William L. Finley National Wildlife Refuge

Oregon

Great hunting opportunities are available at many of the State and Federal Refuges.   In Oregon we are very fortunate to have many of both.   The O.D.F.W. has setup the opportunity of applying for a tag for a specific hunt and refuge, such as Hart Mountain.   As I am directing this article of a specific Federal Refuge, the application process has to be done via the website of the refuge.   There are two (2) different O.D.F.W. tags that can be used for the hunting of elk at the refuge and the over-the-counter general elk tag for the area.

Though you can not shoot bulls, there are a great deal of them to look at and call for fun…

The Federal Refuge that is mentioned is the WILLIAM L. FINLEY NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE, located south of Corvallis, Oregon off of Highway 99.   The refuge is approximately 5400 acres, with many ponds, creeks and trails.  It is well known for the birds and waterfowl that live there and migrate through.  The Roosevelt Elk that dwell there -in good herd numbers- is unique, in that the majority of the land near the refuge is flat farm land to the east, south, and north, plus being close to a large city.

The hunting of Roosevelt Elk at William Finley is for cows only, mostly an archery hunt, though, in Zone 1 a shotgun can be used during certain time periods.   So there are two (2) zones for hunting the refuge with Zone 2 being the largest.   Zone 2 is intertwined with Scrub Oak trees, Douglas Fir, Cottonwoods, Beaked Hazelnut, Big Leaf Maples and grasslands.   Very diversified land profile for sure.

I believe it could be a great hunt for anyone that wants to work hard and do some pre-scouting, although the elk will travel many miles and even venture off the refuge into Weyerhaeuser properties that are to the west of Zone 1.  I have found the elk to be quite habit forming in movement.   Elk can work extremely large areas in their feeding routine.

In the past month, since we are now into April,  (Closed to foot traffic November 1^st-March 31^st) we allowed to go past the gates in most of the refuge, I have found the well-worn trails made by vast herds.  In my opinion, I would hunt Zone 2 since the area is so much larger with a greater opportunity to find Elk.

In a recent scouting trip, we spotted a very large herd of elk with at least 100 head.   It took me about an hour to close the distance of a mile out, give or take a few yards, getting to within 100 yards.  It took so long to get to them because I was wading in water from 2” to 20” over uneven terrain. When the herd finally decided to move out, there was a single file of elk that was about a ¼ miles long. It was simply an amazing sight and the camera did not do justice to what the eye saw.   There were still a couple of spikes with their antlers, and a few new-growth antlered bulls.   It was fun to use my onX HUNT mobile APP and Garmin GPS and mark waypoints of trails and sightings.

I have attached a link to WILLIAM L. FINLEY NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE  (Note: 2018 hunting applications will be available in May 2018. If you are interested in hunting for elk, there is still time to get an application in for the 2018 Hunting Season.   Make sure you have plenty of time to scout, have a good set of boots, and, just in case, a roll-up pair of stocking chest waders for crossing creeks.

Bedded down earlier in the Oaks… Roosevelt Elk

A small tidbit, Blacktail Deer hunting is also available at the refuge, either sex in this case.  One could maybe have a two (2) species hunt…

Bwana Bubba

Let’s try find our way out of here, some 5 miles from camp with a compass…

It may be hard to believe, but throughout the United States, it happens all the time…

You must go into the Known or Unknown,  prepared or face the worst…

Recently there was an article published in Field & Stream (October 2017) about a father and son hunting and getting lost in the rugged Siskiyou Mountains of Oregon.   One never made it back… The other his son forgot his GPS and Phone when heading back out to find his dad, he was lost for a number of days…  Searchers finally located him!

“From 1997-2016, 80 have been found dead and another 76 not found”  In this region of Oregon

Some of those that were never found, could have had other issues, such as venturing into a spot they did not belong in…

I know this number could be a lot less, if one were well prepared to the venture into the rugged mountains of the North America.  Most feel they know all the ways back to camp from any location.  Think about being in the Snake River Canyon in the morning at 65 degrees and sunny chasing a herd of Elk and in the afternoon the weather changing to a blizzard with the temperature dropping to below freezing and your horse has been moved from where you tether him up on the trail, plus you must venture into dark timber and any hint of daylight is about gone…

There is no hiker, hunter or outdoor enthusiast that has not gotten mixed up while in the field…  Today there is so much technology to keep you from staying mixed up, lost permanently, or dying in the outdoor from being lost…

Touch screen GPS that works in deep timber.

So many time when trying to help hunters find places to hunt, I request them to have a Garmin GPS, onX HUNT mapping for both the Garmin GPS (colored – microchip capable) and mobile device, such as the smart phones which 90% of hunters and outdoor enthusiasts carry with them 24/7.

Emergency Beacon
Needs to be registered.

The Garmin GPS, at least in the 21^st should have WAAS (Wide Area Augmentable System) Note: Global Positioning System GPS is made up of at least 24 satellites, working in all conditions 24 hours a day and is FREE.

Garmin Rino 755 has two way and your location is available to another user. This is one that I highly recommend.

I would say at least 40% tell me they are “Old School” and use paper maps and a compass (that is maybe on the compass).

Just one little note with onX HUNT on the mobile side there is a trail layer that features trails old and new (CONUS).   Another tool that can help in many hunting areas.

