In 2000 when I earned a Master’s degree to further my career, I wanted to go on a well-deserved mule deer hunt. However, I did not get the mule deer tag, I received my first preference point instead. Over the years, I spoke with many Colorado outfitters at the annual sportsman show in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and when I had less than 20 preference points, the outfitters all said they either had areas that only needed a handful of points or much more than I had.
Fast forward to when I was two years from retirement, I contacted Huntin’ Fool to get some advice on where and who I should contact for a quality mule deer hunt. They gave me three outfitters’ names, and after calling several references, I chose Lazy F Bar Outfitters in Gunnison, Colorado owned by Steve Guerrieri. I talked with Steve about my goals and when I wanted to hunt in the next two years, so we booked the fourth rifle season. When I applied for the license with 23 preference points, Steve indicated that the hunters he had the previous year were successful with 22 points, so I was very hopeful. In June, I found out that I was successful for a mule deer buck tag in the fourth rifle season.
I was fortunate enough to be able to retire six months earlier than I originally planned. This allowed for more preparation time for the hunt. I have used my Winchester model 70 in 7mm rifle for more than 90% of my hunts for over 40 years. However, I had always wanted to own a Henry lever action rifle, and four months prior to the hunt, I purchased a Henry in 6.5 Creedmoor. Putting a Leupold 4-12 power scope on top was one of the best decisions I have made. I was able to do a good amount of practicing with the rifle setting the zero at 200 yards. The two reference dots and post below the zero at 300, 400, and 500 yards respectively are very accurate. Living in the East, it is very difficult to find 500-yard distances that are safe to shoot within. I was able to visit a lifelong friend who is a dairy farmer and found just enough distance across three fields. Hitting at those distances took some minor scope adjustments. Hitting the center of a two and a half-gallon jug of water at 500 yards proved the rifle was set.
I decided to travel to Colorado with my truck and 17-foot camper and take my time instead of flying. As most hunters who have used the airlines know, you either have to go light on luggage or ship your supplies out ahead of time and ship them back after your hunt. I wanted to bring everything I thought I would need and more. Basically, if I had the room, I brought it so I could be ready for any weather or situation. I planned for a 15-day trip, 5 days for the hunt and 5 days each way to drive the 2,000 miles and 30 hours, allowing time for any mishaps. I stayed at some rest areas overnight and mostly used Pilot gas stations and their services. I got to see a lot of truckers and what they go through as they move all their freight across the USA.
I was able to get to Gunnison, Colorado a day ahead of schedule which helped me get used to the higher altitude. I met with the outfitter, Steve Guerrieri, and my guide, Wyatt Baldwin, along with the other four hunters the day before the fourth rifle season opened. We went over what to expect on the hunt and went through the necessary paperwork to ensure we had the proper licenses with us. I and another hunter wanted to fire our rifles to check the zero. I wanted to use my new 6.5 Creedmoor, and I also brought my 7mm as a reliable backup. Both rifles were still on the 200-yard zero.
On day one of the hunt, Wyatt and I saw over 140 deer with about 15 bucks, mostly young and small bucks, within 160 yards. I actually should admit that I didn’t see all of those deer as my guide, Wyatt, has very keen eyesight and was also using a 65-power spotting scope.
On day two, we all wished each other Happy Thanksgiving! There were less sightings of deer but quite a few groups of does with small bucks nearby. By mid-afternoon, we spotted a group of deer with two bucks, including one nice 4x5 with a 30" spread. However, two other vehicles moved to that area to look over the deer. We thought they were going to shoot, but they were just using a spotting scope. Wyatt got the bigger buck in his scope, and I wanted to get a closer look. We talked with the other hunters and found out one only had an elk tag and the other had declined to go after the buck. By this time, the bigger buck was 220 yards up in the
thick woods with no shot opportunity.
On day three of the hunt, there was a weather prediction of a foot of snow, but we only got a few snow flurries. We thoroughly scouted the area where the 4x5 buck had been but only saw groups of does and small bucks.
On day four, we again returned to the area where the 4x5 buck had been. The rut was kicking up a bit as we saw several bucks chasing does. Wyatt saw a second potential shooter buck that was a 4x4. Although he was not as wide as the 4x5, he had a taller rack. I decided to go after him. To get in a better position, we had to take the quad around the mountaintop. During that time, another hunter with a deer tag and his friend saw the same buck and ended up following us close to where we got set up to take a shot. Once they knew we were on the buck, they left our area. The 4x4 was walking across the next hill, and at 320 yards, he bedded down. We stayed very still and waited around 20 minutes for him to make a move. I was able to kneel over a tripod when a few does and a smaller buck came near him and he decided to get up. He moved to the left through some sparce tree cover, and unfortunately, I missed the first shot. He changed direction and jogged up the hill and stopped at 325 yards. I put him down for good with the 6.5 Creedmoor using a Hornady 143 grain ELD-X bullet.
Wyatt and his fellow guide, Brad, handled the photo session and quartering of this 250-pound buck. We were able to cape the buck and get the meat to the freezer so I could bring it back East in my cooler with dry ice.
