From Boise to Britain- In Pursuit of Roe Buck

Sawtooth

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Two years ago, fellow HuntTalker Devon Deer, made a most generous offer on this forum. In this thread, https://onyourownadventures.com/hunttalk/showthread.php?267597-Deer-hunting-offer-from-the-UK, Devon Deer offered to host a hunter from this forum to hunt in Southwest England. The interest in coming to England was high and so to make it fair, he put everyone's name in a hat and drew one out. I was the lucky winner. Unfortunately, my schedule wouldn't allow for me to make the trip. I had a hard time writing Devon Deer to let him know that I would not be able to join him. His response was just as kind as his original offer. "No problem, I will just draw another name for this year and I will take you on a hunt the following year if that works for your schedule." "That would be great." I replied. So Dave N. got a Personal Message from Devon Deer and "My Redneck European Adventure" was born. https://onyourownadventures.com/hunttalk/showthread.php?267903-My-Redneck-European-Adventure . We all enjoyed following Dave N on his adventure and his success in shooting a beautiful roe buck has made my wait for this summer seem extra long. I have watched hundreds of British roe buck hunts on youtube and have enjoyed the planning for this hunt all year. Devon Deer and Dave N have given me some great travel tips, and in three days my wait will end as a board an airplane headed for the UK.

With my wife and daughter coming along, we have decided to explore not only Southwestern England but also Ireland. We will arrive in Dublin and spend three days there before heading to Devon Deer's village near Exeter. The plan is to go on two morning and two evening hunts during the four days we will be there. In between the hunts, we will sight see around Devon and Cornwall. Devon Deer has also offered to take me fly fishing on his home river for brown trout and possibly some sea trout if the run continues. After our time in Devon, my family will return to Ireland. We will land in Knock and travel through the towns of Galway, Doolin, Dingle, Blarney, Cashel and Glendalough before returning to Dublin to fly home.

Like Dave N., I am planning to post updates on this thread as the hunt gets underway. Growing up in the West, this type of hunting is completely foreign to me. I have only hunted mule deer once on private property, with most of my hunts taking place in the backcountry of Idaho's Wilderness areas. We will be spot and stalk hunting, but the country is more like Eastern whitetail hunting. Looking forward to this new experience and looking forward to meeting The Man, The Myth, The Legend of Devon Deer.
 
Looking forward to the updates. You'll enjoy SE England and Ireland, amazing places!
 
Good luck, have fun, and enjoy the trip! I'll be watching for updates as well as a grip and grin!
 
I can't wait for this to happen, it should be fun.
It needs to be mentioned though, both Dave and Sawtooth (as a little condition of my offer) generously donated $250 each to the BHA, many thanks chaps, i'm sure the BHA are grateful.
Cheers
Richard
 
I'm sure you'll have a good time with Richard.
Good luck for your hunt and also the fishing.
Can´t wait to reed mor about your trip!
 
Best wishes, marvelous animals to hunt in a beautiful country with a fine gentleman. Looking forward to hearing about your adventures.
 
I hope you have an awesome hunt, and bag a deer. Maybe you should take something really nice to Richard after all the cheek we gave him on his 4th of July thread.
 
Made the 14 1/2 hour drive down to Orange County, CA to spend the 4th with my sisters and brother-in-law. Long drive but most stressful part of the trip was the last two hours through LA traffic. Don't know how people can live down here. Great fireworks show last night. Hope everyone had a great 4th of July. I was originally going to name this thread, "The Americans are coming, The Americans are coming", but I figured Richard had withstood enough teasing from the guys on the Happy 4th of July thread. Thanks again for all the well wishes. Leave LAX for Dublin bright and early tomorrow. Five days till the hunt begins. Will be in Dublin for three days. If you have any must see locations let me know.
 
P1020027.jpg

Look what i found this evening.
This little buck has been showing up on a regular basis, but i want Sawtooth to get a better one!
And a first for me (boring i know!) i uploaded a video to Youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=USRwGUXe7nE&feature=youtu.be

I also saw 3 red stags in velvet, the only issue was the 'nice' Roe buck that had been in that field has gone, no doubt the stags frightened it, damn!

Cheers

Richard
 
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My wife, daughter and I are presently sitting in a pub just north of Dublin waiting on my fish and chips. Trying to stay awake til later in the evening so I will be ready for my hunt with Richard. Been up for over twenty-four hours with whatever sleep I was able to get on the plane. Travel went well. Heading into Dublin tomorrow. Will see Richard in three days. Those videos are torture to watch, Richard. Can't wait.
 
Grab some sleep when you can! Been there for sure. That flight takes a lot out of ya! Keep up the updates.

Careful in Dublin. The traffic downtown SUCKS! Don't know how they drive those big buses through there. Oh yeah, while in the UK (and Wales as well) avoid beef that's not ground at all costs. Don't be tempted even though it's been a while since you've had a steak. Wait until you get home. You'll thank me later...
 
If you like a good burger, I recommend Lloyd's Kitchen in Exeter. I had one with Brie cheese and bacon that was out of this world good! It's about a block away from the Cathedral.
 
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The plan today is to take the bus into Dublin and look around. I decided not to rent a car for this portion of the trip as I didn't think Dublin was the best place to relearn how to drive on the left. Today we plan to walk around Trinity College and Ireland's National Museum of Natural Science. Where I hope to see a display of a roe deer or two. I have got to know what I am looking for when I am hunting with Richard. Dave, I will check out the burger joint when we get to Exeter. Thanks for the tip.
 
Let the hunt begin! Today we left Dublin and flew into Bristol, England. Rented a car, drove to Bath, England where we saw a town that was first built by the Romans and is named after the Roman Bath and hot springs in the center of town. Beautiful town with an amazing history. We then drove the rest of the way to Richard's village where we joined he and his wife at his house for a fantastic lasagna dinner. Let me just say that Richard is not only a great hunter and fisherman, but he also cooks one mean lasagna. After dinner, Richard and I went out for our first evening hunt. What a beautiful part of England he lives in. Rolling hills covered in an even mix of farm fields, hedge rows and forest. I can see how it can support so many deer as they don't have to travel more then a few hundred yards to find food, water or cover. I will try to get some pictures of the area tomorrow. Long story short, we saw two row does in the last field we walked into. The last one we saw busted us and ran into a field which Richard had seen two bucks earlier in the week. When roe deer are spooked they don't simply run off. This doe proceeded to make several repeated barks which sounded like a pissed off Rottweiler. I am going to cut this short as it is 11:45 pm and Richard is picking me up tomorrow morning at 4:15 am.
 
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