Well, I decided to take the afternoon off head down to the farm and try out a doe decoy and hunting from the ground. We had seen a good number of does on the imperial clover field, but they were 175 yards from the tree stand. With the NE wind it was a perfect day to try and hunt from the ground and use the round hay bales as a ground blind. Got to the field at 2:15 and there was already three does on the field. I spooked them off, set up the decoy, laid two scent drags (doe estreus and buck in rut), and than constructed a blind between two hay bales. The decoy was placed 22 yards from my position. I figured it may be awhile before any action so I cracked the book open and started reading. I got through one chapter and stuck my head out around the bales to see if any deer had come onto the field, but nothing.
I continued to read and all of a sudden a small 8pt is walking directly in front of me only 7 yds away and closing in on the decoy. To say the least it caught me a little off guard! He went and inspected the decoy and hung around eating and looking at the decoy. Not to long later he walks past me with his ears laid back and I figured this is it, a bigger buck is approaching....NOT it was a similar size 8pt, but he was going to check the decoy out also. To say the least I would have been satisfied if that was my only two encounters for the afternoon, but it wasn't. I had two more bucks come in that were each 6 pointers and than another deer that wouldn't come all the way to the decoy. Around 3:45 I head a buck grunting across the field and I see the does look into the timber. All of a sudden here is a doe being chased by a small 6pt into a sorghum field. Again I hear a grunt and I see this very large deer following the same trail as the doe and 6pt. He follows all the way to the sorghum field, but refuses to enter the field. He stays up there smelling the ground and trying to decide if he wants to pursue into the taller cover. He is currently at 150 yards. To my liking he decides not to pursue the doe and buck, but to head my direction! He sees the decoy and heads straight for it. I get situated between the bales and get ready for whatever might happen....he comes into the decoy and smells the Ms Doe pee that I had doused the decoy with. He is directly head on with me so I can't do anything. After a smell he takes a few steps and gets broadside directly in front of me. I looks the opposite way and I draw the bow, but I can't get it all the way back due to the fact I'm on my knees and they are facing forward towards the deer. Evidentily the adreniline kicked in a little more and I got the bow back, but I can tell the deer is now looking towards my location. I tell myself not to look at the head, but to just concentrate on the anchor, peep, 20 yd pin and the spot on the deer. This all of this quickly processed I hit the release and I hear the arrow hit its target and the release of air out of the entry point...YES!!! He runs about 70 yards, stops and looks back, begins walking and his back end starts to go out and within yards he is taking a very long "dirt nap"!
Talk about a thrilling hunt. He was shot around 4pm. I had doe tags to fill so I thought I would hold my ground and see if I couldn't get one more deer down for the afternoon. I wouldn't get my doe as they kept their distance, but I did have three more bucks come into the decoy during the next hour plus. It was an absolute amazing afternoon as most of the bucks were within 10 yards of my ground position. The decoy made a believer out of me!!
The deer has 10 pts, but has a basic 8 frame with two kickers. This hunt will be etched into my memory for many years to come!
I'll apologize upfront for the color hands in the pictures, but that was one of the last things I was thinking about.
I continued to read and all of a sudden a small 8pt is walking directly in front of me only 7 yds away and closing in on the decoy. To say the least it caught me a little off guard! He went and inspected the decoy and hung around eating and looking at the decoy. Not to long later he walks past me with his ears laid back and I figured this is it, a bigger buck is approaching....NOT it was a similar size 8pt, but he was going to check the decoy out also. To say the least I would have been satisfied if that was my only two encounters for the afternoon, but it wasn't. I had two more bucks come in that were each 6 pointers and than another deer that wouldn't come all the way to the decoy. Around 3:45 I head a buck grunting across the field and I see the does look into the timber. All of a sudden here is a doe being chased by a small 6pt into a sorghum field. Again I hear a grunt and I see this very large deer following the same trail as the doe and 6pt. He follows all the way to the sorghum field, but refuses to enter the field. He stays up there smelling the ground and trying to decide if he wants to pursue into the taller cover. He is currently at 150 yards. To my liking he decides not to pursue the doe and buck, but to head my direction! He sees the decoy and heads straight for it. I get situated between the bales and get ready for whatever might happen....he comes into the decoy and smells the Ms Doe pee that I had doused the decoy with. He is directly head on with me so I can't do anything. After a smell he takes a few steps and gets broadside directly in front of me. I looks the opposite way and I draw the bow, but I can't get it all the way back due to the fact I'm on my knees and they are facing forward towards the deer. Evidentily the adreniline kicked in a little more and I got the bow back, but I can tell the deer is now looking towards my location. I tell myself not to look at the head, but to just concentrate on the anchor, peep, 20 yd pin and the spot on the deer. This all of this quickly processed I hit the release and I hear the arrow hit its target and the release of air out of the entry point...YES!!! He runs about 70 yards, stops and looks back, begins walking and his back end starts to go out and within yards he is taking a very long "dirt nap"!
The deer has 10 pts, but has a basic 8 frame with two kickers. This hunt will be etched into my memory for many years to come!
I'll apologize upfront for the color hands in the pictures, but that was one of the last things I was thinking about.
