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BRUCE VANCE: whitetail 12-point taken 12/3/23 in Kent County.

GEAR: Mossberg Patriot 6.5 Creedmoor, Hornady 147-grain match ammo.

OUTFITTER: Dad.

#texas trophy hunters #hunting #deer hunting #big game #wild game #wildlife #texas hunting

Entries from the Hunters Extravaganza Annual Deer Competition in Houston, Texas, Aug. 2-4. We'll have two more contests in Fort Worth, Texas, Aug. 9-11 and San Antonio, Texas, Aug. 16-18. For more information, visit ttha.com/deer-competition/.

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This pronghorn buck came to water on opening day last season at 6:30 p.m. The buck was only 12 yards from the blind, but the hunter chose to shoot the young buck with his camera instead of his bow.

Brandon Ray photo

#texas trophy hunters #hunting #big game #wildlife #pronghorn antelope

Trophy Hunters of Tomorrow

By Horace Gore

Case Summers is a tenth grader who lives in Granbury, Texas, and is a bowhunter, par excellence. Case won first place-Out of State category at the Fort Worth Extravaganza Annual Deer Competition in 2023 with a big eight-point taken in Kansas. He has entered four bucks in the Fort Worth show, placing all four, and winning first place two times. He is definitely a Trophy Hunter of Tomorrow.

Case got his first buck with a crossbow at age 6. Since that first buck, he has taken five more with a crossbow, and his last six have been taken with a compound bow. To be sure, Case is a regular Robin Hood with a compound bow, and has the trophies and awards to prove it. He has mounted heads, plaques, and belt buckles for his many 3-D shoots and deer hunts. Case won a belt buckle at an Extravaganza 3-D shoot that will knock your eyes out. As for deer in 2024, he says he is ready for the coming deer season.

Case has been to South Africa on a sponsored trip by Zengala Safaris. He met a professional hunter named Nico, who guided him for gemsbok, impala, wildebeest and warthog—all taken with his compound bow. Case also wants to get a good mule deer, and also wants to go back to Africa for an eland and bush buck. Bush bucks are hard to come by.

For some time, Case has had three sponsors—Ozonics, Vanetec, and Tactacam—who work with him in his bow shooting, while he furnishes them with hunting experiences and commercial hunting photos. Ozonics is a scent elimination system; Vanetec is a product of arrow veins; and Tactacam produces trail cameras. Case is pro staff for Vanetec and Tactacam, and is field staff for Ozonics. All products influence archery hunting, and provide ways to “get-the-game.”

Case’s best buck came from Sterling County where he hunts and helps with deer management on the ranch. His best buck—a 10-point—came from Sterling County, and won first place at Fort Worth in 2022. He does ranch chores (for money) and also helps with deer and other animals during the season. Sterling County is on the western edge of the Edwards Plateau, and has an arid, but productive wildlife habitat.

Other than archery, Case likes football and baseball. He will be a sophomore this fall at Granbury High, and he may have to get a stick to keep the girls away.

Case had some advice to young bow hunters—be patient; watch your noise; stay quiet, and be careful of your smell. He says a hunter should enjoy the hunt and keep hunting, even when you’re not successful or miss a shot. He also reminds all hunters that practice is rewarding when a good shot presents itself.

At 15, Case Summers is a rare individual when it comes to bowhunting. I’m sure he would tell anyone that it takes practice, patience, and the desire to “go again.” We salute Case as a Trophy Hunter of Tomorrow, and hope he gets a big ’un this deer season.

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MADISON McCURLEY: whitetail 12-point (first hunt) taken 11/20/2023 in Dewitt County, Texas.

GEAR: 6.5 Grendel, 4-32X Wraith digital scope.

OUTFITTER: Haun Ranch.

#texas trophy hunters #hunting #big game #wildlife #whitetail deer #whitetail bucks

Summertime is a good time to encounter any Texas snake. Journal Editor Horace Gore gives a short primer on the venomous Texas snakes.

Just something for your summertime entertainment.

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On newsstands now, our July-August issue. Guaranteed to cure your summer boredom.

Rather have a subscription? Visit TTHA.com.

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DID YOU KNOW…

The pronghorn (Antilocapra americana) is considered the fastest land mammal in North America, clocked at speeds of up to 60 miles per hour and can maintain a relatively high speed for hours.

Pronghorn can detect movement up to 4 miles away. When alerted to danger, they contract their rump muscles causing their white rump hairs to stand on end, which other pronghorn may detect from 2 miles away. At the same time, they exude a musky odor, which can be detected for more than a mile. —source: Texas Parks and Wildlife Dept.

Marty Berry photo

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Endurance pursuits for prey was not as rare in hunter-gatherer societies as previously thought, research suggests.

As Mr. Spock would say: "Fascinating."

#texas trophy hunters #hunting #big game #prehistoric hunting #long-distance running

When man began hunting hogs with dogs, things were very simple. Most likely, it was a man armed with a spear or bow and whatever canine or canines he could find to run and bay the hog. Once the hog was held at bay, the hunter would sneak in and attempt to kill the hog with crude weaponry. The prey had to be close and occupied by the dog so the hunter could execute the kill. If the hunter failed, he didn’t eat. It was that simple.

