Transcripts For FOXNEWS FOX And Friends Sunday 20090920

and he's the biggest one i've seen. i think you have just now taken you a boone and crockett. ♪ >> when it comes to hunting the white-tailed deer, there is no time of the year that gets hunters more excited than the rut. throughout this breeding period, bucks that have been difficult to find now become more exposed and vulnerable. "the chronicles" finds its way back to south texas, where, arguably, hunters can find some of the best whitetails in the world. we'll join keith dafron and his guide, gene naquin, on legendary nooner ranch, as keith hopes to harvest a trophy white-tailed buck. then "the chronicles" makes its way over to the nunley ranch, located near sabinal, texas, and joins kurt kaiser and expert whitetail hunter wade middleton. together, they'll pursue the perfect big-racked white-tailed buck. ...traveling to lands of great diversity across the world to pursue game, animals that will take your breath away, from the ozark plateau to the rocky mountains, abundant with majestic creatures. join the chase now as we unfold "the chronicles of the hunt." our day begins deep in the heart of whitetail country near hondo, texas, on the nooner ranch. hunter keith dafron is eager to start the day as the white-tailed deer have started the early stage of the rut. while the rut can offer hunters the best chance to harvest a trophy whitetail, they still require the same amount of stealth and skill as they do throughout the year. one method of attracting a rutting whitetail is rattling. >> the thing about rattling is that it reminds me a lot of some of the things that we do in arkansas -- duck hunting. arkansas is known for its duck hunting, and rattling is like a very -- a very large duck hunt, where you're actually trying to bring animals in and pick through those. or a turkey hunt would be another example, where you're actually -- anytime you're calling an animal to you and they're pointing -- actually searching you out, i think that gives it a different angle and a different environment for you as a hunter. >> rattling is very exciting. it's like -- anytime you can call an animal to you, you fool their instincts, versus just sitting there, waiting on them to come or whatever, you know, because that's another aspect. they're coming to feed, which is a great way to hunt, also, but to actually call that deer and fool that deer into thinking that what he hears is what he's looking for, to me, that's what is most exciting. you know, deer come to horns only because looking for the horn, they hear a fight, so they're coming in to investigate, especially if they hear two bucks fighting and it's a mature deer and that's his territory. he's coming to see who's invaded his territory and why they're fighting in his territory. these deer this time of year are prudent. they're looking for does, and i've noticed that, the last couple days on the ranch, where i've seen bucks in one area, they was in different areas now. so that told me that we had to change our game plan. >> gonna go try another spot? >> all we can do. that's when i made the decision to go in different areas and try some rattling. >> we're gonna set up on the ground here. >> we're gonna set up on the ground over here. i've got a little brush blind built up. >> up close and personal. >> up close and personal. on the ground. look at this rub right here. these bucks have really been marking their territory right here. rubbing here. looks like he's been rubbing, and his back tines were hitting like that, so that's probably, you know, a pretty good deer. >> mm-hmm. this is where you want me to be? >> exactly. what i'm hoping for, keith, this afternoon, is that -- there are several great deer in here. one of the deer that i'm really wanting to take is a mainframe 11-point. he's got a g-1 about 8 inches long. that's the one i really want to key in on. >> is it on his left side? >> it's on his left side. really wanting to key in on that deer. we've been seeing him in this area, but right now we're in a full rut. >> it's hard to say. >> it's hard to say. so, we'll just get settled in, get full camo'd up, we'll just see what happens. >> while other bucks came across the area, there is no sign of the buck gene was hoping to key in on. staying mobile is key right now, and keith is still confident he'll find his trophy. >> it's amazing to me that hunting and fishing are very similar in the fact that confidence is such an important part of the equation. and so i can sit down places and just, almost in my head, or i can pull up to a certain bank of fish, and in my head, i either feel like it's gonna be successful or there's doubt in your mind. and if that doubt is there, then it just doesn't ever seem -- you don't get lucky in times like that when you've got doubt. >> let's get right over here. >> when "the chronicles of the hunt" returns, running and gunning has been the name of the game so far for whitetail hunter keith dafron and his guide, gene naquin. when we come back to the nooner ranch in south texas, keith and gene may have found that perfect spot to rattle in a trophy white-tailed buck. "the chronicles of the hunt," brought to you by cabela's, the world's foremost outfitter of hunting, fishing, and outdoor gear... truck vault -- secure in-vehicle storage systems -- what's in your drawers? otis -- the world's finest gun-care systems. and by nikon sport optics -- the trusted name in optics. >> welcome back to "the chronicles of the hunt." we're in south texas. keith dafron and his guide, gene naquin, have been on the move looking for that trophy white-tailed buck. they've just settled into a new spot, and keith is confident their luck is about to change. >> me and keith set up on a deer. i set up on one particular deer, and we hunted twice, the deer didn't show up, so sparked an idea of me seeing all these bucks on the move. i said, "hey, let's go in an area that i know where a lot of bucks travel through, and let's just try some rattling. so, we set up on this place that i knew where these deer were traveling through, and i went to hit the horns together, and right off the bat, a 2-year-old 8-point kind of skirted out around us. >> and he kind of flanked us -- came in behind us, through the brush. we got to see him, and that was fun and interesting. but as soon as he left, i turned back, the road we were really focused on i could see movement down at the end. it was probably 150, 175 yards away, but you could tell it was the deer -- or a deer that we would want to be after. so gene converged quickly, and the deer went into the brush to the right of the road, and i was fearful he was going to actually flank us, just exactly the same path the previous deer took, but gene, with the experience that he had, he actually rattled those horns together, and you'll see that on film. i'm convinced, by him rattling those horns again, he brought that deer out in the road where that deer said, "i want to take another look because i heard those horns again." and so, when he did that, that gave us the opportunity to harvest the deer. so that, as i laid down behind that limb, i thought then, "we've done everything right. it's all up to me." >> you on him? >> no. shoot him? >> shoot him. [ gunshot ] >> oh, goodness. [ laughs ] how about that? that's up close and personal there, buddy. ohh. [ breathing heavily ] that deer come out and i saw him, just like you said he would. boy, he's got some nice tines, don't he? >> let's go look at him. that's a beautiful deer. so many people come down here to south texas for this rattling, and it is an experience. these deer, coming into horns like they did, i mean, you get all excited. >> you have to experience it, though. >> you have to experience it. i mean, there's nothing better than rattling when the deer come in to the rut. >> you know, we wasn't here five minutes. >> that's what happens. you know, when they -- >> goodness. >> when the deer are really on the rut and stuff, that's exactly what happens, so... >> we had a great morning hunt, and when we got ready to leave, you said, "let's rattle a little bit," and we hit some spots, and there was some deer came in. but when you set us here, it had that feel. you could see far enough, but yet there was some heavy cover around. well, it worked out, didn't it? >> yes, it did. >> you know... >> deer's got great tine length. i mean, he's just a perfect, symmetrical 10. you know, he's -- spread, he's probably 16, 16 1/2 inches wide. deer's got great tine length. you know, probably 16, 16 1/2 inches wide. but he's just a straight, typical 10. he's gonna score good. >> fantastic. gene, every time i've been to the nooner ranch, i've had so much fun. you've got a great group of people here, a wonderful management program for the deer, and to end the hunt like this is really a dream can true, and i appreciate you so much for that. >> we appreciate that. congratulations, keith. >> thank you. >> when "the chronicles of the hunt" returns, we'll join whitetail hunter keith kaiser and expert hunter wade middleton, as they venture off into the dusty brush country in sabinal, texas. it's well into the rutting season here, and kurt is eager to harvest a trophy white-tailed buck. >> welcome back to "the chronicles of the hunt." with the rut already under way, whitetail hunter kurt kaiser and expert hunter wade middleton are ready to take on the texas brush country and harvest a trophy white-tailed buck. >> we're actually on the coyote, which is one of the nunley brothers' ranches, and it's just south of sabinal, and it's a big place. we got about 10,000 acres of brush here. it's just loaded with deer. it's evidenced everywhere we go, how many deer there are. we sit in a couple different places, and everywhere we go we see a lot of animals. and when you're driving to and from the stand, you see a lot of animals. so that tells you that you're on a ranch that's absolutely loaded. the other thing is, you see a lot of animals with broken tines, and to me, as a long-time hunter and somebody that understands game management, that means that the ratio and balance on this place is good. that means your harvesting does, that means they're very aggressive in those manners, and that those bucks are out there competing, you know, for the affections of those does, which means you as a hunter have an opportunity to see a lot of deer moving around at different times. >> we started off the first day on a pond set up at a ground blind that wade had come out and built earlier... and saw a lot of deer. we saw one big 8-point there. and, you know, i liked this deer. if it wouldn't have been the first day and wade there yanking on the reins, i don't know if i could have passed this deer, but a big, old, wide south texas buck, you know, just what you think of a typical south texas deer. and saw a lot of other good deer, but wade's like, "man, they're really moving. let's just kind of wait and see what we come across." and so we went back there that evening and saw a lot of the same deer and a lot of new deer. and that's one thing about this time of year, is you set up on a spot, you might not see the same deer again. >> we passed up some deer right away, which always makes you wonder in the back of your mind, "is that the right decision?" 