Blacktail hunters ONLY

eelgrass

eelgrass

Long Time Member
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Please don't show this to any hardcore Mule deer hunters. Let's keep this to ourselves.:)

It's taken me about 2 years but I finally talked a friend into letting me take some pictures of some of the better bucks he's taken over the years. We had to dig them out of the rafters in his garage. I think you'll agree it was worth the effort.

These are all blacktails taken on public land in California, and not blacktail/muley cross. He promised to hang a tag on me if I revealed more than that!:)

I hope you enjoy seeing these as much as I did photographing them! (I never remember to use fill-in flash! Sorry Jim!)

42ed17ca13f169d9.jpg


The buck in the back row on the right hand end is the buck he got last year.

42ed185a149ec16f.jpg


42ed18a9150fc0e4.jpg


42ed18d8157daebe.jpg
 
Sweet. That is definately one of the better collections of B Zone blacktail bucks I've seen. Has anyone seen the collection of bomber blacktails that the Smith bros have whacked? No, not the Smith's that Cass talks about!!
 
LAST EDITED ON Jul-31-05 AT 10:03PM (MST)[p]LOOKS LIKE BLACKIES TO ME EXCEPT ONE(4X4 WITH EYE GUARDS,1st photo last on right top)!
DON'T SEE MANY PERFECT 4N4's blackies!
I can now say I hunt next month!
good batch of bone!
thank you for sharing!
Rm
 
Steve and I thought you guys were getting together for a few beers. Funny thing is you never hear Jim talk about how big or how many bucks he's killed like some others in the brake room.



Kyle
 
great bunch of blacktails ... how come none of them are mounted? just not his thing, wife... just wondering. any booked ? don't get me wrong ,some like to be low key...thats ok with me.
 
None make the book. If I remember, the best one scores 127 net. Jim's not much into mounting his kills or showing them off. He just loves to hunt.

We have a big buck contest at the sawmill we both work at and Jim takes first place about every three years. (I've never won!)

Thanks for looking and Good Luck to all this season!

Steve
 
Trust me he has tryed.I to have been lucky enought to win one year. Lucky Jim had an off year.


Kyle

Hey Steve one of these days you will have to swing by and film my P/Y Blacky.
 
Quite an impressive collection. Looks like nor cal grows them big. My partners dad has a huge collection of blacktails, and most of them mature bucks, but nothing to the size and number of points that your buddy has.

Were all of these taken with a rifel or are there any bow bucks?

CAjackrabbitWCP
 
Kyle,

I forgot about your buck! I'll bring my camera.:)

Brian, I tried that one year with my Wyoming buck. Almost started a riot! :) Blacktails only.

These are all rifle kills

Steve
 
Those are all great bucks, what is it with getting over 125" I've got a handfull also around 125" even one 26" wide and only scored 107" (4x3) I still wouldn't pass him .I chased him for 7 years. He was just going down hill in the horn department. Hey, win that contest this year... good luck
 
Is that Jim S. from Willow Creek? Sure looks like him. My dad went to high school and wrestled with Jim....he is a family friend. He is a hard hunter and has definately earned his bucks....his dad has some dandys from Idaho as well. I would post some of my blacktails taken in the same general area if I could figure out how to post the damn things.....
 
LAST EDITED ON Aug-06-05 AT 06:34PM (MST)[p]BlacktailBC,

That is Jim S. alright!

I sent you a PM. Check your "in box".

I will try to post your pictures if you can mail them to me at:

[email protected]

Steve
 
I will show you what racks I gotten! blackies only!
As soon as head over to the barn!(gate post in dog run is rusted thru and so I need to replace it and thats where the antlers are!)
jack
 
no, getting out of the truck Jim hunts alot of stuff that is off the grid.


Kyle
 
eel....Do you still have the pics ? pics come up blank when I click the link. By far the most impressive collection of blacktails I've ever seen. Probably one of the most impressive collection of blacktails on the planet. Those pics gave me a blacktail hard on for years till I got one for myself.
Cheers!
 
Eel, I don't see any pics only little red X's. What am I doing wrong? I would love to see this collection that everyone is commenting on.
Here is my collection of mostly A zone blacktails. There are a couple mule deer, a few whitetail, and one sitka blacktail.

IMG952018103195075830835.jpg
 
Last edited:
offtrail said:
eel....Do you still have the pics ? pics come up blank when I click the link. By far the most impressive collection of blacktails I've ever seen. Probably one of the most impressive collection of blacktails on the planet. Those pics gave me a blacktail hard on for years till I got one for myself.
Cheers!
Click to expand...
I dug through my old computer and only found this one photo. They're probably buried in a folder somewhere. I'll keep looking.

