What a weekend this past one was! I went Saturday morning and right out of the gate 10 minutes into legal time in a sideways snow storm I saw a body of what I thought was a good deer about 75 yards through the woods and just into a thin spot in the standing corn. I grunted at him, he picked his head up, and ran to 40 yards and stopped behind some trees. As I tried to dissect what he was I knew he was pretty good but still couldn't tell if I liked what I saw or not. He turned away and started to leave so I hit the grunt hard one more time. He turned on a dime and circled out around in front of me. I kept catching glimpses of a tall brow tine and decided to grab the bow. At 30 yards in what I thought was a clear opening I stopped him and let an arrow fly. I saw the lighted nock blow through further back than I had hoped. I watched him run through an open bean field and disappear where my corn field meets a neighbor's woods. I let him lay until noon when my daughter Sydney got home from volunteering at a church coat bank. Together we took out after him. We ended up finding him about 150 yards from where I shot him. Pure liver shot. I am 99% sure the arrow hit some small branches that were a couple yards my side of the deer that I never saw and diverted the arrow just a bit back. Just a solid 8 pointer. Long left beam and long brow on the left side. I think I have photos of him in my archives but not totally sure. I didn't get the shot on video because the wind was blowing so hard I couldn't keep the camera on him, as the wind would blow it to the side when I let go. So no video. After getting him back to the house, Sydney said she wanted to go hunt, so we loaded up and went to another farm of mine for the last two hours of the day. We had not been in the stand 10 minutes and we were entertained with multiple bucks chasing many does all over around us for the better part of an hour. Fun to watch, frustrating too as rut hunting can be. Every time I thought it would happen for her the zigging and zagging of deer not wanting to fully commit to the season of love would end in a close but not quite close enough situation. Then all of the sudden we see a lone young buck cruising. I hit the grunt tube one time and he turned on a dime and came right to us. He walked across the ice of a frozen swamp right to us. At 20 yards Sydney drew and stayed with him. He walked straight at us and at 10 yards stopped facing us. I whispered "he has to turn, wait until he turns". It felt like forever and then he turned to his right. He took a step and I stopped him for her and said "there it is". She took her time, buried the pin behind his shoulder and let an arrow fly. Perfect text book double lung shot. He trotted about 50 yards, stopped, and stood. After several seconds his butt swayed and then ultimately he fell. She got to watch the whole thing. Just text book how you always picture it to be in your mind. We laughed, hugged, and celebrated as if she had just killed a Booner. What a Saturday for us and one that I doubt will ever happen again. On Sunday after we got home from church, we got both deer out and shot some photos. Then the skinning (I hate skinning cold deer) and work began. Later that evening I got a text from a great buddy of mine that he had shot a good one as well, so last night I went and helped him drag out a mid 130's 10 pointer. His boy had arrowed his first deer that morning as well, a button. Just an AWESOME weekend of deer hunting fun and great memories.