Let’s get real about paper maps, most are outdated, and boundaries change all the time.  I threw out all my paper maps, that I have had for more than 30 years with all the X’s on them, moving the X’s to my GPS.  Paper maps are outdate in field use and lacking the ability to Zoom in.  Even if you mark your map with routes, it surely isn’t going let you do an active route back to camp or truck as a GPS would do.  As for the compass, it’s Okay, if your batteries go dead or enemy decides to use an electromagnetic pulse or EMP while you’re in the back country.

These can reach out many miles and reasonable in price in the pairs.

Beside the Garmin GPS, Mobile Phone with the onX HUNT APP and chip, there is the 2 Ways such as Motorola handheld communicators, and last but not lease is an Emergency Locator Beacon, just in case you’re in real trouble and are immobile…

We must remember to have them in our backpack or ditty bag (U.S. NAVY), along with the other tools used in the field.  Frank Biggs 

Nolan had contacted Bwana Bubba in the spring time of 2017, asking if I knew a place in central Oregon, that he might have chance to harvest a elk during the archery season.   I had an old haunt that, my partners and I had hunted with great success.  I was willing to share, but I wanted him to use  technology, in order to give him a better idea and also stay legal on the hunt…

Last Chance Bull

Oregon Archery Hunt

The day before the end of the 2017 season, I’d driven out to a new place I’d never seen before as a last ditch effort to try and kill an elk.   I’d scouted, prepared, & hunted so hard all season long to make it happen on a D.I.Y. over the counter elk tag, public land, archery elk.  After my blunder on opening day when I missed a cow at 44 yards, I figured my 2017 season was over.  I blew my shot opportunity for the year and it was going to be a long 12 months until I’d get another one.

   Making hunting and finding game easier!

As soon as I got out of the truck that morning I heard a bugle, then another bugle, and another.  It was too dark to see the ridge that I was hearing the bulls from, but I grabbed my gear and took off.  After about 10 minutes I glassed up the shape of an elk about half a mile uphill from me.  I knew if I had any chance at cutting him off, I had to hustle.   I ran up the drainage to the West of him and when I reached the top I could hear it wasn’t just a lone bull.  It was a whole heard, I peered around the corner and saw close to 60 elk working up the draw.  Bulls screaming, pushing cows, the whole herd was going nuts.

As I was trying to decide what to do I turned around and saw there was another hunter about 60 yards behind me.  I thought to myself,  “You’ve got to be kidding me”.  I busted my ass to get up here and I’m going to have to compete with this guy.  As frustrated as I was, I walked down to him and said “Hey, there’s a big herd of elk up here”. “What’s your plan”?  “I don’t want to screw up your hunt”.  I fully expected him to tell me to take a hike.  Instead what he said next blew me away.  He said “We need to cut them off, and get in front of them, let’s go!”  I asked him what he wanted me to do, and he said “Come with me” and we took off!

Self portrait picture of my velvet Spike Bull.

I’m not a tall guy, 5’6”.  But this newly met hunting partner of mine is at least a foot taller than I and subsequently covers ground much faster than I can.   Before I know it I’m out of breath and desperately trying to keep up with him.  As we follow the fence line between the public and private land, we keep getting glances of the herd about 250 yards away in the draw to the east of us.  We dropped our packs a ways back to be as quick and low profile as we could.  The herd can see us, but we keep pressing on to try and cut them off, in the valley 1/4 mile ahead of us.  I keep thinking to myself “I can’t believe this is happening”.  We paused at this little knoll and heard some elk coming up to where we were as they headed to cross in to the private, so we set up.  I sat behind and told this guy “I’ll range for you” and before we knew it, there was a group of 15 cows being pushed by a big 6×6 up the hill in front of us.  I keep ranging him, 124, 117, 111, and 110.  He’s not going to get any closer. There are no trees or brush that we can get closer to either.  We wait for them to cross the fence so we can keep pushing forward to where the rest of the herd is headed and all of the sudden this piercing bugle rings out no more than 100 yards from where we sat.  This massive 7×7 was pushing another group of cows through the same spot!  My partner slid down the hill 20 yards, but the bull stayed just out of range and wouldn’t stop.  He was on a mission, away from us.  We wait for them to clear and then we’re booking it to the next draw, “if we can get to it there’s a good chance they’ll be there waiting.”

Now the work starts, but it is so worth it…

Right as we crest the draw we see 25-35 elk pushing up and onto private, there’s still quite a few elk coming up the draw though.  I start cow calling to try and bring the big bulls closer.  There’s elk everywhere, bulls pushing cows, screaming, heads back and hot to trot.  They just won’t come any closer than 120 yards.  My new friend scoots down the draw another 10 yards and 6 elk bust out 30 yards below us, it’s so steep that we didn’t even known they were there.  A bull stops at 60 yards, I hear “do you wanna shoot that bull?” without hesitation I said “Hell YES”.  I pull out from the tree I’m behind, range him at 84 yards. I’ve been making this shot all year.  I have flung thousands of arrows practicing for this moment.  I can make the shot, I dial my sight to 84 yards, draw my bow, anchor, cow call to stop him, settle the pin on his lungs, and my arrow is gone.

I watch the glow of my green knock sail across the ravine. THWACK!  He drops, barrel rolls 3 times to the bottom of the creek bed, stops, and it’s over.  “He’s down”!  I sat next to the tree beside me and cannot believe after all the work I put in, the ups and downs, the frustration, everything, that it all came together.  It wasn’t over, because of how quickly he went down he didn’t spook any of the other elk, it’s time for me to try and call in a bull for my partner.

