My best friend, Tim, and I went to the Diamond C last week and had a ton of fun! I was after a nice tusker and Tim was trying for an axis doe. We arrived Sunday afternoon and got unloaded and changed then headed for the stands. I saw plenty of hogs including several really nice ones but I was holding out for some major ivory. Tim saw rams and a few axis does out of range.
After a dinner of filet mignon and baked taters we hung out with Skylar yakking and telling stories. A father/son team (Lee and Brennan) came in Sunday evening right at bedtime. We coordinated our “head out” time and turned in. I woke up the next morning and noticed someone sitting on the futon in our cabin. Hmm, Skylar must be trying to wake us up. I mumbled “what time is it?” and got a quiet “little after five” in return. I thought it was kind of early…and it was! I figured things out when my groggy noggin finally registered that it wasn’t Skylar on my return trip from the bathroom. Turns out it was a fairly new bow hunter named Kevin who was looking for a nice exotic buck. We got a good laugh out of my befuddlement (kind of normal for me)!
We headed for the stands right on time and I had 20 to 30 meat hogs and a few 180-200 pounders but I was still holding out for ivory. Lee took a really nice hog. Tim saw an axis buck and a sika buck and had an couple of axis does barking at him from out of range. Kevin saw some nice exotics but didn’t spot a shooter buck. We had tamales and chili for lunch and I decided to leak test my eyelids before the afternoon hunt while Kevin headed back to his blind.
Lee and Brennan with Lee’s hog:
As the afternoon wore on, the weather was getting blustery and seemed to be gusting from all directions but we were hoping for the best. Everyone was in position by 3:30. I had a couple of sounders come by but they were very skittish and knew something was up. I was seriously thinking of taking the next meat hog that presented a shot and settled in to wait. I heard a group circling downwind but there were a few coming in from upwind as well. I was trying to keep track of the downwind group when THE ONE from the upwind group stepped forward. I was sweating bullets worrying about how long it would take the downwind group to bust me. It took what seemed like forever for him to get into position but when he did, I was already drawn and settled in as my finger touched the release. I double lunged him and he was down in about 30 yards.
Nice tusks:
When we got back to camp, we learned Kevin had taken a nice Sika buck and Brennan had stuck one that ran off (everyone looked but we never found him). Tim got a late shot off at a doe but long shadows tricked him to underestimating the range.
Kevin’s sika (first deer!):
I trimmed a couple of small pieces of backstrap off the sika carcass and we grilled it with some Petey's rub. It was every bit as good as axis which means it was awesome!
I highly recommend Diamond C to anyone looking for reasonable prices, plentiful game, and nice facilities. We are already planning a late spring axis buck hunt. Thanks Skylar for a great time!
After a dinner of filet mignon and baked taters we hung out with Skylar yakking and telling stories. A father/son team (Lee and Brennan) came in Sunday evening right at bedtime. We coordinated our “head out” time and turned in. I woke up the next morning and noticed someone sitting on the futon in our cabin. Hmm, Skylar must be trying to wake us up. I mumbled “what time is it?” and got a quiet “little after five” in return. I thought it was kind of early…and it was! I figured things out when my groggy noggin finally registered that it wasn’t Skylar on my return trip from the bathroom. Turns out it was a fairly new bow hunter named Kevin who was looking for a nice exotic buck. We got a good laugh out of my befuddlement (kind of normal for me)!
We headed for the stands right on time and I had 20 to 30 meat hogs and a few 180-200 pounders but I was still holding out for ivory. Lee took a really nice hog. Tim saw an axis buck and a sika buck and had an couple of axis does barking at him from out of range. Kevin saw some nice exotics but didn’t spot a shooter buck. We had tamales and chili for lunch and I decided to leak test my eyelids before the afternoon hunt while Kevin headed back to his blind.
Lee and Brennan with Lee’s hog:
As the afternoon wore on, the weather was getting blustery and seemed to be gusting from all directions but we were hoping for the best. Everyone was in position by 3:30. I had a couple of sounders come by but they were very skittish and knew something was up. I was seriously thinking of taking the next meat hog that presented a shot and settled in to wait. I heard a group circling downwind but there were a few coming in from upwind as well. I was trying to keep track of the downwind group when THE ONE from the upwind group stepped forward. I was sweating bullets worrying about how long it would take the downwind group to bust me. It took what seemed like forever for him to get into position but when he did, I was already drawn and settled in as my finger touched the release. I double lunged him and he was down in about 30 yards.
Nice tusks:
When we got back to camp, we learned Kevin had taken a nice Sika buck and Brennan had stuck one that ran off (everyone looked but we never found him). Tim got a late shot off at a doe but long shadows tricked him to underestimating the range.
Kevin’s sika (first deer!):
I trimmed a couple of small pieces of backstrap off the sika carcass and we grilled it with some Petey's rub. It was every bit as good as axis which means it was awesome!
I highly recommend Diamond C to anyone looking for reasonable prices, plentiful game, and nice facilities. We are already planning a late spring axis buck hunt. Thanks Skylar for a great time!
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