Had a great trip to Moorcroft, Wyoming w/ Trey Aars of Double A Hunts (www.aahunts.com)

Executive summary:  We had an awesome tip, great host, great company, & lots of quality animals.

NOTE: video & some add'l. pictures pending....but here's a quick report:

 We had an exhausting travel day on Friday, Delta's air con system was not working so our flight was delayed causing us to miss our connection in Salt Lake.  We spent almost 8 hours waiting in SLC for the next flight to Gillette, WY.   We a stop over in Rock Springs where it had snowed a good bit and the plane required de-icing.  The pilot had indicated that visibilty was so poor it was doubtful we'd be able to land, but at the last minute thing cleared up enough for us to land. The snow and winds gusting at 40-50mph.  Not a good sign for tomorrow's hunt. 

23.5 hours after we had left Macon, we were finally in Moorcroft, think we could have driven in a little less than that time.   Trey was a great host, in constant contact with me getting updates and planning for our arrival to get us settled in after midnight. 

We didn't realize it but the ranch we would be hunting was in fact on the opposite side of Gillette, so we had 100 mile drives to and from camp to the 5-6,000 acre ranch we'd be hunting.  It was Trey's first time hunting this ranch, and he promised he'd seen lots of nice antelope during his scouting expeditions.  On the commute, we'd have plenty of opportunity to see a few whitetail, and lots of mulies, antelope, and birds, each day.  We stopped in Gillette to check our guns at a shooting range.  I've never seen a range lined with monster truck tires from the coal mines nearby.  These tires were off the 50 ton haul trucks, stacked 4 high at then end, and for a hundred yards on each side, a very unique range. 

Day One - SAT 10/8:  Wind, Rain, & Cold.  Don't think the temperature got above 42F, but the wind and dampness made it bone chilling.  Our batting order was Daniel, dad, myself, and then Hugh.   Well Daniel was lucky as the first antelope we saw ended up being a dandy, nice and unusually wide, taped at almost 15", with 6" bases.  It helped that the buck wasn't too skittish either as Daniel was able to get a 200 yard shot on him. 

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The ranch was loaded with antelope, so it didn't take to long to spot another nice buck for dad.  Dad made his longest shot ever on an animal, taking a 14" antelope with 6.5" bases, with one shot.  It wasn't even lunch yet, and we were two for two. 

I was next, but looking for a really exceptional goat.  We saw a few very nice bucks, but they were either too far, or ran for miles as soon as they spotted us on the horizon.  Hugh was a great help backing up Trey on judging the quality of the antelope we were seeing.  It was nice to have another voice of experience along with.  It was a long frustrating afternoon.  We saw tremendous amounts of antelope and a few very special bucks, but the does with them would always spook and do their 70 mph Cheetah impressions and run for the hills.  With the ground getting wetter with all the rain, the roads starting getting really sloppy.    We were spinning all 4 tires, even on level ground.   I was amazed we didn't get stuck coming through some of the draws and creek bottoms. We quit hunting around 5:00 so we'd have time to get Daniel & dad's bucks back to the processor in Gillette.   Despite driving for hours, seeing herds of antelope along the way, we'd still only covered 2/3'rds of the ranch.  I was excited to see how tomorrow would unfold.

Day 2: SUN 10/9:  More Rain & Cold, NO WIND.  Well we were enthusiastic when the weather forecast indicated the high would be in the 50's (wrong!).  The temperature basically dropped as we left camp at 44F, and again stayed in the low 40's all day.  The wind however, had died, made it feel warmer outside, and it seemed to make the antelope less jumpy.  They were much more likely to stay in place when we spotted them, not high tail it for the next county as they did yesterday.   We could actually get close to smaller bucks, and the does with the bigger bucks didn't seem to spook so easily taking them away with them. 

I tried to pass the baton to Hugh after taking all yesterday afternoon glassing and passing on bucks, but he wouldn't have any of that.  I as still at bat, pressure on to close the deal so he'd have plenty of time to find his monster.  It didn't help that the back seat drivers thought any horned antelope was sufficient, trying to rush me so we could all head back to camp for a hot lunch. 

We finally spotted some nice bucks hanging out in an area we had found them the day before.  The difference today was that they'd only run a few hundred yards and stop, and not clear into Colorado.  While trying to close in on a really nice buck, Trey noticed an exceptionally curled antelope on the horizon.  There was no debate, no description, just "shoot that buck."  Trey gives me a quick range reading of 310 yards, gulp, this was going to be my longest shot ever.  Thankfully, my sighting and practice paid off, and with one lucky shot, he just rolled over.  I have never been so relieved.  I didn't realize the pressure was so great and that I was so anxious, but boy was I so glad to have made a good shot w/the peanut gallery looking on.  The curls added some length, the buck measured 14".

Now Hugh had taken an antelope or two previously, so he was enjoying glassing lots of bucks.  We enjoyed a tailgate lunch from a high vista on the ranch, man that was some beautiful country.  Trey and Daniel found some petrified wood within steps of the truck, just another gem added to our experience.   

He glassed many bucks, but no real shooters showed themselves.  Later we doubled back over one of the areas we had seen some good bucks on the previous day, and we found a nice buck with some does. As they spotted the truck, they dashed over the horizon.  Trey led Hugh to the ridge line in hopes they'd stopped just over the otherside.  Well the bucks & does had split up, but the buck was still relatively close at 300 yards.  By the time Hugh got set, the buck was at 320, 340, 360, finally pausing at almost 400 yards.  Hugh squeezed off a shot and his buck dropped in his tracks.  Another great 14" buck. 

We headed back to Gillette with our antelope, exchanged them for fresh processed but frozen antelope sausage, jerky slim jims, and assorted meat packs, that we could carry back w/us on the plane.  We had a couple hours of daylight left once we made it back to camp.  Trey took everyone on a wildlife tour of the black hills with plenty of whitetail, mulies, and turkey to be seen.  Seems the best monster mulie buck was in Trey's sister's yard! 

We had an afternoon flight home, so had plenty of time to sleep in, pack up, and head to the airport.  Since we had time, we took a detour and visited the Devil's Tower Monument, maybe 16 miles from camp.  What an incredibly odd landscape feature it is.  There's a meadow w/plenty of prairie dogs just at the foot of the tower.  We spotted a badger crossing the pasture, it was exciting to see another new species on the trip.

It was a great trip, everyone had filled their tags with a unique animal, shot, and a story to go along with.  Trey & his mother were great hosts.  Cold drinks and warm food were plentiful.  Trey was patient with us, very open in sharing his knowlege and experience, and worked continuously to make sure things were taken care of on our behalf.  The lodge was adorned with lots of tremendous trophies to keep the dreams alive about the hunts ahead.  I would highly recommend Trey if you are looking for a great hunt.