There is some rough terrain to navigate at night, plus forging a creek…

I cow call like nothing else to try and bring the 6×6 in from 150 yards but he just isn’t willing to leave his cows.  My buddy takes off over the next ridge after him and I start hiking back to get our packs.  While I was walking back I was overcome with emotion.  It’d been 6 years since my last elk.

As any archery hunter knows, this is something that requires an immense amount of preparation, dedication, will power, and luck.  But everything lined up that morning and I was beside myself.  My arrow left my string at 7:32 am. By 8:30 I was notching my tag and taping it to his antlers.  As I sat and looked at him I realized that I’m here alone.  I have a 450-500 pound animal down in the bottom of a ravine, 1.5 miles from the truck and it’s just me.  I snapped a few pictures and started the process, 6 hours later he was ready to be hauled out and I started the journey back to the truck with one of my most prized possessions, meat.  It took me until 11 PM that night to get him back to the truck.  My body was nearly broken, but I didn’t care.  I couldn’t wait to do it again.  And the phrase that kept resonating in my head stayed there until my head hit my pillow, “Never, ever give up”.

Nolin knows how important it was to stay legal in this area. They don’t take prisoners that trespass on their lands that hold big bulls…

Almost to the access road and the truck. Last load out, the rack…

This is my story Nolan Lathrop –  2017 Central Oregon. 

“The land of Rimrock and  Junipers”

2018 Oregon Big Game Hunting

Plus a few other western states

This was taken at 8 yards on Father’s Day. I had seen the buck deep in the canyon and figured his avenue he was going and laid in wait for him…

2018 Big Game Hunting in Oregon is in full swing with Elk coming up soon.  Western deer hunting and special hunts still going on.

Scott with an Oregon Pronghorn that he waited on the waterhole for more than 8 hours. Scott had a secret spot and has taken a number of Lopes with the bow & arrow.

Using onX HUNT is the best way to research a unit!

The following bucks have not shown up during the month of December. during the second season archery season.

A great shot at 2015 hour at about 60 yards. They were busy eating apples on a tree I did not know about. Oregon City area.

This is one of the bucks in the above photo. Just that this photo was take in October. Both bucks of the other picture just happen to be in battle…

On the Oregon Antelope-Pronghorn Hunters (Facebook), there was a statement that a hunter drew a Hart Mtn Lope Tag last year and used something like 25 points.  He drew again this year Go Figure!

#onXmaps_HUNT #huntsmarter #teamhunt #bwanabubbaadventurers @bwanabubba

LINK:   2017 Oregon Big Game Regulations

“Oregon Booner Bull”

Facebook:   Oregon Antelope – Pronghorn Hunters

LINK:   Tips on Pronghorn Hunting 

Oregon is a great state to get a Pope & Young Pronghorn, so if you are bowhunter give me a jingle or email!  Got lots of spots for bow hunters for sure!  Why wait 12-25 years to get a rifle tag, though sometime we all like to pull the trigger on a Booner Lope!

I do believe he  is a keeper! High Cutters, so extra measurement! Shoot!

You can also find me on:

U – Tube !     

Archery Talk with Bwana Bubba aka Frank Biggs

The deal has been I expect a short story and pictures, the information is FREE.    A 2015 Pronghorn hunter, asked for help to harvest a big Dinosaur in a limited area, not computer or GPS savvy, wanted a guide, whatever it took.  I got one of my group hunters (David was a 2010 Lope hunter in the area and Mike was 2011 hunter in the area) (my first Booner came from this spot) to overnight current maps and direction to spots with water from a May 2015 scouting.   All the details.  His picture was one with little to show and a 1 line comment, I shot the monster at 300 yards.  I would have expected more for all the effort put into getting him in on a big Lope…   Hell never got the official score either…

My suggestion is that you need a Garmin that has color screen, a slot for Micro SD Card and the mapping software from onX HUNT out of Montana.  I can be contacted via the following email addresses for any questions you might have for on first interview. Free. Intro of me: I am home base out of Oregon –

Oregon Born!  Contact: [email protected]

Thanks for viewing my site! Cobra Here are just a few pictures of friend and some heads mounted!

I can’t see you, so you can’t see me, I am safe here!

This is a buck (2015 hunt) from the S. Wagontire Unit in Oregon. The tag holder was from California and one of five to get drawn for the unit. Old stomping grounds for me.

2015 – One of the hunters that used my information. Great Archery buck from Oregon.

The great Jimmy Duffield! This bull was taken near Dufur, Oregon

My biggest Lope from Oregon with a net of 86.

Brian Henninger – PGA Champion Player with his Grizzly Unit Bull. Brian has taken more than 3 bulls out of the Grizzly Unit.

Friends of mine that I lined up the spot in the Silvies Hunt Unit of Oregon.

August 2015 – Early grouping of a big Roosevelt bulls with their harems. There no satellite bulls in the area.

August – 2015 This was the first bull with about 50 cows. Amazing getting this shot of him bugling. Only time he did. Not other bulls in the area at all. Strange timing.

The picture was taken 6-28-14 at 2030 Hour outside of Molalla, Oregon very close to Hwy 213. A dandy Blacktail buck that was running with another buck that was bigger. Just so fast on the camera and juggling around trees.

