end and all the friends and family on the back end doesn't get better than that.


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## Vanilla

Hunting doesn't always go according to plan. Anyone that has hunted long enough has a story like this one where the kill didn't go as well as they'd hoped, no matter how "good" they are. Not ideal, but it happens. 

That is a great bull, there is no doubt about that. Congrats!


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## Fishracer

Congrats on a great bull! Awesome!


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## GeTaGrip

Congrats on a great hunt and a very good bull.


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## kstorrs

That's what hunting is all about! Thanks for the write-up and congrats on a great bull!


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## Mountain Time

Congrats! Great bull and write up. It was fun to follow along. I would be thrilled with a bull of that caliber.


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## utahgolf

great bull and great memories. When it comes down to it, some extra bone matters very little in the grand scheme of things. Congrats!


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## berrysblaster

So far today I've found 4 Bulls that were considerably larger than mine....................and I'm absolutely relieved I'm not chasing them!


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## COOPERD

Thanks for the story, it was cool to hear


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## johnnycake

> So far today I've found 4 Bulls that were considerably larger than mine....................and I'm absolutely relieved I'm not chasing them


Isn't that kind of like going to bars to pick up chicks on your honeymoon?!!:shock:;-)


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## MWScott72

berrysblaster said:


> So far today I've found 4 Bulls that were considerably larger than mine....................and I'm absolutely relieved I'm not chasing them!


Sometimes it's just too easy to pull the trigger on a really good animal when they show themselves...even if you know there are even better animals out there. I had the same experience on my muzzleloader hunt this year...I knew there were better bulls out there, but after 9 days on the mountain (6 during the hunt), the one I killed was just too good to pass up...and I'm not one bit sorry...except that I never did see the big bruiser with absolutely no high note to his bugle. I bet he was an absolute toad of a bull - no doubt in my mind.

Congrats on a great bull. You did it the hard way, and that makes the experience all the sweeter in retrospect!


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## berrysblaster

Had to 'settle' for a South Dakota meat buck!


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## goofy elk

That's a little better than a meat buck blaster!----Congrats.

I'd hang him on the wall....


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## silentstalker

Thats a great buck and a wonderful month for you! Congrats!


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## swbuckmaster

Nice buck


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## longbow

Jist a meat buck ya say? There's a lot of horn on that "meat buck"! Congrats Berryblaster.


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## berrysblaster

Thanks guys he's my best buck to date so I'm happy about it!


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## berrysblaster

He's really my best buck to date!! I've taped him 6 times, called 4 people, and printed off Boone and Crockett directions and score sheets....I couldn't believe what I was coming up with but it seems legit now. 177-182 is what I've come up with so right close to 180" typical!


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