Date of Hunt: 1/4/10

Outfitter: MMK Outfitters

Guide: Jeremy Williams

Rifle: Marlin 1895CB .45-70

Ammo: Hornady 325 gr. LeverEvolution

Game Hunted: Buffalo cow

Game Seen: Buffalo, Elk, Red Deer, Fallow, Axis, Blackbuck, Aoudad, Nubian Ibex, Gemsbok, White Bearded Wildebeest, Scimitar Horned Oryx, and various types of Corsican Sheep.

I left our house in Conroe at 5:30 yesterday morning, bound for MMK Outfitters' 1,000 acre ranch in Clifton, TX. I was doing a Buffalo cow hunt to fill the freezer. I did a hunt for a young bull back in 2007 and my family loved the meat, so seeing as how we just ran out, it was time to do another hunt.....this time for an old mature cow.

After getting turned around in Waco on the way to the ranch, I arrived about 30 minutes late. I met my guide, Jeremy. He is a very friendly, and seemingly honest fellow. I like him, he's very straight forward, no BS.....and easy to get along with. Jeremy was interested in the fact that I was doing this hunt with my Marlin 1895CB in .45-70. I've only killed one deer with it, and I wanted to take it along on the Buffalo hunt for a little nostalgia.....and to make the hunt a little more of a challenge.

Weather conditions were less than ideal.....around 30 degrees with a steady 15-20 mph wind. It was pretty cold. We got in the truck and headed out on the ranch to look for the buffalo. We quickly discovered that most of the animals were hidden down in the canyons of the ranch, trying to stay out of the wind. We drove for about an hour before we finally found a small herd of about 15 Buffalo.....bedded down in a draw near a small lake. Jeremy had informed me that there were approximately 30 Buffalo on the ranch and there were 3 newborn calves. So, because I was hunting for a cow, we had to study the herd for quite some time to make sure I picked a cow that was dry and didn't have a calf. After studying the herd from a few hundred yards away, we set out on foot to try and get within my preferred range (75-100 yards) with my open sight rifle. We spooked them a little and they started to move off at first, but luckily we had a small drainage and a hill in between us and the herd. We took our time and made a 20 minute stalk to the top of the hill, but the cow I had chosen would not turn broadside. After another 10 minutes, we slowly moved around the hill a little bit to where I got a perfect broadside shot on her at 70 yards. I set up my shooting sticks and took careful aim.....and then fired. She began stumbling immediately and trotted about 10 yards, and fell within 15 seconds. She was hit pefectly thru the heart and within one minute, she was finished.

I was very pleased with the performance of the gun and the bullet. I did not expect to kill her so quickly and with only one shot. Jeremy was surprised as well, and told me not many people he has guided have been able to kill Buffalo with one shot. It was a good hunt and a clean kill. I highly recommend MMK Outfitters. They are professional and honest. Jeremy Williams was a great guide, and easy to get along with. The ranch in Clifton was absolutely gorgeous!!

Here are a few pictures to go along with the hunt. We spent some more time, after the hunt, driving around and taking pictures. I hope you all enjoy:

My Buffalo where she fell after the shot.....




Here she is after being propped up for pictures.....




Here is a young White Buffalo bull that resides in the herd I took my cow from.....




Beautiful scenery.....


A huge 7x7 bull Elk that has to be pushing the 380"-400" mark.....




A nice looking TX Dall Ram.....


The ranch has a huge herd of approximately 150 pure Nubian Ibex. We spotted this herd down in a canyon about 120 yards from the road.....




And last but not least, here's Jeremy trying to feed the pet Camel a cracker out of the truck.....


"Got anymore crackers Jeremy??".....haha....this thing smelled like old, rancid piss.....


After fooling around with some of the pictures on the computer.....I did this one in sepia and I really like the way it looks.....

how neat! Thanks for getting good pictures taken and sharing them with us.

Rich

ES, great pics! Cogratulations!

Mad Dog

Now, get your butt to Namibia!!!

Great Pictures! Congratulations for the nice buffalo

That looks like a lot of fun, plus you have enough delicious meat to last quite a while.

quote:

Originally posted by Idaho Sharpshooter:
how neat! Thanks for getting good pictures taken and sharing them with us.

Rich

+1
Congrats

Thanks for the hunt report... I'll have to check them out. Love the pictures!

Michelle

Glad that Mark and the guys at MMK could get you lined out on your hunt.

Congrats on the cow, now time to start saving for Africa.

Congrats,

well this looks like an easy way to kill a buffalo. You guys who hunt behind those pens and shoot animals in the cage should find out what real hunting is like. Up here in the north country you have to actually hunt for your animals then deal with things like bears, backpacking the meat out, climbing mountains, etc.
You flatland sissy's should have to work a little for the trophy(meat).

quote:

well this looks like an easy way to kill a buffalo. You guys who hunt behind those pens and shoot animals in the cage should find out what real hunting is like. Up here in the north country you have to actually hunt for your animals then deal with things like bears, backpacking the meat out, climbing mountains, etc.
You flatland sissy's should have to work a little for the trophy(meat).

