Two Beards
Life Member
Well I'm always a little torn after filling my bow tag...on one hand I feel blessed to put my tag on a great buck, however after spending 11 months getting prepared for the magical time we call the "rut" I feel a bit lost knowing it's over for another year
.
Luckily, this year I purchased a Illinois bow tag....so I'm anxious to see what happens in the near future
.
Last Sunday I had the largest buck I've ever seen, a absolute GIANT, within a few steps of entering one of my shooting lanes. As often happens, he stayed in the thick cover, unlike every other deer that morning and lived to see another day. At dark he even came out in the alfalfa field about 75 yards behind me, but would not leave the doe he was with. I contemplated saving my tag for just him, but as fate would have it I was not able to get back in there without a North wind...and this buck was too good to pass up.
There is not much to this story. I was setup on a north-south ridge of locust trees overlooking a small riverbottom with fields of beans and alfalfa. At 3:30 I noticed a nice buck moving through at about 75-80 yards. I could tell he was a nice buck, but could not see him very well because of the thick cover and tree limbs. I tried to grunt and bleat, unfortunately he was not interested. I figured something was up since he didn't even stop to look back.
At 4:00, I heard something running off to my right(north) and saw a doe running my direction. She stopped 25 yards away and immediately looked behind her, her mouth was open and her tongue was hanging out. Twenty yards behind her came this buck. She trotted down the hill below me, on a trail 35 yards away and luckily he came up the hill towards me. He was walking broadside at 16 yards. Without thinking, I came to fulldraw, centered my 20 yard pin, and squeezed the release. He ran 10 yards and stopped, with the doe looking at him he buckled and dropped. He was dead inside 30 seconds. I have never had a deer expire so quickly. It was a complete passthrough with a Rocket Steelhead 100 and ACC 3-49. I also shoot a BowTech Patriot SC. The arrow entered a couple inches below the spine and exited just below halfway down on the opposite side. One of the blades on my Steelhead was bent pretty good, probably catching a rib.
He's not the monster I was hoping for, but I couldn't be happier!
I also need to add that my dad does not take the best pics...almost all of them are blurred
. I did have a big smile on some of them, but there seem to be 3 hunters and 3 bucks in those picures
.
Wish me luck across the river to the east....I'm sure I will need it!
Two Beards
Luckily, this year I purchased a Illinois bow tag....so I'm anxious to see what happens in the near future
Last Sunday I had the largest buck I've ever seen, a absolute GIANT, within a few steps of entering one of my shooting lanes. As often happens, he stayed in the thick cover, unlike every other deer that morning and lived to see another day. At dark he even came out in the alfalfa field about 75 yards behind me, but would not leave the doe he was with. I contemplated saving my tag for just him, but as fate would have it I was not able to get back in there without a North wind...and this buck was too good to pass up.
There is not much to this story. I was setup on a north-south ridge of locust trees overlooking a small riverbottom with fields of beans and alfalfa. At 3:30 I noticed a nice buck moving through at about 75-80 yards. I could tell he was a nice buck, but could not see him very well because of the thick cover and tree limbs. I tried to grunt and bleat, unfortunately he was not interested. I figured something was up since he didn't even stop to look back.
At 4:00, I heard something running off to my right(north) and saw a doe running my direction. She stopped 25 yards away and immediately looked behind her, her mouth was open and her tongue was hanging out. Twenty yards behind her came this buck. She trotted down the hill below me, on a trail 35 yards away and luckily he came up the hill towards me. He was walking broadside at 16 yards. Without thinking, I came to fulldraw, centered my 20 yard pin, and squeezed the release. He ran 10 yards and stopped, with the doe looking at him he buckled and dropped. He was dead inside 30 seconds. I have never had a deer expire so quickly. It was a complete passthrough with a Rocket Steelhead 100 and ACC 3-49. I also shoot a BowTech Patriot SC. The arrow entered a couple inches below the spine and exited just below halfway down on the opposite side. One of the blades on my Steelhead was bent pretty good, probably catching a rib.
He's not the monster I was hoping for, but I couldn't be happier!
I also need to add that my dad does not take the best pics...almost all of them are blurred
Wish me luck across the river to the east....I'm sure I will need it!
Two Beards
