One of those times you wished you had a camera.

Muir

Well-Known Member
I drove out to a friends farm yesterday afternoon to tend some of his stock and domestic animals while he was away over Christmas. It was snowing heavily and I was slowly motoring my Hilux pickup along when my hunter's eye kicked in picking out something out of place along a low ridge 60 yards off of the road. There were about 20 mule deer lying on the hill side covered in snow. Just the ears and the black of their eyes and muzzle standing out against the white. I stopped in the middle of the road and glassed them. Absolutely beautiful animals. Their head and backs were snow covered. Some had snow on their eye lashes. They were watching me but totally unconcerned and I moved on before they got so. I'd have hated to disturb them. I do wish I'd had my camera, though.~Muir.
 
I always marvel at just how well wild animals can cope with the worst of conditions......that must've been a sight to see :thumb:
 
Are they about the size of our roe?

Boy! Are you asking the wrong guy!!
I looked at the description of a Roe on the home page and I think mule deer get bigger by a stretch. I shot a 150 pound doe last year. Shot this middle weight buck last month. (The neck looks odd because I broke it with a bullet)
~Muir
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Yup I would agree.

But it it must have been great to see them whatever the size. :D

It always is. I become a cold blooded killed when I get deer in my sights but up until then, and afterwards, I look on them as a creature of beauty and grace. They are my favorite wild animals to watch. ~Muir
 
Funny, isn't it? If I'm out for does I'm really happy to watch bucks just do their thing, & vice versa. I was once told by someone that he had absolutely zero respect for deer........I found it very hard to understand that. He subsequently proved himself to be just as big a p rick as that statement made me think he was at the time..............
 
I can't imagine that. I shoot them without emotion, but I do so because I have a huge amount of respect for the animal. I feel nothing when the cross hairs settle on the place I want the bullet to go and the only thing I am thinking of is sight alignment and trigger control. After the shot, and the deer is dead, I feel that twang of remorse over the death of such a beautiful and delicate creature, and I treat the carcass and the meat I butcher as an object of great value, knowing what had to die so that I can eat. Only a p rick, indeed, would treat the animal otherwise.~Muir
 
I drove out to a friends farm yesterday afternoon to tend some of his stock and domestic animals while he was away over Christmas. It was snowing heavily and I was slowly motoring my Hilux pickup along when my hunter's eye kicked in picking out something out of place along a low ridge 60 yards off of the road. There were about 20 mule deer lying on the hill side covered in snow. Just the ears and the black of their eyes and muzzle standing out against the white. I stopped in the middle of the road and glassed them. Absolutely beautiful animals. Their head and backs were snow covered. Some had snow on their eye lashes. They were watching me but totally unconcerned and I moved on before they got so. I'd have hated to disturb them. I do wish I'd had my camera, though.~Muir.

Sounds like a grenade job! :oops:

Just joking.....
 
I was fortunate enough to have a camera with me when I spotted these during the snow of last year. Admittedly they are farmed deer but even so it shows how hard the conditions can be that they can survive in. When I first spotted then I thought there was only two or three deer laying up in the snow drift against the wall (First Photo) but when I got closer for a second photo the snow drift erupted and out shot the rest of them!
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I was fortunate enough to have a camera with me when I spotted these during the snow of last year. Admittedly they are farmed deer but even so it shows how hard the conditions can be that they can survive in. When I first spotted then I thought there was only two or three deer laying up in the snow drift against the wall (First Photo) but when I got closer for a second photo the snow drift erupted and out shot the rest of them!
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Nice capture!
I don't have a smart phone/camera so I need to drag a dedicated camera along with me. That almost never happens as my little pickup is usually clogged with guns, tools and warm clothes. I used to carry a camera everywhere and got some nice photos to put in my living room but I haven't in a long time.~Muir
 
These days you can get a dedicated camera that's smaller than your cellphone and you can just stick it in your back pocket, no excuses now !

Something like this http://www.ebay.com/itm/Canon-Power...543410?pt=Digital_Cameras&hash=item1e95c214f2 ; you can take pictures with it good enough to publish in magazines.

I took this crawl up shot of a Muntjac fawn last weekend with a tiny digital compact

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But you are right - the best opportunities always present themselves when you are not carrying a camera. S.
 
These days you can get a dedicated camera that's smaller than your cellphone and you can just stick it in your back pocket, no excuses now !

Something like this http://www.ebay.com/itm/Canon-Power...543410?pt=Digital_Cameras&hash=item1e95c214f2 ; you can take pictures with it good enough to publish in magazines.

I took this crawl up shot of a Muntjac fawn last weekend with a tiny digital compact

View attachment 50739


But you are right - the best opportunities always present themselves when you are not carrying a camera. S.

I've got some good digital cameras with zoom capabilities but maybe it's time to just pick up a little pocket model for keeping in the truck glove box.~Muir
 
I was fortunate enough to have a camera with me when I spotted these during the snow of last year. Admittedly they are farmed deer but even so it shows how hard the conditions can be that they can survive in. When I first spotted then I thought there was only two or three deer laying up in the snow drift against the wall (First Photo) but when I got closer for a second photo the snow drift erupted and out shot the rest of them!
View attachment 50721View attachment 50722

Hi FB
Is that Pete Boddy's place?

Yorkie.
 
Here's another from Peter Boddy's place. This is his Elk Stag which had been tranquilised for de-antlering. Unfortunately when we thought he was ready to go down and I went to take a photo the stag had different ideas and decided that he didn't want his photo taken. I snapped this shot and got back in the 4X4 rather quickly I can tell you cos he's a really big boy and he certainly wasn't too happy about the situation.

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