AAANNDD We're off........Saeed, where's my popcorn emoticon, you're killin me.

quote:

Originally posted by huntmaster:
well this looks like an easy way to kill a buffalo. You guys who hunt behind those pens and shoot animals in the cage should find out what real hunting is like. Up here in the north country you have to actually hunt for your animals then deal with things like bears, backpacking the meat out, climbing mountains, etc.
You flatland sissy's should have to work a little for the trophy(meat).

Well I'm sorry you feel that way sir. This was not a "trophy" hunt, it was simply an economical way to fill our freezer with good meat, but that is beside the point. I've talked to many people who have hunted free-range Bison, and they all say there isn't much difference. They are not the most challenging animal on God's green earth. That's why they were so easily slaughtered by the millions in the 1800's. For the record, I would like to hunt a trophy Buffalo bull one day in a place like South Dakota on horse back, but that hunt is quite expensive and more than I can afford at this point in my life.

You are certainly welcome to your opinion though. That what makes AR.....AR.

I had to comment on this:

quote:

I've talked to many people who have hunted free-range Bison, and they all say there isn't much difference. They are not the most challenging animal on God's green earth.

Spoken like a person who has never hunted wild, free-ranging bison. Take a trip to Utah's Henry Mtns and you will see a different story. I doubt there can be a tougher hunt in North America. They live on 10,000+ foot mountains and are as agile as darned billy goat. They can move 20 miles without a problem. True wild Bison, which have been hunted, are an amazing adventure.

As for your kill, while I'd never kill an animal behind a fence, I won't trash you for doing so. Just not my cup of tea and the farthest reason from why I hunt. You look happy though so that is all that matters.

eland slayer
first off i would like to say that your response to huntmaster/wannabee Mt.man
was damn civil and boosts my opinion of you 10 fold. (have always enjoyed your posts.)
don't know that i would of been as nice.
IMO he picked a hell of a way to start off his AR membership,and since when is a 1000 acres
considered a cage/pen.
and to MC while we would all love to hunt the herd of the henrys,for most of us it ain't gonna happen and after spending 10 days in
dec 09 killing 5 buff bulls on 4000 acres
on a place that could be considered medium
to above average on challenging buff hunting scale and having been on several free range wyoming buff hunts at 10,000 ft,and 2 henry mt hunts,
buffalo are not the most challeging
animal on gods green earth.
any buffalo wild or not are as agile as a
darned billy goat and any buff wild or not
can move at 20 mph(top end at 35 mph)
the roughness of the henrys is what makes the
the hunt there such a challenge,
so from the point of view from someone who has
stacked a couple dozen of them in many different
hunt locations and enviroments,and has hunted
wild free-ranging bison.
i'll back his statement and repeat it again.
they are not the most challeging animal on gods green earth!!

quote:

Originally posted by Eland Slayer:

quote:

Originally posted by huntmaster:
well this looks like an easy way to kill a buffalo. You guys who hunt behind those pens and shoot animals in the cage should find out what real hunting is like. Up here in the north country you have to actually hunt for your animals then deal with things like bears, backpacking the meat out, climbing mountains, etc.
You flatland sissy's should have to work a little for the trophy(meat).

Well I'm sorry you feel that way sir. This was not a "trophy" hunt, it was simply an economical way to fill our freezer with good meat, but that is beside the point. I've talked to many people who have hunted free-range Bison, and they all say there isn't much difference. They are not the most challenging animal on God's green earth. That's why they were so easily slaughtered by the millions in the 1800's. For the record, I would like to hunt a trophy Buffalo bull one day in a place like South Dakota on horse back, but that hunt is quite expensive and more than I can afford at this point in my life.

You are certainly welcome to your opinion though. That what makes AR.....AR.

Kudos to you for a fine reply,you sir are welcome to hunt with me anytime.

Thanks for your view point Eland Slayer. Your comments are well taken and deserve an appology from me.

Hopefully in the future my posts won't meet with so much interest or dislike.

quote:

Originally posted by huntmaster:
well this looks like an easy way to kill a buffalo. You guys who hunt behind those pens and shoot animals in the cage should find out what real hunting is like. Up here in the north country you have to actually hunt for your animals then deal with things like bears, backpacking the meat out, climbing mountains, etc.
You flatland sissy's should have to work a little for the trophy(meat).

Did`nt your Daddy tell you if you didn`t have something good to say,keep your Pie hole shut??????He was upfront on his Hunt and thats all that counts.

