After our brief good-byes on Thursday, September 6 I headed north to Broadus, MT. The drive is a relatively short one, about 4 hours. The trip was really interesting going from high desert and rolling hills to canyons that look like they belong in southern Utah covered with pine trees.

Arriving in Broadus I cross the famous Powder River. It is thick with trees.

I call Billy up, he is John Stuver’s son and he greets me and takes me out to dinner. Billy is a good looking 18-year-old kid. Everyone knows him and stops to say hi.

Over dinner we discuss tomorrows plans. The weather has turned COLD. The day before it was 104 and now at dinner time it is barely 40. Brrrr.

September 7, 2001

Billy tries his hand at cooking breakfast, not too bad, eggs, bacon, and toast. I scarf it down and jump into his truck. He told me he has a water tank in the trees and that the antelope started visiting it 10 years ago. I told him I wanted to see this, antelope in the trees!

I climb into the ground blind made from burlap. It is sturdy yet a few too many holes to be seen through. As the day breaks, I carefully begin to scan the area when all of a sudden a very large P&Y antelope fills my binoculars! He is 50 yards and closing. He is long, has great mass, and huge prongs. He will score in the upper 70’s. Excited I brace myself. The buck goes behind some blow down trees and re-emerges just outside of shooting range. He looks at the water but keeps on walking and scoots under the fence and is gone in a heartbeat. Wow, 20 minutes into my hunt and that just happened!

The rest of the morning I see well over a hundred deer, both Mule Deer and Whitetails. I see some good bucks and lots of does. I also am visited by two flocks of Merriam turkeys. Of course I forget to by a cheap $10 non-resident turkey tag. As I regret that a huge 25 lb+ gobbler walks by at 15 yards.

The afternoon was a lot like the morning with deer moving all day. I saw more deer in one day than I have the last 8 years on stand. The number of deer on the Powder River is unbelievable! Unexplainable. Just have to experience it for yourself.

The weather was cold, maybe hit the upper 60’s. Windy. Not a good weather day for antelope. Who cares! I just had the most amazing day watching animals.

Billy picks me up and we get cleaned up and head over to his Uncle’s house where his wife has prepared a turkey dinner for me. It was really cool spending an evening with a family from the area. Kind of a cultural lesson. Great people.

September 8, 2001

My eyes open and I realize it’s really cold. Maybe, just maybe upper 30’s. I jump up and put 3 layers of clothes on. Much better. I scarf down a quick bite to eat and Billy explains plan.

"I’m going to take you to more Antelope country. You are going to follow me with one of our rigs, that way if you get something you can come back." It was a really good thing Steve Gorr taught me how to drive a stick before I left the ranch.

Upon arrival I have to fix up the blind a bit. The wind had damaged a few things. The morning kind of gave way to very cloudy skies and strong winds. Once again not good antelope weather. With just enough light to see I start scanning the horizon with my binoculars. What is that?!?! Antelope at 100 yards? Let’s see...oh my...he’s HUGE! He has to be all of 16 1/2 inches, look at those prongs, and he’s massive! His buddy was just a little smaller but his left horn was really weird! It shot straight out but was as thick as a cigar with no prong. The big boy though was a true giant. He would have scored in the mid-80’s.

As I watched them feed on the alfalfa, I kept trying to convince them to come in. With the rain overnight they weren’t too thirsty. They fed for a while and then moved on when a rancher drove through. Mr. Murphy your table is ready!

About 30 minutes later, another mid-70 antelope strolled by and bedded down about 125 yards away.

The day was just like this. Buck after buck would come by, but with the weather and moisture nobody was interested in water. EVERY buck I saw was well over P&Y requirements, actually every buck I saw was bigger than all but one of the antelope I have ever taken.

At about 5:00 I decided it was all I can take. The wind and rain just got the better of me. I am the most diehard hunter and will stay longer than most, why I left still baffles me.

After leaving the area and shortly after I started driving I saw animals all over the place. Each field had a minimum of 20 deer or antelope in them. I saw one field that had 150 deer feeding. I saw bucks of all sizes. It was one of the most amazing drives I have ever been on. After going 5 miles the wrong way turned around and headed the right way.

Upon arrival at the Stuver ranch I passed a field with 25+ antelope on it, one real nice buck. Unbelievable. John Stuver was back in town after coming back from a long trip. His wife is sick. The sun broke from the clouds and it looked like things were letting up. I was regretting leaving my blind. John asked me what I wanted to do. I decided to go back to the blind I hunted in yesterday.

Things had not changed much. Deer after deer, especially a really nice bachelor herd of Mule Deer fed out in the field. A real nice 4x4 caught my eye. What a sight. Also a large flock of turkeys walked by at 50 yards or so. I did see the same buck I saw yesterday, but he never got any closer than 100 yards.

The evening found me watching the deer and antelope play...

September 9, 2001 THE LAST DAY

My alarm went off for the last time. Sadly I got ready and was hoping to see clear skies. Camilla, John’s wife, had a great breakfast ready. I enjoyed eating and made my way to the rig.

As I crossed the open prairie to my blind I realized I might get a day of below average weather, much better than the past two days. The sunrise was the best of the whole trip. The sky was lit up pink like cotton candy. It was amazing! I enjoyed watching all the colors. Of course my two bucks were back feeding. This time no rancher came by, even so they weren’t too thirsty.

The morning was awesome as I had buck after buck chasing does and running all around me. No one had worked up a thirst yet, but I knew it would just be time. At about 1:00, I had two nice bucks feeding out in front of me. After feeding they bedded down in the field, about 100 yards away. I watched them knowing they would drink if they stuck around long enough.

