Well, today was the final day of rifle season in northern New York, and it was a memorable one. My Cousin Kyle got a crack at one at 9:00 a.m., and he was in an area that I circled on a map for him the night before. I told him that we needed to go in there and check it out because I was certain that there couldn’t be too much hunting pressure in the area as compared to the surrounding areas. I’ve had my eyes on the map for a long time, and this place keeps popping out at me and telling me to go there. Next year, I will spend a significant amount of time there to learn more about it.
Unfortunately, Kyle hit the deer and the end result wasn’t good. It was a long shot and the deer was walking. It was a good buck, but he got some fat, hair and a fair amount of blood, but no deer. After a day of searching, the search came up empty. I’m guessing that he hit in the brisket somewhere. When deer stop bleeding, you aren’t left with many ways to catch up to them. That’s when you pray for snow. Since we didn’t have any snow, there wasn’t much we could do. Although the season ended today, he is going back up tomorrow just to see if the ravens or coyotes are around anywhere.
Brian and I did find some impressive sign today, and a few ancient tree stands. One of the tree stands was in a great place, and the other one didn’t do much for me. We might actually put some time in near the one stand we found. It looks like a great spot, but the walk to get there might kick all of the deer out. When we find stands, we usually think they were put there with good intentions. Sometimes it’s hard to tell until we use them and give them some time. Who knows, we may never get back there again, but then again, we just might. It’s hard to walk past really good areas to hunt other areas. It’s a guessing game that requires the correct guess on the right day.
Although we found the stand, we also found some rubs along the way, too, which means that some big bucks inhabit the area. For some reason big rubs always give us a sense of something greater lurking in the depths of the forest. While we don’t know what made the rubs, we can always imagine the deer that stood in those places and created the damage to the trees.
Unfortunately, I can’t upload the photos of the rubs. I’m not sure why the computer isn’t allowing me to do so. Maybe I’ll try again at a later date when I have more time.
This season was phenomenal for a number of reasons. I’m sad to see it end, but my body needs the down time to recover. Sometimes I’m not smart enough to take it easy when my body needs it. Looking at my father, I can see where I acquired the trait. I pray that I’m able to enjoy another season next year like the one I had this year. It’s not all about putting bucks on the ground. Instead, it’s about enjoying the time in the woods with family and friends and making memories that will last a lifetime. Sometimes you get lucky and sometimes you don’t. It’s all a matter of being in the right place at the right time.
I’ll be wrapping my season up over the weekend when I go out on Saturday and Sunday for the late muzzleloader season. Being my busiest time of year at work, I don’t have the time to get out after work this week. I wish I could, but I can’t justify it right now. I’m hoping to get into the woods one day so I can find a few decent places for Dad and I to sit on Saturday morning.