codywright
TENRINGER
This is a little late but it will help break up the lull in activity on here before shed picking gets good. I had nine cameras out for three weeks prior to the late muzzleloader season. When I checked them on the 26th of December I had zero shooters and only a couple of decent three year old bucks. Between the late doe season in the past years and EHD the farm has gone stale! I hunted for three days anyhow but never seen a shooter. I headed home disgusted,confused and worried about what the next few years are going to be like. I told myself I just wasn't going to see a shooter this year so just go back home and do some old fashion glassing and spot n stalk hunting like I grew up with in Northwest Iowa.
On the afternoon of December 31 I decided to grab my binos and spotting scope for a little new years eve hunt. My plan was to drive in some areas that I knew held some good bucks in the past. I haven't even looked for a deer up here in twelve years! To be honest I had planned on not even seeing a deer because of all the 1st and 2nd season gun hunters usually have everything decimated. I glassed terraces, creeks and fencelines all afternoon and hadn't seen a thing so I decided to head for home about 4 oclock. I get just a few miles from home when I noticed a deer standing in some tall grass just off the highway. I turn on the nearest gravel and get the scope up to take a look. I was a little bit giddy to say the least when I seen this buck, then all of a sudden 3 other smaller bucks stood up and he started pushing them around like he was the boss. They started working the creek line to the north so I took fast action and made some phone calls. A good friend of mine new the landowner so he made the phone call for me. It was only seconds later when he called back and said game on! My reaction was,"really"? Everything was falling into place. I told my friend I was very confident I could kill this buck and I will call you when hes dead. There was a stiff wind out of the Northeast and the creek ran northwest which was the direction they were heading. I drove down the road to the west a half mile parked the truck hopped over the creek bank onto the frozen ice and hauled butt. This was perfect scenario, quiet and out of sight with good wind. I got to where I thought I would be within 100yds and creeped up out of the creek and started glassing. I could not see them anywhere so I nestled in behind one of two malberry trees on this creek. I knew they either left the creek or bedded down again. I sat for probably twenty minutes and seen nothing. I shortly realized there was a small drop off in elevation of the creek about 75 yards infront of me. So I couldn't see roughly 50 yds worth of the creek. There was another malberry tree right before the drop in elevation, I decided to crawl to this tree down some tire tracks that were in the grass to keep my noise down as much as possible. I got to this tree and started getting my gun on the sticks when I noticed two of the small bucks right down my gun barrel only 30yds away! I was pegged but they didn't run and actual they both just stood up stretched and layed back down. They kept looking down into the bottom edge of the creek bank and thats when I knew the bigger big was there just around the corner of the creek bank. I decided to sit and just wait instead of pushing the issue. I sat for around an hour and started getting concerned as light was starting to fade fast. I debating on whether to force them to stand when I noticed a rare rooster pheasant
working his way down the edge of the creek in the corn stalks. I was watching the rooster when all of a sudden he took off and flew in my direction but decided to land right on top of all the bucks! When he did this it was like a Jack in the box. They all popped up and stood on the creek bank looking down at the rooster and thats when I let the smokepole bark. This big ol flatland bruiser didn't go very far and tipped over. I sat there under that malberry tree for a few minutes and just looked up into the sky for obvious reasons. There were no words to describe that experience!!! I made the phone call to my friend and told him the news. He was there in the blink of an eye to enjoy the moment with me and help me get him out. Not to mention taking some great photos for me. Sorry for the long post but this will probably be one of my most memorable hunts for many reasons!
On the afternoon of December 31 I decided to grab my binos and spotting scope for a little new years eve hunt. My plan was to drive in some areas that I knew held some good bucks in the past. I haven't even looked for a deer up here in twelve years! To be honest I had planned on not even seeing a deer because of all the 1st and 2nd season gun hunters usually have everything decimated. I glassed terraces, creeks and fencelines all afternoon and hadn't seen a thing so I decided to head for home about 4 oclock. I get just a few miles from home when I noticed a deer standing in some tall grass just off the highway. I turn on the nearest gravel and get the scope up to take a look. I was a little bit giddy to say the least when I seen this buck, then all of a sudden 3 other smaller bucks stood up and he started pushing them around like he was the boss. They started working the creek line to the north so I took fast action and made some phone calls. A good friend of mine new the landowner so he made the phone call for me. It was only seconds later when he called back and said game on! My reaction was,"really"? Everything was falling into place. I told my friend I was very confident I could kill this buck and I will call you when hes dead. There was a stiff wind out of the Northeast and the creek ran northwest which was the direction they were heading. I drove down the road to the west a half mile parked the truck hopped over the creek bank onto the frozen ice and hauled butt. This was perfect scenario, quiet and out of sight with good wind. I got to where I thought I would be within 100yds and creeped up out of the creek and started glassing. I could not see them anywhere so I nestled in behind one of two malberry trees on this creek. I knew they either left the creek or bedded down again. I sat for probably twenty minutes and seen nothing. I shortly realized there was a small drop off in elevation of the creek about 75 yards infront of me. So I couldn't see roughly 50 yds worth of the creek. There was another malberry tree right before the drop in elevation, I decided to crawl to this tree down some tire tracks that were in the grass to keep my noise down as much as possible. I got to this tree and started getting my gun on the sticks when I noticed two of the small bucks right down my gun barrel only 30yds away! I was pegged but they didn't run and actual they both just stood up stretched and layed back down. They kept looking down into the bottom edge of the creek bank and thats when I knew the bigger big was there just around the corner of the creek bank. I decided to sit and just wait instead of pushing the issue. I sat for around an hour and started getting concerned as light was starting to fade fast. I debating on whether to force them to stand when I noticed a rare rooster pheasant
working his way down the edge of the creek in the corn stalks. I was watching the rooster when all of a sudden he took off and flew in my direction but decided to land right on top of all the bucks! When he did this it was like a Jack in the box. They all popped up and stood on the creek bank looking down at the rooster and thats when I let the smokepole bark. This big ol flatland bruiser didn't go very far and tipped over. I sat there under that malberry tree for a few minutes and just looked up into the sky for obvious reasons. There were no words to describe that experience!!! I made the phone call to my friend and told him the news. He was there in the blink of an eye to enjoy the moment with me and help me get him out. Not to mention taking some great photos for me. Sorry for the long post but this will probably be one of my most memorable hunts for many reasons!
