After getting all three subspecies of turs and the Caucasian chamois I had reported about the results of the extraction of the Caucasian rock bear in the June 2016 issue of the "Magic of a Real SAFARI” but I still had a burning desire to collect my own Caucasian Six and I needed to get the Caucasian deer. But the God of hunt didn’t give me that opportunity – then the deer didn’t bellow, then there were no licenses, then what other reasons…
At the end of September, I returned from a very busy, but, unfortunately, trophy-free trip for an Manchurian deer on the Baikal lake and I knew that Kazbek from North Ossetia was looking for me. Once we managed to get a beautiful trophy of the East Caucasus tur the year before last. "Where have you been? - he asked me, when I called him. - Come, there is a deer license for you, the rut season is already ending.”
The hunter's blood boiled, my mind was a little confused, things were somehow sorted out right away, and four days later after returning from Buryatia, I flew to Vladikavkaz together with my friend Konstantin, who agreed to accompany me on this trip. Dreamed big dreams! I had only two full hunting days to achieve my goal.
All my time in the flight was devoted to reading. I studied the biology and history of the Caucasian red deer hunting, read about the peculiarities of its behavior in nature, about the facts of local migration from the lowland part of Russia, about the ways of its production in the Caucasus in the past and at the present time. It turns out that there are quite a few endemic subspecies in the Caucasus now, most of the animals are hybrids or even purely European (lowland). I hope that it's the right information if it's not, the specialists will correct me. The native "Caucasians" are distinguished by a lighter wool, fewer processes on the horns and a more elongated muzzle. Deer share the Alpine zone the with chamois and livestock, but they quite successfully climb to heights over 2000 m in hot weather.
After arrival in Vladikavkaz, I traditionally found myself in the arms of Ossetian hospitality, which didn't let me go until the evening. The traditional answer to the question "When will we go to the mountains?" followed: "All in good time! We'll have time!"
As the result we were on the place not early morning but when It was clear daylight. The sun showed above the mountains, there were no clouds in the sky, the hollows were full of colors of the autumn mountain forest. The piercing purity of the air and ... SILENCE! Was the deer bellowing over?
I began to regret about yesterday's party. The first day and without result. Suddenly a very distant, but clearly powerful roar of the local "owner" reached the ear. We determined the direction, and started an accelerated movement in that direction. I understood that most likely the deer was already heading to the mountains in search of salvation from the heat and flies.
We heard a loud bellow more and more clearly while were approaching a male, but its owner clearly didn’t plan to meet us and maintained a safe distance. The slopes turned out to be frankly "viscous" - the forest was on stones covered with slippery grass, there was the only one benefit from trees – you could grab them with your hands It was clear that the deer knew about our presence.
At last we climbed on the open meadow with the only bush in the middle and a huge boulder inside it. We found there only traces of the presence of a raging male in the form of creases, holes knocked out by hooves and other manifestations of its excitement. And the hero of the "robbery" didn’t stop to bellow somewhere closer to the snow. It became clear that we’d not approach it. We waited for an hour and took the decision. Kostya stayed near the bush till the evening to wait for the deer while I’d go to the opposite slope in 5-6 km from that place and try to get my dream.
We were familiar with the guide Petro from the previous hunts and we two passed the way back down through the mountain forest, crossed the valley to climb diagonally to the opposite slope. The plan was to climb 500 meters and to go another 2 kilometers to the left to the altitude of 1700 meters, from where it would be convenient to inspect surroundings.
It was said and done, and along the way we left two guides with a walkie-talkie halfway through.
It didn’t take much time to rise but we’ d wait for a long there, it was not an easy matter because both Petro and I felt not well– we squished our noses and coughed, trying to create less noise. It had no sense to look through binoculars during day hours that's why we tried to sleep but unsuccessful. I dreamed about the comfortable bed and hot shower all time while we were there.
The evening came simultaneously with a sharp cold snap, that couldn’t but cheer up and inspire us to feats. In half an hour after we took a sip of hot tea, the radio called, and Petro reported that a large deer was moving towards us along the ridge and bellowed for the whole neighborhood!
That news was even more invigorating. There were about three km to the male, as our guides said and we should decide what to do - to wait or to move to its side. I tried to listen the sounds from time to time and heard the deer we were chasing in the morning and which had to come to Kostya on the opposite slope. But we couldn't hear our deer because of the wind and the several transverse hills, descending from the ridge into the valley, separated us from it.
We decide to move toward it hoping that those hills would hide the noise caused by our movement, and allow us to implement the planned maneuver. The only concern was caused by the wind, that blew approximately in the direction of our deer.
We hiked about a half of km when the phone called. “Be in a hurry. It turned from you”, - I hear Kostya’s voice. He was watching us and the deer from the opposite slope. Later he said: “I felt as if I was a hunter myself!” The deer got out on the very crest and began to invite everyone. Who want to get me?
We had no choice but ran. I was fully wet in five minutes and understood that needed to reduce the tempo. We overcame about three kilometers in a high tempo, but there was still no deer. The other guides lost it too. Each time when we climbed the hill we hoped to meet it. But it was not there! We hurried to the next hill ... And nothing once again. After the fifth or sixth hill we heard it and understood that it was trying to go down to the valley to deal with the Kostya’s Deer.
It was getting dark and we were in a hurry of all the forces. Finally I detected it -the deer was standing in the upper quarter of the slope, with huge lyre-shaped horns ending in long peaks – a kind of Caucasian killer deer. It was old, its horns were already waning.
My Blaser R-93 .300 WinMag did a great job and I get the trophy from 150 m distance. Petro and I were jumping for joy like children.
Then we descend into the valley after the photo session while Kostya hided his deer (as it turned out later unsuccessfully).
he goddess of hunting ordered so…
The Caucasus presented me with another trophy, which became a "ruby" in my Caucasian trophy collection.
After arrival to the lodge, I’ve decided to devote one more hunting day to chamois, because the CMH qualifies separately chamois extracted in North Ossetia. But those plans were not destined to come true for various reasons. The Ossetian hospitality on the occasion of the trophy overwhelmed us with a vengeance. As a result, there was a wonderful reason and a desire to return to North Ossetia again – now for the chamois!
