Round 2 - 'By Any Means Necessary'
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Round 2 - 'By Any Means Necessary'
The alarm will test a man’s will at 1:45am. But it was opening day of muzzleloader and with a 2 hour drive separating me from the promised land, it was time to put the rubber to the road. After the droning hours of highway driving, I turned onto the area road and dropped it into 4 wheel. All the traffic since the start of season had really made a mess of things. Thank the Lord for TRD. My hood disappeared under the black water a few times in the deeper holes. If that doesn’t wake you up, you ain’t got a pulse. My buddy met me at the parking area at 4:30am, we sorted out our gear, packed plenty of fluids and shoved off as a couple other trucks came rolling in.
We were able to put about a mile and a half behind us by daybreak. Go time:
Slither through the flooded vegetation and glass for deer, that was the plan. What we were going to do once we saw a deer was up in the air. All we knew was that if we saw a shooter, we were going to do our best to put a hole in his hide; By any means necessary.
The morning started pretty slow, we had only seen a couple lone does by 8:30am. Unfazed, we stubbornly pushed deeper into the belly of the beast.
Being more familiar with the area, my buddy took point for the majority of our voyage:
It must have been close to 9am when my buddy was a few yards in front of me, he hit a small opening in a line of pine trees to our left, he turns to me ‘shooter. SHOOTER! Crossing the slough.’ I make it to the opening and see the buck about 500 yards out crossing from one point to another. I was able to capture some terrible footage in the heat of the moment. Here are a couple screenshots:
Game On.
As soon as the buck hit the opposite edge we knew we had to go at him if we were going to have a chance. We basically had to wade and swim across that open slough to try to cut the distance. The buck was moving from left to right and was periodically popping out in openings on the edge, so we had to pay close attention to not get picked off. About halfway across we noticed two does were now working from right to left. We weren’t sure if this was good or bad. They could divert the buck’s attention giving us an opportunity, or they could blow our cover.
The buck crossed paths with the does and seemed completely uninterested in their existence. Of course the does stayed exposed feeding on the edge, while the buck melted into a thicket and out of view, making our job exponentially more difficult. We made it to the line of cover on the other side where we last saw the buck, there was no trace of him. After looking at the line of travel the buck took, the last area we saw him enter and it being late morning, we figured he probably went into the brush to bed down(he basically did a big j-hook into a thicket). Trying to get in there and kill him was not going to work, way too thick, way too many ways for him to get around us.
We had the wind in our favor but one of the does must have caught us moving, because they took off through the water and started blowing. They ran a short distance and stopped, so I made a couple tending grunts as loud as I could with my mouth and splashed the water a few times with my hand to mimic the sound of a buck ‘high-stepping’ through the water. I knew if that buck was still close by, he would come check us out. It wasn’t 2 minutes later I see him step out of the thicket about 100 yards away with his attention towards the does. I wanted my buddy to shoot him so I was whisper screaming ‘He’s right there! Right HERE!’ By that time the buck noticed us and came to full alert. My buddy was more in the open and he didn’t want to move so he said ‘Kill him!’ Well, you don’t have to tell me twice. I pulled up, let the crosshairs float over his vitals and squeezed. BOOM!
He spun and bounded back into the thicket and we heard him crashing for a few seconds. We turned and looked at each other in complete disbelief of what just unfolded. I then learned my first lesson about stalking deer in standing water, reloading your muzzleloader after you just fired it, is very interesting without being able to put the but of the gun down on the ground. I finally got another sabot down the barrel and we walked over to where he was standing. We were greeted with lots of bright, bubbly blood on the vegetation. We followed the blood for 60-80 yards and found the hole he climbed into. If he wasn’t bleeding a lot we would have never found him. He was literally tunneled down into a hole in the brush and you could tell he has laid in their before. The belief that pressured bucks climb into holes during daylight, during hunting season may actually have some merit.
We celebrated, drug him back to the boards and got into some shade where I then learned the second lesson of the day about hunting deer in vast flooded areas. Gutting a deer while it’s body is submerged in water is an experience everyone should have at least once in their life.
Loaded up:
Where we ended up killing this buck was about 3-3.5 miles from the truck. I shot him just after 9am and we loaded him in the truck around 2pm. We had a long ways to float him out:
Pulled his jaw, he was fully mature, I would guess 5-6 years old. Though I wouldn’t be totally surprised if he was 4, nor would I be if he is 7+. Very hard to nail down a specific age by tooth wear and deer in this area eat extremely soft food, mostly aquatic vegetation.
All in all, this was by far one of the most memorable hunts of my life.
We were able to put about a mile and a half behind us by daybreak. Go time:
Slither through the flooded vegetation and glass for deer, that was the plan. What we were going to do once we saw a deer was up in the air. All we knew was that if we saw a shooter, we were going to do our best to put a hole in his hide; By any means necessary.
The morning started pretty slow, we had only seen a couple lone does by 8:30am. Unfazed, we stubbornly pushed deeper into the belly of the beast.
Being more familiar with the area, my buddy took point for the majority of our voyage:
It must have been close to 9am when my buddy was a few yards in front of me, he hit a small opening in a line of pine trees to our left, he turns to me ‘shooter. SHOOTER! Crossing the slough.’ I make it to the opening and see the buck about 500 yards out crossing from one point to another. I was able to capture some terrible footage in the heat of the moment. Here are a couple screenshots:
Game On.
