My Season Thus Far...

[Bow Life]

Well, I am finally done my exams and now have some time to post my experiences thus far in the season.

I started the season by harvesting a basket rack 8 point with my PSE Mach 5. This was the first buck I had harvested with this bow. It was early in the season and I had came home for a weekend of hunting with my father. I walked into one of my favorite stands with scent on my boots, climbed up and waited for daylight. At daylight I let out a couple soft grunts and hit the bleat can twice. Within 30 minutes following my every step came this basket rack 8. He followed every single footprint smelling each right to my tree and he stopped at the base of my tree to smell the tree pegs I had climbed up. I shot straight down just beside his spine through the vitals and he ran about 80 yards and fell over on the other side of the ridge.

My next encounter I came home again for a weekend of hunting. My father and cousin had scoped out a new area on our property the previous weekend and I had planned on hunting it that weekend. However when I got home, my father came down with food poising and was unable to hunt the Friday or the Saturday. So Sunday morning I decided to grab my stuff jump in the truck and go for one shot at it before I went back to school. First thing in the morning two does and a wide 6-point traveled past my stand at about 30 yards in the thicket. Then I watched the does mill around on the east side of a grassy hill that was about 70 yards directly in front of my set up. I decided I would rattle as the rut was just coming in strong. As soon as I hit the horns I saw a huge rack come over the hill and start working towards me. He was easily a ten or a twelve, well out past his ears and long g2's. He worked down to within 35 or 40 yards in the thick stuff and then he got down wind of those two does on the east side of the hill. As soon as he was down wind of the does he put his head up and then down to the ground and went straight to them. I grunted and rattled again as he chased the does up and over the hill. I was watching the top of the hill when I could hear something walking close to me splashing in the muddy trail. I looked to my right and coming from the west was a nice 4-point right down the trail to where I had hung my scent up at 18 yards. He stopped to smell my scent stick and that’s when I let fly. Hit him right behind the front shoulder and he ran 20 yards and fell over. He was a big-bodied deer for the size of his rack and I found that out as I loaded him on the cart and started the drag out.

My next trip in I decided to move my stand so I could get a shot as the deer came in from the east to head to the grassy hill. The first weekend with the stand in the new location proved to be a mistake as I was busted by 5 deer in one hunt. I then moved the stand from about 15 feet up the tree to about 22 feet and went back to school to wait for my next weekend of hunting.

When I did get back in the stand my sister was with me and she was in the tree beside me with the video camera. The first night we saw 6 deer further yet to the east, 5 does and the wide 6-point I had been seeing. That night we went back and two does came straight down the trail in front of me. Straight towards me. The second doe stopped at about 35 yards and was looking directly at my sister and I in the tree, the first doe however got to 12 yards and stopped to smell my scent stick. The second doe then decided to turn around and head back up the trail, as she did that the first deer turned broadside and looked back towards the second doe. That’s when I drew back and let fly. She jumped twice and then slowly walked away. When I got out of my stand I walked over to the arrow and it was fluorescent red from one end to the other, a big puddle of blood on the ground and some white hair. Not an inch of the arrow did not have blood on it. It was starting to get dark so we headed back to the main trail to meet with my cousin and my dad. When I showed them the arrow everyone agreed that the deer would not be far. We grabbed the cart, took off all of our heavy gear and headed in to get the deer. It was now dark. We followed the blood trail for about 40 yards into some really thick nasty stuff and the blood just stopped. We looked some more and decided it would be best to come back in the morning. My father and I came back in the morning and searched the entire area doing a grid. We even had a dog with us (not trained on tracking but we hoped it would help) and no luck. I figure because the deer was so close and the angle so steep I may have gotten one lung and the arrow exited through the bottom as there was a little bit of fat on the arrow. The fat must have plugged the hole and that’s what stopped our blood trail. My sister was unable to get it on film, as she did not want to spook the second doe that was watching us by trying to get the camera up. I guess I will never know what happened to the doe, but I do know that I did my very best to try and recover the deer.

Now that I have been done exams since the fifth of December, one would think that I have been hunting for the last 4 days but that is wrong. I went out Saturday morning (the 6th) and saw absolutely nothing and every day since then I have been working all day. My boss needs the help and I need the money that leaves me working. Today I got the easier job; sit at the desk for 8 hours and wait for someone to come in. I'm not complaining though, money is money.

Hopefully I will be able to get out more often as the work dies down as I still have a tag to fill and my sister still has a tag to fill as well. I have been lurking the forum here and there when I have time to reading all of the stories. Keep them coming. I would like to wish everyone a safe and successful end to their season, as well as a safe and enjoyable holiday season.

PS. Sorry for the long-winded message, just trying to fit two months of hunting into one post. Also, I was unable to get pictures of the two I harvested but I do have the skull of the 8 skinned out and the rack off of the 4 point, I will be sure to get a picture of them and post it.

[Normous]

Sound like a good season except for the doe. You did the best you could I see. Good luck at school.

[maple]

Hey Mike,

Study first, play later, right?

Sounds like a pretty good season to me, particularly with the limited opportunities you've had. Good work.

Maple

[Bow Life]

Should be study first play later, however this year it was a little different.
Play (football that is) first, study then hunt. Worked out not to bad but im sure my marks next semester will be better.