Post by indybassin on Nov 29, 2008 22:08:52 GMT -5
I got to the woods and parked a little after 6:00 and downed the rest of my Monster Java "energy" coffee to help me wake up. Hopped out of the Jeep and started getting my freshly washed and scent-free sprayed clothes out of my bag, happy that it wasn't as cold as I'd thought it would be.
As I started pulling my camo on, a dude climbs out of his truck and starts getting his coveralls on and we start chatting. Turns out he's also a veteran who just retired after serving this country for more than twenty years. He grabs his shotgun and I grab the Omega and we head up the trail.
He tells me where he's been huntin since early bow season and it turns out we're both headed to the same area. We're walkin and talkin all the way up the ridge, I stop to adjust my gear and he heads on over the hill back towards a river.
It's still dark, and I'm trying to find the area that Stuntrider had me in earlier, so I keep walkin up the ridge and find a spot over looking a nice littler holler with some bottoms with small finger ridges running down them.
I sit there until around 9:00, studying the area, grunting the Mad Growler and Heat Bleat off and on, then move to what I think would be a better position. Around 10:00, I'm starting to get the feeling it's going to be another one of those days, so I really start grunt/growling hard and loud.
About 2 minutes later, she comes in at a full gallop, up the second ridge to my left and stops about 120 yards away. I let out a couple of grunts and she comes running down to the bottom of the little finger ridge nearest me and stops at the bottom of it, about 75-80 yards away from me.
I had shouldered and cocked the T/C without even thinking about it, guess that military experience pays off. As soon as she stopped, I had the tru-glo sites aiming downhill on her and let it fly. I wasn't about see if was gonna move closer or take off running again.
As the smoke cleared, I saw her drop and she gave out a little "BBBRRRAAAHHHHTT". That's when I got on the blackberry and made the first post. While I was doing that the cousin of the guy I walked in with was coming along the ridge and whistled at me. I waved him over and he tells me that Jason had dropped a little 4 point buck.
He takes off up the ridge to help drag the buck out and I wait a bit then head down and found her. Stuntrider had given me a tip I didn't know, check to see if her eyes were open, indicating the deer is dead. They were and I gave here a little poke with the ML and then let out a "heeeellll yeah!!!"
I started taking some pics and then carried my stuff up to the top of the ridge, grabbed my pack and Jason and cousin came along with the buck. Nice little 1.5yo with one single antler and another with three little points.
We head down to dress my doe, and I spend the next 30-40 minutes trying not to make a mess of it all. But I did it by myself and learned how to do it, with some lessons learned for next time, first being a bone saw or hatchet for the pelvis and the second is to get a "butt out".
My shot was right behind the shoulder, a little high, but down through a lung and right through the heart. Found the Powerbelt mushroomed hollowpoint in the skin on the bottom side.
Figure she's about 2.5 years old, dunno what she weighs but she was bigger than the buck. We dragged her up to the top of the ridge, thank God I had help or I'd still be there. I took all my gear back to the jeep and grabbed my Hunter Safety System and rope. Big shout out to HSS for putting the deer drag on the harness, made my life MUCH easier dragging the doe back.
I got her loaded up, checked in at the Outdoorsman, home to show the kids and delivered to Archer's.
What a great day... thank you God for this blessing! I have to thank my new buddy Dave from one of the other Indiana hunting forums for putting me in some great public woods in Yellowwood.
As I started pulling my camo on, a dude climbs out of his truck and starts getting his coveralls on and we start chatting. Turns out he's also a veteran who just retired after serving this country for more than twenty years. He grabs his shotgun and I grab the Omega and we head up the trail.
He tells me where he's been huntin since early bow season and it turns out we're both headed to the same area. We're walkin and talkin all the way up the ridge, I stop to adjust my gear and he heads on over the hill back towards a river.
It's still dark, and I'm trying to find the area that Stuntrider had me in earlier, so I keep walkin up the ridge and find a spot over looking a nice littler holler with some bottoms with small finger ridges running down them.
I sit there until around 9:00, studying the area, grunting the Mad Growler and Heat Bleat off and on, then move to what I think would be a better position. Around 10:00, I'm starting to get the feeling it's going to be another one of those days, so I really start grunt/growling hard and loud.
About 2 minutes later, she comes in at a full gallop, up the second ridge to my left and stops about 120 yards away. I let out a couple of grunts and she comes running down to the bottom of the little finger ridge nearest me and stops at the bottom of it, about 75-80 yards away from me.
I had shouldered and cocked the T/C without even thinking about it, guess that military experience pays off. As soon as she stopped, I had the tru-glo sites aiming downhill on her and let it fly. I wasn't about see if was gonna move closer or take off running again.
As the smoke cleared, I saw her drop and she gave out a little "BBBRRRAAAHHHHTT". That's when I got on the blackberry and made the first post. While I was doing that the cousin of the guy I walked in with was coming along the ridge and whistled at me. I waved him over and he tells me that Jason had dropped a little 4 point buck.
He takes off up the ridge to help drag the buck out and I wait a bit then head down and found her. Stuntrider had given me a tip I didn't know, check to see if her eyes were open, indicating the deer is dead. They were and I gave here a little poke with the ML and then let out a "heeeellll yeah!!!"
I started taking some pics and then carried my stuff up to the top of the ridge, grabbed my pack and Jason and cousin came along with the buck. Nice little 1.5yo with one single antler and another with three little points.
We head down to dress my doe, and I spend the next 30-40 minutes trying not to make a mess of it all. But I did it by myself and learned how to do it, with some lessons learned for next time, first being a bone saw or hatchet for the pelvis and the second is to get a "butt out".
My shot was right behind the shoulder, a little high, but down through a lung and right through the heart. Found the Powerbelt mushroomed hollowpoint in the skin on the bottom side.
Figure she's about 2.5 years old, dunno what she weighs but she was bigger than the buck. We dragged her up to the top of the ridge, thank God I had help or I'd still be there. I took all my gear back to the jeep and grabbed my Hunter Safety System and rope. Big shout out to HSS for putting the deer drag on the harness, made my life MUCH easier dragging the doe back.
I got her loaded up, checked in at the Outdoorsman, home to show the kids and delivered to Archer's.
What a great day... thank you God for this blessing! I have to thank my new buddy Dave from one of the other Indiana hunting forums for putting me in some great public woods in Yellowwood.