This dandy 3X3 Blacktail that is typical of the bucks in Oregon City.

Archery Axis Deer taken on the island of Lanai. No Guide! I was stationed on Oahu for the Navy. Great trip in those days to go to Lanai and hunt for Axis.

This is the sight that I use and believe in how it works. Take aim and harvest the game. Number 1 bowsight in the World!

My biggest typical Rocky Mountain Elk, take off of the Big Muddy! Very heavy but lacks the length needed. 320 Net.

Holly had missed a buck early and got a second chance and took this great Archery Pronghorn at 42 Yards

Taken in the the days of the Rah, Big Muddy on the BLM. 190 Net buck! Archery Buck!

One should have seen the one that went into the draw, when I saw this bruiser coming out of the draw at 800 yards, I only had the side profile and saw mass. The rest is history!

This was suppose to be my target Blacktail this year. Did not get permission to hunt the property – 2015

This bull was my son’s first bull. Take at about 50 feet when we jumped the bull. Spotted at about 2000 yards and made the stalk. 340 Net Bull!

Brian Henninger the PGA Pro, now a top player on the PGA Champions Tour and his Big Muddy Bull. Brian a Weatherby shooter. Two bulls were taken that day and what a story there is behind the scenes on this hunt..

Not a bad Blacktail in the Willamette Valley of Oregon

TrophyStickers

I find great pleasure in finding new companies that have innovation and a dream, proving that entrepreneurs can make a difference…   TrophyStickers is an outstanding example!

How many times have you gone into a Sporting Goods Store and noticed decals or stickers that were of Elk, Deer, Pronghorn and other big game?   They are very popular with hunters and you see them on the back of pickups and SUVs windows quite often.    The decals are always of a big recorded class big game animals that a company had an artist make up.  So is it a dream or reality of the hunter when he or she displays it in the back window?  Why not have a reality sticker showing the real antler or horn configuration.

This decal is of a Mule Deer that I harvest in Oregon some years back. It is 100% accurate of the antler configuration of my Mulie!

I have found a company by the name of TrophyStickers, which can make it a reality for the hunter or even the non-hunter.   It is very simple process to get it done.  You simply take great pictures of your harvested animal, which means straight on frontal and side profiles would be great also.

Why not take great pictures of your once in a Lifetime Mule deer, Whitetail deer, Rocky Mountain bull, Roosevelt bull, Tule bull,  Pronghorn or another big game that you harvested and make it a real sticker that represents the actual animal?

With great photos of your animal’s rack or horns, you get an accurate decal.

Many hunters love to take pictures while scouting, what if you found the monster buck during the scouting-photo op, or even off of your trail cam, why not have it made into a TrophySticker?

A great deal of work and skill to get it right. Very impressed with the detail. Bwana Bubba

What a great present to give your son, daughter or grandchild on their first big game animal harvest.

You can find and get a hold of Trophy Stickers at the following sites:

Internet:              Internet TrophyStickers

Instagram:          Instagram TrophyStickers

Have fun Bwana Bubba

iHUNT by RUGER

I am always amazed by the advancement of technology and what can be done, so mentioning that fact; I am introducing a new mobile App from iHUNT by RUGER, that I have had the privilege to use and entertain myself (plus the crew at work) with the new App from iHUNT by RUGER.   The App is free to load and some of the features are free.

Home Screen, easy to navigate through. Have fun!

The iHUNT by RUGER App is primarily a game call device that you can use with all IOS and Android mobile devices.

It has a number of other superb features such as Solunar Times for hunting, Weather, Compass, Ruger Handguns-Ruger Long Guns (Opens in your search engine), you can shop for Ruger products (Opens in your search engine) , Activity Log and a Place for User photos (Photos that are upload from all users).

iHUNT by RUGER Bluetooth speaker that gets an amazing 50 + yards and 110dB of power. The speaker automatically unlocks the App when you connect it to your phone.

As for Hunting Calls (they need to be purchased) the list is so long, it almost unbelievable.

Alright I will give you the list, not the full content of the calls within the within the call!   Alligators-Crocs, Bears, Birds, Bobcats, Buffalo-Bison, Chickens, Chipmunks, Cows, Coyotes, Crows-Ravens, Deer, Donkeys, Ducks, Elk, Foxes, Geese, Goats, Hawks-Eagles, Jackal, Mice-Rats, Moose, Owls, Pheasants, Prairie Dogs, Quail, Rabbit-Hare, Raccoon, Sheep-Lambs, Snipe Birds, Squirrels, Turkeys, Wild Boar-Pigs, Wildebeest and Zebra.   Quite the list to have!  Not that we are going to use them all, but to know the sounds is amazing.

Just listen to the sampler sounds: Top = Gobble-Tom Middle = Crow Distress Bottom = Fallow Buck

Touch the Hunting calls and it goes to this screen to choose.

Once you open the animal, bird, or other you get to the calls.

Besides being able to use iHUNT by RUGER in the field, it is astonishing learning tool this App can be for the hunter to learn and understand the sounds that game animals, birds, and non-mammals make.   I would check with your State, Province or Country that you can use an electronic call for game you wish to pursue.  Quick and easy to use, it can also be used by children to randomly go through the long list.   Can you imagine sitting by a creek side with you daughter or son, even a grandchildren and have them tell you that is a Raccoon or the allusive Snipe making the noise you’re all are hearing.

