Post by smitty on Dec 2, 2009 14:45:22 GMT -5
This was a good season for me! I saw more bucks this year than the previous 5 years combined. 4 to1 buck to doe ratio. They ranged from little buttons to a monster, that if I would have been more patient , would be up on my wall right now.
I was hunting out of a new stand this year, and for the first few days of season, I had seen some smaller bucks and one doe.
I decided to change my location to a knob overlooking a valley, where I had heard of a number of "big boys" had been seen. The next morning I snuggled up against a tree on that hill and waited for the sun to come up, hoping to see the buck of my dreams. For the first two hours, nothing! Then all of a sudden a heard a crash to my right. through a thicket and around the ridge comes a buck right at me. 12 yards away he stopped! He looked like an 8 pointer. We stared at each other for a second. He then turned down the hill and trotted off. He wasn't the big one I was looking for.
Then next 4 or 5 days was disappointing and weighed heavy on my patients! Turkeys, turkeys, and more turkeys(wished it was spring)! I saw a spiker, a four pointer, some does , and that eight pointer, but nothing in range.
I took a few days off to help my wife with our son Ben. He can be quite the handful and mommy needed a break!
I had been quite happy to see as much action around me, but disappointed in not seeing anything I wanted to shoot. I decided that I was going to fill my tag with whatever came in front of me. Deer tags are hard to eat!!
I headed to the hill, same routine as before. An hour after the sun came up, a doe popped her head out down in the valley. I pulled my muzzle loader up and shot. What I didn't know was, my powder had gotten wet from hunting in the rain and drizzle. I misfired, and only 1/3 of my powder went off. I missed! Just as she was running off with her tail in the air, and as the rest of the deer I spooked ( and didn't see when I shot) got up and ran. All of which being the above mention spiker, 4 pointer, and the eight. Anyway, out "walks" , as the other deer run for their lives, the biggest baddest buck I have ever seen! Huge mass, tall, wide rack! He had a big body. He was a very nice deer!! I would not have taken a shot a him, even if I could have gotten my muzzle loader reloaded in time, because I still didn't know why I had missed that doe. He walked of out of sight. I set there for a while and pondered on what had just happened. Disappointed, discouraged, and sick to my stomach I left the woods.
When I got home I immediately cleaned my gun, finding the unspent powder. I realized what my problem was. I finished cleaning my gun, reloaded it, and got ready to do it all again in the morning.
The next morning was cold and windy! I didn't expect to see any thing. At 8:30 I looked to my left, down in the valley was that 8 pointer coming around the ridge and in front of me. Knowing that gun season was coming to a close soon and not shooting any bucks for 5 years (waiting on big one) I pulled up slowly and fired. I hit him perfect! He ran about 90 yards and dropped. The same 8 pointer that I had seen so much of the season! He turned out to be a 9 pointer with a taller rack than I thought. He wasn't very wide but still a nice deer!!
As far as the big one that got away, there is always next year!! That is what makes hunting great!
I hope you all enjoyed my story! Hope to bring you more!
I was hunting out of a new stand this year, and for the first few days of season, I had seen some smaller bucks and one doe.
I decided to change my location to a knob overlooking a valley, where I had heard of a number of "big boys" had been seen. The next morning I snuggled up against a tree on that hill and waited for the sun to come up, hoping to see the buck of my dreams. For the first two hours, nothing! Then all of a sudden a heard a crash to my right. through a thicket and around the ridge comes a buck right at me. 12 yards away he stopped! He looked like an 8 pointer. We stared at each other for a second. He then turned down the hill and trotted off. He wasn't the big one I was looking for.
Then next 4 or 5 days was disappointing and weighed heavy on my patients! Turkeys, turkeys, and more turkeys(wished it was spring)! I saw a spiker, a four pointer, some does , and that eight pointer, but nothing in range.
I took a few days off to help my wife with our son Ben. He can be quite the handful and mommy needed a break!
I had been quite happy to see as much action around me, but disappointed in not seeing anything I wanted to shoot. I decided that I was going to fill my tag with whatever came in front of me. Deer tags are hard to eat!!
I headed to the hill, same routine as before. An hour after the sun came up, a doe popped her head out down in the valley. I pulled my muzzle loader up and shot. What I didn't know was, my powder had gotten wet from hunting in the rain and drizzle. I misfired, and only 1/3 of my powder went off. I missed! Just as she was running off with her tail in the air, and as the rest of the deer I spooked ( and didn't see when I shot) got up and ran. All of which being the above mention spiker, 4 pointer, and the eight. Anyway, out "walks" , as the other deer run for their lives, the biggest baddest buck I have ever seen! Huge mass, tall, wide rack! He had a big body. He was a very nice deer!! I would not have taken a shot a him, even if I could have gotten my muzzle loader reloaded in time, because I still didn't know why I had missed that doe. He walked of out of sight. I set there for a while and pondered on what had just happened. Disappointed, discouraged, and sick to my stomach I left the woods.
When I got home I immediately cleaned my gun, finding the unspent powder. I realized what my problem was. I finished cleaning my gun, reloaded it, and got ready to do it all again in the morning.
The next morning was cold and windy! I didn't expect to see any thing. At 8:30 I looked to my left, down in the valley was that 8 pointer coming around the ridge and in front of me. Knowing that gun season was coming to a close soon and not shooting any bucks for 5 years (waiting on big one) I pulled up slowly and fired. I hit him perfect! He ran about 90 yards and dropped. The same 8 pointer that I had seen so much of the season! He turned out to be a 9 pointer with a taller rack than I thought. He wasn't very wide but still a nice deer!!
As far as the big one that got away, there is always next year!! That is what makes hunting great!
I hope you all enjoyed my story! Hope to bring you more!
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Just another night at work for me and Monty will be back here again bright and early. 
