"Whattya think?" came a voice from beneath a sweat stained hat. "Think we should hunt him this year, or give him another year?"
"You’re talking about that double drop, I suppose. How often have you seen that deer in the past," I queried.
"With the time we saw him about an hour ago during the survey it’s the first time he’s been seen during daylight hours. But the hands told me about him. Said they’ve seen him a couple of times at night crossing the road going to the Guajalote Mill." Came the answer. With that he kicked the dirt, "Think I’ll declare him off limits! I know this country has a past history of producing double drops, but that was back when. Remember me showing you the mounts of the deer my dad and uncles shot back I the 1950s." I nodded an affirmative. "Those came off of this place, not far from where we saw the double drop today. I know we’ve got the genetics for ‘em, it’s just been years since I’ve seen a double drop here."
"It’s your place and your call. I will say it looked like he was at least a 6 year old maybe even older... You’ve not even gotten a photos of him on you’re the trail camera, huh?" I asked.
"Got lots of other photos of good bucks but nary a one that even looks remotely like him," he responded.
"From what you’ve told me of him thus far, and where we saw him in relationship to roads and existing deer stand; I doubt he traveled very far before we saw him. It’s not a mature buck’s nature to run or move very far in front of helicopters. Most of the time, unlike younger bucks that will run and run, older buck tend to be a whole lot more careful about expending unnecessary energy. Guess what I’m trying to say, I doubt seriously you or your hunters will see him again anytime this fall. Over the years I’ve seen a whole lot of big bucks that were spotted during helicopter surveys that were never seen during the hunting season. Not all mind you, but most big bucks I’ve seen from the air during past surveys seldom get shot during the season, matter of fact they seldom are ever even seen by the hunters."
I continued, "I suspect the drop-tine is one of those bucks that produces just enough testosterone to get him through the antler cycle, but not so much testosterone that he chases very much. That way he exposes himself to danger a lot less by chasing does, making him more interested in survival than spending time with the ladies. Thus he makes it through the rut in great shape, doesn’t lose much weight. He never really gets run down like other bucks, so when it’s time to grow a new set of antlers he does so not having gone through the rut with a whole lot less stress. I’ve seen numerous such bucks each year," with that I handed him my recommendations for both bucks and does for the coming season.
"I’ll make you a bet," I said, "I’ll bet you a steak dinner for four at our Los Cazadores restaurant along with four rounds of drinks, that neither you nor your hunters will kill that double drop this year. Matter of fact I’ll bet you case of Anhueser Busch’s finest ya’ll don’t even see the buck this fall. But in saying that you have to show me photos or footage to prove me wrong." Then I continued, "If I’m right you have to buy me a steak dinner and a bottle of good red wine...agreed?"
With that the guy in the sweat stain western stuck out his hand, "Partner you got yourself a bet!"
It was mid November until I got to see my betting friend. He and two of his hunters brought in two sizeable bucks to be scored for the Contest. Both were extremely fine buck, I guess them at somewhere between 165 and 168, even though their antler styles were different. One was wide while the other was narrow. But when both were scored for the Contest one scored 166 and 2/8s and the other 167 and 5/8s. As we talked about those two bucks I asked him if they had seen the double drop buck...
"Naw, can’t say we have. Saw a buck a couple of days ago, but if it was him he’s broken off his left drop. Still I don’t think it was him, he looked a bit too short-tined form what I remember."
It was the evening of the last day of the season when I again saw the better. We visited about several of the bucks his hunters had brought through the contest, all bucks scoring between 160 and the high 170s, impressive bucks all. "What about that double drop, have you seen him. I know you have haven’t killed him, otherwise I’d seen him on the photo wall or heard about him for the staff or my partners."
"Dadgummit, I had to say this, but ain’t see hide, hair, nor horn of him. I even started hunting him right before Christmas; tried everything including corning little openings in the big thicket we saw him in during the survey. Tried rattling, grunting, just about everything you can legally do to hunt a buck, but all without success." He kicked the ground, "Hate to admit it, but you were right! I’d love to have seen him because it’s going to pain me mightifully to have to buy your dinner." He hesitated, "When you gonna be back this way, let’s set a date over at the restaurant.
"How about two weeks from today?"
"OK, I’ll meet you in the bar at 7:30 in the evening."
Two weeks later I was waiting for the better to show, sitting there visiting with Gary Machen about the quality of bucks which had come through our Los Cazadores Contest, when the door opened. In walked the better, "You ain’t gonna believe what I saw just before dark today..."
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