Your pictures can be upload and you can see other’s pictures and who they are.

There are a number of options items that you can also purchase to your game calling experience even better.

Entertain the experience and download the iHUNT by RUGER App to your mobile device and gain proficiency in the art of calling in game or knowing the calls of the wild.

Thoughts from Bwana Bubba!

What you carry, can mean success or failure!

There is an old saying by Sailors’, “is you’re “Ditty Bag” complete?”   A sailor would rely on the “Ditty Bag” to have his most important items in it…   No “Ditty Bag” with the essentials for the hunter, outdoor adventurer, fisherman or hiker is an incomplete tool bag.   Today’s “Ditty Bag” will appear as a duffle bag or backpack of sorts.

I see it everywhere, the youth and now even the older generation using mobile devices.  There are so many APPS out there; a mobile device can do just about anything imagined.   APPS have made it easy for everyone to navigate through a daily routine.

“Ditty Bag” A major essential for the complete outdoor person would be an IPad or IPhone or Android Device and last not lest a Garmin GPS (Color Screen – Micro SD Slot).   My mobile device is Apple IPad that seems to go everywhere with me and has the onX HUNT APP.   It is the great research tool that I have in my “Ditty Bag”, it’s like a talking encyclopedia, only it is visual and easy to understand.  As simple as turning on the device, opening the onXmaps HUNT APP and then letting my fingers do the work.

There are three (3) ways to think of the essentials when it comes to mapping in my mind.  The mobile device is for scouting and in the field use.  The laptop (most common computer) is for scouting and the GPS is all about in the field and scouting secondary.

I have 18 layers of information that overlay the 12 available basemaps, also with 5 western states PLATS loaded on my IPad.   The operator gets to decide which overlay or overlays, basemap or basemaps they want to use in their research or the use in the field.   Many outdoor people use their phone such as an Android or one of the many Apple IPhones for everything.   The onXmaps HUNT APP makes it quite easy to use in the course again of daily routine.

onXmaps HUNT – So easy to use!

I would like to mention the number of layers that are available and what some of the key ones are, just to mention a few of them at this time.

The List:

COMPLEMENTARY:
USFS Roads
USFS Recreational Sites
USFS Motor Vehicle Roads, Trail (MVUM)
Current Cloud Coverage
Current Nexrad Radar
Current Wind Conditions
App Plat Coverage Learn about private parcel coverage
NATION:
USA Trail
Points of Interest
Forest Visitor Maps
Prairie Dogs (For Real) Where to find in the West
Current Wildfires
STATE:  My Active
OR-WA-ID-WY-MT Private Lands
OR-WA-ID-WY-MT Government Lands
OR-WA-ID-WY-MT Possible Access
OR-WA-ID-WY-MT (WMU’s) Wildlife Management Units
OR-WA-ID-WY-MT (OR) Access and Habitat Program

Then there is the BASEMAPS that you assign and many can be used offline.

The list is long, but each and every layer & basemap is a valuable tool to those that want to gain knowledge!  One has to study the land and learn the habits of the game to be successful.

This what one of my website hunters might get given to them.

Many times I get emails, especially on Pronghorn for both Oregon and a number of the other known Pronghorn states in the West.   The hunter’s statement and questions normally come in as such:  “I have 15 preference points, what hunt unit can I harvest a recorded class Antelope?”   It has been told to me by and old friend who happens to be an O.D.F.W. (Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife) Biologist, “Every hunt unit in Oregon has at least one Boone & Crockett Pronghorn, and you just don’t want to shoot the first village idiot!”   This statement means that most that wait a longtime for a tag sometimes shoot to fast without studying the animals.   I have suggested too many hunters to go by a sporting goods store and study heads and look at pictures of big bucks.  An example in the Portland Metro area in Oregon, Sportsmen’s Warehouse has two (2) Boone & Crockett Pronghorns on the wall.  One is only 14 ½” in length and the other is 16 5/8” in length with the smaller scoring bigger…   A hunter may not be able to harvest a Booner, but surely can find a good buck.  This will lead into the next paragraph on the B & C (Boone & Crockett) layer.

When you touch the area on the B & C Layer this is what you will see.

So with the Boone & Crockett layer, W.M.U. layer, PLAT map and the Government layer the hunter can find where all the entries come from to help make the right decision when applying for the long awaited tag.  So if you’re serious about becoming the 10% of the hunters that harvest 90% of the game, then don’t wait any longer to get the tools you need to be successful.  What I have found out from my own experiences early on that, I had a mentor to guide me in my youth to become successful in harvesting good animals and some outstanding animals.  The onXmaps HUNT APP has become a major mentor of technical knowledge.

One last layer (State Plat) I am going to talk about is the Private Lands.   A scenario that comes all the time to hunters that have had a bleak day of hunting, you pull into the local service station or small store you get into a conversation with the attendant or the cashier about your day or they ask you about your day.  I have had a number of hunters tell me that the attendant has given them a name of rancher that wants some game reduction done on his place.  You can hit the magnifier on the screen and type in the name and guess what, the landowner’s place shows up majority of the time.  Now if one is real smart about gathering INTEL, they will have the Whitepages booked mark on the mobile device.  The name normally equals phone number in many cases.  I will check out new Blacktail deer spots in the valley during the evenings, find the game and look up the landowner to get permission to hunt.  The onXmaps Hunt mapping makes that possible.

onX HUNT – Taking paper maps and making it easy, no more laying them on the hood of your truck and trying to figure it out!

