H20fwler
5 year old buck +
I went out for the first time this year Monday night, I had been up in the tree about a half hour when my youngest son texted me on his way home from work asking if I was out hunting. I texted him back where I was at and he said he would just go over to the other farm...I told him to come on over and he was hesitant not wanting to mess me up. I told him come on over and hunt the south stand with the wind we had.
About forty five minutes later he texted me that he had just bumped a couple deer that were bedded under the stand, he was in a tree around sixty yards from me over my left shoulder. While I was reading his text two does galloped under me no doubt the ones he bumped they went about forty yards past me settled down and started back towards him. It was a very crisp 41 degrees with about a fifteen mph breeze from behind me, beautiful typical early fall evening with plenty of fat squirrels to watch. Visibility this time of year is almost limited to shooting lanes or open spots with all the leaves still on. After about twenty minutes I noticed some movement around fifty yards in front of me, a decent buck was working a scrape and hooking little trees. I could tell he had a taller rack but that was all, he started slowly heading my sons way through the brush and scrub. I texted him to get ready a buck was headed his way.
About a minute later or so later I heard a "THWACK". Then all is quiet,.......son texts I double lunged him!
I text him telling him I heard the shot and started asking can he see his arrow, did he mule kick, was he spraying blood? He says no to all...I told him sit still lets wait for a good forty five we have plenty of time he will stay on the property. I watch more squirrels and various birds extremely happy that we happened to be hunting together. We are texting back and forth trying to decide if we knew what buck it was..I told him I didn't get that good of a look at it he says once he saw a taller rack he never looked at rack again he said it was at thirty yards with head behind a tree hit it a little high hoped he didn't gut shoot it and started all doubting himself. I told him the hit sounded perfect no belly "thunk" sounded like chest hit not to worry. I texted my oldest son to get him in the loop and texted a couple buddies.
After a long wait I texted him and said I was going to come down and sneak over to him in a loop away from where deer went, about that time I hear footsteps and here comes a buck from behind me. It was walking slow with hair up all along its back like my dog when the door bell rings. It stops directly underneath me...for minutes...at first I wondered if it was the buck he shot? But it looked to small a basket eight, it kept looking back over its shoulder so I sloooowly turned and looked over my left shoulder. There was another basket eight just standing there looking at the first. After about five minutes they both ambled off towards my sons stand..I texted him the info.
About that time I notice some movement in the picked corn stubble out front to my right...about three hundred yards away coming from the river at a slow trot is three does with a buck following. I look through my binos and the buck in back is nice, they are going to come into the corner of the woods about 80 yards in front of me. Now I'm thinking...what a predicament to have? I did not want to end up with two blood trails potentially crossing over each other and maybe spooking a wounded deer off the block if I shot bad.
It is crazy early in the deer season and I took about the whole month of November off this year for vacation...I lowered my bow and started looping over to my boy very slowly. He texted me asking what was going on and I filled him in. I bumped a big deer that I never spotted on the way to him, I got about forty yards from him and he started giving me hand signals from the stand where to look...I could not find his arrow or any blood and I looked slow for a long time. He slowly got out of stand and when he got to the bottom another deer spooked over in the direction his had run. We whispered lets back out and just go back to the truck its getting dark lets get flash lights and give things more time, we looped out of the woods and way around to the truck. The whole walk back he was full of self doubt now about his shot...I told him I heard the hit good and it was a dead deer we will find it. We got to the truck and waited awhile and I talked to his older brother on the phone and the wife and a good deer hunting buddy just small talk telling them what all had gone on. Jordan was getting very antsy so we grabbed the flashlights and headed back, I kept having to slow him down and calm him down on his doubts.
We got back to the stand and started looking for arrow, hair and blood...nothing. After about twenty minutes of that I said lets go slow from where you last think you saw him in the direction he went in a slow zig zag. Didn't find one spot of blood, I told him don't worry about it if you hit him a little high his chest will have to fill up with blood then he will leave us a trail. After about fifty yards...THERE HE WAS!
He had reverse ground shrinkage..better than either of us thought!
