Tag Archives: diamond c outfitters

Spring Turkey at the Diamond C Ranch

Back to try turkey hunting again with Dylan Carr at the Diamond C Ranch. I stopped at Rio Dell on my way to pick up my Remington ADL custom rifle Fred at Grundmans had been putting together for me. My original first hunting rifle, a bargain basement ADL, now transformed with pacnor stainless fluted barrel, jewel trigger, robar coated with NP3 on the bolt, and topped off with a 4.4-14×40 Leupold VX3 with CDS turret. Looking forward to sighting it in. My inspiration was an article from Hardcore Outdoor where he gave his 30.06 a similar treatment.

Friday we tried calling in some Toms with Harley and Dylan doing the calling but the wind made it difficult and the birds weren’t moving. Saturday morning Dylan and I drove back down to where we’d been hearing them and immediately got a gobble back to our crow call. We found a good position behind a rock above them and proceeded to call them in.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We had expected some birds to come up on our right but before we knew it two toms arrived off to our left. I had to re postion the gun over Dylan to be ready. Dylan saw the first and told me to take the second one. Waited for them to get into range. Finally the second arrives and I shoot him. The other bird immediately comes over and starts tearing him up, standing over him. Eventually slipped off my gloves and got my iPhone out for a little video. We then slipped out there not wanting to spook them so that Dylan’s daughter Ashley could try for them later.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning we hunted with Ashley, Dylan’s 10 year old daughter to try and get her first turkey. We had several stands and toms come in but it was never quite right or too far to shoot. She was shooting off of sticks. She did great though exhibiting great patience and not taking a bad shot. I’m sure she’ll have her bird later this month. Was so fun seeing different hunts unfold and the toms coming in to the calls. Really enjoying turkey hunting and looking forward to doing it again each Spring.

 

November Blacktail Hunt

Back to the Diamond C Ranch for my late season November blacktail deer hunt. I had hoped to take a better buck with my bow this time but issues with my bow had me revert to the rifle yet again. I had my Sako 85M in 30.06 which has been my go to deer rifle while the ADL is being customized. It was still a great time, especially to sit and watch so many bucks this time of year. We saw some from last year like Moose, Splay, and assorted management bucks. I ended up taking a very old 3×3 management buck that Dylan wanted taken. The highlight of this hunt was seeing a buck called Slider up close at 100 yards chasing some does around. He’s a huge straight 4×4, maybe bigger than my B&C buck right now. We hope he breeds does all across the ranch. I’ll be dreaming of him for the rest of the year. Hopefully to take him with my bow early August.

Slider’s sheds are below, the set from last year and on the right one from two years ago already a 4×4.

August Bow Hunt

I had originally planned to head up to the Diamond C Ranch in October for my first hunt this year however Dylan contacted me to see if I’d like to try for a buck we call ‘Club’ Dylan had been seeing regularly on a trail camera. He thought I could get a good chance at him with my bow hunting hunting from a ground blind. I was definitely up for it. I first saw club with twin towers and the 4×5 I took in 2009. That year his left antler was a single knob gaining him his nickname. Last year he was a 3×4 but this year he is a 4×5 and looking huge. Probably at his best given his age so we want to take him this season.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I drove up Sunday morning on August 12th. Dylan and I both sat in the blind that first night. Unfortunately it had really heated up and we didn’t see a single deer the first night. The next day wasn’t much better. I sat in the blind alone before dawn and then back in it again at 6:30, again not a single deer. Luckily the blind was in the shade and a light breeze would blow in the opening now and then. After we would pull the trail cam card and review the pics we’d see club right there again with a bunch of other bucks and a big black pig but a half hour after shooting hours.

 

 

Tuesday Morning I’m in the blind well before dark and just before dawn I see the flash fire from the trail cam illuminating a tall buck in the distance across the fence line. I can see him in my binoculars, he’s a tall tined 2×3. It’s way too dark to make him out otherwise or even try for a shot. At dawn he is long gone and I don’t see any more deer that morning. The evening it’s now a lot cooler and at 8pm I see a tall velvet spike crest the hill and approach from the left. He jumps the fence and stops in front of the blind. I draw my bow on him to practice from within the blind. Shooting from a chair is not easy. I took Dylan’s advice and gave it some practice before coming up. It’s a 27 yard shot and feels good. I let down and hope more deer are on the way. At 8:30 I hear rustling in the trees on the hill to my right and a large pig emerges and starts to make his way down. It’s too dark to even read the lcd numbers on my range finder. When he passes in front of the blind I estimate 15 yards and can barely make out his outline through the tall grass. I try to hold my 20 pin on him and at the shot he speeds off and I hear my arrow clang against a metal fence rod in the distance. Miss! Now it’s too dark to shoot and a velvet forky appears on my left along with the tall tined buck off to my right. Dylan picks me up and we head back encouraged by getting a shot off and at least seeing some deer.

The next morning back in the blind. It’s much cooler actually rains a little. No deer sighted in the early hours. Dylan texts me to see what I want to do. With the cooler weather and light rain I want to look around and see if it’s got the deer moving. He picks me up and we head down to the willows and walk the ridge but don’t see any bucks below. We move off to another area that he’s seen a couple management bucks. As soon as we turn the corner there are two deer on a hill top in the distance under a big oak. It’s a doe and one of the management bucks. We slip out to try for him. We’re able to get very close before the doe busts us. He moves back to 23 yards and remains broadside while I draw and shoot. The shot is perfect and after 20 minutes we find him piled up over the crest of the hill. He’s a great management buck, nice bases, eye guards, and still in velvet with his summer coat and nice and fat. I am thrilled to have taken another buck with my bow four years after my first. I’ll be back in November chasing Club again, looking forward to seeing him hard horned and hopefully take him with my bow but am not above pulling out the rifle.