Another thought is that we meet a lot of people in the field and most like to talk about their hunts or adventurers; I have found many to give road numbers, landmarks and whatever else embellishes the adventurer.  End result is that I am going to absorb the information and it is loaded to my IPad, GPS and laptop.

As you note in my “Ditty Bag”, I also have my Garmin Montana GPS, this is also a must when in the field.  Sometimes, in a deep dark canyon, you might not have mobile device reception and I rely on my Garmin to be accurate in tight areas…

The savvy hunter or outdoor persons will purchase the whole meal deal, everything for the mobile device and for the Garmin GPS (colored monitor-micro-chip slot) and or download to the computer to up-load to the GPS, then back to the computer.  I back-up my waypoints and adventurers to my laptop.

I have only touched surface of what this great mapping tool can do for you, it is time for you to buy and check it.

My “Ditty Bag” has the following items in it, Garmin Montana GPS/onXmaps Hunt software, IPad/onXmaps Hunt APP, Benchmade Knives (2), 12×50 Bausch & Lomb Binoculars, Nikon SLR Camera, Oregon Hunt/Fish License/Tags, rubber gloves, matches, Leatherman, toilet paper and money! Everything else, I pack in my hands or on my body…

My lasting thought to all that read this is, with this technology, inertly trespassing is a thing of the past.  In many states, it is the requirement of the trespasser to know where they are and law enforcement and landowner does not have to prove you were trespassing…

#huntsmarter #teamhunt #onxhunt @onxhunt#bwanabubbaadventurers

Frank Biggs aka Bwana Bubba

onX HUNT

The technology is here for all to enjoy accurate mapping in the field!

How many people know that Wyoming was the first to make jumping B.L.M. corners a trespassing violation?  It is the same in Oregon, as I have tested the waters on this one.

There is technology and mapping resources to keep you from unintentionally trespassing in the State of Oregon and many other states in the continental U.S. that has private land and public land in a mix of blocks with fences and without fences. In many cases a person can gain access to public land using the technology.

For many years I have been helping hunters find places to hunt for big game in the State of Oregon.  In the four years I have been involved with new mapping technology and giving coordinates or waypoints to hunters at NO COST monetarily, none of my hunters that use the technology have ever had an issue. I have expected them to buy a GPS (Garmin) (colored screen) (SD Micro Ready) that interfaces with the Topo Mapping Software from onX HUNT. Recently I have extended free service for those that are using Android and Apple devices.  In this case with the onX HUNT software loaded to the device, I can send them a Google Earth KLM file. This keeps it simple and fast for me to get them into the area, saving a great deal of time in the scouting of an area.

This is what you would see on an Mobile Device from a Google Earth from a KLM file download.

A bit of humor though, when checking back with the hunters after the hunt, I have asked where the pictures and short story are, some have told me “I didn’t find an antelope at the waypoint!” “But I did get kill one close to the spot!”

For those who are savvy with a computer to have the software on the computer and on a colored screen Garmin GPS there is limitless opportunity with the knowledge gained from using the technology.

The great thing about using onX HUNT is that in many states you have the private, private timber lands, BLM, State Lands and National Forest lands distinctively marked for easy reference. In many counties you will see the blocks of private by land owner name.  The onX HUNT Information Technology team is always updating the maps when needed!

And now the new technology with mobile devices…

What does amaze me daily that many hunters who let’s say have waited 12-20 years for a pronghorn tag, still come back to me when they are using their computer to find me and my services and tell me they can’t afford a GPS or they tell me, “I have a paper map.” I don’t even carry paper maps in the field any longer.

This is how my Garmin GPS and Google Earth looks with onXmaps HUNT with waypoints and tracks. You decide if you want accuracy or gray zone!

The major problem with paper maps is that most are outdated and most will not show the small blocks of private land that are on Bureau of Land Management, State Lands (sometimes) or National Forest. Just one example is near Sumpter and Granite, Oregon where there are privately held mines on private land. Always interesting to see the names of the mines in some Oregon’s and other state’s remote locations.  You won’t see that on most paper maps, little along on other mapping software.  I can guarantee with a National Forest map or road map, you’re going to get a trespassing ticket if you rely on that source to keep you legal.  A landowner up in this neck of the woods on an active mine, might not take too kindly to someone trespassing.  Now if you had the onX HUNT mapping, you might be able to find the landowner and get permission to hunt. Remember, asking is not that hard to do!

This would be the typical National Forest Map and other mapping companies software on a GPS Device.

Yet to this day in a moment of compassion, I will print a map from my onX HUNT program, scan it and send it to a person so they can hunt. It is just not the same doing this rather than to have the waypoints on a GPS and while at camp, look at them on a laptop for the next day’s hunt. You can make a route to get to that hard to reach spot.  For those that don’t have a Garmin, they might only get txt files and try to figure them out on a map.  Land ownership and boundaries change over the years, just look at the boundaries of the Warm Springs Indian Reservation today versus 15 years ago.

Now this is the view of the above National Forest land with onXmaps HUNT software on a Garmin GPS.

Having a local tell you, “Once you get to the store in Hampton, there is a road that goes to the north out of town, travel for about a mile, stop at the first tree on the left, turn then once you cross the stream on Grade 7 road, then travel about 1 mile, then turn right at the big boulder with class of 70 painted on it, then up the hill until you see the pine tree, then take the second dirt road to the left” is utterly confusing. Most of us get lost!

