2024Vol41No3NBUJournal

Then, I turned around and there it was. A beautiful antelope, horns twice as big as his ears, facing the watering hole just where I predicted it would be. Lu’s mood changed on a dime. This was going to work! I held back my “I told you so” comment and let the feeling of hope set in. I named the antelope Rodger and proclaimed that I was going to take him home with me next week.

like a kid in a candy shop. My hands immediately start to shake in anticipation. I start to question myself if I can kill something this close. I can see them breathing, their tongues flexing as they drink, their ears twitch as a fly lands on them, their carefully placed steps. These animals are truly the most beautiful animal of the sagebrush steppe. Can I kill one? As I go to knock my arrow, it slips and taps my bow. That was enough to scare the group. But only one of them was able to get to the water before I made the noise. The rest didn’t get any water that day. For the rest of the day Lu and I drift in and out of sleep. A few wild horses came and went from the watering hole, but that was all the activity for the day. We called it about an hour before last light and we had to have an honest conversation with each other. Lu asked me, “Why didn’t you take that shot in the morning? It was perfect. You’ve shot further than that at the 3D shoot, and got a 10 pointer on the target.” “I don’t know if I can kill something so close. The animal was amazing and beautiful. I could see every detail so clearly. Rifle hunting is different because it wasn’t so close and I

The week of the hunt comes around and we drive back to the watering hole. The blind is right where we left it, and no one else had set up on the watering hole. The perfect set up. We go to bed early and wake up before first light. Once we are in the blind we anxiously wait. Around 9:00 am a group of four males make their way to the watering hole. This is the closest both Lu and I have been to a wild animal and we are both giddy with excitement. “Babe! There they are! Oh that’s a good one! Get your bow up. It’s a perfect shot! Why haven’t you taken the shot? Babe?” Lu is in a whispering frenzy and it gets me excited that it is the first few hours of the hunt and there is a perfect opportunity. All my training goes out the window. I draw my bow wrong ,almost derailing it. My heart rate is accelerated and I convince myself that I can’t make an ethical hit at 22 yards. What. A. Mess. The four males get their water and then they are on their way. We missed the opportunity.

Lu and I regroup and about an hour later there is another group of males coming to the watering hole. Lu is giddy

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