'cause anytime you're on a commercial hunt or a packaged hunt, so to speak, you got just a few amount of days to go out and pull the trigger, so when you pass one, you always wonder, "am i gonna see a bigger one?" but shooting one the first day is always that double-edged sword -- "oh, should i have done it, or should i hadn't?" so, doing your homework, studying the weather, knowing that you're on a place that's got a lot of great animals like the coyote does that the nunley brothers run. it makes it easier to pass deer up. >> the next morning, we decided to try out some tripod stands and went and set up in these tripods. it's the first time i've ever hunted out of an open tripod. it was pretty neat. we were hunting a big cindero, overlooking a big valley. you could see a long ways, see a lot of country, and we seen a lot of deer. >> our tripod setup was one that was really unique, and we had a great pond full of rubs and scrapes over to the right of us. in fact, we even saw deer doing rubs and scrapes while we were there. we had a big, long cindero in front of us, which is very common in hunting this part of texas, where they have cleared brush, great edge habitat, which deer like, and it had a great area at the end of it, about 300 yards away, where we saw a lot of chasing going on. so it was an awesome setup. wind blowing in our face, and we passed on some deer there that were great deer that anybody would be happy to put on their wall, but we were looking for one that got us excited that we didn't have any question about. that was a mature deer and the one that we wanted to harvest. so, as we kind of wrapped up our tripod hunt, it became apparent that we needed to move on to something bigger and better. and we'd had a report of something bigger and better, and now we had to see if we could find out a little bit more about it. >> when "the chronicles" returns, whitetail hunter kurt kaiser and expert hunter wade middleton receive a tip that a trophy whitetail is looming in a particular area. we'll join kurt and wade as they go inside a box blind and look for that trophy white-tailed buck. >> welcome back to "the chronicles of the hunt," brought to you by garmin, the world leader in navigation and communication... do-all outdoors... walker's game ear... and by smith & wesson -- safety, security, protection, and sport. we're in the texas brush country with whitetail hunter kurt kaiser and expert hunter wade middleton, as they go on a tip that a trophy white-tailed buck is on the move in a certain area. but before that, let's step away for the "cabela's hunting tips & gear guide." cabela's, the world's foremost outfitter of hunting, fishing, and outdoor gear, wants to make you a better outdoorsman, bringing you the industry's leading authorities to provide you with hunting tips and a gear guide that will prepare you for any hunting or shooting challenge. >> as i look at white-tailed deer and hunting them, there's so many different features and groups and scenarios that revolve around deer hunting. you know, in deep south texas, it's all about management. it's all about letting these deer grow to the utmost potential that that deer's gonna have. let him get to the full age, harvest him at the top of his game, so to speak. conversely, in other places in the united states, it's all about putting meat on the table. if that deer's out and he's legal, he's probably gonna be harvested. that doesn't make either one more or less of a trophy, it makes it an experience. so paying attention and understanding the locations and the desires of each whitetail hunter is very important for all of us to share and pass on the traditions of deer hunting. >> we got some word from the ranch manager, who was out checking over the ranch, and he actually had seen a really nice 10-point overlooking a cindero, where there's actually a blind-setup box blind. we got in there, and some good deer come out. a really nice, nice 8-point come out, as well, and i was ready. and wade said, "no, no. let's just hold on a little bit." he kind of left it up to me and says, "if you want to, go ahead, but if it was me, i would wait." so i decided to take his advice, and we held off. and as we're sitting there, just getting light enough, and right side of the blind where wade was sitting, here comes this deer popping out, and we knew that was the deer. and he was missing the brow tine just like the ranch manager said. >> and he wasn't really chasing does like the rest of the deer around him. he was just kind of easing along. and then he finally thought we were gonna get a position to go broadside, and he turns 180 degrees and goes butt at us. >> [ chuckles ] went all the way around. >> heart's starting to pound. this deer's surely gonna take off running any moment. but then he made a little bit of a crucial turn there, and it was all up to kurt at that point. >> he's down! >> hoo! great job! >> [ laughing ] [ sighs ] >> let's go look at him. he was punishing us when he turned butt towards us. >> man, he just wouldn't work for us there for a while. >> he had to fall in perfect condition. >> i'm not a patient person, but i'm glad you were... >> [ laughs ] >> ...sneaking back on the range the whole time. >> "man, i know we can do better. i know we can do better." well, the thing about it was, it is fun just watching all the activity. >> this is the perfect time of year, you know. >> this is when you want to be out here. >> they're going nuts. >> this is what i like to see when you walk up on a deer -- you can see his antlers still sticking up. [ laughs ] >> hunting cinderos, south texas. >> yep. no ground shrinkage here. >> no. >> look at him. that is a heavy deer for this year. >> really heavy deer. >> yeah, that's got some mass on it. >> he's got about everything you want. >> he does. i love the darkness of the rack. >> yeah. thank you, wade. >> what a buck. >> what a buck. >> what a buck. >> you know, hunting south texas, they have a unique situation down here where they really manage their animals. and you really see a good ratio-ran ranch as far as bucks to does and what that leads to in the rut and the amount of activity, the amount of constant chasing this time of year, really how much these animals are moving and the different deer you see every day at the stands. we sat on the same stand more than one occasion morning and night and never seen the same deer. and wade kind of let me know that that's just normal. if you see a good deer now, you better get on him because he might be five miles away the next morning. they just move so much, and they're so active down here, you know. the temperature really worked with us this week. it got nice and cool. >> this has been a presentation of espn, the worldwide leader in sports. to get more information about "chronicles of the hunt," log on to espnoutdoors.com. announcer: "it looks like nothing else on the road right now," proclaims "gq" magazine. did you see that? the interior "positively oozes class," raves "car magazine." "slick and sensuous," boasts "the washington times." "the most striking vw in recent memory," declares-- okay, i get it already. i think we were in a car commercial. ♪ yeah ♪ yeah. >> announcer: buck savvy with tom miranda is presented by: >> the best hunters have the best areas to hunt because they have a system for success, like taking maps of the county you hunt and locating the long-running barriers and habitat change features. by using colored magic markers, you can mark these areas, and where all the color comes together are the target areas where you need to go spend your time to scout for hunting. another thing that good hunters do is, they use optics to find the deer at a distance. they set up over fields in early season and watch and look till they see the deer come out. once they identify these big deer in these areas, they go on a speed scout. >> you know, it's a fact that the most successful hunters spend three hours scouting for every hour of actual hunting. another important thing to remember is that when you're on stand in an actual hunting situation and you've done your homework, there's no better feeling, because you know that it's not that you hope a buck comes in; it's just when is he gonna come in, or how many bucks are you gonna see out of that stand? and that's the kind of confidence that it takes by having your own system to locate and find bucks and set up accordingly. you know, it's real exciting for me to be in a whitetail tree stand when i know i've done my homework. when i'm up there, i'm gonna gonna spend a lot of time glassing and looking at trails, looking at field edges, thinking and wondering about what i'm gonna do when that buck comes in. yes! [laughing] i don't believe it. i'm tom miranda, and for more great hunting tips, aim your internet browser to espnoutdoors.com. captioning by captionmax www.captionmax.com >> what a great buck! >> this is a beautiful buck. >> that is a giant. >> it doesn't get any better than that. >> [laughing] is that a great caribou or what? >> male announcer: t/c's pro hunter journal, brought to you by: >> hunting in a faraway place, it's an adventure. [animal call] >> any adventure of the hunt begins from the time that you leave home, especially when you're traveling a great distance. >> a lot of these hunts take two or three days to get to, or one long day. >> if you're going to undertake a big adventure hunt, a big-ticket hunt, a moose and goat hunt in northern canada or, you know, those kinds of hunts, planning may be the most critical part of the whole hunt. >> man, yeah. >> oh, yes. >> all right. >> it's physically demanding. it's absolutely remote, so something goes wrong, if you get sick, you know, if you sprain an ankle, if you cut your bowstring, you know what? the hunt's over. so you have to learn to adapt to the environment. >> male narrator: the mountain ranges that rise above the wilderness valleys of alaska and canada's yukon are forbidding. built of jagged rock and ice, these peaks challenge every hunter who dares climb in search of mountain game. this is adventure hunting, where the feat is as much or more important as the kill, where winning is surviving. challenging one's self to battle fatigue and the elements is true success. >> mountains are mental, meaning that they will beat you up, and you will quit if you're not mentally tough. physically, the mountain can't do anything to you. you go as far as you can, then you stop and rest, then you keep going until you need a rest again and keep going. many, many hunters think they're dying because of the discomfort that's involved with climbing a mountain. >> narrator: hiking on foot is the only mode of transportation, and much of this is up, unless it's down, which means there is little level walking. pro jim shockey knows well the challenges of mountain hunting. yukon moose hunting is shockey's forte, and doing it in tough conditions is just part of it. gregg ritz is also a seasoned mountain hunter and en route to cordova, alaska, in search of the mountain goats that call the chugach range home. traveling by float plane, the coastal mountains look rugged to this new hampshire adventure hunter. >> when you think of an adventure hunt, you know just to travel to the destination is gonna be a challenge, so you might take a commercial airline flight to vancouver. you might take another one from vancouver to another location, then get on a float plane. then once you're on a float plane, then you may end up taking horseback, you know, to the exact hunting location, just to start climbing up that mountain. to me, that one or two days just getting to camp really builds the anticipation. i'm going remote. i'm going to where very few people have ever hunted, and i'm not gonna have a car drive by. i'm not gonna hear a door slam. i mean, i am in the wilderness until the time the hunt's over. we just flew in a couple hours ago, and it's amazing. i mean, it was clear then, and now this front has come through. i mean, our visibility's gone to nothing. and of course the rain's come back down again. i guess that's alaska. >> that is it. it comes and goes, and... you know, kind of works in our favor too. sometimes you get up there and you find goats and you're going after them and you're trying to figure out how to stalk, and magically a fog bank just kind of drifts through, and it hides you. and it's, like, "well, let's cover this ground," and you get over to the next ridge where you're out of sight. so it can work in your favor. >> narrator: when thompson/center's pro hunter journal continues, gregg ritz challenges the tough weather conditions found in the mountains of the alaska wilderness. >> announcer: t/c's pro hunter journal is brought to you by under armour: performance hunting apparel. by: and by: >> when you have a hunt booked in the