Pronghorn Paradise 2018 Season
Contributors to this thread:Pronghorn
From: Bob
12-Aug-18
The season is almost here and we have been busy getting ready for our hunters. Some early observations that I can pass along. There is more water than I have ever seen. The horn length above the prongs is definitely nicer than normal, probably due to the late season rain. The population seems to be very good with lots of does with twins. As for the bucks I will let the pictures do the talking.
From: Bob
12-Aug-18
Yes they are all bucks !
From: Bob
12-Aug-18
From: Bob
12-Aug-18
This one has baler twine wrapped up in his horns.
From: Dale06
12-Aug-18
Thanks for the pics Looks like some great hunts about to happen
From: Brotsky
13-Aug-18
Looking good and GREEN for this time of year Bob! Looking forward to seeing how your first hunters due this week. Best of luck to all!
From: JTreeman
13-Aug-18
On my way, crossing SD now, gotta pick up my partner tomorrow morning. Will be there tomorrow afternoon.
—jim
From: Bob
14-Aug-18
Pronghorn tracks at the edge of a water hole.
From: Bob
14-Aug-18
Early buck scrape.
From: Bob
14-Aug-18
Thanks for the comments guys! It's looking like it's going to be a good season.
From: Tradman and Huntress
14-Aug-18
Great pics, Bob! We spent the night in Sydney NE. Heading out in a bit. See you this afternoon. Matt
From: krieger
14-Aug-18
Good Luck guys, but don't shoot ALL the big ones!
From: INbowdude
14-Aug-18
Good luck Tradman!
From: Tradman and Huntress
14-Aug-18
Thanks! Bob and Helen (Bob's daughter) are gracious host. Seeing lots of Antelope so far in the alfalfa fields. It rained hail, ice and water but I have a sweater. Who said you are going to bake in a blind hunting Antelope?!?! I'm not sure I brought enough cold weather gear! 70's for a high tomorrow on the opener! Wish us luck! Matt
From: Tradman and Huntress
14-Aug-18
I'll start a semi-live hunt tomorrow!
From: Quinn @work
15-Aug-18
Sweet. Thanks Matt for taking the time to post your hunt. Temps should be back up there come Friday. Forecast is 96 for where we'll be hunting on Friday just North of you in MT. Cooling down a bit for the weekend thankfully.
From: JTreeman
15-Aug-18
I suspect it’s gonna be a tough couple days of hunting here, lots of puddles all over the ranch, muddy roads, and lots of green grass/alfalfa. Pretty damn cool this morning (mid 50’s) certainly not ideal conditions for an antelope blind hunt! Can’t control the weather, just gotta keep after it.
—jim
From: boothill
15-Aug-18
Good luck Matt! Looking forward to the semi-live hunt.
From: Bob
16-Aug-18
We were off to a busy start for the first day of the season. The evening before it rained and hailed with high winds. It produced a wet start for Wednesday morning. Everyone was seeing pronghorn thru out the day with some good bucks being spotted. Anyone following Matt's live hunt thread knows how things played out for him. On that note anyone considering a hunt with Matt at his place, Shiloh Ranch, I wouldn't hesitate. He's the type of man that will look you in the eye when he shakes your hand. This morning things went smoothly getting everyone out to the blinds. I've already been receiving texts from the hunters that they are seeing bucks. Its looking like a good day. I will update again soon.
From: Bob
17-Aug-18
Day two ended with no shots taken. Today looks to be the hottest day the hunters are going to have so I have them on water. One hunter just texted me that he has a buck hanging around not far from him. Hope he gets thirsty ! The picture above is of a blind we call the windmill. One of our hunters is calling it home for the day.
From: Bob
18-Aug-18
Day 3: The hunter that had the buck hanging around had another buck we call "Twine" come in and chase him off. The other hunter at one time during the day had 39 bucks in view. Some bucks were seen watering yesterday at one of the blinds, which is a good sign with all the standing water we have now. The hunters are back on alfalfa today with a chance of rain in the forecast. The picture is a blind we call "The South Pole", one of our hunters is in it today.
