Luck runs out for
stealthy mule deer
by Jim Beyer

Perry Lane saw a huge mule deer buck in a general area while hunting in 2001, but the mulie eluded him for four years. The same animal popped up in different places for subsequent years but never where Perry could take a shot at him.

Perry lives near a ranch on the Wind River of Riverton. It is prime deer country with a combination of river habitat and cultivated fields.

Last year he applied for a landowner tag, so he did not have to travel far for his game. Perry said he woke up early one morning, dressed and went out side. He made the rounds of the hay fields and then scouted around the back of the ranch. Perry peeked over the edge of the bluff and saw the monster mulie.

“I put the sneak on him,” Perry said and crawled within 150 yards. He put his scope on the buck and pulled the trigger of the .300 Winchester mag. The deer dropped with one shot.

The mulie has a Boone & Crockett 8x6 rack, which scored 206. The horns have a 28 1 /2 spread and are 29 inches tall. Dan Horath Taxidermy mounted the head, which hangs in Perry’s parents’ house.

Perry started hunting with his mom and dad when he was a boy and shot game at age 14. Hunting is a huge deal in our family, he said, my sister, mom, dad and brother all hunt.

At age 26, Perry knows the meaning of work, whether it is taking an hour to properly track a deer or work as a diesel mechanic at Stallion Oilfield Services so that he can afford to ranch.

Perry took a Boone & Crockett whitetail a few years ago. It was good enough to mount. He said his mulie was “kind of a good luck deal. That deer had been around for a while.” He said with disgust that a larger mulie was poached by some out-of-state hunters the next day. His brother saw it happen, so they called Game & Fish, which came out and investigated. The game wardens caught the poachers bloody-red handed, but Perry was not pleased that they stole his chance at taking another big deer legally.

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