mountains, whether it's elk, mule deer, moose, sheep, whatever, and you have this mental picture of everything, it'll always be just a little bit different than you've pictured it when you get there, and normally better. >> i don't think there's any more beautiful setting than hunting in the mountains, being able to see from mountaintop to mountaintop, being able to go and spend five or six hours climbing and look back and see camp miles and miles away. >> narrator: pro hunter gregg ritz has traveled to the mountains of coastal alaska. the weather here is brutal, being influenced by low pressure spinning off the gulf of alaska and hitting the mountain peaks of the coastal range. >> i knew hunting mountain goats was physically gonna be demanding, but i will tell you that i was challenged more physically on this hunt than i have on any other hunt in my life. you're talking about an animal that lives in steep, rocky terrain. >> narrator: miles away from base camp, the hunters set up a spike camp which is closer to the goats. isolated from all creature comforts, spike camp serves as a temporary camp that provides shelter from the rain and weather. >> it makes it so much easier, 'cause you can hunt all day. you're not worried about, "how late can i push this and still make it all the way back down to base camp or to a comfortable spot?" you've got a relatively comfortable spot right there with you. normally, we can go up and get a goat in one or two days. goats don't move around much. they kind of stay in the same areas, so... far as the animal is for hunting, it's not that tough, but you still got to get up there where they're at. >> we spend that afternoon just going from rock outcropping to led to overlook, and just looking for these billies. and finally... >> oh, there's one. no... no, he's not that nice. we can do better than him. >> let's go. >> they look like billies. >> well, a couple of them are laying down. you got off to the right. and the wind's kind of blowing at a 45. you think we can go down right on top of him? >> yeah, let's move over here on this little bluff here and get a little elevation. we'll set the scope up and look at 'em through that. >> how far? >> god, you got 100--170 yards. >> 170? >> we can knock off some of those. >> yeah, if we can get down to that next bench, we'll be 150, maybe, less. >> he has no idea we're here. [whispering] okay. okay, you ready? >> yeah. good angle. [rifle blast] [water splashes] >> i hit him. >> you got him. you got him; just watch him. >> he's going down. he's going down. [laughs] >> good job. >> i can't believe it. that is a great goat. >> here's where you hit him, gregg. >> yeah, he was standing right about here. scuffed the ground right there. i mean, you look how far we were up on top of him. that's a long way up on that mountain. >> that is. there's his track. >> can't express to you how satisfied i felt for not only harvesting a mountain goat, but surviving this torrential rain and this inhospitable territory that they call alaska. [laughing] that is a great goat. oh, my gosh. ugh. look at the size of that billy. unbelievable. long, sweeping horns. he's got great mass. >> that's a great goat. >> but man, do they live in some rough country. i mean, you got to fight the weather, the bugs, the steep terrain. it's raining right now, but i've got my mountain goat. thank you, dennis, great hunt. >> you bet. >> narrator: the best mountain hunters learn to pack lightly for extended stays in the mountains. from tents to survival gear, these pros know how to hunt in extreme conditions. this and more when thompson/center's pro hunter journal continues. >> announcer: t/c's pro hunter journal is presented by: >> the first time you climb a mountain on a hunt with a pack on your back, you're gonna feel like you are dying. but you're not. it's just extreme discomfort. uh, get over it, override that discomfort in your brain and keep walking. after seven days is about when you're gonna feel the worst. by day ten, you're gonna feel like a wolf, and you could climb up and down any mountain that exists. >> narrator: with no hunting lodge high up in the mountains, self-sufficiency is a must. extreme mountain hunts require special preparation. gear needs to be light in weight for backpack travel and must be versatile to handle the extremes of mountain terrain and weather. adventure hunters must be concerned with efficient, durable gear that at times are the difference between comfort and roughing it or even survival. >> one of the things that i've noticed is, people don't even break in their boots. they go buy a pair a fancy schmancy boots and they go show off, and they get blisters the first or second day. and let me tell you what. they live in pain the whole hunt. never take a new pair of boots. take time to break in your boots, walk with a pack on your back, and also get used to just carrying your gun in the balance of the load. >> narrator: hunting with a muzzle-loader means that a hunter has made a conscious decision to make the hunt harder than it needs to be. the rainbow bullet trajectory of a muzzle-loader requires hunters to think about distance and shot placement much more so than rifle hunting, yet many hunters continue to switch to muzzle-loading guns because of the romance and nostalgia of them as well as the added challenge of "only one shot." >> muzzle-loading is not a perfect sport. you know, if you take a cartridge and you put it in, you know, an icon bolt-action rifle, that gun's gonna go off. even with today's in-line rifles, seal-breech technology, shoots 209 primers. on hold. the reliability's great, but there are environmental conditions that can contaminate the powder. >> when it comes to all the gear and the gadgets and the reloading, i'm a dinosaur. i mean, if you've seen my gun, i mean, there's--i've got duct tape on it, and i've got electrician's tape, you know, covering the barrel and holding the ramrod in. i mean, i literally carry little plastic tubes that my father-in-law had when he used to muzzle-load back in the '60s. >> narrator: jim shockey knows muzzle-loaders. as thompson/center's master pro, jim was the first hunter in history to complete the north american super slam with a muzzle-loader. that's the 28 species of north american big game. >> i--you know, i'm a goal-oriented guy, so, i mean, a long, long time ago, i set a goal to go after every north american big game animal, but with quality in mind, not just go for small animals to get the animal, to collect it, no, to go for an animal, one of each species, at least, that qualifies for the muzzle-loader record book. that was a goal that took me ten years and a lot of sacrifice from my family. >> narrator: when thompson/center's pro hunter journal continues, muzzle-loading pro jim shockey hunts the remote yukon wilderness for big bull moose. >> announcer: t/c's pro hunter journal is brought to you by: by the all new bad boy buggy xt: they'll never hear you coming. and by: >> you know, the reliability of today's muzzle-loader, i mean, it's incredible. i mean, with seal-breech and 209 primers, your gun's gonna go off. but there are environmental conditions that can contaminate the powder. >> there's no question that a muzzle-loader, even the new modern muzzle-loaders, have a higher degree of difficulty when it comes to hunting than if you were using a high-power centerfire rifle. there's no question, at least not in my mind, because that's what i--that's my life; that's what i do. i know i still have to worry about weather conditions, you know, raining weather. my powder can get wet. it can get wet. if the water gets down the barrel, it's gonna compromise that load no matter what. with my high-power centerfire rifle, i don't need to worry about that. when i walk in the mountains up in the yukon looking for moose, i know that davy crockett had the exact same concerns. what if he bumps into a grizzly bear, right? what if he does and your powder's wet? it's gonna go "spoof." >> narrator: hunting in the yukon with muzzle-loader in hand, shockey is calling in a big bull moose. totally fooled by the calls, the huge bull closes to within handshaking range. using an oar to imitate antlers, jim rakes the ground and acts as if he's another bull. this technique is used effectively to give jim a close one-shot opportunity with his thompson/center encore. [dramatic music] [rifle pops] >> watch him. watch him. oh. [laughing] did you see that? ho. [laughing] we are in the middle of nowhere, in the middle of nowhere, up in the yukon, and this monster bull, we had him this morning way, way down there. then as soon as i got into this area, i stopped and made two calls, and two bull moose stood up. this great big one came up with a cow towards us, but we were so out of position, i couldn't call him across. i didn't want to. so then set up and went and made a big loop on him, trying to call, but then we saw him going up into the willows way up high here. oh, my goodness, we have a lot of work coming up. he is so big. he is beautiful. and just living up here in this place. that's why i love moose hunting. they're so interactive, like the call, and he started coming in, "wah, wah." it's a sight you can't imagine until you're right here with these magnificent animals in this spectacular place. beautiful bull. >> narrator: next week on thompson/center's pro hunter journal, learn whitetail tactics from the pros, as both michael waddell and gregg ritz hunt for mega whitetails. it's awesome whitetail hunting next week on thompson/center's pro hunter journal. >> announcer: this has been a presentation of espn, the worldwide leader in sports. for more tips from the pros of pro hunter journal, log on to espnoutdoors.com. announcer: "it looks like nothing else on the road right now," proclaims "gq" magazine. did you see that? the interior "positively oozes class," raves "car magazine." "slick and sensuous," boasts "the washington times." "the most striking vw in recent memory," declares-- okay, i get it already. i think we were in a car commercial. ♪ yeah ♪ yeah. >> welcome to hunt like a parker. >> this week hank jr.'s going out to central texas for our early season bow hunt. >> that's right. it is early--the earliest i've ever been to texas, so we'll just have to see what happens. [rock guitar music] ♪ >> male announcer: c'mere deer presents hunt like a parker with hank parker, hank parker jr., and billy "catfish" parker. >> it's early october in north texas, which means the deer are still in their late summer feeding pattern. pretty much all they're worried about right now is food. well, i'm hunting in a ground blind just in an opening of a mesquite thicket. before the hunt started, my guide had put out shake and take for several days. when i got to the blind, all i did was freshen it up. first deer i see is a great buck. and, hey, i thought he was gonna come in. it looked like he was, but at the last minute, he just turns and leaves. well, as the afternoon went on, the only other deer that i saw was a little buck. as time started to run out, that same big buck from earlier just appeared to my left. well, he came straight to the shake and take. well, i got my bow up and got ready. the wind was swirling, and the deer started to get nervous. i don't know if he smelled me or what, but he started to leave, and i knew this was gonna be my only shot. [bowstring snaps] that was fast. he came back in. we put some shake and take out, and he came right to it. hey, when you're hunting early season, focus on the food source, 'cause most likely, that's where the big bucks are gonna be. >> announcer: hunt like a parker is brought to you by: [upbeat rock music] captioning by captionmax www.captionmax.com >> a fox or a coyote or even a whitetail deer, they trust their nose more than any other scent. >> i think scents work. in fact, i know scents work, or lure. i've seen it work. >> for me, i used the scents because it does work occasionally. the animals are attracted to it occasionally. but it keeps me focused. >> you know, when i'm hunting whitetail