Last-light axis

By Nate Skinner

For Lone Star outdoor

Braden Trussell and Trevor ClemonsValdez spent Memorial Day weekend chasing axis with some buddies near Hondo. Led by hunting guides James Bray and Daniel Bristow of Lone Oak Adventures, they both ended up harvesting trophy axis bucks. However, the way each hunt unfolded couldn’t have been more different.

The stars aligned for Clemons-Valdez during the first morning of their trip, as he was able to get a shot at a mature axis buck while overlooking a feeder.

“It was one of those textbook, pictureperfect morning hunts for Clemons-Valdez,” Trussell said. “His buck came right into their setup, he made an excellent shot with his .300 Win Mag and he recovered the axis less than 50 yards from where it was standing when he took his shot. The buck’s beams both measured over 32 inches in length.”

Trussell’s first morning sit was full of action, too, but it didn’t produce a shot opportunity at the caliber of axis buck he was looking for.

During that same first morning, others from the group were sitting in a large tower blind when they saw three different trophy-caliber bucks beginning to exhibit rutting behavior.

The following morning, Trussell and Bristow sat in the same blind with the hope of spotting one of the same bucks. They had already seen one axis buck cross the field they were overlooking when a tall, striking axis appeared in the meadow before them.

“We were pretty sure the other buck we had seen was still hanging out in the brush where we saw him disappear, so we were fairly positive this axis would take a similar path across the field and follow suit,” Trussell said. “We took some ranges where we thought he might cross and had figured that if he did in fact take the path we were guessing he would take, that I would have a short window to make what would likely be about a 400yard shot. I knew I was going to have to have my scope dialed in just right to pull off that shot at that distance.”

Trussell watched the buck cross the field and take the path they were hoping it would.

“I waited for Bristow to give me the exact range, and he finally whispered to me that it was a 420-yard shot,” Trussell said. “I dialed in my scope and told Bristow to try to get the buck to stop. The axis was walking, and at that distance, I didn’t want to try to shoot him in stride.”

When Bristow whistled, the axis buck stopped for a split second behind a tree before disappearing, but never gave Trussell a real shot opportunity.

They then pivoted to some other areas of the ranch, none of which presented Trussell with an ethical shot on a mature buck. So, for their evening hunt, they decided to return to the action at the tower blind where they’d previously seen their trophy buck. This time, however, they filled the roomy blind with all Trussel’s friends who were able to make the trip so the group could share the experience together.

The group spotted plenty of animals

Please turn to page 7 blows,” said wildlife biologist Jason Sekula. “On bigger feeders with four openings, usually just one or two will clog up.”

When the rain comes sideways, there is no such thing as a perfect feeder, Sekula said.

“It’s going to get in the tubes and clog them,” he said.

Deer will eat wet protein — to a point.

“When it starts to sour, which doesn’t take very long, they won’t eat it,” Sekula said. “When they are eating heavily, feeders don’t clog as much because the deer keep it flowing; they almost unclog it themselves. When feed consumption is less, they clog worse.”

Sometimes the animals will help clear the