My partner and I were drawn for Lassen Antelope, period 2 (rifle), zone 4. I have never hunted antelope before or the wide open country. I would greately appreciate any tips on where to go or tactics to use. Hunt date is Sept 2-10th
I have never drawn the tag you got, but have talked to several guys in the past about their hunt s there for antelope. the one thing they all said, hold out for a big one, do not shoot the first 13-14 incher you see. the guys who did hold out got antelope in the 15 inch class or better.
there is supposed to be alot of public ground to hunt, if possible get detailed maps of the area and go a few days early and do your scouting. you may want to contact your local game warden and ascertain from him a way to contact the warden in the area you plan to hunt. make contact with that warden and hopefully you will get enought information to make your hunt a great one. Be prepared for long range shots, I would sight in for 3 inches high at 100 yards to give you a kill zone shot out to 325 yards without any holdover.
For a trophy antelope, look for horns that are well over twice the ear lenght, the ears are about 6 inches long, and the prongs are above the ear tip. look for good size base dia. and good prong lenght. A 15 inch horn lenght with good base mass and large prongs will give you more points then a skinny horned 16 inch lenght.
REHL, Thanks a bunch for the info. I'm taking my 300 weatherby mag as it is the flatest shooting gun I have. Dont know too much about balistics though. I also have a 308 rem and 30-06 win model 70 featherweight I could use. Which do you recommend?
I'm not really a big trophy guy, I would settle on any decent buck, The other concern I have is what you touched on, long range shots, I have little to none experience at them. I will try to put in some practice between now and the hunt, I just hope I get lucky enough to see one and then I'll call on devine intervention to actually connect on him.
Thanx again for all the help
bighog
BigHog;
Take the rifle you shoot the best, lopes are not tought to bring down. If you choose the 308 or 30-06, load it with 150 grain bullets, if W.Mag, I would use 165 or 180 grain bullets. At the range sight the gun in where it is hitting 3 inches high of your aim point. this way you can hold dead center of the chest, behind the shoulder and the bullet will hit in the kill zone from the muzzle to about 325 yards. A lung shot antelope will not go very far, they usually drop within 50 yards from a lung shot. Saves the meat also.
take a good pair of binoculars and a spotting scope if you have one. Find some high points and glass the area, their white butts are easy to spot from a long way off. After finding them, use the spotting scope to see if a good buck is there before you waste time trying to stalk them using the terrain to conceal your stalk.
If you are glassing late in the evening, you might catch a good buck bedding down for the night. get back there before daylight and wait for him to get up and pop him after getting into shooting range while he was bedded.
My whole family loves antelope meat, it is very good if you get the hide off after dropping him and cooling the meat down. don't take the liver, it will taste like sagebrush. Antelope are easy to get by glassing and then stalking. They also have the habit of using the same route day after day if not disturb, and you can plan a ambush along the route. After your hunt, send me a Private message and let me know how your hunt went. when they have not been shot at for a while, they can be easy to get close to, but after being spooked a few times, they will keep 600-800 yards between themselfs and any hunter they spot.
BigHog,
Congratulations on the tag. I hunted Likely Tables last year and had a great time. As far as strategies go, these guys can cover an amazing distance in no time at all. I would start by glassing as much as possible for a spot and stalk hunt. Beware of their eyesight which is said to be equivalent to a person looking through a set of 8X binos. If you can't reach a point close enough for a comfortable shot, I would try setting up near a water hole. We set up and watched multiple animals come to water while we sat under a dense tree 80 yards away. Easy shot at a standing animal versus throwing lead at a buck sprinting away at mach speed. Should be a great hunt. Good Luck!
Thanx SLOhunter, Did you get one last year? I hope I can find a nice shaddy tree near a waterhole and wait. Thats my kind of hunting. I can handle an 80 yard shot. Thanx for you reply.
Congrats on you and your buddy's draw. I had Lassen Period 1 last year and had a blast. I hunted Pine Creek Valley and was very happy with the area. I saw very few other hunters and there were enough bucks for all to TRY and get. It was my first antelope hunt and I learned a whole lot. Biggest thing was to not underestimate their eyesight. I burned a whole lot of leather trying to get close for a shot. Next time I will be more patient and find a good ambush area early on and wait them out. In the end I got my lope and had a blast doing it. If you end up heading to Pine Creek Valley, email me and I can tell you what I learned. Good luck to you and your friend.
jvle95,
congrats on your lope, I hope I get as lucky as you did. The area you suggested sounds great. My partner and I have a friends that live in Susanville and they will be gathering some local knowledge for us. I will tell them of your suggestion to go to pine creek valley.
I've been told the 2nd period will make them harder to find because they have been shot at the week prior and due to the large amount of rainfall this year, It's everywhere, and their dispursed more.
I took off work 2 days before and the whole week of the hunt so I imagine we'll be seeing alot of the area. I will email you when we know what areas were goint to try.
Thanks for taking the time to respond to my cry for help, hope some day I can return the favor.
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