Uncategorized

My First Mule Deer Hunt

 “My First Mule Deer Hunt”

BY

Morgan Belcher

“It was October 28th 2015. A beautiful fall morning, clear and just the right temperature for the deer to be stirring. We loaded the pickup and headed out. On the way, we saw a large bull elk which got me into hunting mode. I started scanning ridges even though I could barely see them. We didn’t have much luck at first but at about 9 o’clock my brother spotted two large mule deer bucks around a pond, they ran when they saw us. We decided to cut them off so we turned the pickup around, got out and walked up a hill. My dad and I both still had tags and we’re hoping to each get one of those bucks. Kohl, my guide, said we could go around one hill and up the next and get a good shot. We walked up the hill and had to low crawl to the spot we thought would be best to shoot from. One of the bucks disappeared but the other had bedded down in some brush and all I could see were antlers. The wind had picked up and my fingers were freezing. The buck wasn’t moving so Kohl grunted at him a few times and he still didn’t move. For about three and half hours he didn’t move. When he was getting ready to stand up, Kohl told me to be ready. He stood up and stretched his neck back and I shot. My fingers were so cold I had a hard time loading another bullet. My ears were ringing from the shot but I heard, “Great shot Morgan!” From Kohl. One shot from about 110 yards away with my Ruger .243. When we went to go look at him, I was so shocked that I shot a buck that large and I just stood and looked at him for a good ten minutes. He was a huge 4×4 with a large body. We took a ton of pictures before putting him in the bed of the pickup and going back to the farm. When we got to the farm, everyone congratulated me and we measured his antlers, 181 3/4 inches with an inside spread of 18 1/2 inches. I was so proud.  I had a great time at Milk River Outfitters and met some great people there. That is one hunt I will never forget.” 

Morgan Belcher

In the picture, Kohl is on the left, I’m on the right. 
-Morgan Belcher