Oct/Nov/Dec 2016 and now Jan 2017 !

Crossbow Hunting

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R.J.
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Location: Innerkip , Ontario , Canada

Oct/Nov/Dec 2016 and now Jan 2017 !

Post by R.J. »

Been awhile since I’ve been on the net … busy time of year and mega problems with picture transfers thru Photobucket ?

Here are some pic’s thru October/November/December 2016 .

Forum member “Sandman” sent me a picture of his successful moose hunt > Nice Bull ...

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Also , the handy man he is > did a good job on the European mount of his bull !

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For a change of pace > Randy hunted with Dwayne and tried the rifle hunt further North of where we usually hunt , on a property that Dwayne owns and they score a couple nice bucks …

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Randy’s son , Rob scored a buck in the WMU80 Controlled hunt …

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With only a single tag this year in the WMU’s that I usually hunt > I first passed some doe / fawn / small bucks as the season progressed …

Then missed ( shot over ) a nice 8 point in October :shock:

Then only had one other opportunity on a mature buck into November when another nice 8 point walked past my blind > I bahhed him , but he stopped a few steps later in some slash cover at 35 yards and I wasn’t comfortable with the shot , so I passed .

Also had a few hunts spoiled by farm equipment passing at a bad time and one trespasser that messed up an opportunity on another buck … and that’s how my season progressed . Still fun to get outdoors though !

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I never hunted the controlled hunt this year > with one tag only I was confident I would tag out with my Exocet 200 .

After a successful fall hunt , I still kept seeing turkeys while in a blind waiting for deer .Got some cool video as well but difficulties getting videos to post ?

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Slow but sure , I kept at it and during one afternoon stand on a bright November day while hunting deer , I arrowed two coyotes 5 mins apart . I saw a doe and fawns spook thru the hardwoods > later I see three shadows quartering thru the cover > 1st yote ( a female ) stopped at 20 yards to scent mark > I whistled a 130 grain WASP Broadhead thru her > two sideways cart wheels and it ran back towards the farm spruce lane ….

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Five minuets later a larger male came straight in and was sniffing the spot the other had been when I passed a 150 grain Bolt Cutter Broadhead thru him > He expired within sight of the tree … That is my 1st double coyote with an Excalibur crossbow ! … The third yote never did show up , although later I heard some locate yelps/barks .

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Then slowly into December > the snow came > we usually welcome the snow , but this year it gave us some grief with access to a few properties due to deep snow although we did our best to keep the trails packed with our trucks , the drifts eventually won .

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During Christmas Holidays , Chris H’s son Blaine scored his first deer ever with an Excalibur Vixen … A perfect 20 yard shot with a short recovery distance ! Perfect for his 1st deer !

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Flu/Cold/ and other ailments hit the group over the Holidays ( Wylie was out ) and I was in rough shape from Dec 26th on with a nasty cold … I passed up about 4 hunting days to try and recuperate …. Then my wife encouraged me to get some fresh air , she got me mobile with some meds yesterday afternoon ( the last day of our season ) and I made it out to a ground blind ( fronted with some straw bales ) … originally I was just going to watch from the ridge till dark but I saw fresh deer tracks so I buttoned up in the blind and waited …

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With about ½ hour of legal shooting light left , a doe walked in and gave me a challenging hard quartering away opportunity … My Exocet 200 was steady rested on a tripod , I eased my eye to the scope and I slapped the trigger to send a 150 grain bolt cutter down the rail … the Luminock looked like a laser line straight to her , then the last thing I saw was the red laser turn abrupt left and disappear ? ( Im shooting slightly up hill at the time ) .

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The doe bolts up hill and into the field like this …

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I cant see blood from the blind and I hear other deer busting bush behind me , so I sit and wait till after dark ( better safe then sorry ) … I text the guys … walk back to the truck and drive to the barn to get my tractor .
I drive to the back , walk down the hill and find my arrow … then drive the tractor into the field parallel to where the running tracks show a blood trail .

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The previous wait was not necessary … As I approached the peak of the hill she ran up , I see she dropped dead in her tracks at the last spot I saw her from the blind . ( 20 yard shot / 80 yard recovery ) ( pass thru quartering away / entry behind right side rib cage / exit left side mid rib cage high ) … my night ends in the bush with a coyote yelping at me … at least I can say “ no tag soup for me “ !

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Today is January 1st ( my Birthday ) > Frank V. stopped by and we took the deer to our butcher … Now we go into the new year with a fresh gut pile to entice the coyotes …

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Congrat’s to all that hunted this year … thanks for sharing your stories on the forum … Happy New Year , and good luck with your field adventures into 2017 !
See Ya. ... R.J. > " Remember , Trophies are measured by the time and energy expended to get them , not the size or quantity of the quarry "
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IronNoggin
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Re: Oct/Nov/Dec 2016 and now Jan 2017 !

