Story time.
- PK_
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Story time.
Well, this is an encounter I almost posted about last year. It was a lot of fun and very interesting to me. I was spending a midday still hunting trying to jumpshoot a buck. I was methodically working my way through a pretty big piece of public with very low DPSM, hitting very specific spots I thought a buck might 'hole up'. I was also going from funnel to funnel hoping for maybe some rut movement. Most of the potential bedding spots were duds for various reason. As I came up to a transition leading to an area of interest, I was happy to finally be greeted with some buck sign. The transition was tore up with rubs, probably 50-60 within a 200 yard span of various ages. There were big fresh tracks in the mud heading towards the suspected bedding.
One of the first rubs I came across:
I followed this rub line which led to the bedding area. I knew if the buck was bedded there he could already see me approaching, so I acted very nonchalant, never directing my eyes to where I thought he was bedded. I had the gun cradled and ready but it wasn't enough. He let me get about 40 yards from him and he dumped out the back. I heard the splashing and saw a blur of brown and a good rack as he melted into the thicket adjacent to the bedding. I made my way through the thicket and started searching the next transition for his track. Picked it up pretty quick and followed him around that pond, lost his track when he exited the pond, began searching the next ponds in the direction he seemed to be going. Took me an hour or so to pick up his track because he changed direction. I followed his track again around a big pond right to another bed. Unfortunately he specifically traveled/bedded in a way to watch his back trail, so the bed was empty when I found it, he saw me coming from a long ways off.
2nd Bed:
By this time, it is the last hour of light, so I figured the buck was up going about his normal routine. It was the tail end of the rut, so I hoofed it as quick as I could to get to the best funnel between where I was and the area with the most doe bedding I knew of. It was on a long fence row that resembled a sendero cutting through the thick brush on both sides. I was still moving as quick as I could down the fence line when I was about 250 yards from the funnel, he stepped out into the fencerow and stood broadside. I dropped to my knee to put him in the scope, I could see his tall rack even at that distance and at last light. He just stood there, he was looking in my direction and then turned and looked the other way down the fence, so I got up and sprinted towards him. After a few long seconds of sprinting he was still standing there and I am beginning to think 'NO WAY this is going to work'. Sure enough it didn't, he didn't let me get in range before he non-chalantly crossed the funnel and disappeared into the thick woods at last light. I couldn't help but tip my hat to him and smiled the whole way back to the truck.
I went back the next day and hung a cam for rest of season.
This is an aerial of what happened.
Blue dot is where I picked up the rub line. Blue line is rub line.
Red dot is first bed. Red line is approximate buck travel after jumped.
Purple dot (up top) is 2nd bed.
Yellow is approximate line of sight from beds.
Gray arrow wind direction.
Green dot is trailCam.
The reason I am posting this now is because yesterday I had a few free hours for the first time in a long time. Rain was predicted off and on all day, so I happened to time it perfect between thunderstorms when I ran out and swapped the card in the cam.
On a side note for you southern guys with hogs. Yes hogs and deer will use the same bedding areas. I have seen it several times now in the last few years. There was a big boar hog bedding in this spot yesterday when i checked the cam. He wanted to stand his ground but I ran him out of their hoping he will not come back. Because I know he will keep a buck out of there when he is there.
This is a pic of the buck returning to the bed a few weeks after I jumped him out of it(Nov 2nd). This pic is after gun season closed as well. So if he made it past the coyotes, I will be able to hunt him a few days during archery this year. I know my chances are very low of connecting but I thought it was a cool little story…
Would really love to get some pics of him this year to see if he gains, but I doubt it. He is about as big as they generally tend to get here in south FL.
IDK, I hope this wasn't too boring. Getting him on cam just got me really jacked up for season now...
One of the first rubs I came across:
I followed this rub line which led to the bedding area. I knew if the buck was bedded there he could already see me approaching, so I acted very nonchalant, never directing my eyes to where I thought he was bedded. I had the gun cradled and ready but it wasn't enough. He let me get about 40 yards from him and he dumped out the back. I heard the splashing and saw a blur of brown and a good rack as he melted into the thicket adjacent to the bedding. I made my way through the thicket and started searching the next transition for his track. Picked it up pretty quick and followed him around that pond, lost his track when he exited the pond, began searching the next ponds in the direction he seemed to be going. Took me an hour or so to pick up his track because he changed direction. I followed his track again around a big pond right to another bed. Unfortunately he specifically traveled/bedded in a way to watch his back trail, so the bed was empty when I found it, he saw me coming from a long ways off.