As soon as the buck hit the opposite edge we knew we had to go at him if we were going to have a chance. We basically had to wade and swim across that open slough to try to cut the distance. The buck was moving from left to right and was periodically popping out in openings on the edge, so we had to pay close attention to not get picked off. About halfway across we noticed two does were now working from right to left. We weren’t sure if this was good or bad. They could divert the buck’s attention giving us an opportunity, or they could blow our cover.
The buck crossed paths with the does and seemed completely uninterested in their existence. Of course the does stayed exposed feeding on the edge, while the buck melted into a thicket and out of view, making our job exponentially more difficult. We made it to the line of cover on the other side where we last saw the buck, there was no trace of him. After looking at the line of travel the buck took, the last area we saw him enter and it being late morning, we figured he probably went into the brush to bed down(he basically did a big j-hook into a thicket). Trying to get in there and kill him was not going to work, way too thick, way too many ways for him to get around us.
We had the wind in our favor but one of the does must have caught us moving, because they took off through the water and started blowing. They ran a short distance and stopped, so I made a couple tending grunts as loud as I could with my mouth and splashed the water a few times with my hand to mimic the sound of a buck ‘high-stepping’ through the water. I knew if that buck was still close by, he would come check us out. It wasn’t 2 minutes later I see him step out of the thicket about 100 yards away with his attention towards the does. I wanted my buddy to shoot him so I was whisper screaming ‘He’s right there! Right HERE!’ By that time the buck noticed us and came to full alert. My buddy was more in the open and he didn’t want to move so he said ‘Kill him!’ Well, you don’t have to tell me twice. I pulled up, let the crosshairs float over his vitals and squeezed. BOOM!
He spun and bounded back into the thicket and we heard him crashing for a few seconds. We turned and looked at each other in complete disbelief of what just unfolded. I then learned my first lesson about stalking deer in standing water, reloading your muzzleloader after you just fired it, is very interesting without being able to put the but of the gun down on the ground. I finally got another sabot down the barrel and we walked over to where he was standing. We were greeted with lots of bright, bubbly blood on the vegetation. We followed the blood for 60-80 yards and found the hole he climbed into. If he wasn’t bleeding a lot we would have never found him. He was literally tunneled down into a hole in the brush and you could tell he has laid in their before. The belief that pressured bucks climb into holes during daylight, during hunting season may actually have some merit.
We celebrated, drug him back to the boards and got into some shade where I then learned the second lesson of the day about hunting deer in vast flooded areas. Gutting a deer while it’s body is submerged in water is an experience everyone should have at least once in their life.
Loaded up:
Where we ended up killing this buck was about 3-3.5 miles from the truck. I shot him just after 9am and we loaded him in the truck around 2pm. We had a long ways to float him out:
Pulled his jaw, he was fully mature, I would guess 5-6 years old. Though I wouldn’t be totally surprised if he was 4, nor would I be if he is 7+. Very hard to nail down a specific age by tooth wear and deer in this area eat extremely soft food, mostly aquatic vegetation.
All in all, this was by far one of the most memorable hunts of my life.
No Shortcuts. No Excuses. No Regrets.
Everybody's selling dreams. I'm too cheap to buy one.
Everybody's selling dreams. I'm too cheap to buy one.
Rich M wrote:Typically, hunting FL has been like getting a root canal
- Jackson Marsh
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Re: Round 2 - 'By Any Means Necessary'
That is one heck of a story for a mature buck!! Congrats!!
I'm ready for a PK podcast!
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I'm ready for a PK podcast!
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Re: Round 2 - 'By Any Means Necessary'
Awesome bro, I need one of those paddle boards.
You look like hannibal lecter in that 2nd photo!!!!
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You look like hannibal lecter in that 2nd photo!!!!
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Re: Round 2 - 'By Any Means Necessary'
Congratulations on the nice buck! That sound like one heck of an adventure. Awesome write up, I look forward to more!
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Re: Round 2 - 'By Any Means Necessary'
Suprised to know you can take a truck under water like that with all the electronics on them these days. Well earned and quite a tactic! Congrats!
Do other guys hunt that way around there?
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Do other guys hunt that way around there?
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"One of the chief attractions of the life of the wilderness is its rugged and stalwart democracy; there every man stands for what he actually is and can show himself to be." — Theodore Roosevelt, 1893
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Re: Round 2 - 'By Any Means Necessary'
Jackson Marsh wrote:That is one heck of a story for a mature buck!! Congrats!!
I'm ready for a PK podcast!
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*2
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- Jackson Marsh
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Re: Round 2 - 'By Any Means Necessary'
Did you stay under the speed limit?
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Re: Round 2 - 'By Any Means Necessary'
Congrats! And Yea, also requesting a PK podcast.
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Re: Round 2 - 'By Any Means Necessaryl
Love that SUP! Awesome.
Is that an inflatable one?
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Is that an inflatable one?
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- Lockdown
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Re: Round 2 - 'By Any Means Necessary'
Incredible story Great move calling him out of the thicket like that
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Re: Round 2 - 'By Any Means Necessary'
Wow!
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Work hard, stay humble, be kind.
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Re: Round 2 - 'By Any Means Necessary'
So different. Wow. Like a whole different world. Congrats!
- wickedbruiser
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Re: Round 2 - 'By Any Means Necessary'
Awesome write up PK. Congrats on a great hunt!
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Re: Round 2 - 'By Any Means Necessary'
Looks fun, good job
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"It's a good thing you don't need commas and colons to kill deer" -seaz
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Re: Round 2 - 'By Any Means Necessary'
Wow. What a great adventure.
Congratulations on a nice Buck
Bob
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Congratulations on a nice Buck
Bob
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Excalibur Exocet, GT Laser II, 2" Bhoning Blazers 125g NAP Spitfire
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