48e78d96419bd600.jpg
 
Hell ya eel....just as I remembered it. Truly impressive!! it's impossible to understand what a challenge it is to harvest a mature Columbia blacktail if you've never hunted them. To step foot on public land and take just one mature blacktail is a task in its self. To do it year after year is something very few humans have done. Arguably the hardest public land deer hunt in north America.
If you pride yourself on being a great hunter this is a hunt that should be on your bucket list. Most people on here poopoo on Cali however its wide open for you to pick up a b zone tag walk into the great mountains of northwest Cali and try your hand at a truly awesome hunt. Maybe.... just maybe.... if you're lucky enough to put yourself in the right place at the right time you might have a close encounter with the grey ghost.
Thanks eel, I appreciate you digging up that pic.

IMG_1170.JPG

Trinity Alps....09
 
offtrail said:
Hell ya eel....just as I remembered it. Truly impressive!! it's impossible to understand what a challenge it is to harvest a mature Columbia blacktail if you've never hunted them. To step foot on public land and take just one mature blacktail is a task in its self. To do it year after year is something very few humans have done. Arguably the hardest public land deer hunt in north America.
If you pride yourself on being a great hunter this is a hunt that should be on your bucket list. Most people on here poopoo on Cali however its wide open for you to pick up a b zone tag walk into the great mountains of northwest Cali and try your hand at a truly awesome hunt. Maybe.... just maybe.... if you're lucky enough to put yourself in the right place at the right time you might have a close encounter with the grey ghost.
Thanks eel, I appreciate you digging up that pic.

View attachment 80715
Trinity Alps....09
Click to expand...
Very well said. That's sure a great buck. Knowing there are bucks like that out there keeps a guy going back year after year.
 
offtrail said:
Hell ya eel....just as I remembered it. Truly impressive!! it's impossible to understand what a challenge it is to harvest a mature Columbia blacktail if you've never hunted them. To step foot on public land and take just one mature blacktail is a task in its self. To do it year after year is something very few humans have done. Arguably the hardest public land deer hunt in north America.
If you pride yourself on being a great hunter this is a hunt that should be on your bucket list. Most people on here poopoo on Cali however its wide open for you to pick up a b zone tag walk into the great mountains of northwest Cali and try your hand at a truly awesome hunt. Maybe.... just maybe.... if you're lucky enough to put yourself in the right place at the right time you might have a close encounter with the grey ghost.
Thanks eel, I appreciate you digging up that pic.

View attachment 80715
Trinity Alps....09
Click to expand...
Are the cali black tails “Columbia “ black tails? I don’t think that’s what BC calls them. I always thought the bucks down there were bench legs. I’ve got a Columbia black tail on the wall from the base of mount Rainer that goes 129”, true rain forest black tail. Couple next to him a little smaller. For western Washington that was a pretty big buck
 
JPickett said:
Are the cali black tails “Columbia “ black tails? I don’t think that’s what BC calls them. I always thought the bucks down there were bench legs. I’ve got a Columbia black tail on the wall from the base of mount Rainer that goes 129”, true rain forest black tail. Couple next to him a little smaller. For western Washington that was a pretty big buck
Click to expand...
You thought wrong.....All the pictured bucks in this thread fall within the B&C "Columbia blacktail" boundaries.....and some mighty fine Blacktails they are......
 
offtrail said:
Hell ya eel....just as I remembered it. Truly impressive!! it's impossible to understand what a challenge it is to harvest a mature Columbia blacktail if you've never hunted them. To step foot on public land and take just one mature blacktail is a task in its self. To do it year after year is something very few humans have done. Arguably the hardest public land deer hunt in north America.
If you pride yourself on being a great hunter this is a hunt that should be on your bucket list. Most people on here poopoo on Cali however its wide open for you to pick up a b zone tag walk into the great mountains of northwest Cali and try your hand at a truly awesome hunt. Maybe.... just maybe.... if you're lucky enough to put yourself in the right place at the right time you might have a close encounter with the grey ghost.
Thanks eel, I appreciate you digging up that pic.

View attachment 80715
Trinity Alps....09
Click to expand...
Great buck! I need a Columbian to complete my deer slam… I’ll never have enough money for a sheep slam so deer it is…
 
JPickett said:
Are the cali black tails “Columbia “ black tails? I don’t think that’s what BC calls them. I always thought the bucks down there were bench legs. I’ve got a Columbia black tail on the wall from the base of mount Rainer that goes 129”, true rain forest black tail. Couple next to him a little smaller. For western Washington that was a pretty big buck
Click to expand...
Yep, they are all Columbia black tails. The rule of thumb is anything west of Interstate 5, they are black tail, anything east, they are mule deer, or bench legs. I believe they do DNA testing now to prove if they are black tails, east of the highway.
The picture of the buck I posted is over 147" gross score.
 

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