I know some of you like hunting stories, so here goes...
Sorry if it's too long.
I mostly hunt the same county I live in, Ralls County, MO. I got permission from a friend to hunt his farm about 10 or 12 years ago, and was told my cousin and hunting buddy, Terry, could hunt it too. The owner is a friend to both of us.
I had seen a really nice buck twice in 2011, but I hadn't gotten a real good look at him. One time he was in heavy cover and the other time he jumped up from his bed when I was climbing the tree one afternoon. He had been bedded in open timber, near a scrape.
The farm is pretty big and I hunt a couple of other areas on it, too. There are cattle running on most of the farm, but late in the 2011 season I found 2 big oaks that'd dropped alot of acorns and the ground under them was really torn up by deer. The cattle were fenced out of this area and 2 very obvious trails came from the cattle area to the oaks. I checked the fence crossings and both had good stand trees near them. I told Terry we had to get a stand or 2 up in that area next year.
>>Oct. 2012. Terry retired last Feb and he went out to the farm one day while while I was working. He was looking for EHD killed deer near the ponds and a creek, and laying some ladder stands out near the areas we normally hunt. He also dropped one off near the big oaks. When he drove around the upper end of a timbered draw, headed toward the oaks with his camo golf cart, he jumped a big buck. He sent me an excited text and said he'd go in the 150s. The buck ran across the pasture, toward a corner of timber where one of the good fence crossings is.
I had to work alot of overtime during Sept. and early Oct., so a couple weeks after he jumped him, we set up a ladder stand about 25 yds from the interior fence, opposite the cattle area. The oaks didn't have any acorns, but I knew the crossing was used to get from one woodlot to another, and it would be a very likely place to watch a hot doe try to drag a buck past me.
I started 12 days of leave at noon on Thursday, 11/1, and I called in and shot a gobbler from another stand that evening. Terry hadn't used the new ladder at all, and I used it for the first time on 11/2, but didn't see anything big. I had shot a doe the last Saturday in Oct and wasn't wanting another one yet.
I had built my first big box stand for firearms season this year and I took Terry's oldest grandson there the first morning of the youth hunt, 11/3, and he shot a young 7 point the first hour of the hunt. Terry hunted with his youngest grandson on a different farm, but they had no luck. We quartered the 7, stuck it in the frig and I was back to bow hunting that evening.
I saw a few deer, but nothing to shoot at.
The wind was still good the next morning for the new stand and I was prepared to stay up all day. It wasn't necessary. I had seen a few deer early and I heard deer chasing in the timber across the fence. It was a cold morning and things were heating up! A few minutes later I had 2 little 3 pointers go by me on my right, 20 yards away, on the edge of the pasture. They came into the woods from behind me and jumped the fence to the east of me, and then one came back about 15 minutes later. He stayed on the trail and was wanting to go by on my left (north) side at 15 yds. There was a scrape on the trail, but he got down wind just before he reached the scrape. He spun to the northeast and ran hard, as if I had shot him. I turned my head to the south and saw a big doe standing about 50 yds out in the pasture. She looked as if she had crossed the fence 50 yds to the south of me and had been headed west, while I was watching the little buck. She was real interested in what spooked the little buck and walked slowly and nervously to the northwest, toward a trail that came in 20 yds behind me. I tried to look into the timber, behind her, but it was too thick there to see any more deer. While she worked her way across the corner of the pasture, I heard what I thought what must be a small buck bleat 5 times at her. He was still hidden and the sound wasn't a deep grunt at all. She stepped into the timber behind me and stopped. She stomped her foot and I heard the buck start walking in the timber, along the fence. I turned and saw the best buck I've ever had within bow range coming along the far side of the fence. I stand up about 95% of the time while I'm bowhunting, so I was ready. As I put a little pressure on the bow string, I noticed he had bright red blood on the inside of his right beam and all over his right G2! I then quit looking at his rack and started concentrating on making the shot. There was no shot across the fence and he was headed right to the crossing in front of me. He jumped the fence and stopped, looking at the doe, and I was right between them. She snorted once and I heard her take 2 jumps toward the pasture! NO! I knew he'd run across in front of me, chasing the doe, if she took off. I prayed he'd take a couple more steps and turn a little before she ran, and that's just what he did. He stayed on the trail to my left and stopped at 18 yds. I hate a quartering on shot, but the game clock was running out fast. I had drawn as soon as he started to walk again and when he stopped, it was wide open. I knew I could make the shot, so I picked a hair in front of his shoulder and shot him. The shot was perfect and there was only about 8" of the shaft sticking out as he ran through the timber to the northeast. It only took him about 3 seconds to go about 100 yds. When he stopped, he went over backwards and stuck his right antler in the leaves. He's mine!
