On August 25, 1959 I shot my first big game animal on my 12th birthday, a small Nevada high desert pronghorn antelope. On August 22, 2025 I ended my long and rewarding life as a hunter within a mile of that first antelope kill. I was fortunate to draw a resident antelope tag for the same unit. Between those hunts I took a dozen or so more, the years I drew tags. They are limited, and the demand has increased far faster than our herd increased. The State's population grew from 200,000 to 3,000,000 over the years, mostly in the Las Vegas metro area. During that time waiting periods for successful tag holders went from one year wait to become eligable to apply to five years, and now back to three years. A realistic chance to be successful in the draw requires about 5-7 preferential points. Points are accumulated by applying each season, one point for each unsuccessful draw per year. I had five and drew my "spot" in the NW corner of Nevada, an area I have guided numerous friends and family over the years and went antelope hunting on average of two out of three years as guide or sometimes as the hunter.
The country we hunt is rugged low plateau terrain at a 5,500 foot elevation, all volcanic and rocky high desert. A sturdy 4X4 truck to get there, several extra gas cans, plenty of water, enough food for a week if necessary, decent optics, an "old friend" rifle you're familiar with that shoots reasonably flat, tough boots, and a taste for alkali dust are all requirements. I love the deselation; it's my home.
My grandson, deer hunting.
Grandson a bit younger with his first antelope at The Spot:
It has been common that we tag-out and are back at camp by 10:00 a.m. on opening day, but there have been some long tough hunts over the years. This year I had three rifles sighted in with careful handloads developed for each. They were my a new-to-me Weatherby Vanguard KUIU Vias camo 6.5-300 Weatherby, a light and easy to carry Kimber hunter 6.5 Creedmoor, and my old friend custom LW FN 98 30-06 with a 22" light weight barrel, a tuned Timney trigger, Brown Preciaion Pound'r stock, and wearing a simple Leupold VariX II 2-7 scope. The '06 has been with me to most far west US states, Alaska, Canada, and three African countries. I know it well. It was my gun of choice opening morning.
An hour before sunrise we loaded the three of us in my two-seater Polaris RZR and headed up the butte road through 8" deep alkali and over volcanic boulders to our spot where we glass at first light. we were seeing some small herds several miles away in three directions when we spotted a decent old buck running with a doe. My son, grandson, and I looked for a way to put the sneek on the buck, but there was 700-900 yards of open valley with no cover between the speed-goats and us. We walked to the last cover, a big old juniter tree with big boulders beneith. I ranged the buck at 700 yards, a shot I am not comfortable with. But, there was no wind, the buck was feeding slowly, I had my trajectory tables in hand for the '06 and load, so I figured what the heck. I'm old, crippled, and have neuropathy that has me numb from mid-thighs on down, so I rested the rifle by holding the scope against a low juniper branch just above, estimated a 9' hold over and squeezed. The old buck folded DRT, fracturing his lower jaw. His left curl was broken off from sparring with other bucks. It gives him character. We were able to get the RZR within 1 1/2 mile from him, an easy carry. We were back in camp right at 10:00.
It was a fitting end to my lifetime of big game hunting; it ender where and how it started 65 years before.
The country we hunt is rugged low plateau terrain at a 5,500 foot elevation, all volcanic and rocky high desert. A sturdy 4X4 truck to get there, several extra gas cans, plenty of water, enough food for a week if necessary, decent optics, an "old friend" rifle you're familiar with that shoots reasonably flat, tough boots, and a taste for alkali dust are all requirements. I love the deselation; it's my home.
My grandson, deer hunting.
Grandson a bit younger with his first antelope at The Spot:
It has been common that we tag-out and are back at camp by 10:00 a.m. on opening day, but there have been some long tough hunts over the years. This year I had three rifles sighted in with careful handloads developed for each. They were my a new-to-me Weatherby Vanguard KUIU Vias camo 6.5-300 Weatherby, a light and easy to carry Kimber hunter 6.5 Creedmoor, and my old friend custom LW FN 98 30-06 with a 22" light weight barrel, a tuned Timney trigger, Brown Preciaion Pound'r stock, and wearing a simple Leupold VariX II 2-7 scope. The '06 has been with me to most far west US states, Alaska, Canada, and three African countries. I know it well. It was my gun of choice opening morning.
An hour before sunrise we loaded the three of us in my two-seater Polaris RZR and headed up the butte road through 8" deep alkali and over volcanic boulders to our spot where we glass at first light. we were seeing some small herds several miles away in three directions when we spotted a decent old buck running with a doe. My son, grandson, and I looked for a way to put the sneek on the buck, but there was 700-900 yards of open valley with no cover between the speed-goats and us. We walked to the last cover, a big old juniter tree with big boulders beneith. I ranged the buck at 700 yards, a shot I am not comfortable with. But, there was no wind, the buck was feeding slowly, I had my trajectory tables in hand for the '06 and load, so I figured what the heck. I'm old, crippled, and have neuropathy that has me numb from mid-thighs on down, so I rested the rifle by holding the scope against a low juniper branch just above, estimated a 9' hold over and squeezed. The old buck folded DRT, fracturing his lower jaw. His left curl was broken off from sparring with other bucks. It gives him character. We were able to get the RZR within 1 1/2 mile from him, an easy carry. We were back in camp right at 10:00.
It was a fitting end to my lifetime of big game hunting; it ender where and how it started 65 years before.
