Markleo21377

IMG_8192.mov IMG_8192.mov IMG_8192.mov I ran into a unique but not uncommon situation this year on my buddies wife’s 5B late rifle bull hunt. Opening morning we turned up 2 bulls first light at 1100 yards. Her effective range is about 600 yards so we needed to drop off the ridge and onto a spine between us and the elk. As we made our way there we heard a side by side coming in. I told my buddy to continue on and I would let them know what we were doing. It ended up being two guys from Washington, one with a tag. They too had seen the bulls and were in pursuit. I told them since two bulls were in there we should work together and we can make a final decision on shooter once in position. They were agreeable so we eased in. We got to 600 yards and had the biggest bull in plain site bedded. The other was bedded in thick junipers. My buddies wife had never killed a bull and neither had this gentleman. Despite my gut telling me “ladies first” I knew they had just as much right to the bulls as us, so we agreed to flip for it. Well, she lost. So we got her in position in the event the second bull popped out and helped him with distance, windage and execution. He made a perfect shot and the other bull slipped out just giving us brief glimpses but never long enough for a new hunter. It was disappointing and exciting all at once. Bull was a tank and scored 351”. Super solid dudes and even offered tons of assistance trying to help her connect over the next few days but she could never quite put it together. On day 2 I found her the bull of a lifetime, conservatively 370” and had her at 400 yards from him but she couldn’t get him in her scope in the thick cedars before he bedded. I had to go home but they saw him two more times and no shot! IMG_8192.mov I sure love mentoring new hunters but after killing lots of animals for 35 years it is easy to forget the newbie mistakes that occur over and over again that we made and is so glaring when someone else does it. Test of patience, kindness, and humility for sure! Here is the bull they killed 351” IMG_8201.mov My Movie 9.mov

We decided to give it a go in a true desert unit this fall. Never had hunted it before but a couple buddies have seen a fair amount of deer in January during OTC. We arrived Thursday evening with only two days to hunt and as we picked a camp spot the landscape blew me away…how do these things survive and thrive out here. Looked like the surface of the moon with the surface mostly volcanic rock, scattered creosote bushes, and the occasional palo verde washes sprinkled around. 4 of my buddies generously offered to help on Friday and as we all picked high spots to glass from the reports started coming in of bucks. Multiple bucks and some good ones were located in various locations. Max and I spent most of the day on stalk after stalk trying to close the gap to under 600 yards with not much available to hide our approach. We had a few opportunities on small bucks we passed on and a couple close calls on bigger ones but nothing just right. We totaled 19 bucks seen that day. Saturday morning we were down to Max and I and 2 buddies so we all went to the spot that the most deer were seen Friday. Almost immediately we found a group of 3 bucks at 1000 yards. We had some topography to work with this time and we closed the gap to 340 yards and Max anchored the biggest one. It was a fun hunt that I think with a few extra days could produce something pretty special! This was his best desert buck to date and another awesome father son hunt in the books! Now time to get packed for Colorado 4th season Deer 🤙🏻

Thx man!

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That is incredible! 14 in the natural world is a dinosaur!

Nope, these conversations on the rut are always interesting. The scientific facts, proved by biologists everywhere is peak estrus is always the same give or take a couple days because it is triggered by length of day. The perceived “rut” can vary based on drought, temperature, bull to cow ratios and other factors. If cows aren’t bred in their “window” typical 10-16 hours they will come back in estrus approximately 28 days later. Often, October intensity can be high because available cows left to breed is low and bulls are competing heavily for last breeding rights. They get desperate and seek more, sleep less and bugle more to announce to cows they are available.

Excellent! Hardship and trials are the building blocks of a resilient young man! Congrats!!!

Those look great! Keeping that nasal cavity in tact shows attention to detail!

Super awesome!!

Lots of rain in 5bs this morning so we just drove prime country til we cut tracks. Started out on the tracks and had a bull bugle up a head. We snuck in the herd of 10 cows, spike, and good herd bull. Set him up on BOGG and had this small cow feed to 60 yards offering the perfect shot for a brand new hunter! Such fun seeing how worked up he was but kept it together to make the shot.

Taking a brand new youth hunter up to 5bs/6a for junior elk! Can’t wait to see the emotion in this new experience!