From: Bob
19-Aug-18
In the lower right hand corner of the picture you can see some water we set a blind on, we call it "Double Trouble".
In the lower right hand corner of the picture you can see some water we set a blind on, we call it "Double Trouble".
The first hunt ended with one buck not recovered, two guys passed on bucks looking for something bigger, and one guy without a close enough shot. LOTS of pronghorn were seen. It was a tough hunt with standing water everywhere and 2 of the 4 days were cool and rainy. Looking forward to some better weather for the next group of hunters this week. Kudos to the guys for sticking it out with the tough conditions.
From: Bou'bound
19-Aug-18
tough numbers or a pronghorn camp. better luck next week.
From: Bannock-pt.
19-Aug-18
How big were the pronghorn they passed up? What distances? Did The two who are passing up animals pass up multiple animals or they each had one opportunity?
From: Bob
21-Aug-18
Three new hunters in camp, one more scheduled to arrive Wednesday. Last night they shot their bows to make sure they were on. Good thing they did, one of the bows was hitting a full 12 inches off. The sight was knocked to the side. TSA can be hard on hunting equipment ! This morning we saw a bunch of Mule Deer on the way to the blinds. The hunters are all on Alfalfa today.
From: Bob
21-Aug-18
From: Bob
21-Aug-18
From: Bob
21-Aug-18
From: Zebrakiller
21-Aug-18
Good luck this week
From: Brotsky
21-Aug-18
Good luck gentlemen! Should be some thirsty goats around this weekend with hotter weather coming back!
From: Bob
22-Aug-18
Everyone was seeing bucks yesterday. It was a good day for the hunters to get an Idea what to look for. Bucks were seen sparing and chasing other bucks. Hunters are back on alfalfa today. One has a good buck feeding under 100 yards from him right now. The weather is starting to warm up today, the hunting should also.
From: Bob
23-Aug-18
One of the Tennessee Boys with their buck.
One of the Tennessee Boys with their buck.
The hunter that had the buck in the alfalfa let him come to 45 yards. Then he sailed an arrow right over his back. The buck ran 20 yards, stopped, put his head down and continued feeding. With the rising temps I put everyone on water this morning. Soon after sun up I received a text from one of the Tennessee Boys that they got one. We retrieved the buck, took pictures and went to the butcher. Three hunters are still out, they should see something before dark. Update tomorrow.
From: Zebrakiller
23-Aug-18
Broke the ice!
From: Buffalo1
23-Aug-18
Glad to hear that things are turning toward the hunters' favor.
From: Bob
24-Aug-18
Vinnie from Pennsylvania on his first western hunt.
Vinnie from Pennsylvania on his first western hunt.
Yesterday afternoon we had two storms roll through shutting down the water blinds. Overnight the rain stopped and there was a steady wind drying out the ground. This morning I put two hunters on water and one on alfalfa. About 9:30 am one of the hunters on water put a buck down. It was his first pronghorn on his first western hunt. To say he was excited would be an understatement. He was hyperventilating on the phone when he called to tell me. Two guys are still hunting, weather is right, fingers are crossed. Update soon.
From: midwest
24-Aug-18
Good shootin Vinnie!
From: hagelmiester
25-Aug-18
Congrats Vinnie nice goat and great looking shot
From: Bowboy
25-Aug-18
Vinnie good buck and looks like a text book shot from the picture.
From: Shug
26-Aug-18
Great pics... thanks
From: Bannock-pt.
28-Aug-18
Arriving in the badlands!
Arriving in the badlands!
Well my Son and I packed up the old ford and headed out west from NY to Pronghorn Paradise in Wyoming on a most epic roadtrip. Spent the last couple of days before our hunt hanging out in SD. We took our time exploring from the badlands and kept heading the truck west until we arrived here in Gillette tonight. We spotted lots of game and just had a blast. Looking forward to meeting Bob tomorrow and getting our hunt started.
From: Brotsky
28-Aug-18
Go get 'em Bannock! Hope you and your boy have a great trip!
From: Bob
28-Aug-18
Iron Pin Blind front left, High Wall Blind back right.
Iron Pin Blind front left, High Wall Blind back right.