This was a long-awaited and satisfying mule deer hunt. I want to thank my outfitter, Steve Guerrieri, and guides, Wyatt and Brad, for providing a quality hunt experience. It was certainly a great retirement present.
Fast forward to when I was two years from retirement, I contacted Huntin’ Fool to get some advice on where and who I should contact for a quality mule deer hunt. They gave me three outfitters’ names, and after calling several references, I chose Lazy F Bar Outfitters in Gunnison, Colorado owned by Steve Guerrieri. I talked with Steve about my goals and when I wanted to hunt in the next two years, so we booked the fourth rifle season. When I applied for the license with 23 preference points, Steve indicated that the hunters he had the previous year were successful with 22 points, so I was very hopeful. In June, I found out that I was successful for a mule deer buck tag in the fourth rifle season.
I was fortunate enough to be able to retire six months earlier than I originally planned. This allowed for more preparation time for the hunt. I have used my Winchester model 70 in 7mm rifle for more than 90% of my hunts for over 40 years. However, I had always wanted to own a Henry lever action rifle, and four months prior to the hunt, I purchased a Henry in 6.5 Creedmoor. Putting a Leupold 4-12 power scope on top was one of the best decisions I have made. I was able to do a good amount of practicing with the rifle setting the zero at 200 yards. The two reference dots and post below the zero at 300, 400, and 500 yards respectively are very accurate. Living in the East, it is very difficult to find 500-yard distances that are safe to shoot within. I was able to visit a lifelong friend who is a dairy farmer and found just enough distance across three fields. Hitting at those distances took some minor scope adjustments. Hitting the center of a two and a half-gallon jug of water at 500 yards proved the rifle was set.
I decided to travel to Colorado with my truck and 17-foot camper and take my time instead of flying. As most hunters who have used the airlines know, you either have to go light on luggage or ship your supplies out ahead of time and ship them back after your hunt. I wanted to bring everything I thought I would need and more. Basically, if I had the room, I brought it so I could be ready for any weather or situation. I planned for a 15-day trip, 5 days for the hunt and 5 days each way to drive the 2,000 miles and 30 hours, allowing time for any mishaps. I stayed at some rest areas overnight and mostly used Pilot gas stations and their services. I got to see a lot of truckers and what they go through as they move all their freight across the USA.
I was able to get to Gunnison, Colorado a day ahead of schedule which helped me get used to the higher altitude. I met with the outfitter, Steve Guerrieri, and my guide, Wyatt Baldwin, along with the other four hunters the day before the fourth rifle season opened. We went over what to expect on the hunt and went through the necessary paperwork to ensure we had the proper licenses with us. I and another hunter wanted to fire our rifles to check the zero. I wanted to use my new 6.5 Creedmoor, and I also brought my 7mm as a reliable backup. Both rifles were still on the 200-yard zero.
On day one of the hunt, Wyatt and I saw over 140 deer with about 15 bucks, mostly young and small bucks, within 160 yards. I actually should admit that I didn’t see all of those deer as my guide, Wyatt, has very keen eyesight and was also using a 65-power spotting scope.
On day two, we all wished each other Happy Thanksgiving! There were less sightings of deer but quite a few groups of does with small bucks nearby. By mid-afternoon, we spotted a group of deer with two bucks, including one nice 4x5 with a 30" spread. However, two other vehicles moved to that area to look over the deer. We thought they were going to shoot, but they were just using a spotting scope. Wyatt got the bigger buck in his scope, and I wanted to get a closer look. We talked with the other hunters and found out one only had an elk tag and the other had declined to go after the buck. By this time, the bigger buck was 220 yards up in the
thick woods with no shot opportunity.
On day three of the hunt, there was a weather prediction of a foot of snow, but we only got a few snow flurries. We thoroughly scouted the area where the 4x5 buck had been but only saw groups of does and small bucks.
On day four, we again returned to the area where the 4x5 buck had been. The rut was kicking up a bit as we saw several bucks chasing does. Wyatt saw a second potential shooter buck that was a 4x4. Although he was not as wide as the 4x5, he had a taller rack. I decided to go after him. To get in a better position, we had to take the quad around the mountaintop. During that time, another hunter with a deer tag and his friend saw the same buck and ended up following us close to where we got set up to take a shot. Once they knew we were on the buck, they left our area. The 4x4 was walking across the next hill, and at 320 yards, he bedded down. We stayed very still and waited around 20 minutes for him to make a move. I was able to kneel over a tripod when a few does and a smaller buck came near him and he decided to get up. He moved to the left through some sparce tree cover, and unfortunately, I missed the first shot. He changed direction and jogged up the hill and stopped at 325 yards. I put him down for good with the 6.5 Creedmoor using a Hornady 143 grain ELD-X bullet.
Wyatt and his fellow guide, Brad, handled the photo session and quartering of this 250-pound buck. We were able to cape the buck and get the meat to the freezer so I could bring it back East in my cooler with dry ice.
This was a long-awaited and satisfying mule deer hunt. I want to thank my outfitter, Steve Guerrieri, and guides, Wyatt and Brad, for providing a quality hunt experience. It was certainly a great retirement present.