Been hunting? Nolan’s first buck

By Don Martin, outdoors writer, Kingman

One of my passions is helping youngsters as they experience the many facets of recreation in the great outdoors.

In December 2006, I had the opportunity to assist a young man from Paso Robles, California on his first-ever mule deer hunt.

Nolan Martinez is 15 years old and had waited for many years to go hunting in Arizona.

Like many young men who are in high school, besides sports and girls, Martinez likes to hunt. His favorite hunting partner is his father, Jim.

I had met Jim a number of years ago, and he explained that while he wanted his son to experience hunting out of state, he was active in sports and his availability to go hunting was limited.

Jim looked over the Arizona hunt regulations and noticed that there were several deer hunts that were offered to juniors during the time that kids were out for Christmas break.

So Nolan applied for one of the juniors-only deer tags that were offered in several units in Mohave County. Due to the rule that restricts nonresidents to no more than 10 percent of the tags, Martinez was unsuccessful in his quest for one of these tags for four years.

In 2006 the Arizona Game and Fish Commission went to standardized seasons for juniors, and most of the juniors-only deer hunts were moved into earlier time frames. However, there was still one hunt that kids could participate in that wouldn’t require them to miss any school or sports activities. That hunt was the juniors-only muzzleloader hunt in Unit 16A (Hualapai Mountains).

Nolan applied for just that hunt in 2006, and this time Lady Luck smiled. Nolan drew tag number one.

I got a call from Jim in July saying that Nolan had drawn the tag, and I quickly volunteered to help out on the hunt. Also volunteering to help out on the hunt would be my good friend and hunting partner, Jay Chan.

I told Jim that the best time to hunt would probably be during the time frame of Dec. 26-31. I felt that the bucks would be in rut and that most of the other kids who had drawn tags for the hunt would probably be done.

Jim agreed to the hunt dates, and in the pre-dawn darkness on Dec. 26, Jay and I met the Martinez’s in Yucca for the start of the hunt.

That morning we got lucky when I spotted a wide, but young 3 x 3 buck that was trailing a doe and a yearling near a desert waterhole. We were able to get to within 86 yards of the buck. Nolan had a solid shooting rest, but I told him to pass, as I wanted him to see more of the unit and hopefully more bucks.

The southern end of the unit doesn’t hold a lot of deer, but with some judicious glassing they can be found.

As it turned out, it was just before dark before I located a large herd that was feeding at the top of a mountain. Turned out to be about 15 deer in the group, and with them were three bucks.

Two of the bucks were young, but one showed the signs of having been around for many years. His head was blocky and snow white, and his 27-inch-wide rack showed evidence of why he might have been the big buck of the mountain. Part of his main beam on the left side was broken off from fighting. As it was, he was now a 4 x 2, but plenty good for Nolan to try for.

As Jim and Nolan headed up the mountain, Jay and I watched and I filmed the stalk. Though the big buck never saw the hunters, he pushed his harem of six does over the top of the mountain before Nolan could get into range.

The next day we were back in the same general area when Jim spotted a doe on the skyline. On the hillside below her were a yearling and a huge 3 x 3 buck! I estimated that this buck had a rack that was 29 inches wide. His points were all tall and the rack was mahogany colored and well defined.

Jim and Nolan set out to follow the buck as he slowly walked over the hill with his nose to the ground, following the obviously hot doe. Then the weather turned nasty and it started to rain, sleet and snow on the hunters.

The pair never saw that buck again.

Later in the day I found a buck we named the “Regression Buck.” This old timer had all of the classic signs of an old deer. He had a sway back and a big belly. His neck was swollen and his body size was absolutely huge! He sported a set of chocolate-colored antlers that had just two points on each side. Though the rack wasn’t wide, the antlers were tall and heavy.

Once more, Jim and Nolan headed out. They got close, but a yearling doe that wasn’t seen by the hunters gave away their position, and the buck ran off unscathed.

On day three we moved around to the east side of the Hualapais. As dawn broke, the wind was blowing hard out of the north at 20-30 miles per hour.

We got lucky when I spotted a single buck walking up a long ridge. This mature 4 x 4 sported a rack that was about 26 inches wide. He had heavy, deep front forks, and curiously, he was by himself.

Jim and Nolan were able to locate this buck later on in the morning, and while the young hunter got a shot, unfortunately the buck was not taken.

On day four it dawned cold and clear, and the wind wasn’t blowing. A perfect day for deer hunting.

A trip up a canyon produced a sighting by Jim of a wide 3 x 2 buck that again was off by himself. Jim and Nolan once more gave pursuit, but the buck gave them the slip.

Later that morning they spotted a herd of deer, and with them was another wide 3 x 2 buck. They watched until the buck bedded down and slowly started to move towards him. Then a helicopter that was doing aerial deer surveys came by and spooked the herd. Talk about bad luck.

Later that day, with sunset approaching, Jim spotted a large herd of deer. With them was a large, mature 4 x 4. The hunters tried to slip up on the herd, but the animals spotted the movement and ran over the ridge.

A short time later the hunters got a break when they spotted several more deer, including another 4 x 4 close by in a thicket of trees. The range was just 70 yards when Nolan settled the sights of the White muzzleloader on the 3½-year-old buck.

At the shot, the buck dropped in his tracks and the young man’s quest for a mule deer was over. This buck was indeed a fine representative of the species and one that we were all proud that Nolan had taken.

The great outdoors in Mohave County once again produced a life-long memory for a fine young man who had worked hard to bag his first mulie buck.