deer, i'll try about anything if i'm hitting a slump. >> depending on the time of year, what i really like to do is, if i'm going to use lures and scents, i like to do them in a mock spray. >> i'd say the late pre-rut and the rut are, in my opinion, the absolute best times to use scents. >> narrator: much like an expert fisherman has a tackle box full of lures, a whitetail hunter has his own bag of tricks when it comes to hunting deer. the knowledge of how to use those tools to attain success is what sets the pros apart. no one tactic works every time. but all can be affected when used with the best overall strategy. >> narrator: the 14 pros of whitetail country know that in order to be successful in the whitetail woods, knowledge is power. to understand the whitetail buck is to know where he sleeps, where he eats, and what tactics work best for each stage of the rut. to learn these things is to spend time in the woods and to watch one trail until the fawn aren't watching. these pros learn from their mistakes. and now you can learn from their accomplishments. with over 300 years of combined buck hunting experience, these experts have earned their buck hunting skills through both successes and failures and by testing a variety of hunting tactics, like the use of scents. one widely used product is doe urine. whether it be on a dragline or used as cover scent, the natural aroma of doe urine can be very effective if used properly. >> you need that whole little backpack of all the goodies, 'cause every day, one of them may work out. >> when we're up in the tree stand, we do have some just regular doe pee, where, when we're up in the tree stand, if the wind does start switching around on us, we will spray it around just a little bit just for more of a cover scent rather than an attracting scent. >> do you know these bucks are traveling? and they can smell something a lot further away than they can hear it. so if you think of trolling for deer, that's how i use scents is, i use draglines to go out 100 or 200 yards. i use scent wicks and allow that scent to drift 300 or 400 yards. so if you think about it, it's trying to lure these deer in from a vast distance, deer that you would never see unless you used a scent strategy. >> narrator: when whitetail country returns, it's the power of the whitetail nose. and realtree's bill jordan plays the wind for buck hunting success. all that and more when realtree's whitetail country continues. >> announcer: realtree's whitetail country is brought tu by: by: the buck bomb blows away traditional scents. and by: if you hunt big bucks, practice on a big buck. >> male narrator: you're watching realtree's whitetail country big buck tips, exclusively on espn outdoors. page any hunting catalog today, and it's easy to see that hunters have the choice of many different scent products. some of these products are used on clothing, others on the body; some to cover human scent, others said to eliminate it. clothing is available lined with active charcoal to capture human odor. lures and scents are concocted from deer urine and glands to lure a whitetail closer to range. one of the most popular and natural attractants is doe urine. being extracted directly from whitetail deer, this scent is as natural as it gets. >> i've used this for a lot of years. and it's one of those scents or lures that, you put it out, and it comforts and gives deer confidence because they smell it. and to them, that creates the illusion that there's been other deer through that area very recently. and if other deer have come through that area very recently and stopped to urinate, it also indicates that there's no threat in that area. >> narrator: one pro hunter who knows how to fool a mature buck is realtree pro bill jordan. sitting with a light morning breeze in his face, bill is in his tree stand overlooking a woody creek bottom. as a natural travel corridor, this creek corridor provides bucks with security cover while traveling from one tough cornfield to another. with the ground covered by a light skiff of snow, the morning air is chilly. and bill is hoping to see bucks on the move. >> that's a good deer right here, good deer. you know, i think one of the most important factors, if not the most important factor, to me, is beating the deer's nose, his ability to smell, because that is his, you know, best defense mechanism, with his eyesight being second. he's coming right in right here on the side. >> you have to, call it, "fool a deer's nose." and that doesn't necessarily mean that you're upwind, and you have all these scent-elimination products, so you fool them. what it basically means is, you can get within effective killing range without that deer smelling you. >> i think if you ever can get a deer that comes in, you know, upwind of you and you're in a downwind situation, he's going to get you nine out of ten times. >> he smells us. feel like you made a good shot, but you don't ever know. let's go take a look. and i think we're going to have us a good deer. look at the size of this deer. oh, my goodness. look at the width on him, just a--i mean, a great deer. this deer could be 20 inches inside, at least, got just a lot of mass. >> narrator: when whitetail country continues, the pros of whitetail country unleash tree stand secrets. that and more when we return. >> announcer: realtree's whitetail country is presented by bill jordan's realtree: family, friends, and the outdoos >> narrator: today in the woods of whitetail country, technology plays a huge role in the success of a hunt. laser range finders pinpoint shot distance. inline muzzleloaders are as accurate as bolt-action rifles. carbon-lined suits suppress human odors. and deer attractants atomize into the air to bring big bucks into bow range. but without equal, the most innovative modern-day hunting tool is far and away the tree stand. >> for me, tree-stand hunting is the ultimate, because when you're bow hunting, you're above the eye-line sight of the buck. and that lets him come into range without knowing that you're there. and that's the whole secret to using a tree stand. a tree stand is the revolutionary tactic. it's the revolutionary piece of equipment for whitetail hunting and especially bow hunting. but you've got to learn that you've got to get it up into the canopy. you don't set up a tree stand on a telephone pole or a tree that doesn't have any branches 20 feet up. you've got to get it up into the canopy where you're hitting. >> when you're hunting a food source and you're trying to pick a tree stand location, we all know that wind direction is the most important thing. but you also got to remember how a big bucks comes in and out of a food source. usually the back corners of a field kind of drops off. that's where he'll enter. that big buck loves to come in where he feels safe, feels secure, where he can stand back in the edge, and maybe only his neck and head is visible from out there in the middle of that food source and he can survey everything out there. >> narrator: the bird's-eye view of a tree stand perch puts a hunter's movements above the deer's line of sight and, many times, keeps human odors out of a big buck's nose. but with all the advantages of tree-stand hunting, there is a danger: too many hunters die every year and many more are injured as a result of a fall from a tree stand. reports show that simple carelessness appears to be the main reason for tree stand accidents. 33% of all people who hunt from tree stands will, at some point, experience some sort of fall. this isn't something that always happens to the other guy. >> 1997, day after christmas, i fell 25 feet out of a tree stand, shattered my ankle, spiral fracture up my tibia, bed-ridden for four months, didn't walk for three years. so if there's anybody that understands tree-stand safety, it's me, because when i stepped from my steps into the stand, i didn't have a belt on. >> tree-stand safety is the number one thing on my mind when i go to a tree, every time out. i fell 25 feet. so i've lived through it. i was hooking up an old-time safety belt when the bottom dropped out of a climber. and i fell. and i've still got back problems. it's been 15 years ago. so i'm a lucky one that i fell and didn't get hurt worse than i did. >> narrator: one of the most critical aspects of keeping safe while hunting from an elevated shooting stand is the use of a full-body safety harness. a full-body harness has straps that wrap around both legs, both shoulders, and around the waist. the innovative design of today's safety harnesses allow both bow and rifle hunters flexibility of movement while also providing safety. most hunters know that once high above the ground, anything could happen. one bad move or careless mistake can cost a hunter more than a buck tag. >> if you put on a safety harness and you always tether yourself into the tree, if you do fall, if you do become a statistic, you're not going to die from it. you're not going to get hurt. it's like putting your safety belt on in the car. you're most likely not going to get in a wreck. but if you do, you're at least doing everything in your power to preserve your life for you and your family. and a safety harness in a tree stand's the same thing. my kids, my wife, my parents, my cat, and my dog are very important to me, and i want to go home after the hunt. and so i'm always going to wear a safety harness. >> narrator: when realtree's whitetail country continues, pro stan potts is high in his tree stand with a monster buck in range. (johnny) hey, we got to go. (tyler) no. (johnny) we got to go... deer, we're leaving! (tyler) thanks alot, johnny. (johnny) tyler, we got to hurry! (tyler) i'm going! where are my socks? (tyler) man, come on, johnny. (johnny) i'm trying. [car engine roaring] [rock 'n roll music] (johnny) i think we made it. (tyler) i told you so. (johnny) ah, i knew it. (announcer) realtree... family, friends and the outdoors. do you need a reason to step up to a better bow this year? well, matthews has it. it's the new matthews reezen. (male) at 340 feet per second, this is the fastest single cam bow available. it's not only the fastest, it's accurate, forgiving, and smooth drawing. the new matthews reezen is the most high performance solo cam ever created. the reason you want this bow: speed and accuracy. (male announcer) and there's more reasons at your local matthews dealer. matthews: catch us if you can! > everyone says practicing your archery shooting will help make you a better shot. how 'bout a sighting system that does just that? this is my new signature series hindsight eclipse. the sight that'll change the way you shoot your bow. its patented reticule on the riser design provides 100 percent elimination of bow torque. and superior visibility, even in low light. it's dead accurate and can be shot with both eyes open. just line up the sights and touch the release. hindsight. precision sights hindsight. precision sights for serious bow hunters. ♪ (male announcer) if you're going to hunt big bucks, practice on a big buck. the glendel full rut is one big 3-d target. its super-sized insert now features revolutionary poly fusion technology for even longer insert life and extremely easy arrow removal. be prepared for your next trophy. get a glendel full rut. >> announcer: realtree's whitetail country is brought tu by: by: and by: >> narrator: locating tree stand sets is one of the most difficult challenges of mature buck hunting. many times, the trails and areas with the most deer sign turn into doe and immature buck hotspots. yet the whitetail pro looks at location from a different perspective. mature deer need secure cover. many follow the backwoods waterways in the cover of darkness. while many hunters hunt the fringes of big woods or crop fields, whitetail pros are looking at a bigger picture: to narrow down the stand location. intersecting land features and barriers create primary funnels for deer to move through and provide a better chance of seeing a mature buck in range. >> good tree stand placement; i want cover if