Sorry for the long read, but I have to tell the whole story...
Well I was back in the stand on Saturday morning. The season had been pretty slow far me. I'd been seeing a few deer, but not many were coming to the feeder. I'd noticed around the county that the rut seemed to be in full swing, so I brought along my rattlin' horns & grunt call. I chased off two deer as I approached my stand, but since the stupid cows feel the need to congregate around my feeder almost every day, I let out a soft "moo" keep them from spooking. I climbed up in my treestand and got settled in. I realized pretty quickly that I'd forgotten how 46 degrees with a stiff north wind feels! I was a little underdressed, but toughed it out. As daylight came around, some does and fawns came in but didn't stay long. Three young bucks stayed for awhile, then a decent 8 walked in. He was a pretty tall basket rack buck. I watched him at 12 yards for about 30 minutes, but couldn't convince myself that he would make 13 inches. He finally wandered off. Just for kicks, when he got about 100 yards out, I grabbed the the antlers and clacked a couple of times. He spun around and came charging back right under my tree. Well the light bulb came on then, and I decided to change my game plan. I rattled a few more times in the stand with no more luck, so I got down and headed for another spot I had found in the offseason where several trails come together at the corner of a clearing.
There was a huge live oak tree on the edge. I leaned my bow against the tree and started to rattle. After only a few seconds, I glanced back over my shoulder to look into the woods behind me. When I turned back around, there was a doe standing less than 5 yards in front of me! I'm very meticulous about getting rid of any scent, so she didn't wind me. She bobbed her head up and down trying to figure out what I was, then gave a quick glance over her shoulder. A nice shooter 8 came charging in and they both took off. He passed by me at less than 10 yards! Since the doe surprised me, I never even had a chance to pick up my bow. He was in hot pursuit and ignored my grunts. I waited for awhile, then rattled. I gave a quick look back into the creek bottom and turned around to again find a surprise in front of me. At about 15 yards was another shooter 8. He was facing me and looking my direction, so I couldn't move. I was able to get my bow this time, but he had walked off a little to my left and I had no shot. He had made up hgis mind that he didn't like the situation, so my attempts to bring him back with the grunt were ignored. Wow! Two nice bucks in less than 15 minutes!
After another short wait, I hit the horns together again. This time, looking over my shoulder was the right move as a young 6 came running through with his nose to the ground. As he passed by, I notice some movement back from the direction he had come. Another shooter was heading my way! Waiting until the big oak tree was between us, I quickly set the antlers down and grabbed my bow. I got down on one knee and drew back. He came into my view at 11 yards. I settled my 10 yd pin behind his shoulder and let it rip. The 3 blade Muzzy found its mark and passed straight through. He whirled and ran a few steps, then stopped and looked around trying to figure out what had just happened. At about 25 yards, I could see the blood pumping out of the exit hole! He stood there for a few more seconds, then began to wobble like an old drunk. He stumbled down into the creek bottom out of sight. Before long, I could hear him fall and kick around in the leaves. It was at that point that I developed a bad case of the shakes! It wasn't easy trying to type, but I managed to send my wife a text telling her what had just happened. Wow! What a hunt! After finding him and snapping a few pictures, I drove back home to pick up my three kids to help me load him. They were almost as excited as me! I haven't had a chance to put a tape to him or age him yet, but he's my biggest buck in 25 years of bowhunting.
Sorry again for the long read, but I'm just a little bit pumped!
Well I was back in the stand on Saturday morning. The season had been pretty slow far me. I'd been seeing a few deer, but not many were coming to the feeder. I'd noticed around the county that the rut seemed to be in full swing, so I brought along my rattlin' horns & grunt call. I chased off two deer as I approached my stand, but since the stupid cows feel the need to congregate around my feeder almost every day, I let out a soft "moo" keep them from spooking. I climbed up in my treestand and got settled in. I realized pretty quickly that I'd forgotten how 46 degrees with a stiff north wind feels! I was a little underdressed, but toughed it out. As daylight came around, some does and fawns came in but didn't stay long. Three young bucks stayed for awhile, then a decent 8 walked in. He was a pretty tall basket rack buck. I watched him at 12 yards for about 30 minutes, but couldn't convince myself that he would make 13 inches. He finally wandered off. Just for kicks, when he got about 100 yards out, I grabbed the the antlers and clacked a couple of times. He spun around and came charging back right under my tree. Well the light bulb came on then, and I decided to change my game plan. I rattled a few more times in the stand with no more luck, so I got down and headed for another spot I had found in the offseason where several trails come together at the corner of a clearing.
There was a huge live oak tree on the edge. I leaned my bow against the tree and started to rattle. After only a few seconds, I glanced back over my shoulder to look into the woods behind me. When I turned back around, there was a doe standing less than 5 yards in front of me! I'm very meticulous about getting rid of any scent, so she didn't wind me. She bobbed her head up and down trying to figure out what I was, then gave a quick glance over her shoulder. A nice shooter 8 came charging in and they both took off. He passed by me at less than 10 yards! Since the doe surprised me, I never even had a chance to pick up my bow. He was in hot pursuit and ignored my grunts. I waited for awhile, then rattled. I gave a quick look back into the creek bottom and turned around to again find a surprise in front of me. At about 15 yards was another shooter 8. He was facing me and looking my direction, so I couldn't move. I was able to get my bow this time, but he had walked off a little to my left and I had no shot. He had made up hgis mind that he didn't like the situation, so my attempts to bring him back with the grunt were ignored. Wow! Two nice bucks in less than 15 minutes!
After another short wait, I hit the horns together again. This time, looking over my shoulder was the right move as a young 6 came running through with his nose to the ground. As he passed by, I notice some movement back from the direction he had come. Another shooter was heading my way! Waiting until the big oak tree was between us, I quickly set the antlers down and grabbed my bow. I got down on one knee and drew back. He came into my view at 11 yards. I settled my 10 yd pin behind his shoulder and let it rip. The 3 blade Muzzy found its mark and passed straight through. He whirled and ran a few steps, then stopped and looked around trying to figure out what had just happened. At about 25 yards, I could see the blood pumping out of the exit hole! He stood there for a few more seconds, then began to wobble like an old drunk. He stumbled down into the creek bottom out of sight. Before long, I could hear him fall and kick around in the leaves. It was at that point that I developed a bad case of the shakes! It wasn't easy trying to type, but I managed to send my wife a text telling her what had just happened. Wow! What a hunt! After finding him and snapping a few pictures, I drove back home to pick up my three kids to help me load him. They were almost as excited as me! I haven't had a chance to put a tape to him or age him yet, but he's my biggest buck in 25 years of bowhunting.
Sorry again for the long read, but I'm just a little bit pumped!
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