It was a chilly morning. The walk in was grueling, but since I decided to hunt with Kyle in his area, it wasn’t that bad. I didn’t have to be a leader. Instead, I enjoyed following until we got to the place where we split apart.
Shortly after I sat down, the snow came down so hard that it was blinding. I could barely see 40 yards through the woods. Irritated that I didn’t bring any rain gear, I sat there and took everything it had to offer.
After getting drenched, I swore a little bit under my breath but accepted it for what it was – unpredictable weather in the Adirondack Mountains. Although the sun never peeked through the clouds, I could see an occasional blotch of blue sky here and there.
As the morning moved toward the afternoon, I couldn’t believe how many deer I had seen. When I finally stood up to move around 11, I had seen 14 deer and passed up four different bucks, including two spikes, a 4-pointer and a really nice 6-pointer that Kyle had captured on his trail camera in the area. I had a hard time holding out, but having had a great year already, I decided to take my chances and let him walk past me.
About an hour after getting up, I heard my Cousin Kyle’s gun roar. After a few minutes, I determined that Kyle had a good one on the ground. The buck had six points on one beam and four on the other. It was a beauty. Amazingly, it didn’t appear to be a very old deer.
Examining the deer, I laughed a little when we spotted the bullet hole in the deer’s neck. Kyle has never been the best of shots, but at least he got it done. It has been a long time since he has killed a good one, the last one being when we used to hunt the area where we had the tent. He has done his share of missing the last few years. He always finds a way to see a lot of bucks but putting them on the ground has been difficult. He actually missed a larger buck around 8:30 before getting this one. How may people see two good bucks in the same morning in the Adirondacks? Well, I guess Kyle does. I need to keep hunting with him. He seems to attract deer like people attract mosquitos in the Adirondacks, and I like it. It was cool to have my Uncle Lee and Kyle right next to each other when Kyle got the deer. The bond that is formed between a father and son when taking a deer is hard to explain to many people. It creates memories that last a lifetime. I’m glad I was there to experience it.
When they took the deer out of the woods, I stayed in until dark. I saw one small doe about an hour before dark. Waiting at the dinner table for Brian, we began to get worried when he hadn’t shown up an hour after it got dark. He also decided to go to an area about a half hour away where he used to hunt in an attempt to get away from the deep snow.
When he finally rolled in and opened the door, he looked exhausted. He told us that he had put on many miles during the day. On his way out, he jumped a buck that was bedded next to a doe. When the buck started running, Brian took a few shots then sprinted to an area where he thought the deer would run to. He was spot on. About a minute after arriving in the spot, the buck ran through the open hardwoods below Brian. Brian emptied his clip before taking it out and emptying another one. He could tell that he hit the deer and the deer was wounded.
When the deer stopped running and started walking, Brian ran out of bullets. He decided to come out of the woods and let the deer bed down. With the freshly fallen snow, he should be able to pick it up in the morning.
After listening to him tell the story, I think we will probably find the deer in the morning. It sounds like the buck is on its last leg. I’d imagine it will be bedded a short distance from where he left the track.
Dad saw piles of deer today. He has had a good year seeing deer when he has been able to hunt. I’m glad he’s feeling a little better today and was able to get out and enjoy some time in the woods. It has to feel good for him since he missed the best time during our trip to the Midwest. He hunted in a place that he spent a lot of time when he was much younger. I think he enjoyed his day in the woods.