I hear of hunters or outdoor people getting ticketed every day for trespassing unknowingly. The fine alone, if they get a good judge with compassion, you could have bought a new Garmin Montana and onX HUNT SD Micro Card, and many sporting goods stores have package deals!

Garmin Montana with on HUNT SD Chip software. Actual hunting spot for Pronghorns.

The other amazing thing is that the GPS and the mapping software will give the hunter or outdoor person and insight into the unknown. You’ll find places you can go, that you never knew existed.  These places aren’t advertised, but once you locate them by using the equipment, you can make the call or let’s say check with ODFW on private lands on which the public can hunt. Do you really think that timber companies advertise for the public to hunt their lands?  They might have some lands open, but they also have some not opened to the public and yet both are posted the same way!

Bwana Bubba of Oregon

Through time in the field, knowledge comes to all!

None us come out knowing everything.  So over the years I have absorbed a great deal of knowledge about hunting Pronghorn – Antelope that roam the high plains and arid lands of the United States.  One of the most magnificent mammals that has survived since the Ice Age.  It is one of the few living links to the Ice Age.  They are an ancient species dating back about 20 million years and are the lone survivors of a family of hoofed mammals found only in North America (Antilocapridae)  A little history class for hunters!

A nice heavy buck, maybe next year!

Oregon truly is a sleeper state for hunting Pronghorn – Antelope – Lope or Dinosaurs!  Problem is getting a tag for resident or even non-resident.   Many non-resident hunters put in for many states, with the hope of drawing.  As for those of use that live in Oregon, getting a tag runs from 8 to 25 years for a rifle tag and 1 to 3 years for archery.   Sometimes you might be lucky and draw a tag based on the hold back tags put in random draw.  As a biologist friend of mine once told me Oregon’s Pronghorn units all hold Boone & Crockett warrantable bucks. Biggest problem is holding out for the big buck, judging bucks, know the whereabouts and what unit has the best possible chance for a trophy buck.

This archery buck scored 78″ 13 1/2″ with 6 1/2″ Prongs.

When I first started out with my first tag for an Oregon Pronghorn, I had help from a Naval Officer that I knew while on active duty in the Navy, he had great deal of knowledge, plus his friend a young BLM summer help student that knew the area.  His name was Rod Briece, who later became my Commanding Officer and was a long time hunting friend.

We did not go blindly into the hunt unit, as there was a game plan to check out many different areas of the unit in a short period of time.  We did get into the unit prior to the hunt by one full day to scout.   We had about 4 game plans with the A, B, C, and D plan changing with the sighting of bucks.  The final plan of the day became a A plan for the opening morning.   I was successful on my first Pronghorn hunt to get a buck that scored 85″.   He and his does had come into the same waterhole that we had seen them at, the evening before.  At about 0715 the buck came to the waterhole.  Over the following years in this particular unit it put out many trophy Pronghorns.  This does not include the ones that a few missed during the hunts and the hunter came up empty handed…

One of the greatest lessons that I learned with hunting Pronghorns is the use of the binoculars and patience.  Finding vantage points and glassing over massive areas.   Pronghorns have always been the animal, you don’t see me now, but wait long enough I will be standing there.  Amazing creature that has intrigued me for many decades.  Even on that first hunt, we glassed from afar and it paid off.  I always look for mass from a side profile of the head.  If warranted, I have a spotting scope to do a better judgement of the buck.   Many times the heat waves in the high desert are so bad that there seems to be an illusion of what you see.  So seeing the side profile is most important. Length is not always as important as mass and the high of the prongs (cutters) on the horn.

Mapping is very important for hunters, whether it is Pronghorn hunting or any other movement in the outdoors.  I find it is almost as important as the optics and the weapon of choice.

Until recently, lets say 1998, most of use would have B.L.M. maps or other maps to find places to hunt.  The GPS came along and it was ok, to know where you were, but not much good to know where to go.  A few software companies tried back then, but were crude and not very accurate.  Along comes onX HUNT a few years ago and what a success story for the company and the people that use their products. It is a lot of fun to have knowledge of places to hunt (landmarks), take them and mark them in the mapping software on the computer and then move them to the GPS.   A great way to share information that is accurate.   Like having a snapshot of a hillside that you have seen, but now you get to remember where it is.  Better yet, at times when using the software and Google Earth via the laptop to Garmin GPS, it like watching TV…  Remember by using this software, you might even be able to find a rancher or farmer that dislike Dinosaurs and will give you permission.  For DIY you’ll find that you just might not need a guide for out of state hunts.  Many got it figured out how to hunt public land for Pronghorns!
        onX HUNT

BLM and the Private Food Plot via Google Earth and onX  HUNT

You figure it out how you want to hunt. Find legal land and game! From onX HUNT Viewer

onX HUNT mapping from the computer.

 

For those that Rifle hunt, the following are my thoughts:  

We all have options on what caliber to hunt with for Pronghorns and my thoughts are no different.  Having many calibers to choose from, I am a firm believer to go big on this medium size mammal.   It is about the changes that can happen with the weather and other conditions.   Maybe a shot at 50 yards, or just maybe a 300 plus yard shot with the wind blowing at 30 knots.

