The rocky slopes of the Edwards Plateau make stalking prey on hands and knees quite the challenge. With a westerly breeze pressing his cheek, groom-to-be Juan Saenz slowly closed the distance to within 50 yards of his biggest target to date. Forgoing the stereotypical bachelor party, Saenz along with his brother Anthony and five friends opted for an all-inclusive bow hunting getaway to the San Carlos Ranch located in the Texas Hill Country. A sprawling 10,000-acre property teeming with exotic game, his friends pursued wild hogs while Juan set his sights on the property’s largest inhabitant – the Asiatic water buffalo.

After two unsuccessful stalks on a bachelor herd of bulls that wouldn’t allow he and his brother to within 100 yards, they headed back to the lodge that evening to where the rest of the party were gathered in anticipation of a feast consisting of stuffed flounder, beef sashimi, and Mexican inspired lamb.

“Any luck?” Asked owner Carlos Benavidas, after a prayer followed by the clanking of forks and knives.

“We saw three nice bulls together,” said Anthony, “But it looks like getting within 50 yards of them is going to be tough.”

Juan Saenz and the trophy Asiatic Water Buffalo he took during his ultimate bachelor party.

“Well, I saw a huge bull feeding alone on the way back to the lodge,” offered Carlos. “It looked really old, probably kicked out of the herd so if you guys want to look for him in the morning we can try and pick up his tracks.”

The following morning Juan awoke to the themed walls of his safari room where directly across from his bed hung the massive shoulder mount of a buffalo. Taking note of just how enormous the chest cavity of the animal was he reached for his gear bag to re-access what he’d brought to take one down with. “These water buffalo can weigh up to half a ton, and an ornery bull isn’t something you want to wound and have to go after,” he explained. “So I brought a Matthews Monster bow with a 75-pound draw weight with a dozen Easton Full Metal Jacket Dangerous Game arrows. I tipped each one with a 125 grain Grizzly Stik fixed blade broadhead to pack enough punch to penetrate the buffalo’s thick hide yet hopefully retain 100 percent of its weight while passing through.”

While the rest of the party began the morning hunting more hogs, Juan and his brother made their way to the area where the bull was last seen. After an hour of scouting, they eventually picked up its trail that led them down a creek bed to where they eventually spotted the big bull feeding alone at the top of a hill. After creeping to within 200 yards of it, the old sentinel swirled when a herd of elk flushed from the creek bed causing it to lift its head and stare. Staying behind to reduce their profile, Anthony decided to film the remainder of the stalk from afar as Juan closed the distance to within 50 yards. Staying at a higher elevation the bull maintained the advantage as Juan could only freeze each time the bull would lower its head to feed and pray he would go unnoticed. Ranging the animal at just over 40 yards he eventually crawled behind a cedar bush and set up. “It was becoming very wary so I stood up and drew back, and as luck would have it turned broadside and I let it fly.” To Juan’s relief, the monster buffalo ran only about a hundred yards before expiring. “It was a great moment,” said Juan. “Such a relief. And having my brother there filming it all then later celebrating with all my friends, I just couldn’t have asked for a better bachelor party.”

Outdoor Writer, Dustin Catrett

Dustin spent his childhood exploring the bass-rich ponds that once blanketed the Central Florida landscape. At age 16 he headed east to hone his skills on redfish and sea trout in the famous Mosquito Lagoon. After high school he graduated with a degree in Environmental Science and began his career as a Senior Environmental Engineer while also traveling the U.S. as a freelance outdoor writer in search of fishing and hunting adventures. Over the past decade, hundreds of Dustin’s works have been published in numerous well-known travel, fishing, hunting, and outdoor publications throughout Florida, Georgia, Texas, California, Australia, and the United Kingdom.