Today, it’s still a man and his dog, but that’s where the similarities end. The modern pack of hog dogs has specialists. You have the “bay” dogs—usually black mouth curs—whose job it is to find the hogs either by trailing or winding them and then to get them stop. This is generally accomplished when the hogs feel that they are in a good position to defend themselves. I have seen hogs take to a stock tank, river, creek, cave, culvert, or brush pile, but usually just a thicket. Then you have the “catch” dogs that are led in and released so they do not have to run very far before reaching the hogs.

The catch dogs are usually strong and compact, with some bulldog breeding, the most popular being the American pit bull terrier. While these dogs are quick, their conformation is not for running long distances especially while wearing a Kevlar vest with which most hunters suit their catch dogs before turning into a bay.

In addition to the vest, all dogs are equipped with a GPS collar, so the hunter knows the location of the dog at all times. Not only will the collars give the dog’s location, they give the hunter the ability to discipline the dog by electrical stimulation from over a mile away.

Today, most hog hunters running dogs hunt from specially equipped utility task vehicles (UTVs) making it quicker and easier to get to the bay and over rugged and brushy terrain. Many have trailers built to haul the dogs and all their specialty equipment, feed and water as well as room to haul the UTV. In addition to the custom trailer, you need a ¾ ton four-wheel drive truck to tow the loaded trailer. This can be a very expensive habit.

Many times I have described hog hunting with dogs as “controlled chaos.” The better the dogs, the chaos is more controlled.

—Gary Roberson

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TTHA member Natalia Reyes became the Eagle Pins Girls Champion at the Archery Shooters Association Easton-Hoyt Pro-Am National 3D Tournament in late April, held in Minden, Louisiana. Congratulations, Natalia!

#texas trophy hunters #youth archery #archery #bow

PARKER CREWS, 11, took this scimitar oryx 10/16/23 in San Saba County.

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April means it's time for Fiesta in San Antonio. We wish everyone one attending a safe, fun Fiesta.

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Gore and The Governor on the Hunt

Back in the day when Rick Perry was governor of Texas and I was working for Texas Trophy Hunters, we both visited the MacLamore Ranch every time we got an invitation from Lanny Vinson. The large ranch lay on both sides of the Clear Fork of the Brazos River in Shackelford County, and was a wildlife haven. White-tailed deer, Rio Grande turkey, feral hogs, and a variety of varmints were abundant along the river watershed.

The year was 2004, and I suspect we were on the ranch for a birthday celebration or some other social event. We had our hunting clothes on, but I don’t think we were doing any hunting. It was fall, and we could have been chasing hogs, or bobcats and coyotes.

Gov. Perry was into bow hunting when this photo was taken, and he did quite well on spring turkey. Rick got pretty good with the bow under the guidance of Gen. Leroy Sisco, who was also a bow-hunting aficionado. Brian Hawkins videoed the governor’s hunt on the ranch when Rick arrowed a big gobbler for the “Texas Trophy Hunters TV” series.

In the photo, I’m toting my favorite hog gun, a renovated Winchester .30-30 with a short barrel and half magazine—a handy rifle for chasing hogs. I had traded for the rifle from Joe McBride in Austin, and my good friend Joe Marks and I had cut the barrel and magazine to make a unique hog gun.

Gov. Perry was the “Governor” when we were in town, but he was just Rick while we were hunting. I had known Rick long before he became governor. Our first meeting was on a quail hunt on the Landshead Ranch back in the mid-’80s. I think he might have been a state representative at that time.

When Rick served as state agriculture commissioner, we met on several occasions. I didn’t see him much when he was Lt. Governor, but when he took over the governorship of Texas in 2000 (George Bush went to the Presidency) and was elected for a total of 14 years as governor, we visited a lot in Shackleford County, which is just southeast of Haskell County—Rick’s old stomping ground.

I have always thought Texas could use more politicians like Rick Perry. He was a ranch boy who grew up under the guidance of good parents, went to Texas A&M University, and served the state of Texas for years in a variety of public offices. I am proud to call Rick Perry my friend.

—Horace Gore

#Texas Trophy Hunters #throwback Thursday #hunting #hunting buddies #Texas governor #Texas hunting

"Elsie" meets "Tom"

By Jim Heffelfinger

I was determined to hunt this special bird, a Gould's turkey, with my great-grandfather's 1894 L.C. “Elsie” Smith side-by-side, Damascus steel, double hammer, double barrel 12-gauge. A great friend of mine had the cracked stock fixed on this family heirloom as a Christmas present to me. He also loaded up some No. 6 shot reduced-power loads with Pyrodex that was safe for firing in the 130-year-old Damascus steel barrels. My son Wyatt agreed to come along and help which was special to me because it was Wyatt who got me into turkey hunting in the first place.