at all possible. i want to break that outline up with, you know, more of the tree or some foliage or whatever i can use. but i don't want to stick out like a 200-pound guy on the side of a telephone pole. >> there's nothing worse than sitting in a tree that you're not comfortable in. you're sitting out there for three, four hours in the morning, few hours in the evening in a tree doing this. and the thing you got to think about, though, if it's windy and that deer comes in and you're doing this, there's another thing that can go wrong. and with bow hunting, there's already enough that can go wrong. so tree stand placement, huge. >> narrator: whitetail country pro stan potts is known for harvesting big bucks. concentrating primarily on hunting public land in his home state of illinois, stan has successfully harvested trophy bucks over 200 boone and crockett points. stan contributes his success to the use of decoys and to setting stands in line of buck traffic, near food sources and bedding areas. with his tc encore in hand, stan sits in anticipation of what may come. >> here he comes. he's coming out of the ditch. here he comes. are you on him? [gunshot] [giggles excitedly] thank you, lord. that's an absolute giant, folks. right there. look. look. there he is. he is a giant. come with me, folks. that is a monster buck. thanks for being with me. we hunted this buck in october, the last week of october. tom miranda was with me and my son tim. we're up here in ohio with my buddy joe. look at this. look at that. that is incredible. >> narrator: hunting can be whatever the hunter makes it. a boring day on stand can be turned into shear exhilaration by just the mere sighting of one buck. the hunter who scouts hard and uses a methodical approach to locating hunting areas and stand sites is the hunter who has decided that his chances at a mega buck won't happen only because of luck. the last day of hunting season is actually the first day to start scouting for next year and a new and better chance at a mega buck. in a whitetail pro's mind, deer hunting is a 24-hour-a-day 7-day-a-week passion. there's so much to do and so little time. but these pros continue reading, watching, scouting, learning, and hunting in the woods of whitetail country. >> narrator: do you think you have what it takes to be a pro on realtree's whitetail country? yes! if you love to hunt big bucks learn to video your own hunt and be a solo cam pro. logon now to: for all the information on how to tape your own hunt on realtree's whitetail country. this has been a presentation of espn, the worldwide leader in sports. for more whitetail hunting tips from the pros of whitetail country, log on to: from the makers of federal premium ammunition... comes a new way to look at big game hunting. nitrex. work hard. hunt harder. we put everything into this line of optics, so you get what you want out of every hunt. a complete line of riflescopes and binoculars. shockproof. waterproof. fogproof. and backed with a heavy-duty warranty. nitrex optics. always in the hunt. -- captions by vitac -- >> federal premium ammunition presents "here's a tip" by "buck commander." >> [ groans ] [ groaning ] you're squeezing my guts. >> here's a tip for you. stretch once in a while -- this won't hurt so bad. >> here's a tip for you. add a little egg to your batter on your fried deer steak. ow! >> at the double dime this year, i finally got my first couple pope and young deer. >> when chipper's in the ground blind, he will smoke it when he has to smoke it. >> chipper finally got a chance at a humongous deer down in south texas. oh, my gosh. i smoked him. >> you smoked him. so, when chipper shoots this deer with his bow, we were so excited. it was like a 160-class deer. he is pumped, i mean, like a little kid. >> [ laughs ] >> good job, bud. >> chipper put a great shot on this buck and was about as fired up as i've ever seen chipper on a hunt. >> ha ha ha! >> this has been a long time coming right here. >> for more "buck commander," go to espnoutdoors.com. you're fixing to wishbone me. you're tearing my legs apart. [dogs barking] [dramatic music] [dogs howling] [cougar snarling] >> this might be the most beautiful place on the planet. i've been hiking these rugged mountains for nearly two weeks. and finally, things are coming together. it's late july and one of the earliest bow hunts available in north america. the trail i'm guarding runs down the spine of this mountain range, and caribou are walking past on it almost as if i don't exist, sporting full velvet antlers. the caribou are amazing, and at these close encounters, i can't help but think a big bull is here somewhere. right there. i'm tom miranda, and hunting the mountain caribou of summer makes this rocky ridge my new favorite bow blind. >> male narrator: the wilds of the mackenzie mountains are fantastic. dall sheep roam these jagged peaks as mountain goats watch from above. in the valleys, clear glacial rivers flow as they have for thousands of years. grizzly bears fish the river's edge as caribou travel the rock-strewn alpine. known as the most remote and inhospitable mountain range in north america, the mackenzies are a virtual maze of craggy cliffs and box canyons. advantage pro tom miranda has traveled to the mackenzies to meet his pal chad lens in search of the mountain caribou that inhabit these rugged peaks. >> well, it's a long way from florida to get up here. >> it is. >> it's a pretty place though. >> up in the northwest territories. we're at about probably 2,800 feet here, i think. and the mountains here aren't too much higher, another 3,000 feet probably to the tops. not too difficult. but still 3,000 feet every day to get up there. and sometimes we have to go over two or three. we're just gonna do a lot of glass and a lot of looking, a lot of hunting. we'll find them. >> narrator: remote hunts usually require a spike camp set up on a crystal clear glacial river. the campsite affords fresh cold drinking water... >> ice cold. >> narrator: and quick access to rim rocks for much of the surrounding mountains that can be glassed for caribou. since most of the caribou bulls are in bachelor herds during the antler growing season of june through august, once bulls are spotted, tom and chad can make the 4,000-foot climb to the mountain peaks closer home. >> in the early season, july, august, even early september, the animals seek out places where there's less bugs. the bugs drive them crazy, black flies and mosquitoes. and caribou, quite frankly, do not like the heat, so they're gonna look for glaciers and patches of snow. you know, and they'll go in there, and they'll stick their noses in there and get their feet on there, keep their face down low out of the bugs. so they search out the pieces of snow. and that's what we look for a lot of times when we're looking for mountain caribou early season. and that's where we're gonna concentrate on. >> narrator: there's more bow hunting action when tom miranda's mackenzie mountain adventure continues here on espn outdoors.  >> male announcer: territories wild with tom miranda is brought to you by nikon: the trusted name in optics. by thompson/center: america's master gunmaker. and by cuddeback: fast trigger speed: long battery life >> narrator: known as the most rugged mountain range in north america, the mackenzie mountains of canada's northwest territories are a bow hunter's paradise. advantage pro tom miranda and guide chad lens are hunting mountain caribou with south nahanni outfitters. south nahanni's base camp is located on the south nahanni river and is a cozy compound of log and plywood cabins. owned and operated by outfitter and bush pilot werner aschbacher, south nahanni has the notoriety of being canada's largest mountain area, comprising of thousands of square miles of mackenzie wilderness. because of the unforgiving terrain of the mackenzies, this area is one of the few places in canada which helicopter access for hunters is permitted. south nahanni chopper pilot robert polwin is a new zealand native who knows the perils of mountain flying well. >> i enjoy coming over here to the northwest territories in canada and spending a bit of time flying. i'm from new zealand originally, and i like to come over here in my off season, the winter, which is your guys' summer. they say half the fun of the trip's getting there. and we start off here at nahanni base camp, pick up the hunters, and they get quite a good scenic flight out to where we drop them off hunting. this particular helicopter is a bell jetranger iii, and it's ideally suited for the work we do out here due to the fact that we can carry sort of two to three hunters and a bit of gear. this machine here is good, especially above 5,500 feet. and we generally work right up to 7,500, 8,000 feet here in the nahanni. [helicopter blades thudding] >> narrator: the mountain caribou is the largest of the caribou subspecies. with a body nearly as large as a bull elk and giant antlers, mountain caribou bulls are a true prize for the bow hunter willing to climb into the remote country to hunt them. together with the woodland, quebec labrador, barren ground, and central barren ground, the mountain caribou totals up the five huntable species of caribou in north america. found from the mountains of northern british columbia into the yukon and west into the northwest territories, the mountain caribou prefers the rugged ranges, migrating more from summer calving and feeding areas of the mountaintops to winter valleys rather than the long migrations practiced by his cousins of the tundra. >> hiking in the mackenzie mountains, it's rough country. i don't think i've ever seen this many rocks anywhere. there are some sharp shale slides that look as dangerous as they are. my mendel boots are cut up from just the few days we've been working and hiking through these mountains. and you'll get to places where it's kind of easy walking, but there's still a little bit of moss, almost tundra-like, up on some of the saddles and ridges on these mountains. and then you'll get into some serious rock where you've almost just got to set your bow down and grab onto rocks and climb with both hands and then reach down and pick your bow up and work your way up the cliff. it's not for the faint of heart to climb around in these mackenzie mountains, because you get into some situations where you look down, and it's a 300-foot or 400-foot drop, and it's straight down. it's just a fantastic place to come and experience the outdoors, and especially to bring your bow and arrow. >> narrator: there's more bow hunting action when tom miranda's mountain caribou adventure continues here on epsn outdoors. >> male announcer: the realtree hunting camp is brought to you by chevy, an american revolution. >> male announcer: territories wild with tom miranda is presented by bill jordan's realtree. >> narrator: you're watching territories wild with tom miranda, exclusively on espn outdoors. hunting in the rugged mackenzie mountains of canada's northwest territories, bow hunting pro tom miranda and guide chad lens continue to look for large mountain caribou bulls. the hunt is grueling work, as the mountains are treacherous and the weather constantly changing. >> you never know when these storms come in in this mountain country, and i'll tell you what. when the wind starts howling and blowing and it starts raining, you hope you're set up a barn's width from the crick. 