I headed to the lease for the season opener on Friday afternoon. We got up early Saturday as I was hoping to close the deal on an old management buck that was coming in pretty consistently. I saw quite a few deer including some nice young bucks but no shooters. Went back to camp and fixed a batch of bacon wrapped doves and got ready for the afternoon hunt.
I got in the stand a little before five and immediately had deer and turkeys filtering into the feed pen. The feeders went off at six and deer came from everywhere. I turned and looked to my left and saw two nice 8 points that I had never seen on camera or in person. One of them was a no doubt management deer and I prepared for the shot. Both bucks jumped into the pen and the bigger one took the dominant, under the feeder position.
I drew just as he stepped forward and covered his vitals with the feeder leg. I rested the bow on my knee and waited for him to take another step. Finally he did and I released. Just as the arrow left the bow he went to take another step and drew his front leg back across “the pocket.” The arrow hit where I aimed and broke the front leg and lodged in the off side shoulder. As he struggled to get out of the pen, I knew I had a solid lung hit.
I lost sight of him and heard him crash out of the pen. After a very short time, I thought I heard a loud, final lung hit breath. The other deer that were in the pen were all looking where I heard the sound and I was pretty sure he was down. I waited about forty minutes and headed to where I thought he might be. He made it forty yards and was down for the count. The Thunderhead had broken a leg, pierced both lungs and cracked bone in the offside shoulder.
Back at camp Bruce (Archery1st) and I realized that he had lots of pictures of the big eight from his stand over a mile and a quarter away. The eight point score 129 and change and was five and half years old.
I got in the stand a little before five and immediately had deer and turkeys filtering into the feed pen. The feeders went off at six and deer came from everywhere. I turned and looked to my left and saw two nice 8 points that I had never seen on camera or in person. One of them was a no doubt management deer and I prepared for the shot. Both bucks jumped into the pen and the bigger one took the dominant, under the feeder position.
I drew just as he stepped forward and covered his vitals with the feeder leg. I rested the bow on my knee and waited for him to take another step. Finally he did and I released. Just as the arrow left the bow he went to take another step and drew his front leg back across “the pocket.” The arrow hit where I aimed and broke the front leg and lodged in the off side shoulder. As he struggled to get out of the pen, I knew I had a solid lung hit.
I lost sight of him and heard him crash out of the pen. After a very short time, I thought I heard a loud, final lung hit breath. The other deer that were in the pen were all looking where I heard the sound and I was pretty sure he was down. I waited about forty minutes and headed to where I thought he might be. He made it forty yards and was down for the count. The Thunderhead had broken a leg, pierced both lungs and cracked bone in the offside shoulder.
Back at camp Bruce (Archery1st) and I realized that he had lots of pictures of the big eight from his stand over a mile and a quarter away. The eight point score 129 and change and was five and half years old.
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