Opening weekend of General Hunting season in Montana was a let down for me. I was unable to accomplish much due to other obligations. For me, missing opening day is sacrilegious. I was even more disappointed to find out that just about everyone in my hunting circle punched a tag this last weekend.
To start things off, I received a picture on my phone from my favorite “huntress”, my niece Katie. She was the first to punch her deer tag with a 500 yard shot on this gorgeous Mule deer over in region 5.
Katie’s Mule Deer
Then, to add insult to injury, my 65 year old father (a disabled veteran) bagged a beautiful 6×6 Bull Elk. He felt the need to call and leave a message screaming with excitement. I got to say, I am proud of my “ol man”, being that he bagged the biggest elk in his career while wearing his leg brace.
Bigun’s 2012 Bull
Then I received a picture of my Sister-in Law, Anne Marie, punching her tag on an elk that I had been chasing around all archery season. I guess I can say I’m glad somebody got him. It felt like the young bull was mocking me every time I ran into him earlier this year.
Anne Marie’s 2012 Bull
To top it all off, I hear that a Mule deer buck, that we noticed on the opener of Antelope, was harvested by our friend Joe Heiken. This amazing 7×9 buck was taken in region 5.
In short, I have a lot of work ahead of me to reach the success that my fellow hunting buddies accomplished in the opening weekend of the season. But I am proud of each and every one of them, and whether or not I fill my tag this year, I hope to be invited over for a BBQ this summer.
