Ok...here it goes....
Well, it started out with me having a small dilemma....
My son has gotten his firearms safety cert this year, and my middle daughter decided she would like to rifle hunt for the first time. So, I will have 2 new deer hunters this rifle season plus a couple other kids I take out because other circumstances. Anyway, I will not have time to rifle hunt myself, but will be spending quality time with kids in the stand.
With that being said, I needed to get my hunting in before the rifle season begins. And decided that after the first good frost, I would start hitting it hard. It finally came, and I thought the skeeters would all be gone and I could sit in the stand without the pesky little buggers flying around my head. After work, I got home and prepared to hit the stand, it was a little warmer out then I like, but chose to go anyway. I put on my hunting clothes and boots, sprayed down with my scent away, grabbed my bow and thermo cell (just incase) and was off to my favorite bow stand. It stands between the edge of my swamp and backs up to my hay field, leaving a natural funnel of approximately 75 yards of light poplar, maple and oak trees. My strap on stand is 16 feet off of the ground in an oak tree on top of the small ridge that runs between the swamp and the hay field. I weaved my way down the trail, crossing over several downed trees from a storm we had a few weeks back. I hadn’t had time to get back to that part of the land to clear it yet. But, it was still walk able. I got to the base of my tree, thankful that the storm had not taken that tree. Clipped my bow on the tow string, and proceeded to climb. After I got to the platform, I snapped on my safety harness to the tree, and hauled up my bow. Un-clipped the string and placed it draped over a limb, turned and removed an arrow from the quiver and snapped it on the string. Then I turned slightly and hung my bow on the hook I have on a limb within grasping distance. I slowly sat down on the stand, looking around at the beautiful fall colors on the trees.
By this time, it was already quarter to 6, and not much time left to sit. As I was pondering life’s mysteries, the first skeeter arrived. I snapped my hand up, grabbing it out of the air (hoping this would be the only one….nope) soon more arrived, and hopes were shattered. There is nothing worse than trying to sit still and having bugs buzzing your face. I pulled out the thermo cell from my pocket, slid the gas switch on and clicked the igniter. Of course it does not light on the first couple clicks, but after the 6th one, it goes. I set it down between my legs on the stand base. I thought to myself, that with all of my arm flailing and the clicks from the thermo cell, I would not be seeing any deer this evening. I was thinking that I would be out of the stand, by 7, and back at the house.
Well, 6:45 came, and I was thinking on getting down, when I see some movement that caught my eye to my right. I slowly turn my body in that direction. It was a deer making his way down the trail; soon I could see another deer right behind the first. I slowly took my bow off of the hanging hook and clicked my release onto the loop. As they got closer, I noticed the headgear the first deer was sporting. At first glance, I counted 10 and determined he was an acceptable shooter. By the time he came down the trail, I had time to come to full draw as he stopped briefly behind an oak tree to nibble on some grass. For some reason as he got closer, he stepped off of the beaten trail and walked ten yards to the base of my stand, broadside. At 16 feet up, and him being 10 yards away, the window of trajectory is not that big. And I was already at full draw, and the other deer was approaching. So, I took the shot….and missed….the arrow went just over his back. It was a hard angle to shoot, but felt it was the only one I would get. I was wrong. The buck turned tail, back down the trail he came and stopped 40 yards away, looking at the other buck coming down the trail. He was behind the oak tree that he stopped at first, which gave me the opportunity to notch another arrow. Of course I put it in upside down, and had to take it back off of the string and re-click it on. Doah!
Anyway, they stood there looking at each other for a moment, the fork horn that was behind him started to move towards the 10, which made him turn back my way. This time, he traveled the normal trail at 30 yards. I drew back once more, and aimed down my shoot lane. Once he stepped into the lane, I put the pin just behind the front shoulder and let it fly. Tttttttthhhhhhhhhwwwwwwoooooopppp…. The arrow hit the mark; the buck kicked and ran back down the trail, with the fork horn. I soon could hear thrashing and then a final crash. All of this took 20 minutes, so it was 5 after 7….seemed longer…but that’s what the clock said. I knew he was down, so I quickly clipped my bow on the string and lowered it down. Shut off the thermo cell, stuck it in my pocket (yep, it was still hot) unsnapped my harness and down the tree I went. By the time I hit the bottom, my shirt was a little warm; so, I took the darn thing out of my pocket and set it on the ground. I quickly found my first arrow stuck in the ground, and pulled it out. I walked over to where the deer had stood, and looked past, and seen my other arrow. The fletching was covered with dark blood, so I knew the shot was good. I followed the trail back towards the way they had gone, and not more then 70 yards away, there he lay. As I looked up from over my deer, there the fork was standing staring at me. He blew, turned and ran. Now the fun part was to begin, I pulled my tag out of my rear pocket. I stuck my knife in his leg to make a hole between the tendon and the leg bone. Marked the date, and attached the tag to the deer with a zip strip. Since I make it a practice not to gut my deer in the woods; I headed back to the stand to pick up my gear and then up to the house for the wheeler and the trailer. As I walked back, I surveyed a path that I could take with the wheeler to get to the deer. I got back to the house, put my bow away, walked to the barn and backed the wheeler out. Hooking up the small trailer, I drove back down the trail.
Weaving in and out of all the downed trees, I finally get to where I can’t get closer. Time to drag my prize…It was a quick walk of about 60 yards to the deer, rapped a rope around it’s head and front legs; and started to pull. After tripping over several logs and limbs, I finally get the deer to the trailer, tilted it back and slid him in. Pulling on the rope, the trailer tilted back up and latched on it’s own as the weight shifted forward. I hopped back on the wheeler, and made my way back to the barn. Once I was there, I tilted it back and slid him out. Using the yard light from the barn, I gutted the deer. When that was finished, I backed the truck up to the deer and with some help from my son, hoisted the deer up into the truck. My friend has a walk in cooler just a mile away, so we drove it down there. We pulled into the lot and backed up to the door, they were not there, but I have done this so many times that it was old hat. We slid the deer out of the back onto the ground, rapped a chain around the back leg and used a hoist to lift it up. Using a hook with a dolly wheel, I stuck the hook through the other back leg and dolly wheel on the track. Lowering the hoist, I took the chain off. The deer was now hanging on the track. I pushed the deer down the track, opened the cooler door, and pushed him in. I wrote a short note to let them know that it was my deer and shut the door behind me. The time must have stood still, because when I got back home with my son, it was only 10 after 8. I sat back in my easy chair, with beer in hand….talking to my son about the afternoons events….looking down at my shirt, I see a small burn hole…it was a good day…
I told ya it was boring….
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Topic: Now I'm Doe Hunting... (Read 6518 times)