Well guys.....don't be too hard on old "huntmaster". I just got off the phone with him.....haha.....turns out "huntmaster" is actually my dear old dad sneeking around trying to stir up shit. See this is what happens when you get bored with work and you're an old fart.....(not really, he's only 56, but I figured he deserves it. lol).....and you don't have anything better to do than pester your own son on the internet.

quote:

Originally posted by Eland Slayer:
Well guys.....don't be too hard on old "huntmaster". I just got off the phone with him.....haha.....turns out "huntmaster" is actually my dear old dad sneeking around trying to stir up shit. See this is what happens when you get bored with work and you're an old fart.....(not really, he's only 56, but I figured he deserves it. lol).....and you don't have anything better to do that pester your own son on the internet.

Sounds like something my dad would pull if was internet savvy.

What bullet and load did you use in your 45-70?

+1, I would be very interested on what bullet weight and load you were using. It obviously worked fantastic.

Hey, huntmaster,

If you had brought your kid up better, he wouldn't be doing that stuff.

Outdoor Writer,

You're correct.

It has been an unbelievable joy watching, teaching, learning and being part of his growth. The first word he spoke was "deer". He's been hooked ever since.

RavenR- First I would like to state that you are probably one of my favorite members on AR. I enjoy your posts.

That said, I think you have taken my words a little far. No where did I state that bison are the "most challenging animal on God's green earth". Nor did I say he didn't have a pleasant experience. I tend to believe that a hunted wild buffalo on the Henry Mtns is just as hard to hunt as a billy goat in Wyoming or a bear grazing on Kodiak or a moose in the Yukon. I think it can be one of the toughest hunts in NA.

I also stated that they can move 20 miles, not 20mph. We followed a herd one day through the broken lowlands on the Henry unit for over 20 miles. That can be part of the challenge.

I was simply replying to his insinuation that wild buffalo could be remotely related to his experience, all the while showing us photos of the rest of the herd grazing contently while he takes their photo. I could care less how he decided to shoot his buffalo; sounds completely alright with me.

sounds like i should of read alitle more carefully, before i got to feeling like
he was being ganged up on.
little did we know 1/2 of the equasion was
his own father.
now that i have my foot out of my mouth....
i offer the olive branch.

Raven- You are a class act. I should not have given my opinion on a "non-opinion" post. I look forward to reading more of your adventure posts.

Huntmaster,ya had me going,what can I say ya suckered me in.Good one!!!!!

By the way, if anyone would like to get more information on a hunt with MMK Outfitters.....you can visit their website:

http://www.mmkoutfitters.com/

Or if you would like to contact Jeremy Williams directly, you can reach him at 512-922-3764.

quote:

Originally posted by jwp475:
What bullet and load did you use in your 45-70?

I was using the 325 gr. Hornady LeverEvolution ammunition. The bullet is traveling at 2,050 fps.

quote:

Originally posted by MC:
I was simply replying to his insinuation that wild buffalo could be remotely related to his experience, all the while showing us photos of the rest of the herd grazing contently while he takes their photo. I could care less how he decided to shoot his buffalo; sounds completely alright with me.

I'm not trying to argue with anyone, but I just wanted you to know how this happened. I didn't blast the cow, and then take pictures of the rest of the herd grazing in the same area. Those pictures of the rest of the herd were taken several hours later, out of the truck on a different part of the ranch. The buffalo on this ranch are not even remotely scared of the truck.....and if you wanted to, you could probably kill one with a hammer out of the truck. However, these Buffalo are hunted fairly regularly and when they see people walking on the ground, they know something is up. Believe me when I say this, we got VERY lucky with how things happened during our stalk. If it weren't for the small hill in between us and the herd, I would not have gotten the shot.....and would have spent several more hours seeking another opportunity, due to lack of cover.

I don't want you to think I'm trying to compare this hunt with a trophy hunt in the Henry Mountains. But I did enjoy myself on this hunt, and I don't apologize for that.

Well, here we go again, the old it ain't a hunt because it's behind a fence BS.
Maybe that's OK to not do that type of "hunt" if one is it even fairly decent shape, but what if the hunter is in his 60's or 70's with bad knees or a bum hip. Then that type of hunt would be "fair chase" for a person in that condition and I do not give a shit what anyone says about that.
I'm 71 years old, have hunted all my life since I took my first deer at age 11. Doing that Henry Mountain hunt based on comments by those who have would be a physical impossibility for me. So I guess, based on certain comments that I should just stay at home and dream of hunts long past.
In all my years of hunting, I have exactly two heads mounted, one a coyote that I stalked and took with a .22 pistol in 1970 and the antelope I shot this last August. I've been a meat hunter all my life and would just as soon tke a doe and a buck. If you find that offensive, tough.
Frankly I get a little pissed at the sophistry and snobbery of the so called "trophy hunter".
Paul B.