Post by IronNoggin »

Certainly looks like a rather FUN Fall!!

And Happy Birthday btw!!

Great pictures and write-up! Thanks for Sharing!! :D

Cheers,
Nog
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rein1
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Re: Oct/Nov/Dec 2016 and now Jan 2017 !

Post by rein1 »

Congrats on a great fall 2016,, Nice pics
mr meat
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Re: Oct/Nov/Dec 2016 and now Jan 2017 !

Post by mr meat »

Happy Birthday and great write up and pics!
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Doe Master
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Re: Oct/Nov/Dec 2016 and now Jan 2017 !

Post by Doe Master »

Thanks Rick for bringing us along on the adventures . :)
I was in the same boat as you . Spent from Christmas eve on down with that cold/flu . :?
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Pinpoint
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Re: Oct/Nov/Dec 2016 and now Jan 2017 !

Post by Pinpoint »

Thank you for the pictures and awesome stories!! Congrats on a successful season!!
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wabi
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Re: Oct/Nov/Dec 2016 and now Jan 2017 !

Post by wabi »

Thanks for the pictures, and congratulations on your doe!
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rayman
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Re: Oct/Nov/Dec 2016 and now Jan 2017 !

Post by rayman »

Great reading and pictures.

Questions:
What is scope on rifle on third picture, and what is rifle in fourth picture?
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fratri
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Re: Oct/Nov/Dec 2016 and now Jan 2017 !

Post by fratri »

A very good read
Thanks for sharing
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Patcon
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Re: Oct/Nov/Dec 2016 and now Jan 2017 !

Post by Patcon »

Don't know about the scope but the rifle looks like a Mosin-Nagant...
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flightattendant100
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Re: Oct/Nov/Dec 2016 and now Jan 2017 !

Post by flightattendant100 »

Always love your posts and those great pics. Thanks
j.krug
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Re: Oct/Nov/Dec 2016 and now Jan 2017 !

Post by j.krug »

Thanks for the pics RJ...enjoyed them as always.
Congrats on the coyote double and the last minute doe. :)
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R.J.
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Location: Innerkip , Ontario , Canada

Re: Oct/Nov/Dec 2016 and now Jan 2017 !

Post by R.J. »

Thanks all ...

The one rifle is a Mossberg 100 ATR with a 16 power scope ( I believe they were sold in that combo package )

And yes the other rifle is a Mosin Nagant .

Also as I posted on another thread it was a challenging season for sure as many experienced , I found the wildlife #'s to be way down ! ?

We really had to stretch to find deer on some properties ... many long days scouting and not seeing anything ?

I only saw one jack rabbit all season ?
Less deer than usual / Less cottontail / Even turkey flock #'s were down ( use to see 30 in a group now 10-15 ) .

Maybe my eyes are getting older , but that was the way it was for me this year ...I faced the old dilemma " pass early regret later " .

If I hadn't got lucky and tagged a doe on the last afternoon , I would have had tag soup this year > ( that would have been a first for me ) .

Overall reflection though .... it was still great to get out and just hunt !

Just goes to show ... not all successful hunts end in a kill !

Really looking forward to the Spring Turkey Season !

Thanks again guys and galls for sharing your hunt stories and pictures on the forum ... it helps fill in the slow and sick days ... and I always seem to pick up tips here and there from other hunters ... never too old to learn new tricks !
See Ya. ... R.J. > " Remember , Trophies are measured by the time and energy expended to get them , not the size or quantity of the quarry "
JerseyJeff
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Re: Oct/Nov/Dec 2016 and now Jan 2017 !

Post by JerseyJeff »

We're only three days into 2017, and I'm casting my vote for "Post of the Year"! :D
Great photos. Thanks for sharing.

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R.J.
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Re: Oct/Nov/Dec 2016 and now Jan 2017 !

Post by R.J. »

Jeff wrote ...
We're only three days into 2017, and I'm casting my vote for "Post of the Year"! :D
Great photos. Thanks for sharing.
LOL ! ... I didn't carry the camera as much as I use to this season but still manged to get a few picture/documented hunts ...

I also got a few videos with some cool turkey interactions but couldn't get them to post properly ? and when I did get them downloaded the quality was NG compared to the original ?

Anyway > Looking forward to some nice cool crisp winter coyote picture series if the dogs will cooperate and spring turkey season can't get here soon enough !
See Ya. ... R.J. > " Remember , Trophies are measured by the time and energy expended to get them , not the size or quantity of the quarry "
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