We were mostly big game hunters, but when Wyatt was 10 years old and a brand-new hunter education graduate, he told me he wanted to hunt turkeys because he loved dinosaurs so much. With the help of some friends and youth turkey hunting camps, we learned together and became quite good at it. After I called in both Merriam’s gobblers he harvested up to that point, he returned the favor on this hunt.

The fourth gobbler we talked to that day was a stubborn bird with commitment issues. He was hot to answer every hen yelp with a gobble, but would not cross a deep ditch between us and him at 50 yards. The reduced-power loads I was using means I needed a 30-yard shot or closer. I thought he figured out a way around the ditch but the hen he was with started walking away.

Predictably, he followed her up an open, pine-covered hill. Wyatt called and called more aggressively but the tom kept gobbling as he walked out of our lives. When the tom neared the top of the hill I decided I had no choice but to try to sneak up the hill and make something happen on the other side. Wyatt called aggressively to keep him gobbling and cover my rapid stalk up the hill after him. The big tom answered him almost every time, but then fell silent as I approached the top of the hill. Wyatt followed me far behind calling more aggressively to make it sound like the hen was following him.

As I approached the top of the hill, I started sneaking and carefully looking into the clump of pine trees where I last saw him when suddenly he gobbled in my left ear! He had circled back and surprised me because of Wyatt’s aggressive yelps from the bottom of the hill. I swung Ol’ Elsie to the left, put the bead at the base of his head and squeezed the front trigger. The shotgun roared with a belch of gray smoke and the turkey fell where it stood.

The old heirloom did its job just as it did countless times on small game in my great-grandfather Frank's hands. I am lucky I didn't have time to think about the shot or I would have surely missed. The bird was 21 pounds, had an 11-inch beard and 1 1/8-inch spurs.

Jim Heffelfinger writes for the Journal of the Texas Trophy Hunters and works at his day job as a wildlife biologist for the Arizona Game & Fish Department. You can find Jim on Instagram: @Jim.Deere, and at deernut.com.

#texas trophy hunters #hunting #wild game #turkey #turkey hunter #turkey hunting #shotgun #damascus steel

Everything's big in Texas.

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Trophy Hunters of Tomorrow

Tyler Poole of Hankamer, Texas, has been deer hunting several years and has seven whitetails and one mule deer to his credit. The 12-year-old seventh grader at Abeka Christian Academy got the chance to go after mule deer in the Texas Panhandle when his dad, Jared, applied for a Big Time Texas Hunt with Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. Each year, TPWD makes a lot of good hunts available on Wildlife Management Areas (WMA) and other places in Texas, and lucky hunters often come home with trophies of a lifetime.

Jared was accepted for the mule deer hunt on the Yoakum Dunes WMA in Cochran County, with Tyler as a guest hunter. The hunters gathered their guns and gear and traveled to Cochran County, where they met their guides at the WMA headquarters near the small town of Whiteface. Tyler carried his Ruger 6.5 Creedmoor and a pocket full of shells.

At dinner on the day of their arrival, Tyler and his guide planned a hunt on the vast 14,037-acre WMA. The vast West Texas area is home to a good population of mule deer, and the hunters would cruise the backroads looking for a good buck. Long stalks to get in position for a good shot are not uncommon, and Tyler found out how difficult it is to get in rifle range of a mule deer in the sand dunes of Cochran County.

On the first day, Tyler and his guide got close to a buck or two, but had no luck in the stalk. The next day, they went back after a good buck that they had seen the day before. The deer was unusual, because the G-2s did not fork, but the antler tines were long and Tyler wanted to test his 6.5 Creedmoor on the buck.

In the afternoon, the hunters spotted the buck they were after, and Tyler decided to try for a stalk that would give him a decent shot. After walking and then crawling through the shin oak brush for hours, Tyler finally got a good shot with his Ruger 6.5 Creedmoor at 170 yards. The buck went down, and Tyler had his first mule deer.

Jared had also taken a wide mulie buck, and both father and son returned to Hankamer, just east of Houston, with big smiles. The Big Time Texas Hunt for mule deer had paid off!

Tyler and his dad decided to enter their bucks in the 2023 Hunters Extravaganza Annual Deer Competition in Houston. Both buck were outstanding, but Jared beat Tyler for Best Texas Mule Deer by a few inches. Tyler plans to take a whitetail during the 2023-24 season, and it might be a hunt with his new bow. Jared is a bowhunter, and Tyler plans to take up the sport.

“The Panhandle hunt was special for me and Dad,” Tyler said. “We both enjoyed the sandhill scenery, and the guides were great on the Yoakum Dunes WMA.” The Houston deer contest was the first for Tyler—but probably not the last.

Tyler says he likes to hunt and fish, and has done a lot of both. He also likes Little League baseball. As for deer hunting, he likes it all—but prefers evening hunts. Texas Trophy Hunters Association wants to congratulate Tyler for his first mule deer buck, and hope it’s not his last. —Horace Gore

#texas trophy hunters #youth hunting #mule deer #big game #big time texas hunts #hunting and fishing

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