Saturday October 27, 2012

I got up at 4:30 to head north. I hated leaving bed this morning. Sometimes it’s hard to get moving early in the season when there’s still a lot of leaf cover in the Adirondacks and not much buck sign. I knew I couldn’t get one from my bed so I headed to god’s country with my dad. It’s unseasonably warm. The temperature was 60 degrees when we left town. By the time we parked the truck the temperature had dropped a little with our gain in elevation and the thermometer read 47 degrees.

Earlier this week I decided to bring a stand in with me to the area where I’m hoping to catch up with the big buck that tore up some of the turf in there last year. I figured it would get me above the thick canopy that you can’t see through from the ground. Fortunately my father still thinks I’m 14 years old and volunteered to carry my stand most of the way. I could never ask for a better role model or parent. I truly lucked out. The man who would give anything he had to make things better for me. He has amazing character and is somebody who inspires me to be a better person and think of others before myself. I could never compare to him. That would simply be impossible.

By the time we got to the point where we would break apart for the day the sky began lightening up and hints of daylight appeared. I was sitting in a good area by 7:10 after a good hour and 20 minute walk. I planned to sit there until late morning at which time I would find a tree to put my stand in. Right before I sat down I found a large bed with buck droppings right next to it. If I’m not mistaken he had left shortly before I arrived. It’s amazing how close you can me at times. The morning passed quickly without much going on.

After making my way to the stand sight I found a tree and secured my stand in it. I looked at my watch and it read 12:50. I pulled my gun up with the rope and relaxed with my back gently touching the tree behind me. While in deep thought something interrupted me and I was pretty sure it was a buck grunting. I heard it only once and then the woods were all quiet again. At 1:15 I could see movement down in front of me. Then, with its head low a deer was coming right toward me on a quick pace. Instantly I could see a nice rack. I clicked the safety off and waited for him to come into an opening. Then I saw two more deer trotting behind the first one. A quick glance back at the first one and I realized I had made a mistake. I’m not sure what I saw but it definitely wasn’t a rack. It was a doe with her two fawns. They stopped out in front of me and fed for a while before getting past me. Once by me something startled them and they ran back in my direction and headed up the hill and out of sight. I think I saw a lot of the underbrush moving when the deer was running, which looked like antlers. I’m glad I had the extra time to get a better look, otherwise I could have had a major problem. It’s easy to see how and why an occasional mistake is made. I feel like I’m a seasoned hunter and this just happened without explanation.

I never heard another grunt so I’m not sure if one of those deer was grunting or if there actually was a buck with them before I saw them. It’s a question I’ll never have an answer to. The rest of the day flew by. Dad and I met at our meeting place about 5:50 and headed back to the truck.  It was a great day to be in the Adirondacks. Something just felt perfect about today. It’s good to be home.

A nice photo of a great morning in the Adirondacks.

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