Without a doubt, my favorite time of year!  Archery mule deer season!  My first shooter, Shane Hunter was ready and raring to go, waiting at my doorstep as I arrived home from Alberta.  Four hours into our hunt, we were peeking through blades of slough grass waiting for our quarry to stand and give Shane a clear shot.  The buck that was bedded just thirty yards from us was 180 class, still in full velvet!  After patiently waiting for the better part of the day, the buck stood up and stretched, walked out into plain view and posed broadside, only for my good buddy to sizzle an arrow through the hairs on his back!!!  Even though we never got the buck, the footage turned out great!  Ron Colborn was there running a second camera to get two angles on the hunt and the film was very entertaining!  Shane, I promise not to make fun of you on National TV!  Everything must happen for a reason because the next day, Shane and I had one of the most memorable experiences we have ever had in the wild!  At day break we were driving along, glassing the countryside trying to find a buck in a good position for a stalk.  Cruising down back trails in my Ford Super Duty, a couple bucks bounded across the trail in front of us and disappeared into a little willow slough.  The biggest buck looked old, really heavy with lots of character, not necessarily a shooter but definitely a great buck to get pictures of!   Shane offered to push the slough towards me to hopefully get some nice footage of the buck.  I sat in the truck and waited while he walked down into the bluff.  Five seconds after he faded into the trees, Shane yelled “Cody, he’s right here!”   He had spotted the buck standing in the tangled jungle only eight yards from him.  The buck stood motionless as if he was invisible to the world.  Shane told me to slowly walk into the willows to him to try and video the buck before he bolted.  I asked him if I should bring his bow.  He told me not to worry about it and to just bring the camera.  In total disbelief that I would make it to Shane’s location without blowing the buck out, I casually walked into the trees in Shane’s path!  I slowly peaked over his shoulder, only to focus on a monster mulie’s eyes staring right back into mine!!!  He was only EIGHT YARDS AWAY!!!  Absolutely motionless!  He wouldn’t even dare to blink!  Shane whispered softly, “If I had my bow, I would shoot him in a heartbeat!”  “Then go get it”, I replied!  We talked it over and we both agreed that the buck would never stay there long enough for Shane to get his bow and make it back to our position, but we had to try!  The bucks eyes followed Shane as he walked back towards the truck.  He returned momentarily with his bow in hand and his release on his wrist.      Shane walked right back to me and drew his bow!   I positioned my camera over his shoulder and gave him the nod to fire!… There was an explosion of crashing and twigs snapping and flying through the air!  The buck vanished out of sight!  Shane and I stared at each other in astonishment for a brief second, then both scrambled after him out the end of the slough!  We cleared the trees just in time to witness the old buck get wobbly in the knees and tip over!!!  This hunt was an incredible experience!  One that I’m sure Shane or I will never ever forget!  This footage is a “Must See!” for anyone who appreciates the outdoors!

          I have always wanted to shoot a big nontypical mulie, but for some reason it always seems to work out that I’m in hot pursuit of a jumbo typical buck each year.  Over the summer, Ron Colborn found a buck that had matching double drop tines.  When Ron explained the configuration of the buck, he sounded like something out of a Racks Calendar! Or just my dream buck!  Ron had also found numerous other big bucks that he had sniffed out throughout August that were actually bigger than the droptine buck, so he had no qualms about me putting my heart and soul into the droptine buck.  The first time I laid eyes on this incredible deer he was standing in the skyline with four other bucks.  When he looked directly at you, it was a sight that would bring any mule deer fanatic to his knees!  I decided at that point that this was a mission that needed my undivided attention!  Over the next three days, if the sun was in the sky, I was within 75 yards of the droptine buck waiting patiently for the perfect moment to make my move.  Day one, Shane was my cameraman.  Day two, my good friend and host of Hunting Canada and Beyond, Jason Peterson, was the cameraman.  And by day three, good old Ron Colborn was following behind carrying the camera gear.  Those three days were an emotional roller coaster of highs and lows, adrenaline and disappointment.  Finally the morning of day three, the buck walked to within 30 yards of me and gave me a golden opportunity!  I can’t remember my knees  ever shaking so bad!  Having to dig deeper than ever to capitalize, I drew my bow and made the shot!  Ron captured it all on camera right over my shoulder!