2nd Bed:
By this time, it is the last hour of light, so I figured the buck was up going about his normal routine. It was the tail end of the rut, so I hoofed it as quick as I could to get to the best funnel between where I was and the area with the most doe bedding I knew of. It was on a long fence row that resembled a sendero cutting through the thick brush on both sides. I was still moving as quick as I could down the fence line when I was about 250 yards from the funnel, he stepped out into the fencerow and stood broadside. I dropped to my knee to put him in the scope, I could see his tall rack even at that distance and at last light. He just stood there, he was looking in my direction and then turned and looked the other way down the fence, so I got up and sprinted towards him. After a few long seconds of sprinting he was still standing there and I am beginning to think 'NO WAY this is going to work'. Sure enough it didn't, he didn't let me get in range before he non-chalantly crossed the funnel and disappeared into the thick woods at last light. I couldn't help but tip my hat to him and smiled the whole way back to the truck.
I went back the next day and hung a cam for rest of season.
This is an aerial of what happened.
Blue dot is where I picked up the rub line. Blue line is rub line.
Red dot is first bed. Red line is approximate buck travel after jumped.
Purple dot (up top) is 2nd bed.
Yellow is approximate line of sight from beds.
Gray arrow wind direction.
Green dot is trailCam.
The reason I am posting this now is because yesterday I had a few free hours for the first time in a long time. Rain was predicted off and on all day, so I happened to time it perfect between thunderstorms when I ran out and swapped the card in the cam.
On a side note for you southern guys with hogs. Yes hogs and deer will use the same bedding areas. I have seen it several times now in the last few years. There was a big boar hog bedding in this spot yesterday when i checked the cam. He wanted to stand his ground but I ran him out of their hoping he will not come back. Because I know he will keep a buck out of there when he is there.
This is a pic of the buck returning to the bed a few weeks after I jumped him out of it(Nov 2nd). This pic is after gun season closed as well. So if he made it past the coyotes, I will be able to hunt him a few days during archery this year. I know my chances are very low of connecting but I thought it was a cool little story…
Would really love to get some pics of him this year to see if he gains, but I doubt it. He is about as big as they generally tend to get here in south FL.
IDK, I hope this wasn't too boring. Getting him on cam just got me really jacked up for season now...
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
- Wlog
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Re: Story time.
Cool story PK. Hope you get on him.
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Re: Story time.
Wow, that must have been a fun day! Great story and not boring in the least. Thanks for sharing the pics and maps. I hope you get him!
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Re: Story time.
Great story. Any idea if he is still around now? 8 or 9 months later a lot can happen.
You can fool some of the bucks, all of the time, and fool all of the bucks, some of the time, however you certainly can't fool all of the bucks, all of the time.
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Re: Story time.
good stuff !! hope u get a crack at him this year
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Re: Story time.
That's a neat story and good buck to boot!
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- whitetailassasin
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Re: Story time.
Loved the story PK, and that's a dandy buck bud
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- Jackson Marsh
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Re: Story time.
Nice PK! Good luck with him this year. It's good to hear a new hunting story this close to the season.........get's me pumped
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Re: Story time.
That's what its all about right there
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- PK_
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Re: Story time.
Stanley wrote:Great story. Any idea if he is still around now? 8 or 9 months later a lot can happen.
That I don't know for sure. But that date is after all legal hunting for deer. He lives deep in the heart of public land miles from any road that would be a threat. There are coyotes in the area:
Then there is always the freak accidents. This buck was in the same general area earlier in the year on one of the fence lines like I talked about in the story:
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No Shortcuts. No Excuses. No Regrets.
Everybody's selling dreams. I'm too cheap to buy one.
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Rich M wrote:Typically, hunting FL has been like getting a root canal
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Re: Story time.
Quality post PK!!
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Re: Story time.
Good stories hold good information. Great post PK. He looks like a good one and the land looks wild!
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