Burned most of my vacation time in Alaska so had only 4 days to get it done. Covered in bulls everyday and this bull came on a string to some estrus cow calls. Shot him at 18 yards and again at 32. Magical morning in the elk woods. 30” dead pine he ran past after shots 👊

Our family made plans this year to go bear hunt on my buddies ranch South of Colorado Springs the first week of October. My boy and I were sitting on a couple antelope points so with a little research I found a unit close by we could draw and had decent harvest 50-60%. The kicker was the very limited public access. I talked to the G&F officer and he said the unit does not produce many bucks over 70” and on public we better shoot the first bucks we see over their ears. I decided to go for it. My boy is a Sophomore in high school and I want to experience as much as I can in the field with him before he grows up. Just hunt….reasonable expectations….work hard to capitalize on the opportunity. Oh, we also could only hunt opening day 😬. Fortunately, we were there a couple days before opener so I spent two days putting miles on the tires and boots looking at every piece of available ground, walking to every high nob I could to get every angle I could to not miss anything….this is where it got crazy. I could not believe my eyes as I found not one but three bucks over 75” one of which would go easily over 80”. Was I dreaming?! Nope I filmed all them….watched them over two hours each of the two days before season. I was so anxious the night before opener I could barely sleep. Opening day arrived and we put together a team of 6 of us to try and locate our top two bucks. As it broke light the hunters started rolling in, and they kept coming. Where are the bucks? I could not find them. Guys were now pursuing does, shots fired!!! Were they dead? Wait, we found buck number two…my buddies are watching him from 1300 yards away. I am still 3 miles away desperately glassing and moving trying to find buck 1. I am passing a couple small bucks as I can’t get him out of my mind….i edge around a large bowl to avoid being skylined and catch movement 800 yards away. I throw up the glass…..it’s HIM! I call my buddy who was about to take my boy after buck 2 and get them headed to me. They arrive 10 minutes later and I tell them how to approach. I am watching them belly crawl cactus to cactus. I range them..906…I range the herd 740. They still can’t see them bedded. Another 10 yards on their bellies…they see them. My buddy sets up the Bogg to get him above the 18” grass and he locks the gun in. A doe sees them and stands….he stands!! BOOM! The buck runs 40 yards and stops…I see blood on his side…BOOM!! He’s down!! I can’t believe it! I literally run for almost 750 yards and tackle my son! We are in tears! We stand over him in disbelief! Bucks this big are not supposed to be here said the expert! Hunters were everywhere, yet we out worked them! We take dozens of pictures! My buddy texts us….buck number 2 is still there! Time to go. We quickly gut him and carry him a couple hundred yards to an access road we can drive to. We load him and off to buck number 2. My buddy and I head in. Topography and brush allow us to cut the first 700 yards quickly, then it is 400 yards on our knees. We are almost out of cover…wind is howling 15-20 so we agree that 400 yards is the max I will shoot. We get to 285 and set up the Bogg to clear the brush. I lock my gun in and ease up to shoot. A doe sees us and starts moving. He follows her and they are running. My buddy ranges….370. I dial and tell him I’m taking the running shot. I swing with the buck and when I’m about 4’ in front I squeeze it off and he cartwheels!! Buck 2 is dead. I am in disbelief! We came out for an opportunity hunt in a subpar unit and kill two giant bucks. We get pictures, gut him and haul him to the road. We butcher back at the ranch and hit the road for home early this morning. I still have not taped them. I am quite certain my buck is between 77-80 and Max’s buck is low 80’s. His buck is over 15”, heaviest mass I have ever seen and cutters are 10” up beams. Truly unbelievable!!! I don’t think we could ever top this experience again…but we sure will try!! Sorry for the long read but it was to incredible to leave any details out. Scouting video buck #1 IMG_7420.mov Scouting video buck 2 IMG_7415.mov Max’s buck #1 My buck #2 Our bucks!!

Thx man!

Yessir! Exactly what we planned 👊

Incredible!!! What a beautiful cow and a great cap on the youth hunting experience!

Best hunting day of my life! Thx sir

Thank you so much! I agree, somehow it was just meant to be 👊

I shoot a Christensen Ridge carbon fiber 308 with a dead air nomad suppressor. I know many have love hate for Christensen but mine shoots lights out with Barnes 168 TTSX bullets. About .4 moa.

Super awesome!! Congrats

Had the incredible privilege of helping my buddy fulfill his lifelong dream of killing a Dall Sheep. He absolutely crushed it at 3 months from his 71st Bday. Best part was his son had a tag to and killed a giant 11 year old ram. Northern lights were spectacular!!!

Finished him up yesterday before the storms 👍

We have had a bunch of it and it is awesome!

My boy received an opportunity to hunt bison on a big ranch in Texas and it was to cheap to pass. Beautiful oak covered hill country, rich with big whitetails and all sorts of other exotics that cross between these large low fence ranches. Once we found the herd it was about an hour of cat and mouse until he got a clean shot on one of the bigger cows. Not a hard hunt but just a cool experience! Our friends from Texas joined us and helped with the butchering. Ranch house we stayed in was built in mid 1800’s and had been burned twice in conflicts with the Indians nearly 150 years ago. Can’t wait to try the meat. Left it with a processor out there and they are aging it 10 days for best flavor and tenderness. The coat on this cow was perfect! Should make a great rug.

Thank you! Not sure but leaning towards euro. Have a few around this size.