(For the short version skip to #5 or #6) Well tonight was definitely a roller coaster night for me. First let me say that the you weather men suck. 20% chance of rain? Give me a break. I also want to say something else to the decoy manufactures. "Carry Light" my a$$ I didn't expect it to be a cake walk to carry my decoy a 1/2 mile but to name it Carry Lite is a bit of false advertising. Anyways. When I got to my stand on the top of the hill it just started raining. The wind was really blowing hard. 15 min after I got settle in it started to pour and the wind really picked up. After about a 1/2 hour of it raining I decided to draw my bow and see if I could hold it steady enough. Turns out that with the tree swaying so much I could not hold the bow steady enough to make a shot even if something was on it's feet. I'm talking 25mph winds plus. I called my wife and she looked at the radar and said, "no end in sight". I contemplated for another 15 min and decided to get down at 4:45pm and go home. No deer are going to be moving in this windy rainy mess right? By the time I packed up my stuff, took my decoy down and started walking it was 5:05pm. When I get to about 1/2 back home I see a "white flag" and a deer bolting away. This was not a bedding spot so I knew he/she was on their feet moving. I then noticed that the rain seemed to be slowing down and they wind was naturally not as strong at the bottom of the hill. I decided there was only 45 min. of shooting light left and I was close to another stand, so i decided to get in that stand and see what happens. At least here the wind was low enough I could shoot. I got in the stand and @ 5:15. 15 min later, I spot three deer 300 yards away walking/running through the filed in my general direction. I thought to myself that what are the odds they come all this way before I run out of daylight and decided to either feed or go back into the woods by me? Well it turns out they did. All indications are they want to enter the woods very close to me. My only concern at this point is that if they walk past me out of shooting range they will be down wind of me. If they stay on the same side and try to go into the woods I will be in great shape. The big doe leading her fawns did walk past me and came in till she got to 40 yards. I could see her starting to get nervous. I decided this was the time to draw or forever hold my peace. I would not of took the shot until she got to 30 yards but I wanted to draw now so I would at least have the option if she ran the wrong way. Well she took two more steps and bingo she winded me, snorted and all three of them were gone. If she would not of winded me she would of walked within 15 yards before she hit the woods. I was hoping this was going to be my first bow kill. This was by far the closest I have been (other than the doe I shot and did not find earlier in the year). It's hard right now because so much went right but yet all it took is for her to decide to go 10 yards on the wrong side of me and they lived to see another day. I'm a little bummed because all I want at this point is a doe. Something to get some meat in the freezer and get that first bow kill out of the way.
It's going to happen. You're putting the time in, and you're putting yourself in the positions you need to be in. Won't be long until we're looking at success pictures from ya! One heck of a night, though, that's for sure.
Just take it in stride or you will put too much pressure on yourself and not enjoy your time in the field! It will happen...trust me!...I cant begin to tell you how many of those "so close I could taste it" nights in the field:D
GFY ....the weather actually held up for me last night...kinda windy when i got in there, but wind shifted and stopped about 5:00, dead calm. But, you had a better night, since i didnt see anything. Skunked once again, on a perfect night to see deer, just didnt happen.... It will happen, for both of us...haha, in due time my friend..
Thanks for the encouragement from all of you. This one still stings this morning. I had a plan for Saturday but it is supposed to be windy again right from day break. I am wondering if I should sit down low again for the hope that the deer won't want to be on the top of the hill either because of the wind. With the awful weather today I would think they would want to be on move Saturday morning. Problem is, my decoy is still at the top of the hill and I really wanted to put it out at first light Saturday morning and let it sit most of the day. Decisions.... Decisions.....
Has anyone noticed that it doesn't matter how calm it is at night. It always gets windy/breezy as the sun is coming up? That is always when I see deer moving... (MN anyway. Haven't been out, out here.)
Keep at it brother, it'll happen! That weather yersterday sucked! I sat from 615AM until 1100AM the went back in at 1230. I was getting pretty fired up as the afternoon got closer to that magic time, then the rain and wind came in! I was bummed out.
Did you end up sitting till dark? The rain stopped for the last 45 min and it to be perfect conditions for movement. Are you seeing a lot of deer in the Kettles?