I called Terry and he said he'd bring his oldest grandson to help. I told him I'd watched the buck crash and where they'd find us. When I walked up to my buck, I couldn't believe how well I had not stared at his rack. He was bigger than I had thought and actually had a lot of ground swellage! The blood on his rack was still very wet and I was amazed. He must have kicked some butt right before he got to me. The main beam and the right G2 still had blood on it, but most of what had been on the G2 was wiped off when it stuck in the ground. The end of abnormal point on the left G2 was broken off, but it didn't look fresh. While I was waiting and sending a few pictures, I realized he may be the one Terry had seen and he's better than 150s. When Terry walked up to us, he said "Oh my God! You SOB! You shot my deer! That's the second time you've done that!" I said "That's the way it goes sometimes." :grin: We had a great time while dressing him and getting him to the truck. He congratulated me and shook my hand 5 or 6 times that day. He was more happy that I got him, than if he'd shot him, himself. What a wonderful day!:grin:
I was able to get him scored by an official P&Y measurer a few days ago. The P&Y Club hasn't received and approved the entry yet, but the rack qualifies for the non-typical category with 5 abnormal points totaling 18 6/8". He has 8 normal points (grossing 161 0/8") and only 2 7/8" of difference. Gross score is 179 6/8" and the net is 176 7/8" NT.
Dan
Sorry if it's too long.
I mostly hunt the same county I live in, Ralls County, MO. I got permission from a friend to hunt his farm about 10 or 12 years ago, and was told my cousin and hunting buddy, Terry, could hunt it too. The owner is a friend to both of us.
I had seen a really nice buck twice in 2011, but I hadn't gotten a real good look at him. One time he was in heavy cover and the other time he jumped up from his bed when I was climbing the tree one afternoon. He had been bedded in open timber, near a scrape.
The farm is pretty big and I hunt a couple of other areas on it, too. There are cattle running on most of the farm, but late in the 2011 season I found 2 big oaks that'd dropped alot of acorns and the ground under them was really torn up by deer. The cattle were fenced out of this area and 2 very obvious trails came from the cattle area to the oaks. I checked the fence crossings and both had good stand trees near them. I told Terry we had to get a stand or 2 up in that area next year.
>>Oct. 2012. Terry retired last Feb and he went out to the farm one day while while I was working. He was looking for EHD killed deer near the ponds and a creek, and laying some ladder stands out near the areas we normally hunt. He also dropped one off near the big oaks. When he drove around the upper end of a timbered draw, headed toward the oaks with his camo golf cart, he jumped a big buck. He sent me an excited text and said he'd go in the 150s. The buck ran across the pasture, toward a corner of timber where one of the good fence crossings is.
I had to work alot of overtime during Sept. and early Oct., so a couple weeks after he jumped him, we set up a ladder stand about 25 yds from the interior fence, opposite the cattle area. The oaks didn't have any acorns, but I knew the crossing was used to get from one woodlot to another, and it would be a very likely place to watch a hot doe try to drag a buck past me.
I started 12 days of leave at noon on Thursday, 11/1, and I called in and shot a gobbler from another stand that evening. Terry hadn't used the new ladder at all, and I used it for the first time on 11/2, but didn't see anything big. I had shot a doe the last Saturday in Oct and wasn't wanting another one yet.