A father and son team from New York state arrived today for their hunt starting tomorrow. Shortly after they arrived they shot their equipment to make sure everything was on, the boy's a crack shot ! They will be hunting together tomorrow on water. Things are finely drying up here, we have a perfect weather forecast, they should do well. We went on a short drive to look at some pronghorn this evening, we saw about 49. The picture is of a remote water location that we set two blinds on. The blinds are about 90 yards apart. A perfect location for a father and son to hunt.
From: Zebrakiller
29-Aug-18
Good luck
From: Brotsky
29-Aug-18
Cool looking set-up Bob! Might not be a bad location for a father and daughter either :-)
From: Bou'bound
29-Aug-18
Shoot straight guys
From: Bob
30-Aug-18
"Twine Blind"
"Twine Blind"
Quick update from yesterday. The father and son team saw lots of pronghorn. Nothing came close enough for a shot. After dark we checked one water blind for fresh tracks to help us make a decision were to hunt next. With the clear night sky we had a nice view of the Milky Way and found some mica rocks that were reflecting light from the beams of our flash lights.
From: Bob
30-Aug-18
And today.....
From: Zebrakiller
30-Aug-18
Nice
From: T Mac
30-Aug-18
Nice! What’s legal hunting age for bow? OTC or draw?
From: Bob
30-Aug-18
The picture says it all.
From: Bob
30-Aug-18
Creating memories together.
From: Bob
30-Aug-18
Father and son.
From: Bob
30-Aug-18
T Mac Legal age to hunt in Wyoming is 12. The area we hunt is draw, however there is usually leftover licenses available. The last I checked there was over 400.
From: Brotsky
30-Aug-18
Awesome guys!! Congrats!!
From: BigOk
30-Aug-18
Congrats
From: Quinn @work
31-Aug-18
That’s awesome. Great job dad!! Congrats to the kid.
From: Bob
01-Sep-18
Dad and son in the blind today. Dads turn to shoot. They saw numerous bucks today, closest one was a nice 3 year old just a little out of range at 60 yards. Weather for tomorrow looks good. Spirits are up.
From: Bob
02-Sep-18
Our father and son team spent the day in a blind we call "Barbed Wire". They were seeing bucks thru out the day but nothing close. One particular buck was corralling some does all afternoon on a hill close to the blind. Finally at about 5 p.m. he decided he needed a drink and came in on a fast trot, watered and turned up the bank. It all happened very fast and the yardage was miss judged. For the rest of the evening they watched the buck corralling his does and run off other bucks. It was a pleasure to have this father and son team in camp this week and a privilege to be apart of this young mans first out of state hunt. Today we have a hunter, that opted to return, due in camp from our second hunt. He was seeing lots of pronghorn and had a great opportunity on the buck we call Twine. He took a break and went and visited some old friends. Being single does have its advantages. Hopefully he can redeem himself on his return trip.
From: Bob
06-Sep-18
Our last hunter, Mike a.k.a. "Gator", left this morning with a buck in the truck. Opting to return with us after, in his words, "learning how to hunt pronghorn". He had an epic hunt that ended with his first pronghorn. Congratulations to "Gator" for sticking it out. With our hunters gone Helen is going to give it a go tomorrow. Looks like its going to be dry in the 80s. Update soon.
From: Treeline
06-Sep-18
Looks like a lot of fun!
From: Brotsky
07-Sep-18
Nice work guys! Good luck Helen!
From: Bob
10-Sep-18
After spending some long hot days in the blind Helen made a 28 yard shot on a nice buck. She was practicing with her new bow almost everyday during the early season and it payed off !
From: Brotsky
11-Sep-18
Atta girl Helen! Way to go!
From: Zebrakiller
11-Sep-18
nice job Helen!!!!!!!!!
From: T Mac
11-Sep-18
Great job congrats Helen
From: Bannock-pt.
11-Sep-18
Great job Helen! Way to get it done.....:
From: Bob
13-Sep-18
Buck while I was pulling one of blinds.
Buck while I was pulling one of blinds.
Thanks for all the comments and PMs. Also to everyone for following along. Looking forward to next year. Bob & Helen