My pard Gary and I left this past Friday afternoon and make the 6 hour trek north to our lease.
Had my 15 year old grandson, Lawrence and his 13 year old daughter, Lauren in tow for the youth opener.
My grandson had never expressed an interest in hunting until about a month ago.
Saturday was a perfect deer hunting kinda morning. Mid 30s, light breeze and clear.
We were on stand 15 minutes before legal and within 5 minutes we were seeing deer moving around us.
Saw several good bucks and lots of does, even some rutting activity.
Unfortunately the closet deer we saw were at 170 yards and in heavy cover.
My grandson and I counted 25 deer total that morning by 9:30 when hunger kicked in and we
went in for breakfast.
Gary and Lauren were in another stand about a half mile away.
Lauren has been trying to get her first deer for two years now.
She had a shot at a 6 point at about 180 yards but didn't connect.
She admitted to rushing the shot and jerking the trigger.
Saturday afternoon it had warmed up into the mid 50s and the wind was light.
Back on stand at 3:30.
Wasn't long and Lawrence and I were seeing deer again.
A big fork horn showed himself at around 400 yards and it was obvious he was nervous.
He was running from something and headed towards us.
We lost sight of him in a dense Cottonwood thicket shortly after we first saw him.
Fast forward thirty minutes, hadn't seen a deer.
Lawrence suddenly whispers to me " I hear something "
It's the big forkhorn, and he's about 150 yards out bounding at us through 5 foot tall CRP grass.
I give him the green light to shoot if he can.
As he readies his rifle the buck stops behind another clump of Cottonwoods at 100 yards. All we can see is his rack above the grass .We have a staring contest for about three of the longest minutes of my life, and the deer suddenly spins and runs away. Don't know what spooked him. Did he hear us, see us moving or smell us? No clue.
Dark is rapidly approaching by now. 10 minutes of legal shooting light left.
Glassing with binos when Lawrence taps me on the shoulder and points.
"Right here" he whispers.
Headed at us 100 yards out are two does.
He shoulders his rifle and gets a solid rest as the deer feed their way toward us.
Finally the lead doe stops broadside at about 70 yards in a spot where we can see her shoulder and chest.
I tell him to take the shot when he's ready. "Center the crosshairs on her shoulder and shoot "
I wait, and I wait and wait some more.
Finally I ask him "Did you take the safety off ?"
" No I forgot"
Click.
Finally the .243 barks and I see the doe collapse in her tracks.
He shot high and right, the 100 grain NP hit her about two inches below the spine right in front of the last rib.
No tracking this one !
Lauren and Gary didn't see a deer that evening.
Yesterday morning it was in the mid 30s again.
Lauren and Gary took my 243 and got in the same stand Lawrence and I had hunted.
From daylight until about 8 they didn't see any deer at all.
About 8:15 they spot movement and horns coming through the grass.
It's a decent buck and he's trotting toward them.
He slows and finally comes on at a steady walk.
At about 80 yards Gary bleats at the buck and stops him broadside.
The .243 barks again and the deer hunches up and shrugs like he's been punched.
Gary knew in his mind the deer was hit hard and dead on his feet.
The buck turned and walked about ten yards and collapsed.
They watch him for ten minutes, and he suddenly stands up and starts walking away.
Lauren shoots again and the buck makes a hard left turn into a hardwood thicket and disappears.
Twenty anxious minutes pass and the cavalry is called in for the search.
It wasn't needed.
The buck made it another 15 feet and expired.
Had my 15 year old grandson, Lawrence and his 13 year old daughter, Lauren in tow for the youth opener.
My grandson had never expressed an interest in hunting until about a month ago.
Saturday was a perfect deer hunting kinda morning. Mid 30s, light breeze and clear.
We were on stand 15 minutes before legal and within 5 minutes we were seeing deer moving around us.
Saw several good bucks and lots of does, even some rutting activity.
Unfortunately the closet deer we saw were at 170 yards and in heavy cover.
My grandson and I counted 25 deer total that morning by 9:30 when hunger kicked in and we
went in for breakfast.
Gary and Lauren were in another stand about a half mile away.
Lauren has been trying to get her first deer for two years now.
She had a shot at a 6 point at about 180 yards but didn't connect.
She admitted to rushing the shot and jerking the trigger.
Saturday afternoon it had warmed up into the mid 50s and the wind was light.
Back on stand at 3:30.
Wasn't long and Lawrence and I were seeing deer again.
A big fork horn showed himself at around 400 yards and it was obvious he was nervous.
He was running from something and headed towards us.
We lost sight of him in a dense Cottonwood thicket shortly after we first saw him.
Fast forward thirty minutes, hadn't seen a deer.
Lawrence suddenly whispers to me " I hear something "
It's the big forkhorn, and he's about 150 yards out bounding at us through 5 foot tall CRP grass.
I give him the green light to shoot if he can.
As he readies his rifle the buck stops behind another clump of Cottonwoods at 100 yards. All we can see is his rack above the grass .We have a staring contest for about three of the longest minutes of my life, and the deer suddenly spins and runs away. Don't know what spooked him. Did he hear us, see us moving or smell us? No clue.
Dark is rapidly approaching by now. 10 minutes of legal shooting light left.
Glassing with binos when Lawrence taps me on the shoulder and points.
"Right here" he whispers.
Headed at us 100 yards out are two does.
He shoulders his rifle and gets a solid rest as the deer feed their way toward us.
Finally the lead doe stops broadside at about 70 yards in a spot where we can see her shoulder and chest.
I tell him to take the shot when he's ready. "Center the crosshairs on her shoulder and shoot "
I wait, and I wait and wait some more.
Finally I ask him "Did you take the safety off ?"
" No I forgot"
Click.
Finally the .243 barks and I see the doe collapse in her tracks.
He shot high and right, the 100 grain NP hit her about two inches below the spine right in front of the last rib.
No tracking this one !
Lauren and Gary didn't see a deer that evening.
Yesterday morning it was in the mid 30s again.
Lauren and Gary took my 243 and got in the same stand Lawrence and I had hunted.
From daylight until about 8 they didn't see any deer at all.
About 8:15 they spot movement and horns coming through the grass.
It's a decent buck and he's trotting toward them.
He slows and finally comes on at a steady walk.
At about 80 yards Gary bleats at the buck and stops him broadside.
The .243 barks again and the deer hunches up and shrugs like he's been punched.
Gary knew in his mind the deer was hit hard and dead on his feet.
The buck turned and walked about ten yards and collapsed.
They watch him for ten minutes, and he suddenly stands up and starts walking away.
Lauren shoots again and the buck makes a hard left turn into a hardwood thicket and disappears.
Twenty anxious minutes pass and the cavalry is called in for the search.
It wasn't needed.
The buck made it another 15 feet and expired.