About 45 minutes later the bucks rose and slowly worked their way to the water. Excited I prepared myself. Their pace was so slow it was killing me, obviously the cool weather and abundance of water had them in no hurry.

Let me explain the waterhole. The length was 60 yards and width was 42 yards (after I paced it off). It was large but there were tracks all over it so luck would just have to play a part.

The bucks continued their path right at and as they neared the water I waited for my opportunity. I was hoping they were going to work their way over to my side, which would have given me a 30-yard shot. I had estimated the distance all the way across to be 35 or so yards.

The bucks began to drink head on which gave me no shot. Turn! Turn! Finally, one of the bucks gave me a broadside shot. I drew my bow and rested the pin on the buck. "Fly true!" I released. The shot was perfect! If he was at 35 yards! The arrow fell harmlessly at the buck’s feet and that was all they wanted to see. Who wants to shoot a low 70’s P&Y buck anyway!

I got out and paced off the distance, 42 yards. I thought by taking the 30-yard marker and drawing an imaginary line across the water I would be able to calculate the distance correctly. Must have been the thin air!

Well, I was a bit shaken so I took my chair out and placed it where the bucks were standing, went back to the blind, drew back and rested my pin on it, and released. Thunk! Nailed my chair!

LESSON #1: I am never going on a trip without a range finder again. When I lived in Idaho I was great at range finding, but I live on the East Coast now and range finding is much easier with so much background. I just have blown too many chances at trophy animals on this trip due to poor range finding!

It was still early, 3:00. I sat bummed that I keep choking my distances. Never had that problem before. I wasn’t bummed for too long because 20 minutes later the B&C buck came back!

The B&C buck did the exact same thing as the previous bucks. His buddy was hanging with him. After they finished they left for a few minutes when they circled and came over a rise only 70 yards away. They skirted the water and were only 50 yards away, too far for me, but it didn’t matter because they never stopped walking. They did stop to feed when they got to the alfalfa strip at the end of the water, only 50 yards away. They fed towards me and cut the distance down to 45 yards. I held off shooting because I thought they would feed right to my 30-yard marker...

Well, the bucks decided to head straight up the hill and just as they were out of sight I heard them vocalize. One thing I have forgot to mention is due to the number of mature bucks seen and running together. I was able to watch how they interact with each other. The rut was still a ways off and whenever two bucks saw each other on opposite ridges they would call to each other, it was almost like they were saying, "Phil, it’s OK for you to come on over." It was really interesting to watch this, of all the years hunting antelope I had yet to see this. Like I said, I attribute this to the number of mature bucks and the fact they rarely are disturbed. Very cool!

Well, I saw they were looking behind me so I turned around to see another nice P&Y goat coming right behind me. He was making a b-line for the water, unfortunately he was heading towards the far end. He made no bones about what he was doing. He crossed a flat and went up and over the dam in a hurry and began drinking. He was 60 yards out. I debated whether or not I should sneak out and try to get a shot, but I opted not to because the bucks on top of the ridge would spot me. As the buck drank I wished he would come my way. When he finished he started walking down the bank towards me! Excited this path would take him 10 yards right in front of me! Just as he hit the 20-yard marker he climbed the hill and angled toward me. He was 10 yards but moving and I was at full draw hoping he would stop, he didn’t. I didn’t want to risk the shot so I let down. So close, yet so far away...

It was now 5:00 and I knew I had only a few hours to go. I had a great time and knew that I was probably going home without a goat. I was OK with that because I had a fun filled 3 days in Montana.

An hour went by and I hadn’t seen any other antelope and I started to reflect on my trip. What a great timeÖwait a minute I see movement...

As I glassed the exact same place where the B&C buck went I noticed an antelope. It was a small buck, just a 2 year old; he wasn’t more than 6-7 inches. The smallest buck I had seen and the first buck that was under 70 P&Y. Curious, I told myself, "If he comes down and gives you a good shot...take him!"

The buck seemed confused. He looked over at the alfalfa field and then over to the water. He did this for about 10 minutes and then he made a decision. As he turned and started walking down to the water my face couldn’t help but smile. The bucks course would take him about 20 yards away from me. Like the other antelope he was in no hurry. It seemed like forever as he covered the first 100 yards, but I didn't’ care because he was heading in a perfect line. When he was 50 yards away he picked up his pace and started walking briskly towards me. His path was perfect and as he neared the waterhole the distance was even better than I hoped for...he was 15 yards away. I carefully drew on him and as he drank I settled my pin.

As the arrow whisked away and made contact with the antelope I knew my hunt was over. This shot was true and the buck ripped out of there. The speed of an antelope is amazing and as this goat made a large circle he died less than 200 yards away from the truck. I packed my stuff up and proceeded to the buck. As I approached the fallen buck I was thankful for the wonderful trip and the opportunity I had to take this animal. It was a great way to end a hunt.

As I reached my truck and turned the key I found I had a dead battery. I hiked down to the road and a real nice ol’timer stopped and picked me up. As I made my way down the road I smiled and thought how fitting it was to end my hunt this way...

September 10, 2001

After packing my stuff up and boning out my antelope I said my good-byes to John and his family. Cedar Breaks Outfitting is mainly a rifle operation, but he does take bowhunters. I am a laid back type of guy so everything doesn’t need to be perfect for me, I can make do. John is a great guy and his animal base is second to none! I will eventually return to this area with a deer and antelope tag. I just wonder what it would have been like with the 104 degree temps...would that B&C be at the taxidermists?

Maybe next year!