I didn’t get going as early as I wanted to this morning, which probably cost me from getting a crack at a good one. As I drove down the road to the parking place that Kyle had shown me, a quick glance at the thermometer in my truck told me that it was in the high teens. I knew it was going to be a cold morning, so I hoped that I was prepared to sit for a long time.
I hustled to get to the place I wanted to sit before daylight. As my journey continued, I realized I wasn’t going to make it on time. That’s when I slowed to a crawl and decided to still-hunt my way to the place. When I was within a couple hundred yards, I jumped a deer. Pulling my gun up, I centered the crosshairs on the running deer’s shoulder and clicked the safety off. Seeing that it had antlers, I waited to get a better look. I quickly identified it as a 4-pointer, so I eased off on the safety and put the gun down.
It felt good to know that I could’ve taken the running deer if I had wanted it. The deer slowed to a trot before it stopped and walked out of sight. A few steps later, I jumped two more deer that ran directly away from me. Seeing that they were does, I began scanning the woods. When I finally decided that nothing else was in the area, I took 10 steps, and a deer bolted down the hill to my left. Although I never got a good look at it, I’m almost certain that it was a good buck. I’m guessing that’s why the small buck was by himself in the same area. The larger buck probably had dibs on the two does. I’ll never know for sure, but that’s what I assume was going on.
After resting my back against a tree and settling in for the rest of the morning, I began seeing deer. About an hour into my sit I could see a buck with its nose on the ground behind a doe. When I spotted him, I thought he was a pretty good deer, however, as he approached, I realized he was just wide with tiny points. Although he was an 8-pointer, I chose to let him walk. After he got past me, I wondered if I had made the right choice. Since I’ve had a great season, I felt good about it.
The parade of deer continued until I headed out of the woods shortly before it got dark. When I got back to the road, I realized that I had seen 31 deer and passed three bucks, including two 4-pointers and the small 8.
It’s hard to tell if I’ll see a good one before the season ends, but I’ll keep busting my ass and giving it everything I have to increase my chances. There are people who get lucky, and there are people who make their own luck. I’ve been able to experience a little bit of both over the years, but more times than not, I tend to be responsible for the luck that finds me.
Dad saw a lot of deer today. He saw a really good buck while he was still-hunting. The big buck and smaller buck were chasing a doe, but he only get a flashing glimpse of them and didn’t have any opportunity to get a shot off. He also passed a small rack buck. He said he was too far back in to be messing with a small deer, so he chose not to shoot it. I told him that I would get the deer out of the woods if wanted to shoot one. I understand all of the issues he has going against him, and it’s time to give back for all of the times he has gone out of his way doing things for me.
I’m headed back to work for a few days tomorrow. I have to work Monday and Tuesday, then I’m off the rest of the week until next Monday. Hopefully, we get decent weather and the deer are moving. I’m not sure where we will be spending our time, but I’m sure we will have a good time no matter what we decide upon. Since we have been hunting different areas every day, I think we will continue doing the same thing. It seems to be working, and the deer aren’t aware of our presence every day because we haven’t been there yet.