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in reply to: Oklahoma Pronghorns #38796

Thanks Dave! There are a lot of canyons in that area on private land, and most of the people up there HATE the goats. They want you to kill them all. Other than finding a water hole, stalking one with a bow would be tough, possible with the sage and yuccas but tough nonetheless. And yes, there are some fantasic bucks up there. Since there are a limited number of tags given each year, and the only other way to hunt them is with bow, the bucks can get big.

This was in Cimarron Co. We hunted from the Texas Co. line west until just a few miles from New Mexico. In fact standing in the Sante Fe Trail we could see NM and CO.

Can’t wait to get the meat. Steaks, summer sausage and jalapeno/chedder brats are just a month away!

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in reply to: Oklahoma Pronghorns #38607

Well the hunt went great. The rut was in full swing out there and the antelope were extremely skittish. As it turned out, I worked harder for this doe than ANY animal I’ve ever shot.

I hunted two days and put a stalk on a group each day, but was never able to get within range.

On the third day I found a group out in a field and quickly got permission to hunt on that section. The wind was blowing about 30 mph from the south, but after suveying the area there was no good way to approach from the north. I came at them from the west. After 1 hour 45 min. of crawling (about 800 yards) and wearing the skin off my elbow I got within 200 yards and got the shot. I’m amazed at the pronghorn’s ability to detect danger. We spotted groups running from us nearly a mile away! I am extremely grateful for having harvested this animal and can’t imagine what it would be like to get one with a bow! Hopefully I can make that happen someday.

Dave: This is the second year archery tags have been available over-the-counter for OK pronghorns. Unfortunantly, the cost for a tag for out-of-state hunters is $306. However if you want to give it a shot let me know, I have a few places we can hunt…including a section that is on the old Sante Fe Trail.

The terrain is either open grass/CRP field or farm land. The anteloope are thick in the crop fields but they are very hard to hunt with bow. Here’s some photos that show the different terrain.

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in reply to: Oklahoma Pronghorns #30110

Headed out today with my doe tag. Sadly, the archery season is closed and I have to use a rifle (to add insult to injury, my Shiloh sharps isn’t here so I have to use a bolt-action). I really wish you had the option to use a bow during the controlled hunts.

Should be fun though. Plenty of open country, prairie dogs, coyotes, pheasants and….pronghorns, to keep me occupied. And I think I have a spot for next bow season! I’ll post some pictures later.

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in reply to: Predators and A Hunter's Conscience #25617

I have nothing against predator hunting. In fact I would love to try to get a big grizzly up in Alaska with my longbow someday. I’d shoot a coyote too if I had a reason for doing so…but…

I’ve never really understood people who shoot coyotes for no reason. The only one we’ve ever killed was when it got after one of the horses. We moved out to the country (read – out of city limits) when I was nine and there were coyotes everywhere. As more people have moved around us the population has gone down. I even ran into a guy down at the mailbox asking about them. He “hunted” them professionally by driving the roads shooting those he saw and putting out poison. I asked him why he did that and he said “because they’re coyotes.” Really baffles me. We don’t see them much anymore and I miss them.

I had a chance to shoot one a few years ago. Made a little ground blind and had squirrels playing near some pecan trees about 20 yards away. A coyote jumped out of the grass about 3 yards from them and ALMOST got one! Gave me a perfect shot and I drew on him, but at full draw I couldn’t think of any reason to kill him, so I didn’t. I enjoy seeing them out in the woods.

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in reply to: BH weight #25530

I’d read everything in the Ashby forum. For a bow that weight you’re going to want EFOC, in other words a lot of weight up front, so forget about the light weight broadheads. I’m sure others with far more experience than I will jump in with some recommendations on exact equipment, so I’ll let the experts take it from here. In the meantime, read the Ashby studies to get a good understanding of the various factors that effect arrow penetration.

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in reply to: Need some help with arrows… #20933

I agree, the 2018s should work with a heavier point. I shot them out of a 45# recurve for a long time with no ill effects. Depending on arrow flight you might need to tweak your brace height/knocking point, but there’s no reason you can’t make them work for a season.

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in reply to: The trees are on fire… #20927

Fantastic pictures! Fall hasn’t even hit here yet, and even when it does we rarely get colors like that, but I’m excited for it nonetheless. Thanks for sharing.

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in reply to: Why I Didn't Like Shooting Gloves & Why I'm Using One #19849

Thanks for the info. I’ll give it a try.

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in reply to: Glenn St Charles has left us 9/19/2010 #19843

Sad news to hear after coming back from a good trip to antelope country with my Dad. I was never fortunate enough to meet the man, but I still feel a loss. He was a true advocate for our community. I can only imagine what it’s like for those who knew him. My condolences to his family and friends.

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in reply to: Oklahoma Pronghorns #19828

David Petersen wrote: Red — where in OK are there pronghorns? When did they reintroduce them? How hard to get a tag. I recall out in western OK, between Cheyenne and the Panhandle, is an area called the Antelope Hills. I hope they’ve returned the namesake animals. Good luck. dave

Dave, over-the-counter archery tags have been available for (I believe) two years now. Open areas include Cimarron and that portion of Texas County west of Hwy 136 (basically west of Guymon). I’m not sure of the exact dates, but I believe the wildlife department started reintroducing them in the early 80s.

Unfortunately the hunt didn’t work out. We got out to the area and were unable to contact the landowner…I still haven’t heard back from him (you are required to carry written landowner permission to hunt antelope in OK). We took the opportunity to do some scouting for a controlled tag I drew for Oct. We counted 47 antelope on or near the landowner’s property, including some fantastic bucks. Most of the landowner’s property is farmed with very little cover to provide a stalk, so bowhunting would have been tough, however we might be getting some land farther west, closer to Black Mesa, to hunt on next year. The terrain is better for stalking and the water is more spread out making a blind a good option.

I’ll try to post a couple pictures this weekend.

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in reply to: Why I Didn't Like Shooting Gloves & Why I'm Using One #15647

Interesting idea. How much do you cut off the tip? I would have thought the string would run across the end of your fingers.

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in reply to: Share a Tip #13372

Use milkweed seeds as wind testers. The dried pods are full of them, and they will float and drift in the smallest current of air. They are much better than small tuffs of cotton balls and are much easier to see compared to powders.

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in reply to: classified ad ?? #13066

I wondered that as well. There’s a lot of activity over on the stickbow site…in fact I just bought a bow from an ad I placed there, should have it next week hopefully.

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in reply to: I"v never used a longbow #11015

There’s really not that much difference between the two. I typically shoot higher with a recurve than my longbows. I say go for it! I much prefer the longbow.

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in reply to: October is closing-in. #11004

Excellent read. I can’t wait until that one day of the year when you wake up, go outside and you can feel the difference in the air. Fall! We’re getting close here in OK.

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