Turkey & Pig Hunt

Finally managed to make it up north for a Spring turkey hunt with my friend Dylan Carr at his Diamond C Ranch. I set out super early Sunday morning to get there in time to hunt all day. I met Dylan and his friend Harley and we set out right away to go try and locate some turkeys. We found a couple coyotes first and I managed to miss a 300 yard shot shooting just under one. Hopefully that cleared them out of the country and the turkeys could start talking. We would go to different spots and blow a hawk or crow call to draw out a ‘shock gobble’. Soon we had a Tom answering and set up to call one in. We had a little hen decoy out front with Dylan and Harley hidden behind me calling them in. This went on for a while until we figured they were not going to cross the creek to us. After a couple more stands and a major relocation we managed to call one in. It was pretty exciting with him answering and getting closer. Unfortunately he slipped behind us. Harley finally called me back to his tree and I was able to step out and shoot a huge tom at about 50 yards. He was just over 20 pounds with a 9 3/4″ beard. I was thrilled to have taken him. You don’t realize just how beautiful their feathers are until you see one up close. Iridescent blues and greens with another row of copper metallic all changing in the sunlight. Calling in a turkey is really an exciting hunt. I’ll definitely try to make this hunt each Spring.

After lunch back at the cabin we all grabbed our bows for some practice at the range they had set up with targets out to 50 yards. I was doing pretty well with some tight groups out to 50. I had hoped to kill a big boar with my bow or at least get some fresh pork to bring back for sausages. Although we’d seen some fresh pig sign in the morning there weren’t any pigs around. We had planned to drive about 30 minutes to another spot for a better chance. While we were heading out we spotted a big boar out in the middle of the green hills far off in the distance. Great luck for us. We headed way up high above and quickly grabbed our gear to start a stalk. We tried to ease down the rippling fingers and valleys towards where we had last seen the big boar. A couple does monitored our progress in the distance and a couple deer had bolted out below us, we’re hoping pushed by the big boar. We kept moving slowly down the hill side each crest hoping we’ll see him. Finally we reach another hill top and Dylan eases up and says he’s right there, forty yards. I ease out and aim low on the pigs chest for a heart shot but miss low. I quickly move back and we just wait. He didn’t spook. I knock another arrow, draw, then ease out once more taking my time, my forty pin just above his heart. I release just as he winds us and spins to bolt away. My arrow catches him from behind. We hear a solid hit. After about fifteen minutes we move up to the shot. My arrow has blood and paunch on it. We can track him fairly easy in the soft ground along with fairly frequent blood. We finally catch up to him in a creek bed where I’m able to put an arrow through the heart/lungs and that’s it. He’s a big nasty looking boar, black with Russian confirmation but small tusks. With a good deal of effort we 1 2 3 pull him out of the creek to a spot we can take some pictures. I’m really pleased, finally took a big boar with my bow on the ranch.

Hightower

Hunting up at the Diamond C this week. The plan was to try and take a buck with my bow, however, I’m always willing to pull out the rifle when there is a buck that we simply want to take ‘by any means necessary’ right now! On Dylan’s ranch that’s not an unusual circumstance and pretty much what happened.

Wednesday I had a couple close bow opportunities. First with a bedded 3×3 that by the time I decided to get serious wisely evacuated the area. Later that night we came on a band of pigs and got to 50 yards. There were two black sows with a bunch of little ones. I found a lane in between the low branches of the oak we were under and put my 50 pin on one of the sows. My arrow sailed just over her back and they milled for a few seconds and then scrambled off. The next morning I shot three arrows at 50 on Dylan’s range and they grouped six inches high! Adjusted the pin and was good to go.

Thursday morning it was foggy up top. We weren’t seeing many deer out below and headed up there just as it was breaking up. Dylan had been guiding a very accomplished bow hunter before I arrived that tried for a big buck up here they named ‘Hightower’. He was pretty smart and they could not get within 100 yards of him.

It turns out he was the same buck standing next to my 5×7 last year when I shot him. After the 5×7 dropped he just stood there for the longest time and without the 5×7 next to him Dylan and I realized what a great buck he was too. In fact I was just about to shoot him when he moved off. We agreed if we had a chance at him we’d just pull out the rifle.

Well Thursday morning when we were checking out the ranch up top we came on a buck and a doe in the middle of a big clearing with no cover at all. We got up to a big oak tree. When he picked his head up I could see he was the tallest buck I’d ever seen. Dylan confirmed it was Hightower. The wind was wrong and the doe next to him had already busted us so we didn’t have a lot of time. Dylan handed me my Sako 30.06 and I jacked a round. He was about 120 yards and fell dead at the shot.

Was using the new Hornady Superformance ammo with a 150gr SST. I recovered the bullet from just under the hide on the offside. These shoot great through the Sako and it’s great to see they perform so well in the field too. The expanded bullet is actually wider than the .410″ three shot group from my ‘zero check‘ preparing for the hunt.

Thursday night we headed back out to hunt the pigs. We found that same band not far from a pond in a grassy clearing. We were able to sneak through the woods and get to about 30 yards as they fed towards us. I was able to shoot two of the smaller ones pretty quickly. They didn’t really spook and one of the larger black sows came right back into the middle of the field by us at 40 yards and I made a good shot on her as well. Having Dylan next to me with his Leica range finding binoculars made it seem easy. I really like my Hoyt Carbon Element bow. I will try again for my second bow buck when I return in November.