This archery buck score 86″ 14 1/2″ with 8″ Prongs. Very heavy mass.

This brings up another subject:   Making sure you have great shot placement and anchor the Pronghorn down.  Tracking for trying to find a Pronghorn in the sagebrush after a hit from afar, might just lead to not finding it.  Years ago one of my hunters that I gave waypoints to shot a monster lope in a large sagebrush flat.  It was late and darkness was fast approaching.  He decide to wait for morning!  A great mistake as one loses focus of what he or she might have seen with the shot.  With a Pronghorn left overnight, the coyotes have already taken are of it. You might be lucky to find the horns, but in many cases the horns have been taken care of also.  Anchor the animal as with any animal in it’s tracks or close proximity.

Bowhunting for Pronghorns can be the best hunt of a Liftime.

In my time I have done a great deal of scouting and researching of Pronghorn or Antelope as most call this great animal from the past in Oregon and the rest of the Western States, where they roam in hunt-able numbers.  For archery hunters in many of the Western States you have a chance to hunt every year for Antelope.  Where as with a rifle you might have to wait some 8-25 years to draw a tag, at least in the Oregon.  I have hunters in Oregon that are now hunting almost every year with the bow.   A  great challenge to hunt with the bow, but what a rush and accomplishment to harvest up close and personal.  You’ll find hunting with the bow for Antelope a great sport that you won’t be able to stop doing.   I have been told by my hunters that they have had the best experience hunting Antelope over anything else they have hunted in North America.  It could be that they see a lot of Antelope while hunting them.   Since competition for tags is so great, some of use will wait the whatever years to get the rifle tag, get it done and the following years put in for a bow tag.   Not many years ago in Oregon and I am sure in other states, you put in for a rifle tag and make your second choice a bow tag.   I do believe that I did this at least 10 times over the years.   Very fortunate to have harvest a number of great bucks with the arrow.   Now I find that many are taking great bucks with the arrow in many hunt units in many states.  With less competition to hunt with the bow and arrow, plus the greater chance to get a tag, my suggestion is to take up bow hunting if you haven’t and get it done!  It easier than you think to harvest with the bow.  Pronghorns can be stalked pretty easy with cover, or you lay ambush in a ground blind.

This is a great buck, worthy of any wall! Didn’t have a tag, but hunting season was upon us. 100 foot photo op!

I one thing I have learned after all these years and not even being in some of my old haunts for many years, is that Pronghorn are animals of habit from generation to generation.   They cover the same ground and do the same things from one generation to another.  Most of the land in which they live never changes.   There was one buck that my friends & hunters chased for about three years and never got.  I really wanted him for myself is what all thought.  He would be located in the same spot within a 1/4 mile and escape basically the same way.  His escape route was not one you could cover and he knew it.  Now if we ambushed him in his normal spot he could have been taken.  He was one of the biggest Antelope I ever hunted.  I did get one hunter on him at very close range with a standing broadside, but he missed.  The only thing that had changed is the B.L.M. put a solar power water pump on a water hole in one of my favorite spots.   Even the old ranchers sign was still there and he had been gone for a long time.  The sign had stated in so many words that you were crossing into his lands.  This happen to be B.L.M. that he leased, but did not own. Now you know one of the reasons to have a mapping and gps system that lets you know your legal.  Many times my hunters tell me, “WOW”, you were right on the money for Lopes being there…

This is a great buck taken in Oregon also in a 2 season unit.

I have seen mature bucks standing in the middle of a back country road in B.L.M., marking the road.  No, not by scratching but by urinating in the middle of road.   Once someone knows some of the peculiar habits of Antelope, you can use it to your advantage.   Such is the case a couple of years ago when I spot a group of Antelope in a 5 tag unit.  I wanted the picture of the buck and just knew he would go around the mountain and want to get back into the hole.  He did just that and my son asked how did you know?

Not a big buck in a 5 tag unit, but it was nice to be able to read his mind! He cut my path at about 75 yards, trying to double back to the basin!

I have taken a great deal of Antelope with the bow and all but a rifle kill has been from stalking.   A great deal of the bow hunters I know do wait on water, but you have to have patience.  One of my GPS Hunters – Bowhunters sat for two (2) days for more than 12 hours.  He as been successful two (2) years in a row on the same waterhole.   I do love to stalk them and arrow them before they know I am there.  Antelope do lay in the sagebrush flats and with a lot of glassing from a vantage point you can find them and stalk within bow range easily.

Which one is the shooter in this crowd?

Note:  Then there is the issue with sunglasses, I will always wear sunglasses (favorite are Ray-Ban Wayfarer-easy to lift with bino’s with no bind) during the day and “Photo Grays” for the evening hunts.  I felt if the game, especially Antelope can’t see my eyes or movement then I could close the gap on them even easier once spotted.  I always wore a hat and a backpack with the spotting scope & tripod sticking out of the top.  It is what it is with habits and wearing the same pants on every hunt!

Most experience hunters have there ways to hunt game, whether it is from stalking, waiting, ambush or just being lucky and walking into a shoot-able animal.  It is whatever works for you, that makes the hunt!

You also have to be patient and let the smaller bucks (“VILLAGE IDIOTS”) go by, so you can harvest the trophy buck.

Just a short little video of a nice buck ( we had him set for the following year) in the Grizzly Hunt Unit in Oregon:  Pronghorn in the Big Muddy!

Bwana Bubba