'cause if these waters come up, i'm gonna have to put the gore-tex on and move camp. and that's not a good plan. savage is in the tent next to me, and i've heard him out moving things around. so it's been pretty brutal out here. got a good book on captain cook. it's always brought me some good luck. so we'll settle in, and tomorrow's a new day on the mountain. >> narrator: with heavy rain throughout the night, morning breaks to clear skies. it's mid-july in the mackenzies, and the sun never really sets, giving 20 hours of daylight and four hours of twilight. tom and guide chad lens have spotted several bull caribou walking a ridge above the spike camp and are gearing up to make the four-mile trip. >> some of the most important decisions you're gonna make as a bow hunter when it comes to going on a wilderness remote hunt like this is what type of gear you bring and how you organize that gear. on these types of mountain hunts, you're packing in everything you need. you're gonna be living out of a tent, and you're gonna be moving to the animals. you're gonna be climbing mountains. it's a lot of rugged country, a lot of physical exercise. and you want to take the least amount of stuff but everything that you need. i'm kind of one of those hunters that like to take a practice shot once in a while, and you need to find a clay bank or something that you can draw back and laser the yardage and make your shot just to know that you're gonna be on in case you're just unsure of your shot because you haven't shot in a week. sometimes these hunts can be for 10 or 14 days, and if you don't take a shot till the last day, you sure don't want to miss it. i'm gonna take a couple practice shots over here in the river bottom. and chad's getting ready. we're gonna go out on a hunt. >> the south nahannis aren't your typical mountain caribou habitat. usually in northern british columbia or in the yukon, you're looking for small groups of mountain caribou. the south nahannis have an exceptional population, and there's hundreds. it's unbelievable how many animals live here in the south nahannis. [wind whistling] i look back, good or bad, it's all an adventure, no matter what you do... so, the joy is getting there. well on the days that we help someone move from the shelter to permanent housing... those are the best days. i reached inside the window and it started right up. it made us feel like if that truck could keep going, then we could all keep going. chevy . the most dependable, longest lasting full-sized pickups on the road. this is my truck. chevy silverado. america's best truck. >> announcer: territories wild with tom miranda is brought to you by: and by hindsight: precision sights for serious bowhunters. for more information on exciting territories wild hunting destinations, logon to the new tommiranda.com. >> narrator: having climbed to the top of a range of mountains in canada's northwest territories, advantage pro tom miranda and guide chad lens have located a ridge trail the caribou are traveling from one mountain to another. >> when you're mountain hunting, there's a lot of climbing, a lot of climbing. but the animals have been here for hundreds and hundreds of years. and they run through the saddles, and they funnel on the ridge tops. so there's trails there. and it's a great place to set up for an ambush point. a couple days of glassing with the animals around, i guarantee they're gonna go through those saddles. there's trails to prove it that have been there for a long, long time. >> narrator: with big bulls in the distance, the team lays ambush in a craggy rock crop in hopes the big bulls walk within bow range. >> here comes that bull. i can see the tip of his horns. he's coming right up the trail. if he gets in closer and gets to close that snow, we'll take him. >> when you're whitetail hunting, you're usually hunting out of a tree stand and probably close to home where you can take a lot of practice shots. so when you get on stand, you can laser the area around the stand to know your yardage. you're probably gonna have a 25-yard or a 30-yard shot, max. but when you get on a wilderness hunt like this, you don't know what the situation is gonna be when you finally have your encounter and your chance at the animal. this is mountain country. we could have a steep upward angle shot or a steep lower angle shot. we might have a 10-yard shot. we might have a 60-yard shot. we just don't know what the situation's gonna be. a lot of times when you're hiking in this country you can slip and fall. you can drop your bow. you can bump your sights. there's a lot of things you need to think about so that when that time comes and you've done all the work to get right in range in that moment of truth at full draw, you can make the accurate shot. >> he's not gonna go very far. >> he was right there. >> he was less than ten yards. oh, mountain caribou. >> thank you so much, chad. you are the mountain man, sheep man, moose man, now caribou man. what a hunt. these animals aren't supposed to be like regular migrating caribou. it's early season in velvet. >> yeah, they're coming down both sides of us on these tops. >> ten yards, right behind a rock, punched right through him. my arrow's right there. >> yeah, let's go look at him. >> yeah, let's check it out. look at this. perfect pass through. what a fantastic hunt, man. man, are we lucky he didn't go over the cliff. >> yeah, he's in a bad spot. well, look at this caribou. look at that. what a great job, man. double shovel. >> nice bull, good tops. >> good tops, good bases. missing a back point here but got a nice one there. look at that shot. he didn't go, what, 40 yards, and then he hit the chute. and i mean, he's probably slid, like, 60 yards down this chute. and then it's like 500 feet straight down right over the cliff. and what a great place to come and hunt mountain caribou. one of the hardest caribou to get, but yet almost like hunting them in the migration here. early season--it's the end of july. full velvet with chad "the savage" lens from the top of the mountain, northwest territories. what a fantastic hunt. captioning by captionmax www.captionmax.com >> male announcer: this has been a presentation of espn, the worldwide leader in sports. for more bow hunting tips with tom miranda, log on to: [cat roars] >> male announcer: strategies in the wild is presented by the all-new bad boy buggie xt. they'll never hear you coming. >> male narrator: the farmlands of west central alberta are abundant with wildlife. moose, elk, bear, whitetails, and mule deer are just a few of the species found in this fertile agricultural area. bow hunting pro tom miranda is hunting mule on a cattle ranch that fringes boreal forests and the majestic canadian rocky mountains. >> it's overcast. it's nice and cold. and that's what it needs to be for these deer to move. >> narrator: if you were bow hunting the rocky mountain mule deer in this farming area, what would your strategy be? would you use binoculars to glass up a big buck and attempt to stalk into range? or would you watch the deer in the evenings and set up a ground blind ambush for the morning hunt? or would you watch the deer in the mornings, then set up a tree stand and evening hunt the deer like western whitetails? since the mule deer bucks are hanging with many does, spotted stalk tactics will be difficult at best. also, deer in farm country are notorious for utilizing several bedding areas. so it's a guess where the nighttime feeding will take them. this virtually rules out a good morning setup. the best strategy is to watch the deer go to bed and get in tight with a tree stand set up for evening. tom has found a creek bottom filled with bug grubs that leads near the back of an abandoned farmstead. a stand set up here is ideal. >> you know, you wouldn't think that deer would want to come in and around these old buildings. but i'll tell you what. there's sanctuary here for these deer, 'cause all this woods and thick grass and stuff grows up. it's a perfect place to go set up, do your whitetail hunting, do your mule deer hunting, in and around old abandoned farm buildings. >> narrator: for more strategies in the wild tips, aim your internet browser to: >> my alberta mule deer buck right there. >> male narrator: this week on realtree outdoors... >> that's a stud right there. >> narrator: a hunt with missed opportunities... >> how do you miss an elk at 25 yards? >> narrator: becomes a determination for redemption... >> like a bad dream, i came back. >> narrator: with competition from other predators. >> that is too cool right there. >> narrator: wyoming elk hunting is next. [elk bugling] [rock music] >> right there. >> that's what that... >> yeah, baby. >> oh, my god. it's opening day. captioning by captionmax www.captionmax.com >> jordan: hi, i'm bill jordan, and welcome to realtree outdoors. after all these many years, i finally got drawn for a wyoming elk hunt, and i am superexcited. we're gonna be hunting the famous wagonhound ranch in wyoming, lots of big elk. realtree outdoors starts right now. you know, i was absolutely ecstatic when i found out that i got drawn for a wyoming elk hunt. i have never hunted elk in wyoming, and i was really excited, and when we started looking around about a place to hunt, a place called the wagonhound ranch came up, and i had known my good friend michael waddell had gone to wagonhound three years earlier and had taken a magnificent bull. [gunshot] >> that's what we were looking for right there, wasn't it, boys? >> jordan: now, wagonhound is located on the east side of the state just outside of douglas, wyoming. this area of wyoming is known for monster bulls and has some excellent elk hunting, especially for bow hunters. wagonhound is a working cattle ranch and is home to some of the finest horse programs i have ever seen. i knew from the start that this was gonna be a memorable trip. state regulation's here. hey, how are you? >> all right. >> jordan: i need to get an archery tag and a conservation tag. when i arrived in wyoming, my first priority was to get an archery stamp. archery hunters may either draw archery-specific tag or a rifle tag and obtain an archery stamp. the good thing about this tag: if i'm unsuccessful during the archery season, i have an option to pick up a rifle during the rifle season. all right, we legal. >> hey, we're legal. we're good to go. >> jordan: we're good to go now. [light instrumental music] ♪ home away from home. i wish i could say i was gonna stay here for about two weeks, but it's not gonna hurt my feelings we're shooting tomorrow. after a long trip, it was nice to finally settle into a place that felt like home. we got my stuff unpacked and settled in for dinner. i tell ya, the change in colors is absolutely beautiful. >> isn't that nice? >> it looks like gold is flowing down those branches and those little cuts, and, i mean, those--they turn the most brilliant gold you ever saw in your life. >> jordan: now, when you travel to a hunting ranch that's also a working cattle ranch, you might want to expect to have steak for dinner. that evening gave me a chance to get to know the guys better. these guys were all right. i knew we were gonna have a good week. [light rock music] ♪ we had a good breakfast that morning, and now we're off, and when we got to the location, it was the most unbelievable sounds i've ever heard. there were elk everywhere. [elk bugling] sounds like jurassic park. i just saw one. [elk bugling] we kind of eased up and looked over a little cliff, and we saw some really nice bulls. that's a stud ride there. that's a stud. [elk bugling] we tried to hurry to get in position up the mountain, but we were just a little bit behind him, and he took the cows on up the mountain, but we knew where he was. here he is right here. that's it. [elk bugles] okay, now our game plan had come together a little bit. we had found a monster bull, put him to bed, and we knew exactly where we was gonna go for that afternoon hunt. >> narrator: next, bill gets himself into perfect position. bill jordan's realtree outdoors is brought to you by: and by: for a muzzleloader.in' oh, man, i've got ya covered. check out the brand new t-c triumph bone collector, the baddest muzzleloader in the land. well, why is that so special? well, you see, it's got this speed breech x-t that you can remove by hand, it's got t-c's weather-shield protective coating, a power rod, it's got flex tech with these energy burners, you see, so your gun don't kick ya like a mule. wow, that's the one for me. me too, that's why i bought this one. don't you work here? the triumph bone collector, by thompson-center. thanks! hey, welcome to the