Great stories fellas! Great hunt story and topic Ray!
Funny, I used to subscribe to that theory as well, about the big bucks hiding way back in the woods. Took me quite a few years (and a lot of long drags) to figure out that you didn't have to cover miles in a day to run into a buck.
I know all about the deer dragging business for sure. I don't think that there is anything that can sap your energy like trying to pull a dead weight of close to 200 lbs!
I even had my wife help me many times, and it still can be murder! You pull till your exhausted, and then you keep doing it over ,and over again! Of course snow helps! But of course you can't always depend on that snow!
Well I have a lot of long drags to my credit over the years. But one day sticks out the most.
Now I started hunting the Grand John lake area back in 1981. My brother-in-law (Ridge-Runners dad) as well as a few other local boys were usually all hunting around there at the same time, late in November.
Now on this day a pretty good local hunter I'll just call him "J", had shot a big 8 point at the backside of Middle Brook Ridge between the steep ridge side, and Malarkey peak.
He and a bunch of guys went back in to get his deer, but ran into darkness, and had to leave it overnight.
The next day was Sunday, and I as well as RR's dad plus another fellow…were recruited to help get this buck out before noon. We brought that good sized buck up over the back of that steep ridge, and out to the cut road. This hill is so straight up, that you have to hang onto tree's just to climb it in places. (Ray, you know what I'm talking about eh?)
We had an axe with us, and cut poles to carry it a ways. Well we forgot the axe at the top of the ridge. "J" said not to worry about it. But I (being young and adventurous) Volunteered to go get it on Monday of the next week . A little axe/deer combo hunt if you will!
Well Monday came, and I parked my car just off the main woods road, in the tote road that ran out through a strip cut.
I had a guy from work with me also that day who had basically never hunted. I left him in the cut, and walked the 1 ½ mile road and into the woods.
I got to the back of the ridge, and found the axe. Jumped a deer and followed it down over the steep ridge (like a fool). Never saw it again.
Then I preceded to hunt along the ridge down towards the end of Malarkey brook.
I had just left the brook and headed back towards the cut on my compass bearing. I had the axe in my left hand, rifle slung over my shoulder. I went to step over a log, and came face to face with a huge Buck! We both stared for a second. Then I went on auto pilot. I slowly lowered the axe to the ground pulled my leg back over the log, and unslung my rifle. At a mere fifteen yards, the buck went down quick!
After I dressed it out and admired it a bit. I had to get going. I knew the direction of the cut strip, but this was the first time I had hunted in this far, and I didn't know how much woods was between me and that cut.
I blazed the trees, with the axe, so I would be able to fine the buck again. Eventually I came to the painted line that led me out to the cut-over. I then had to walk all the way to the car to get my hunting partner. He was sitting in the car with cold feet.
My brother law, had showed up there hunting, and was off in the woods. I left a note on the car for him, but met him on the tote road on the way back out. I asked him to go get help from "J" who had promised to help me if I got a buck, after helping him with the 8 point.
Well after another long walk, we got to my Buck, and started dragging. No snow, Softwood, Moss, blow downs, wet ground, you name it! What a tough drag! We even tried tying it to a pole with our belts, but it would just swing.
We started somewhere around noon and it was getting dark and we were still dragging. The only way we found our way that last couple hundred yards, was from my Brother in law blowing the horn. Of course he didn't go get help from "J" with his truck…he just decided to drive his "car" all the way out the tote road!
We pulled the deer the last hundred muddy feet to the car. Strapped it on the back of the trunk, and then had to push the car a couple of times after it got stuck in the mud. He had torn the muffler off coming in. And with all the walking I did that day so far…I had to also walk out at the end. We didn't want to chance the extra weight in the car.
So if you look at the map I have added after this post. You will see the route that I walked that day.
Now the drag was long and tough (About 1.6 miles)
But the amazing thing to me is how far I "walked" that day in total. About 13 miles!
Out to the back of the ridge from my car.
Down to the brook where I shot the buck
Then back to the cut and car
Then back to the buck again
Then back to the cut, dragging the deer.
Then followed my brother-in laws car back to mine
It is about 1.4 miles to the cut edge from my car, and 2.4 to the 8 point spot from the car.
Need less to say, I slept good the next day… but it was "fun"….at the time…. Oh the "exuberance" of youth!
And to make this even more of an interesting tale, and to put it all in a different prospective.
It ended up that I couldn't even "eat" that buck! It turns out that he had an infected hip! Probably why he didn't take off for the hills when he ran into me("shoot me please"). There was no indication when I skinned the animal. I didn't even know there was a problem until the meat cutter called me and told me. I sent some samples away to the experimental farm lab, and they showed a serious infection. That whole ham was green in the center. After I saw it, I couldn't eat it for sure!
They said that he may have had an injury somewhere else on his body that localized in his hip. The feet had gotten thrown away, so I could examine them more closely. I really felt bad for the poor guy from work who helped me drag it that far. If you help me drag a buck back then half was yours.
But at least I got the head, and still have the mount. He was a real old bruiser from the mountain.
As hard as it all was I wouldn't trade that day for anything!
Map of my route that day in 1981.
Here is a pic of the "beast"!
Don't I look "tired" in this pic?