I have been hunting this particular lease west of Ozona for 20 years now. My dad got on the lease in 1996 and hunted it through 2013. I got a spot on the lease last year for the first time. This place is not known for huge bucks, but the game is plentiful and it's a blast to hunt. I love it out there!
Last year the season was rather slow and I did not see a good mature trophy buck all season. I shot a doe, a turkey and a hog and wound up having an ok season out there.
Going into this season we picked up a 3rd pasture that we were very excited about. My main goal this season was to put my BIL on his first bow buck and bow pig. My dad and I made our normal early October trip. Cameras showed no sign of buck activity. We set out to eradicate some hogs, but came up empty.
In mid November I made the trip with my BIL. Upon arrival 1 of my 3 stands had good buck activity, so we headed there first. The first evening hunt we had a perfect management 8pt give us the slip. The next morning we hunted the same set. Right at first light on a cool 28° morning we had a nice 9pt come in. BIL made a good shot, but we played it safe and gave it until midday to go look. We found his first bowkill buck 200 yards up the blood trail. He was excited to say the least!
That evening he made a perfect shot on his first bowkill pig. After he shot his pig, we saw the biggest buck I've ever seen on that lease. I achieved my goal for the season and was excited about the next trip! Now it was my turn to hunt.
I made the trip by myself on Dec 9th. Upon arrival I checked cameras. My good stand was covered in hogs, so I decided to scratch that one. Another stand was covered with deer, but nothing mature. The new pasture were we had previously seen the monster and were so excited about going into the season, had steady buck activity. 4 nice shooters were on camera!
The first evening the hunt was very slow. I had 2 different spikes come in about an hour apart. just before dark the hogs made an appearance. In disgust, I lined 2 up and plugged them both. The first one ran off with a high hit and the second lay dead right there with a perfect ear-hole shot. Instead of messing up my area and searching the brush in the dark for the first hog, I decided to let him sit. I also decided to drag/carry the other hog to the truck, instead of driving the truck up to the feeder. As I approached my truck parking spot (a deep pit where we dump carcasses), I noticed a big hog eating at the gut pile not 10 feet from the front of my truck. I snuck in there and put a perfect shot on him in the dark with nothing but my green cap light. 2 hogs down! Now it's time to shoot a big buck!
Saturday morning it was about 27°. The hunting was better and I saw 7 deer, but no shooters. That evening the conditions were perfect. I got out early to enjoy the upper 40s temps and perfect wind. At 4:00 pm I heard brush crack to my right. A big mature buck was approaching. I glassed him and saw good mass, nasty tarsals and a cool flyer point between G2 and G3. I wanted him! He came right in to my throw corn, but every time he would get broadside for the shot, he would then turn to run off a lesser buck. I had 7 bucks around me. Finally, after over an hour of cat and mouse, he gave me the shot I wanted. I made a perfect shot and watched him fall 55 yards away. What a feeling. I had shot my best buck out there in 20 years of hunting! This is my 3rd good buck this season and I couldn't be more satisfied. I'm blessed to be able to hunt a lot of good places and have an awesome wife who allows me the time away. I have never had a season as successful as this one and for that I am very thankful!
Last year the season was rather slow and I did not see a good mature trophy buck all season. I shot a doe, a turkey and a hog and wound up having an ok season out there.
Going into this season we picked up a 3rd pasture that we were very excited about. My main goal this season was to put my BIL on his first bow buck and bow pig. My dad and I made our normal early October trip. Cameras showed no sign of buck activity. We set out to eradicate some hogs, but came up empty.
In mid November I made the trip with my BIL. Upon arrival 1 of my 3 stands had good buck activity, so we headed there first. The first evening hunt we had a perfect management 8pt give us the slip. The next morning we hunted the same set. Right at first light on a cool 28° morning we had a nice 9pt come in. BIL made a good shot, but we played it safe and gave it until midday to go look. We found his first bowkill buck 200 yards up the blood trail. He was excited to say the least!
That evening he made a perfect shot on his first bowkill pig. After he shot his pig, we saw the biggest buck I've ever seen on that lease. I achieved my goal for the season and was excited about the next trip! Now it was my turn to hunt.
I made the trip by myself on Dec 9th. Upon arrival I checked cameras. My good stand was covered in hogs, so I decided to scratch that one. Another stand was covered with deer, but nothing mature. The new pasture were we had previously seen the monster and were so excited about going into the season, had steady buck activity. 4 nice shooters were on camera!
The first evening the hunt was very slow. I had 2 different spikes come in about an hour apart. just before dark the hogs made an appearance. In disgust, I lined 2 up and plugged them both. The first one ran off with a high hit and the second lay dead right there with a perfect ear-hole shot. Instead of messing up my area and searching the brush in the dark for the first hog, I decided to let him sit. I also decided to drag/carry the other hog to the truck, instead of driving the truck up to the feeder. As I approached my truck parking spot (a deep pit where we dump carcasses), I noticed a big hog eating at the gut pile not 10 feet from the front of my truck. I snuck in there and put a perfect shot on him in the dark with nothing but my green cap light. 2 hogs down! Now it's time to shoot a big buck!
Saturday morning it was about 27°. The hunting was better and I saw 7 deer, but no shooters. That evening the conditions were perfect. I got out early to enjoy the upper 40s temps and perfect wind. At 4:00 pm I heard brush crack to my right. A big mature buck was approaching. I glassed him and saw good mass, nasty tarsals and a cool flyer point between G2 and G3. I wanted him! He came right in to my throw corn, but every time he would get broadside for the shot, he would then turn to run off a lesser buck. I had 7 bucks around me. Finally, after over an hour of cat and mouse, he gave me the shot I wanted. I made a perfect shot and watched him fall 55 yards away. What a feeling. I had shot my best buck out there in 20 years of hunting! This is my 3rd good buck this season and I couldn't be more satisfied. I'm blessed to be able to hunt a lot of good places and have an awesome wife who allows me the time away. I have never had a season as successful as this one and for that I am very thankful!
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