HUNTING THE MILK RIVER IN MONTANA

Michael Waddell with Realtree Camouflage in Columbus,Georgia, has hunted avidly for all types of game for a number of years and enjoys best the days he's out-of-doors with his friends and his video camera.

QUESTION: Where was this buck taken?

ANSWER: I bagged this buck in northeast Montana on the Milk River. Unlike the south Texas hunt of two days, we had hunted this ranch before. Also hunters had seen this buck a couple of different times two weeks prior to when we killed him. We had plenty of time to sit on our stand and be prepared and make sure that when we got the right opportunity, we could take the buck.

QUESTION: What was the secret to bagging this deer?

ANSWER: When you hunt any trophy deer in northeast Montana, you'll have a lot of open country with sparse cover. Most of the deer will be in the river bottoms. Often the transition areas in Montana only will be 100 yards wide at points from the river's edge to the alfalfa hills, which are a primary food source. The trick is getting on the bluffs early in the morning, glassing in on the deer and sometimes not hunting during the evenings. Instead, in the evenings, you need to climb onto high bluffs and glass down on the deer to determine what deer are coming in where, what transition trails are being used, and what fields are being hit the hardest. Then you must wait on the right wind to hang your stand. The secret to taking big bucks in this section of Montana is to spend minimum time on the stand but maximum time out in the field scouting.

QUESTION: What did this Montana deer score?

ANSWER: He scored 161 2/8-points.

QUESTION: Did you take this deer with a gun or a bow?

ANSWER: I was shooting my bow.

QUESTION: How far was the deer from you?

ANSWER: That buck was about 35 yards away from where I'd taken a stand.

QUESTION: Did that buck run after you shot him?

ANSWER: He ran 120 yards to the edge of the river, and then started running sideways. I thought he might fall in the river, but instead he just fell over at the river's edge.

TOMORROW: EDDIE SALTER'S BUCK NAMED WOODY

Check back each day this week for more about Micheale Waddell's Most Memorable Hunts Of 1999-2000...

Day 1 - Deer Hunting At The King Ranch In Texas
Day 2 - Hunting The Milk River In Montana
Day 3 - Eddie Salter's Buck Named Woody
Day 4 - Greg Miller and Dan Massimillo and Their Deer
Day 5 - Waddell's Georgia Buck

John's Journal