Maybe the best hunt of my life
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Maybe the best hunt of my life
It all started this spring when I scouted a parcel that is private, but hunted by others also. This place is 600 acres, but with not so much woods, as a lot of it is a housing development and farmed fields. There is a couple of guys that hunt it that just simple have stands everywhere. They don't hunt them that much but its one of those situations where you know if you happened to be setup near them and they decided to be there it would be an issue, so I started my quest to find the overlooked area..and it worked.
I found a little 400 by 100 spot that was thick bordered by a river with a long narrow pond funneling the deer between those two water areas after they leave there bedding by a road. In March I picked a tree after scouting and seeing a good doe group using that bedding...so I waited until the pre rut was starting and figured I may catch a buck going in there looking to check does. Yesterday was that day. I left work at 2:30 and headed in, got set up really nicely and waited, but no long.....within a half hour a pretty nice buck was heading my way. He worked his way to about 40 yards and bedded down......Oh my 3 hours of light left and a buck bedded so close. He slept on and off for a half hour until I heard a guy calling his dog, walking on the other side of the river. The buck heard him too, got up, looked over, saw the guy was no threat and laid back down, now facing me. I got to look at him long and hard and just wasn't sure he was big enough to want to shoot, but this was great having him so close for so long. After another half hour he finally got up, did everything under the sun as far as scratching himself, and cleaning himself...and headed back the way he came. I got a chance now to rummage through my bag and grab my grunt call. I gave a few grunts and watched a tree shake about 60 yards away as he showed his dislike of the "intruder".
10 minutes of so go by where I can't see him and catch movement in that same direction as a small 1.5 year old 8 point works my way....behind him is the bigger buck, making another rub....the little buck proceeds to follow him to my tree at about 5 yards, looks up at me but can't make me out and I didn't really have any cover....he knew something wasn't right, but not sure what...he turned made a jump or two and I just never had the shot I wanted, and he goes to about 50 yards, 10 yards from where he was bedded and stands there looking my way...as I am standing there as still as a statue, now going on 2 hours , I hear footsteps coming behind me and ANOTHER small 8 is working his way to the bigger bucks territory.....He gets to about 20 yards from the big guy and decides it isn't a good idea and circles to the left with the big buck in tow. The big boy follows him, past my camera and proceeds to make a scrape with the back leg rubbing and the whole business. The other buck turns and moves past me at like 30 yards. The bigger buck now turns and makes his way right past me at about 20 yards and goes behind a tree.......I draw, and he stops and per his usual does nothing with any speed. Im holding holding holding.....he steps out, I rush it, and shoot over his back....darn it all.
He doesn't seem spooked, just jumps, stands there and moseys off...I get down collect my arrow and pack it all in. This was the closest I have been to a decent buck in all my years for that amount of time. Over 2.5 hours that buck was within 60 yards of me. At the end of the day he wasn't the biggest buck in the woods, but a nice 2.5 year old. I am in a way glad to missed him. He gave me such a great evening I couldn't have asked for more.
It was so rewarding seeing a plan of over a year actually work. I was so tense all night and slept awful and am very sore today. Standing that still for that long really got to me, but it was worth it. I may go back after him and just hope a bigger buck is in the area. Just wanted to share my awesome experience, sorry for the long read.
I found a little 400 by 100 spot that was thick bordered by a river with a long narrow pond funneling the deer between those two water areas after they leave there bedding by a road. In March I picked a tree after scouting and seeing a good doe group using that bedding...so I waited until the pre rut was starting and figured I may catch a buck going in there looking to check does. Yesterday was that day. I left work at 2:30 and headed in, got set up really nicely and waited, but no long.....within a half hour a pretty nice buck was heading my way. He worked his way to about 40 yards and bedded down......Oh my 3 hours of light left and a buck bedded so close. He slept on and off for a half hour until I heard a guy calling his dog, walking on the other side of the river. The buck heard him too, got up, looked over, saw the guy was no threat and laid back down, now facing me. I got to look at him long and hard and just wasn't sure he was big enough to want to shoot, but this was great having him so close for so long. After another half hour he finally got up, did everything under the sun as far as scratching himself, and cleaning himself...and headed back the way he came. I got a chance now to rummage through my bag and grab my grunt call. I gave a few grunts and watched a tree shake about 60 yards away as he showed his dislike of the "intruder".
10 minutes of so go by where I can't see him and catch movement in that same direction as a small 1.5 year old 8 point works my way....behind him is the bigger buck, making another rub....the little buck proceeds to follow him to my tree at about 5 yards, looks up at me but can't make me out and I didn't really have any cover....he knew something wasn't right, but not sure what...he turned made a jump or two and I just never had the shot I wanted, and he goes to about 50 yards, 10 yards from where he was bedded and stands there looking my way...as I am standing there as still as a statue, now going on 2 hours , I hear footsteps coming behind me and ANOTHER small 8 is working his way to the bigger bucks territory.....He gets to about 20 yards from the big guy and decides it isn't a good idea and circles to the left with the big buck in tow. The big boy follows him, past my camera and proceeds to make a scrape with the back leg rubbing and the whole business. The other buck turns and moves past me at like 30 yards. The bigger buck now turns and makes his way right past me at about 20 yards and goes behind a tree.......I draw, and he stops and per his usual does nothing with any speed. Im holding holding holding.....he steps out, I rush it, and shoot over his back....darn it all.
He doesn't seem spooked, just jumps, stands there and moseys off...I get down collect my arrow and pack it all in. This was the closest I have been to a decent buck in all my years for that amount of time. Over 2.5 hours that buck was within 60 yards of me. At the end of the day he wasn't the biggest buck in the woods, but a nice 2.5 year old. I am in a way glad to missed him. He gave me such a great evening I couldn't have asked for more.
It was so rewarding seeing a plan of over a year actually work. I was so tense all night and slept awful and am very sore today. Standing that still for that long really got to me, but it was worth it. I may go back after him and just hope a bigger buck is in the area. Just wanted to share my awesome experience, sorry for the long read.
- Lockdown
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Re: Maybe the best hunt of my life
Love it. Great encounter...
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Re: Maybe the best hunt of my life
That's what makes the hard work worth it!
- Jackson Marsh
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Re: Maybe the best hunt of my life
Awesome hunt! That was great work to find the overlooked area, kinda nice when your hunt goes as planned. Bummer about the shot, but you did everything else right.
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- justdirtyfun
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Re: Maybe the best hunt of my life
Great story. Great show.
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You don't have to be the best, just do your best.
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Re: Maybe the best hunt of my life
Great encounter! Get back out there and get him!
- VA5326
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Re: Maybe the best hunt of my life
Excellent encounter.
If you want to kill a deer you have to be in the woods.
- stash59
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Re: Maybe the best hunt of my life
Good stuff. You got all the fun of the hunt and don't have to do all the un fun stuff. Perfect.
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.
- jwilkstn
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Re: Maybe the best hunt of my life
Cool hunt!
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Not all those who wander are lost...
- Bigburner
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Re: Maybe the best hunt of my life
That's what it's all about
Montani Semper Liberi
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- Dewey
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Re: Maybe the best hunt of my life
Bigburner wrote:That's what it's all about
X2
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Re: Maybe the best hunt of my life
Loved the hunt.........perfect
- seazofcheeze
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Re: Maybe the best hunt of my life
That's about as much fun as you can have right there.
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Re: Maybe the best hunt of my life
Back out here now. Adjusted trees....prob be a stinker hunt but conditions are the same and i figured why not???
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