We had another great free-range blackbuck hunt!! Luis, my hunter, drove down from Oklahoma the night before and stayed in Camp Wood. We met at 7:00 A.M. in Barksdale and headed for the south ranch. The rancher suggested we sneak in the back gate. They had been seeing a really nice buck on the front part of the ranch. As we came out of the bush and looked at the pasture, he was there with four does. He kept moving, quartering away from us, but didn't see us yet. We moved four times to try and get Luis on him. The buck finally stopped and turned broadside. Luis took aim and dropped him in his tracks with his .243 at 185 yards!!

After we went back to the ranch house and I got Luis' blackbuck quartered and on ice, we headed over to the north ranch. Russell, the rancher, had some free-ranging axis over there. He said I could take a doe for the freezer. As we slowly drove through the brush we suddenly saw two hogs about 200 yards in front of us. I tried to force a shot on one of them as they moved through the brush..........mistake. I had hog fever and missed.

About five minutes later we jumped a nice sow and tow 30 lb. young ones. They stopped behind some brush about 150 yards out. I could just see her neck through the brush and put a 140 gr. TSX from my 7mm-08 right behind her ear.

We didn't find the axis, but we had a great time. It was great to finally get to meet Luis!! He had been wanting to come on this hunt for a long time. He is a lot of fun, and a great shot to boot!!

Bob

Here is Luis with his 20" blackbuck.


Here are Luis and yours truly. As you can see, it is right at first light. Of the 18 free-range blackbuck hunts I have guided, this is only the second one that we were able to get on a trophy buck this early.


This is the 120 lb. hog I shot.

Looks like fun Bob.

Hey Mark,

You and LaRita did pretty well up here too!!

Here is LaRita with her blackbuck.


Here is Mark with his blackbuck.This was a fun day!!

Yeah, that was a GREAT weekend! We talk about it from time to time, might have to come baak someday. Oryx would be nice.

Weidmannsheil, it looks like you all had lots of fun.

A quick question while we are on the subject of blackbuck... Is the colour a seasonal thing (black in the rut, say), or is it age dependent??

- mike

I second Mikes question, handsome critters those....I hadn't had a blackbuck on my list but those pics have me rethinking that.

What kind of 'bi-pods' are those on Luis' rifle?

Thanks for sharing the pics and story.

The bucks do get darker on the top half of their bodies in the late fall and winter, peaking in January and February. The more mature bucks (3+ years old) tend to stay darker colored throughout the year. The dominant male in an area will usually be the darkest.

As to Luis' bi-pod, I didn't really look at it close enough to see what brand it was.

Bob

Thanks Bob, always good with a bit of education.

- mike

That is a great looking trophy. Do you have any links where I could get more info on hunting Free-Range blackbucks?
Dave

These hunts are pretty rare. I know it is short notice, but I am guiding one more this year on October 28th. Here is a link: Posse Blackbuck Hunt

The only condition is that you would have to take about a minute to join our board too.

The only other suggestion I could make is to do a Google search. I have seem some other free-range blackbuck hunts, but not recently. Most are behind high-fence.

Good Hunting,

Bob

Congradulations on a good hunt. I just took my first Blackbuck this year. It definetly won't be my last, there awesome looking animals.

They also make some pretty good sausage.

I'm curious do you guide these hunts every year, and is there possiblity of hunting late in the season or early the next year after deer season.

I'd like to take another with a dark black coat for a full body mount.