One For The Wall

It wasn't the buck that I was looking for but he was too good to pass.

He's a nice main frame 8 point with 5 sticker points.  18" spread.  Weighed 154 pounds field dressed.   Taken with a muzzleloader at about 60 yards.

I especially like his gnarly main beams and brow tines.

I hunted the Hi-Rise stand this evening and had 3 does come out one hour before sunset.  About 15 minutes before sunset, two bucks came out.  I thought that they were the same ones as earlier in the week but, on closer examination, one was much nicer.  I went ahead and shot him and he dropped straight over.

I was going to wait for dark and see if I could shoot a doe to go with him but I got impatient.  I got down and checked him out.

It was the opposite of "ground shrinkage" - he really was nicer than I expected.  

I got the tractor out and made an easy recovery.

I have two doe tags to go for this year - I'll try to get one in the morning to make the trip to the processor worthwhile.  I also have a hunt in TX coming up next week - something to look forward to.

There is still lots of food in the plots.  The deer have been mainly working the clover.  This brassica field is still pretty intact.  I think there's still great chances for both the bonus gun weekend and muzzleloader season.  The big boy is still out there and I know where he's been bedding.

OMG - He's Taunting Me!

Since we pushed that buck on Monday while driving down to the valley stand, I have been hunting the ladder stand.  It is located just above where we saw him.  I've hunted mornings and evenings there and never saw anything but a couple does.

This morning I hunted the Hi-Rise stand and saw three does.  At 11:30, I decided to go check cameras.  I opened the camera at the ladder stand and saw movement off to the right.  I looked up and a doe and the same huge buck were running away.  It appears that they were bedded about 40 yards behind the ladder stand.  I got my gun out of the Ranger and climbed the ladder stand - I could see no sign of them.

I decided not to stir up the woods by going tromping after them.  I'm going to sit the Hi-Rise tonight and hope that he comes out.

I'm pretty sure that this is the guy that I've seen twice this week.  This is a photo from a couple weeks ago at the same camera.

Here I am shortly before my mouth drops open...

A few daylight doe shots from where we weren't hunting.

The Monday camera tour (when we pushed the buck the first time).

It's getting warm today - 60ish.  Too many clothes on.

Happy Birthday BB!

BB turned 30 today so we were really hoping that he would have another confrontation with that 10 point that got away on his misfire.  Didn't happen.  After 3 days of hunting, we had one 67 pound doe to show for our efforts.  We didn't want to send the boys home to FL without meat for the winter - we did rectify that situation.  We hunted all day, had dinner, and put them on the road.

This was the first harvest of the day - a 109 pound doe (field dressed) taken around noon from the driveway stand.

 After cleaning her up, Leo went to work butchering.

For lunch we had venison/elk chili.

At last light on the last night, BB took this doe from the high-rise stand.  It was a nice 100 yard shot.

Here's the FL mafia posing with BB's birthday present.  96 pounds field dressed.

Before putting the boys on the road, Joan had birthday cake for BB to celebrate his 30th.  They loaded up and started the drive to Virginia where they were going to pick up some beef from Leo's aunt.  They will be arriving in FL with 3 deer, a steer and some misc. elk and deer sausage.  Their families won't starve this winter.

First Blood

Leo took a small doe this morning from the barn stand - 67 pounds field dressed.  He also saw a spike buck.  It was very cold with a heavy frost - 28 degrees. BB was in the hi-rise and didn't see anything.  I was in the ladder stand and had two does bed down in front of me at about 80 yards.  I'm still waiting for a big buck.

 

Tough Day For BB

BB spent the night throwing up - could it have been related to the seared tuna?  Didn't affect Leo that way.  So BB spent the morning sleeping and recovering.  When he made it out for the afternoon hunt, he had a 10 point come out in the field.  He lined it up, dropped the hammer and only the primer went off - misfire.  By the time he was recapped, he was gone.

Recovered enough for plain crackers.

My view from Hi-Rise last night - numerous does and a couple of marginal shooter bucks.

I sat in the valley stand tonight.  Didn't see anything until last light.  Then I saw two does (that winded me) and a skunk.

 Another view from valley stand

Amy with Ridley and Sydney over Thanksgiving weekend.  After we left, Ridley blew out her knee and is having surgery tomorrow.

Amy collapsed after being the perfect Thanksgiving hostess while carrying our first grand-daughter.

Gun Season Opener

Leo and his friend BB made the trip up from FL for gun season.  Kristen would like to be here too but she and Kayla stayed home.  It's now Tuesday noon and there have been no shots yet.  We've seen a lot of deer and I passed on two reasonable bucks last night.

We toured to check cameras.  We pushed a nice buck while driving around.

My friend Jim and the 12 point that he took on his farm in Lebanon OH.



Some of the trailcam photos.

We've been seeing lots of does.

The Rut Is On!

This morning I sat in the barn stand.  A couple of raccoons wandered thru the field and then it went quiet.  At about 8:30, I could hear chasing and grunting in the heavy cover.  Eventually two does ran out and they were followed by a buck.  He stopped and rubbed a few pine trees before chasing one of the does around.  I guess that he was about an 18" 6 point - I couldn't see any brow tines.  I took video of most of the action on my Iphone. I have a long video of the buck coming out into the field and chasing the two does around.  It seems to be too long to upload so here's one of the doe coming out first.

   

Trailcams Etc

This weekend is my last archery hunt before gun season.  I took a quick spin to check the cameras and found some pretty exciting images.

Nice 10 point with good mass on the beams and solid brow tines.

Nice looking 10 point with long G2's.

And a nice spread.

Nice brow tines.

The does look healthy too.  Joan and I saw a total of more than a dozen of them at sundown tonight.

I watched lots of squirrels already this season.

The brassica still looks good.

The soybeans are dried up and done.

I haven't had much action on this camera near the relocated ladder stand.