I had built my first big box stand for firearms season this year and I took Terry's oldest grandson there the first morning of the youth hunt, 11/3, and he shot a young 7 point the first hour of the hunt. Terry hunted with his youngest grandson on a different farm, but they had no luck. We quartered the 7, stuck it in the frig and I was back to bow hunting that evening.
I saw a few deer, but nothing to shoot at.The wind was still good the next morning for the new stand and I was prepared to stay up all day. It wasn't necessary. I had seen a few deer early and I heard deer chasing in the timber across the fence. It was a cold morning and things were heating up! A few minutes later I had 2 little 3 pointers go by me on my right, 20 yards away, on the edge of the pasture. They came into the woods from behind me and jumped the fence to the east of me, and then one came back about 15 minutes later. He stayed on the trail and was wanting to go by on my left (north) side at 15 yds. There was a scrape on the trail, but he got down wind just before he reached the scrape. He spun to the northeast and ran hard, as if I had shot him.
I turned my head to the south and saw a big doe standing about 50 yds out in the pasture. She looked as if she had crossed the fence 50 yds to the south of me and had been headed west, while I was watching the little buck. She was real interested in what spooked the little buck and walked slowly and nervously to the northwest, toward a trail that came in 20 yds behind me. I tried to look into the timber, behind her, but it was too thick there to see any more deer. While she worked her way across the corner of the pasture, I heard what I thought what must be a small buck bleat 5 times at her. He was still hidden and the sound wasn't a deep grunt at all. She stepped into the timber behind me and stopped. She stomped her foot and I heard the buck start walking in the timber, along the fence. I turned and saw the best buck I've ever had within bow range coming along the far side of the fence. I stand up about 95% of the time while I'm bowhunting, so I was ready. As I put a little pressure on the bow string, I noticed he had bright red blood on the inside of his right beam and all over his right G2! I then quit looking at his rack and started concentrating on making the shot. There was no shot across the fence and he was headed right to the crossing in front of me. He jumped the fence and stopped, looking at the doe, and I was right between them. She snorted once and I heard her take 2 jumps toward the pasture! NO! I knew he'd run across in front of me, chasing the doe, if she took off. I prayed he'd take a couple more steps and turn a little before she ran, and that's just what he did. He stayed on the trail to my left and stopped at 18 yds. I hate a quartering on shot, but the game clock was running out fast. I had drawn as soon as he started to walk again and when he stopped, it was wide open. I knew I could make the shot, so I picked a hair in front of his shoulder and shot him. The shot was perfect and there was only about 8" of the shaft sticking out as he ran through the timber to the northeast. It only took him about 3 seconds to go about 100 yds. When he stopped, he went over backwards and stuck his right antler in the leaves. He's mine!I called Terry and he said he'd bring his oldest grandson to help. I told him I'd watched the buck crash and where they'd find us. When I walked up to my buck, I couldn't believe how well I had not stared at his rack. He was bigger than I had thought and actually had a lot of ground swellage!
The blood on his rack was still very wet and I was amazed. He must have kicked some butt right before he got to me. The main beam and the right G2 still had blood on it, but most of what had been on the G2 was wiped off when it stuck in the ground. The end of abnormal point on the left G2 was broken off, but it didn't look fresh. While I was waiting and sending a few pictures, I realized he may be the one Terry had seen and he's better than 150s. When Terry walked up to us, he said "Oh my God! You SOB! You shot my deer! That's the second time you've done that!" I said "That's the way it goes sometimes." :grin: We had a great time while dressing him and getting him to the truck. He congratulated me and shook my hand 5 or 6 times that day. He was more happy that I got him, than if he'd shot him, himself. What a wonderful day!:grin:I was able to get him scored by an official P&Y measurer a few days ago. The P&Y Club hasn't received and approved the entry yet, but the rack qualifies for the non-typical category with 5 abnormal points totaling 18 6/8". He has 8 normal points (grossing 161 0/8") and only 2 7/8" of difference.
Gross score is 179 6/8" and the net is 176 7/8" NT. Dan
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