Although I've always gone to Wyoming to hunt elk and antelope, three years ago I decided to try some of the whitetail hunting I'd heard was exceptional. That is, it's exceptional in certain places. 

I checked around with friends and the Wyoming Game & Fish Department and chose the Douglas area. A hunt there would allow me to pursue antelope and whitetail at the same time. I'll post a story about that hunt later but suffice it to say I shot a 78 6/8 net P&Y antelope and two days later shot a 127 net P&Y whitetail. 

It was a great experience and so I booked again for 2002. That year there was a heavy kill of whitetails by the blue tongue bug and so I rescheduled for 2003. I didn't figure to see many book class deer because of the kill off and hoped I could harvest a decent buck, probably smaller than my last buck. My hunt was booked for the middle of November with the idea I might be able to catch the early rut. 

As I drove to Douglas the weather was cold and windy. Semi trucks were blown off the interstate highway and I was concerned about my hunt. Fortunately, the wind let up and the weather was cold and clear, perfect for the rut. 

I was hunting with 88 Ranch Outfitters, which is owned and operated by Mike Henry. The ranch I hunted has been owned by his family for over a hundred years. Antelope can be seen on the ranch's plains at almost any time, however the whitetail favor the river bottoms and are not so easily seen. 

Our plan was to set up some tree stands along the bottoms and intercept a buck as he made his way to grassy areas where they like to feed. The first morning was spent setting up the stands and I decided to wait until the evening to try my luck. By 1 p.m. I was in my stand. I used my Bushnell Pro rangefinder to range likely paths the deer might take and settled in for the evening. I had been in the stand a little while and two does walked through. 

At about 3 p.m. I saw two mule deer bucks appear on a ridge three hundred yards away. Slowly they made their way toward the creek bottom where I sat. Unfortunately my tag was only good for whitetails so I could only watch as they came closer. One buck was a decent 3 x 3 and the other was a small 4 x 4. When they were eighty yards away in an open field, the small buck began to look intently to his left. 

Something had caught his eye. I scanned the area where he was looking and saw a spike and another whitetail buck moving through the brush. They disappeared for a while and then materialized forty yards from my stand and meandered in my direction. While the spike moved directly toward me, the other buck moved toward the open field to my left. 

I could now see he was an eight or nine point. His tine length was good but he was not a record book deer, nonetheless he looked like a shooter. At thirty yards he stopped and stood broadside. Although his posture was perfect I was forced to shoot through some nearby tree limbs. 

I moved to find an opening, quickly put my sight pin on the buck and launched an ACC Easton shaft tipped with a 100 grain Thunderhead. Either I aimed high or hit a limb, I'll never know for sure, but the buck went down with a thud, spine shot. I sent another arrow into his lungs and climbed down to claim my prize. He was a beautiful 2 ½ year old nine point. 

If you're interested in hunting the Douglas area you can contact Mike Henry, 88 Ranch Outfitters, 1937 Ross Rd., Douglas, Wyo 82633. Mike takes several mule deer and antelope hunters, but only takes one whitetail hunter per year. Next year the bucks will be another year older and bigger. You might take a book deer if luck is with you.