It was just to cool to even describe, watching my sons face light up and all his doubts just melt away and I was able to be there and share the whole moment with him. So far it is his personal best...and off our own farm!
Field dressed yesterday he weighed #225 hanging.
About forty five minutes later he texted me that he had just bumped a couple deer that were bedded under the stand, he was in a tree around sixty yards from me over my left shoulder. While I was reading his text two does galloped under me no doubt the ones he bumped they went about forty yards past me settled down and started back towards him. It was a very crisp 41 degrees with about a fifteen mph breeze from behind me, beautiful typical early fall evening with plenty of fat squirrels to watch. Visibility this time of year is almost limited to shooting lanes or open spots with all the leaves still on. After about twenty minutes I noticed some movement around fifty yards in front of me, a decent buck was working a scrape and hooking little trees. I could tell he had a taller rack but that was all, he started slowly heading my sons way through the brush and scrub. I texted him to get ready a buck was headed his way.
About a minute later or so later I heard a "THWACK". Then all is quiet,.......son texts I double lunged him!
I text him telling him I heard the shot and started asking can he see his arrow, did he mule kick, was he spraying blood? He says no to all...I told him sit still lets wait for a good forty five we have plenty of time he will stay on the property. I watch more squirrels and various birds extremely happy that we happened to be hunting together. We are texting back and forth trying to decide if we knew what buck it was..I told him I didn't get that good of a look at it he says once he saw a taller rack he never looked at rack again he said it was at thirty yards with head behind a tree hit it a little high hoped he didn't gut shoot it and started all doubting himself. I told him the hit sounded perfect no belly "thunk" sounded like chest hit not to worry. I texted my oldest son to get him in the loop and texted a couple buddies.
After a long wait I texted him and said I was going to come down and sneak over to him in a loop away from where deer went, about that time I hear footsteps and here comes a buck from behind me. It was walking slow with hair up all along its back like my dog when the door bell rings. It stops directly underneath me...for minutes...at first I wondered if it was the buck he shot? But it looked to small a basket eight, it kept looking back over its shoulder so I sloooowly turned and looked over my left shoulder. There was another basket eight just standing there looking at the first. After about five minutes they both ambled off towards my sons stand..I texted him the info.
About that time I notice some movement in the picked corn stubble out front to my right...about three hundred yards away coming from the river at a slow trot is three does with a buck following. I look through my binos and the buck in back is nice, they are going to come into the corner of the woods about 80 yards in front of me. Now I'm thinking...what a predicament to have? I did not want to end up with two blood trails potentially crossing over each other and maybe spooking a wounded deer off the block if I shot bad.
It is crazy early in the deer season and I took about the whole month of November off this year for vacation...I lowered my bow and started looping over to my boy very slowly. He texted me asking what was going on and I filled him in. I bumped a big deer that I never spotted on the way to him, I got about forty yards from him and he started giving me hand signals from the stand where to look...I could not find his arrow or any blood and I looked slow for a long time. He slowly got out of stand and when he got to the bottom another deer spooked over in the direction his had run. We whispered lets back out and just go back to the truck its getting dark lets get flash lights and give things more time, we looped out of the woods and way around to the truck. The whole walk back he was full of self doubt now about his shot...I told him I heard the hit good and it was a dead deer we will find it. We got to the truck and waited awhile and I talked to his older brother on the phone and the wife and a good deer hunting buddy just small talk telling them what all had gone on. Jordan was getting very antsy so we grabbed the flashlights and headed back, I kept having to slow him down and calm him down on his doubts.
We got back to the stand and started looking for arrow, hair and blood...nothing. After about twenty minutes of that I said lets go slow from where you last think you saw him in the direction he went in a slow zig zag. Didn't find one spot of blood, I told him don't worry about it if you hit him a little high his chest will have to fill up with blood then he will leave us a trail. After about fifty yards...THERE HE WAS!
He had reverse ground shrinkage..better than either of us thought!
It was just to cool to even describe, watching my sons face light up and all his doubts just melt away and I was able to be there and share the whole moment with him. So far it is his personal best...and off our own farm!
Field dressed yesterday he weighed #225 hanging.