brotherhood! >> narrator: realtree's bill jordan and wagonhound ranch guide jeff taylor have spotted a big bull. it's early afternoon, and the elk are up and moving. >> jordan: that is a scout at his best right there. i mean, unbelievable talent that boy has. after a quick lunch, i was really excited about the afternoon hunt. we knew where these bulls were, and now we're headed to them. yeah, what we're doing this afternoon--we came in here this morning about 8:30, 9:00 and glassed across in here, didn't really have to glass a whole lot, but there was bulls singing, just bugling all up on this hillside going up the bed. [elk bugling] got a great location and saw a couple of good bulls in here this morning, so i think they're gonna start bugling here in just a little bit. >> hopefully. >> jordan: as we moved up the mountain, we kept seeing bull after bull, and i felt like it was only a matter of time before we saw the big one. [rock music] ♪ i could hear over to my left right up underneath the hill what i thought was the big bull. he was bugling his head off. i kind of eased down the hill, got in position. jeff stayed behind me trying to draw him to us... [elk bugles] looked down, and here comes old big boy. [intense music] ♪ [bugle call] man, what a bull, and now he's walking into my shooting range. [bugle call] [bow snaps] i've got to tell you, i just kind of screwed up on the whole thing. it hurts. i just missed the shot. i missed a 25-yard shot, and i didn't put my pin down, hugest mistake on my part. you know, after i shot, i kind of sat there, and i'm trying to recall what i did wrong, and that's not the only thing i've ever missed in my life, and i kind of sit there, and i thought, "you idiot. how in the world could you misjudge a bull that close and that big?" and, you know, it happens. left and right was good. just shot over his back. [laughter] >> how do you miss an elk at 25 yards? >> jordan: that's good right there. it probably didn't miss him an inch off the top of his back. the left and right was right there. i just--i--it was me. i have no excuse at all. i don't do the excuse deal. i just screwed up. [laughter] even though i was disappointed, i wasn't really too concerned, because i had four days left to hunt, and there were bulls everywhere. one big one right there. [rock music] ♪ young bull. we got a good bull here in a couple of years. [elk call] [vocalizes elk call] [elk bugles] little did i know, the next four days were gonna be a little tough: saw a lot of elk, a lot of bugling elk. we just couldn't get the old big boy in front of us. now, there is a good thing that comes out of all this. i'm still holding the gun tag. i can't wait for rifle season. >> narrator: coming up, bill heads back to the cowboy state with his rifle and one thing on his mind. >> we're gonna shoot an elk this time, though. >> male announcer: the realtree hunting camp is brought to you by: after an unproductive bow hunt... [bow snaps] >> jordan: it hurts. >> narrator: realtree's bill jordan is back in wyoming hunting with wagonhound ranch. jordan is excited to be back with his rifle hoping to fill the wyoming tag. >> jordan: hey, like a bad dream, i came back. >> i know. you can't get rid of me, can you? >> jordan: how are you doing? >> pretty good, man. how are you? >> jordan: beautiful day. you know, we went back in mid-october. the rut was obviously over. maybe just a little bit of a rut might continue, but what happens during this time of year, all these bulls get back together, and they herd back up, great time of year to do a spot-and-stalk. are you... >> waiting on you? yeah. >> jordan: are you just gonna go like that, or you gonna act like another bull elk with that colored shirt on, or how are we doing it? >> well, if you've got to be that sneaky. >> jordan: i've missed you so bad the last 4 1/2 weeks--4 weeks. >> you just couldn't live without him. >> jordan: i couldn't live without him, huh? >> it's mutual. >> jordan: when we arrived that afternoon, i was excited about getting out and finding a bull to hunt. as we rode around that evening, we really didn't see the amount of elk that i thought we would see, and when we got to the top of the mountain, i could see why. >> a lion. >> jordan: lion right there, a mountain lion. you see her? >> yeah. >> jordan: that is too cool right there. she thinks she's hid right there. what's she have, two cubs with her? >> i only see one. >> jordan: that's all i saw. boy, that is pretty right there, pretty, pretty. >> we've got quite a few in the country. i mean, more and more all the time, it seems like, but... >> jordan: she just laid right there about 70 yards from us was all. >> [laughs] yeah. >> jordan: there she goes up through the trees right here. you see her? >> yep. >> jordan: oh, that was neat there. the mountain lion had two cubs, and she was on high alert. [light acoustic guitar music] ♪ you know, we tried something a little bit different the second morning. we went to a place where jeff had seen this tremendous bull, i think a 7x7. that morning, i was pumped. i was excited. i was ready to go. we were easing down the roads, and we were spotting from different locations, when suddenly, jeff said, "i think that's him." we looked over there. sure enough, that's that big 7x7. this huge 7x7 was traveling with another bull. we made a mad dash out of the truck just to try to get in front of it. >> there's that seven right up there. >> jordan: where's he going, on top of that ridge? >> well, there's both of them. >> jordan: what do you think? you want to move up here? >> we need to get up around that rock. >> jordan: as close-- let's get up there. get right here. i've got trees to shoot through. i got a lot of stuff to shoot through right there. he's not gonna stop. >> okay, let's move up. let's move. >> narrator: next, jordan moves into range, hoping to cut the bull off before he gets to the thick bedding area. also coming up, realtree's outfitter of the week information. i look back, good or bad, it's all an adventure, no matter what you do... so, the joy is getting there. well on the days that we help someone move from the shelter to permanent housing... those are the best days. i reached inside the window and it started right up. it made us feel like if that truck could keep going, then we could all keep going. chevy . the most dependable, longest lasting full-sized pickups on the road. this is my truck. chevy silverado. america's best truck. >> narrator: bill jordan's realtree outdoors is brought to you by: forget the wind. just hunt. and by: >> narrator: welcome back to realtree outdoors. bill jordan has a wagonhound bull in his sights. hustling to get into position, jordan waits for the right shot. on today's hunt, i'm using a thompson/center rifle, .280-caliber, nikon rifle scope, monarch binoculars, and a laser rangefinder, federal ammunition, scent blocker clothing, and advantage max-1 camo. we kept moving on the opposite hill just trying to get parallel with him, and finally, we got in position. >> let's get up on that rock right over there. >> jordan: okay. you'll see him right there. stepping out right there, stepping out... right there. what is he? >> he'll be about 260. >> jordan: 260, okay. there's a gap in those trees. i need for them to get a little bit more on that open hillside. as the bull moves into this open hillside, i look briefly ahead. there's woods in front of us. it's now or never. here he comes. here he comes. here he comes. you on him? >> on him. [gunshot] [rock music] ♪ >> whoo-hoo-hoo-ha. whoo! >> jordan: i can't see him from here. >> he's sitting there kicking buddy. >> jordan: [laughs] >> we got him now. >> jordan: i think it came together. it came together, didn't it? [laughter] >> i love it when the plan comes together. >> it don't get much better than that. [laughter] >> jordan: god, is that gonna be a good elk too. this old .280 thompson/center, it stretched out. i know you like to shoot a .280. look at the size of this bull. oh, let me lay this gun down, take this backpack off here. come on in here. you're the one that saw him the other day. look at this great bull. oh, man. he's got good fronts. >> he's got a good bottom. these are a touch weak. >> jordan: these are a little short, but look at the sevens on there, both sides. he's got good mass to him. >> i think he's a pretty good bull. >> jordan: yeah, he is. >> as short a time as we had, and we probably could have done a little better. we'd have done a little better in bow season, but... >> jordan: came close, came close, but to come back, and i tell you, just to get on this bull and everything work out this morning, just a--just a great hunt. guys, again, i can't thank you enough. we can get the tag on him and start to work, but always, i appreciate it. i'm glad i had an opportunity to come back and see you guys. being able to share that with jeff, who stuck with me through the bow season and gun season, and steve for tagging along with us on that hunt, just very special, and that's one of those hunts i guarantee i'll remember for a long, long time. >> narrator: to learn more about drawing your tag of a lifetime, contact cabela's t.a.g.s.: and log on to realtree.com for more information on today's hunt and bonus footage. this has been a presentation of espn, the worldwide leader in sports. learn more about the outdoors. log on to: i look back, good or bad, it's all an adventure, no matter what you do... so, the joy is getting there. well on the days that we help someone move from the shelter to permanent housing... those are the best days. i reached inside the window and it started right up. it made us feel like if that truck could keep going, then we could all keep going. chevy . the most dependable, longest lasting full-sized pickups on the road. this is my truck. chevy silverado. america's best truck. >> male narrator: welcome to monster buck moments, the most talked-about deer hunts of all time, brought to you by: it's november 17, 2008, and realtree's michael waddell is in northern indiana. the whitetail rut is in full swing, and with a light snow falling, conditions are perfect. >> i see some deer coming right over here to our left. >> narrator: michael catches a glimpse of movement. it's a monster. [deer call] the giant buck is now looking for a fight. patiently waiting for a clear shot, waddell comes to full draw. [deer call] [bowstring snaps] after a perfect shot, waddell is full of excitement. >> that's a good old [indistinct]! indiana [indistinct]. could be my best buck ever. ain't many times you shoot a buck and you can see him laying from the tree where you shot him. exactly 33 yards lays one of my biggest bucks ever. satisfaction. that's why you hunt. that's why you hunt. look at this. look at that. come on, now. come on. he's way bigger than i thought he was. look, he just ripped up a tree this morning. >> narrator: scoring an unbelievable 176 inches boone and crockett, waddell is thrilled with his best buck ever. >> right now on "driven to hunt." >> it's fun to get away for a few days and come out here in new mexico in the mountains. it is absolutely beautiful. >> see him right there? look through that little tree right there. >> still a pretty good day for what i'm used to. >> that is probably 300. >> and you only got the one shot and you will not reload it very fast. if you do, there's going to be a new stock involved. ♪ ♪ >> for nascar legend, terry labonte, the chance to head west in the peak of the rut is not to be missed. after years racing in the sport's highest levels, a week spend chasing big new mexico bulls in the peak of the rut is a world away from the pressures and time constraints labonte faced before retirement. the high-mountain peaks of central new mexico hold great numbers of rocky mountain elk, with six by six's seemingly behind every bush, but as terry would soon letter from the guide. chasing bugles is a fast way to wear you out. >> if you are trophy hunting you have to find the right one. you can't just follow a bugle. at turn times you can be hunting elk. if you are looking for a particular size of bull you have to spend a certain amount of time glassing and knowing the country that they use and live in. >> you know, we saw a lot of elk from miles away. and that's quite a challenge getting to them sometimes. but when you are on foot and walking that distance. >> this is the one we need to look for right here. this bugle right over the side of the hill. as the ravine comes up here, he is just that side of the ravine, but in between that ridge. all the elk around us, we have to be careful. >> with the peak of the rut in full swing, marty and terry are hearing bugles are virtually every hilltop. but in rugged terrain, chasing after a bull sight unseen can waste a hunter's time and burg their legs up quick. >> for awhile i don't we walked four or five miles i guess. and up and down hills and through canyons and things and we finally got up on him and thought we had four or five cow there is and a bull, but we never saw the bull. but we heard him bugling. >> labonte must exercise patient, a skill that served him well in the nascar circuit. glassing elk and knowing when to make your move. ♪ >> with the harem close a 6 by 6 shows himself. with so many eyes watching him even a bull in the throws of rut can tell something is not right and marty and terry are left hoping for a break. up next, terry labonte has the bull in his sights. is it worthy of taking on day one? and fred goes after a bull of his own. this is the year. the year you stop keeping up with the world, and fall completely off the face of it. the year you take the trail less traveled. this is the year you do a little team building with the team that matters most. this is the year when time is no object. the year you come home with one less round and one more story. bass pro shops. your adventure starts here. i look back, good or bad, it's all an adventure, no matter what you do... so, the joy is getting there. well on the days that we help someone move from the shelter to permanent housing... those are the best days. i reached inside the window and it started right up. it made us feel like if that truck could keep going, then we could all keep going. chevy . the most dependable, longest lasting full-sized pickups on the road. this is my truck. chevy silverado. america's best truck. proclaims "gq" magazine. did you see that? the interior "positively oozes class," raves "car magazine." 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"the most striking vw in recent memory," declares-- okay, i get it already. i think we were in a car commercial. ♪ yeah ♪ yeah. >> this presentation of "driven to hunt" is brought to you by -- >> for terry labonte a glimpse of a decent 6 by 6 bull elk in the high mountain peaks of new mexico forces a climb higher still in search of a good vantage point. while labonte and guide, marty, climb in the thin mountain air another group is beginning a hunt. fred is the general manager of kevin harvick racing and an avid outdoorsman. like many hunters a big bull elk is as of yet an unrealized dream. and with daryl from limestone outfitters he heads to the trail head in hopes of making the dream a reality. >> where are we going? >> we are going down here to a little old mountain range that we got some elks scoped out in, 12, 15 miles up here. we have a little bit of a drive to get there. as we went, we parked, we walked up on a little ridge right in there. we was hoping to hear a bugle, we didn't at that time. >> just go right over there. and glass and see if you there is a bull. i am afraid to go that way. the wind will kill us going that direction. they are really close, we need to be really quiet. >> just keep watching right in there. >> with the bull bedded on the next ridge, fred and daryl move in for a closer look. >> see him right through there? see him right there? >> oh, yeah. right there. >> and if he gets up the other bull is a shooter we have a 200-yard shot. hang tight right here. keep watching. >> we was lucky enough to go around a little point, find a bull bedded down. unfortunately, it wasn't the good 6 by 6 we wanted it was a decent 5 by 5 bull. of course, we chose to pass on him. >> we got a little over confident the first evening. i don't think we were out for 30, 40 minutes and he spotted a decent 5 by 5 bedded down and we sat and watched it for quite awhile and it got up and walked off. >> walked on down the ridge from him and was able to find a bigger bull with cow. >> look in the shade. not the first ridge, but the second one. >> in the shade? >> yeah. ok, there's a bull. there is that bull. can you be see that bull right there? >> ok that's a good 6 by 6 bull. i don't see a way to get a shot at him. >> by the time we got down there, got set up and our light was fading, and we chose to come back hoping to find him, you know, in the area the next morning. >> light was starting to fade and everything wasn't right so we decided the first evening we would take our chances and come back the next day. >> while fred and daryl still search for the right bull, terry labonte is hurriedly trying to get into shooting position. and the guide realizes this bull is not the one they are looking for and the pair move off in the source of another set of bugles. >> it is still a nice bull, but i think we will walk back to the truck and try again tomorrow. >> terry labonte climbs ever higher in search of a big bull. and fred has a bull in his sights, but is it a shoot too far? >> the realtree hunting camp is brought to you by -- chevy. >> for terry labonte and guide, marty, a new mexico elk hunt proves an embarrassment of riches. so many bulls to go after, getting all the pieces in place is easier said than done. and time is fast running out, a concept not lost or fred and his guide, daryl. heading higher in each of the bull, fred and daryl start at the highest peak hoping it is downhill from here. >> and we started at the top and looked down at everything that we were glasses up to up until now. pretty much right after the bat we heard them bugling, which is something we hadn't heard a lot of since we had been here. >> there is a bull right there. where it starts going down. let's try to get down this little area right here. let's try to get down there. >> and it's not long before fred and daryl are looking at a nice 6 by 6. with time fast running out, can they close the distance? >> can we shift from here? that is roughly 300. >> i'll try to. >> he's a shooter. >> at 450-plus yards the only option for the pair is to come back in the evening and work down a couple of ridges closer, in hopes the herd has stayed put throughout the heat of the day. >> it should be over this point. we will have our shooting steak ready. we should be on this side. we will be ready if there is something there we want to shoot. ♪ >> there the bull is right there [bugling] >> are you sure he's big enough? [bugling] >> he's by that tree. >> over there, no way i can shoot a 450. ♪ >> he was walking away up the hill, but it just was too much of a shot to take a chance on an animal like that. >> everything would have kind of walked out that way and the wind wouldn't have done it to us, i think we would have had a real good chance of having a bull dead. >> and so fred shows restraint on the bull making a tough, but ethical choice to watch him go over the rise. and terry labonte, the pressure is building for this winst see the high life is about celebrating, not separating. we are coming for your vip's and we ain't the paparazzi. we are looking for the little fuzzy rope, uh huh. how you doing, yea we're not on that. i guarantee that. excuse us. thank you so much. paying extra money so other people can't sit next to you. you know where i come from we party together... with a good honest beer at a tasty price. a fuzzy rope that makes ya'll feel more important. uh uh. common sense ain't on the guest list. these people know how to do it. that's it, hey! ♪ this espn presentation of "driven to hunt" is brought to you by -- >> to fred of kevin harvick racing, a chance to hunt the big bull elk of the rocky mountains ends with a judgment call. on the evening of the last day, fred wisely decides a 400-plus yard shot is too low a percentage, and his dream to take a big bull will simply have to wait. >> it is always disappointing when you don't have a successful hunt, but it is rewarding in different ways. part of it is just being out here, seeing them. walking up there, seeing mule deer, seeing, just being out, you're hunting. >> but nascar legend, terry labonte, has one more chance of the bulls of new mexico and with guide marty from hh outfitters he heads to the high mountain peaks of new mexico with time fast running out. >> it was really cool the last day and we heard the elks bugling and we decided we were going to go after these particular ones. >> one of the calfs saw us and off they went. we caught back up to them and kind of paralleled them for a little bit. >> catch your breath and then circle around right there. and there might not be a bull there yet, but he may come in before dark. >> we were able to get ahead of them. and set up, had the cows coming in front of us. and they were 120 yards and had terry on the shooting stick. >> kind of got set up in a spot, and here they came out. and there had to have been 30 cows and a couple of bulls. we had a very small window of opportunity there. >> wait, get on it, get on it. [bugling] [gunfire] >> and the smoke from the blackpowder and the bull is standing there, and i'm glassing in and looking at him and i can't tell that he's hit. and you know, it's an exciting moment, so we're back and forth, you know. reload, get everything set and that's just a really fun time to be there with the hunter. >> a very nice bull. >> after the shot, you could tell that he was pretty pumped up. he saw the bull. the bull went up the hillside and fell over and we knew he was done. and terry was really excited that he had shot a really nice elk. [laughter] >> and it was a perfect shot. >> probably a little more challengeing of a hunt to find bull you are looking for. and to stalk him and get in close enough so you can get a shot. >> nice job, terry. >> all right. >> perfect shot, too. >> good guiding job. a lot of stuff right there. >> he's about perfect, isn't he? >> yeah, he is perfectly symmetrical. ♪ >> this has been a presentation of espn, the worldwide leader in sports. for more information about elk hunting in new mexico, log onto espnoutdoors.com. >> announcer: buck savvy with tom miranda is presented by: >> the best hunters have the best areas to hunt because they have a system for success, like taking maps of the county you hunt and locating the long-running barriers and habitat change features. by using colored magic markers, you can mark these areas, and where all the color comes together are the target areas where you need to go spend your time to scout for hunting. another thing that good hunters do is, they use optics to find the deer at a distance. they set up over fields in early season and watch and look till they see the deer come out. once they identify these big deer in these areas, they go on a speed scout. >> you know, it's a fact that the most successful hunters spend three hours scouting for every hour of actual hunting. another important thing to remember is that when you're on stand in an actual hunting situation and you've done your homework, there's no better feeling, because you know that it's not that you hope a buck comes in; it's just when is he gonna come in, or how many bucks are you gonna see out of that stand? and that's the kind of confidence that it takes by having your own system to locate and find bucks and set up accordingly. you know, it's real exciting for me to be in a whitetail tree stand when i know i've done my homework. when i'm up there, i'm gonna gonna spend a lot of time glassing and looking at trails, looking at field edges, thinking and wondering about what i'm gonna do when that buck comes in.

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