I hate rifle hunting 3 hunting related deaths within 20 minutes of me in each direction in the last 2 weeks... I did go out today and got a 3 legged doe. She needed put down, but it was a healed injury and meat appears to be fine.
Every year I am physically sick at the thought of the rifle season coming in and every year I celebrate when it's over. My hatred for the gun season surrounds the chaos it introduces and the stress it can put on the deer. People getting hurt or killed takes it to a whole new level. A freak accident with a stray bullet is one thing but how a person can be stupid enough to mistake a person for a deer or just shoot at something and hope it turns out to be a deer is mind boggling. Aside from obviously being dangerous to their fellow man they are showing absolutely zero respect for the animal they are hunting. No doubt there are bad bowhunters too but geez the behavior that you see and hear about during gun season just leaves you shaking your head sometimes. What about the guy in upstate NY that shot and killed the lady that was walking her dogs?... after dusk?... at 200 yds?....with a pistol? It defies explanation and tbh I'm skeptical in the story. Let's just hope and pray that everybody can get through the rest of the perennial nightmare without any more injuries or deaths. Congrats on the doe Kristen. Keep your head down and keep after it.
I went out this afternoon. I saw two bucks from the stand. One of which was a big shooter. I thought it was a deer that I had a bunch of pictures of but it wasn't. I got down and pulled the camera. The 8 I thought I saw has broken off one of his points. When I scrolled through the pictures I noticed the deer I actually did sees tonight. A big ol' 8 pointer. I told the landowner before I checked the camera that I saw the 8 i've been after and boy did he look a lot bigger than in the pictures. Well now I'll have to tell the landowner that's because he is a lot bigger than the 8 I had pictures of. Sad thing is I bumped him on the way back to my truck...
Thanks Steve. Had a BIG 8 point run through the front yard when were skinning out deer. Had to be a 140". People were out in our woods and were shooting at it. My brother and husband went out back to give them a what for as they were shooting towards our house and I had the horses out. All they said was "oh, I'll let him (the guy who shot) know". Grrrr. We're posting our land come summer. Joe, that's a nice buck. Have you noticed a lot of them being broke up? We had quite a few nice bucks show up on camera missing half the antlers.
No, that's the first one but that's likely due to me not running out trail cameras much anymore. In a lot of ways they end up doing more harm than good. At least for me I'll set up the camera near where I hunt. Each time I go to check the camera I'm alerting the deer close by to my presence. Each time I go in to check my camera I'm leaving human scent behind. The reason I put one out recently is just kind of see if there were bucks in the area. Its a small 15 acre property so I wanted to know if I should even try hunting it late season.
"Know your target and what is beyond" is a rule of gun safety. If people are slinging bullets at your property then you need to let the DNR/local police know.
No local police and I cannot prove it to the DNR - however, if it happens again I'll be getting names and making phone calls. These people belong to the small five acre section between mine and the farmer. I know where they live (or a relative, not sure) as my brother watched them walk out on the side street - I'll make it known if something comes about it. Hoping a verbal notice will stop it though.
On the fence on whether I’m hunting Friday afternoon. Might wait till next weekend as it will be even colder and a week further from shotgun season. The big guy made it through and all the corn is finally gone. I’m thinking he will be back in our corn plots. Got his picture for the first time a couple weeks ago. Sent from my iPhone using Bowhunting.com Forums
Do it man, get out there! I'm going Friday afternoon and possibly Sunday afternoon. Going after that big 8 I saw last Sunday. Hope one of us gets the big one, or both of us
I don't know how you guys keep your heads up and battle through these situations and avoid giving up but I applaud you for your resolve and mental fortitude. I'm not sure I could do it.
Gonna try to get out and hunt some the next few days. We have a lot of shooters showing up on camera right now but they are sort of unpredictable and sporadic. The only thing I know to do is get out there and try to cross paths with one of them.
I'm probably crazy but I really have a good feeling about this weekend. Its been a long two years for me. Last year I missed mature bucks in both Kansas and Ohio. This year I've seen fewer mature bucks and haven't even had the chance to take a shot on one. But tomorrow and Sunday can change all of that. I set up my ground blind for this west wind coning in. Hasn't been too pleasant when I've hunted out of a ground blind so far this year. I've either been winded, spotted or skunked. It only take one moment to change all of that and I hope its this weekend. Our team can use a few points so good luck out there to everyone hunting.
We could pry use more than a few lol I’m gona go sit tonight most likely and that will be it this weekend. I have the meat I need so it will be that monster or bust. Good luck back at ya and everyone else knock one down. Sent from my iPhone using Bowhunting.com Forums
I had a nice hunt this afternoon. Had 8 does around me for a long time and didn't get busted which is tough this time of year. Then had a stud young 9 ptr come thru about 15 min before dark. Then right at last shooting light I saw a lone deer coming thru the CRP. I thought for sure it was gonna be the deer I was after cause he came into the spot about 10 min after that younger deer last night. Turned out to be a spike. My adrenaline must have gotten fired up cause after the excitement was over I got cold for the first time all afternoon.
I didn’t see a deer Friday, give it a go next weekend Sent from my iPhone using Bowhunting.com Forums
I shot one tonight gentlemen and lady! Moved a ground blind in when I saw that big 8 pointer last week. Bumped does on my way in but I think they all came back and were looking at my ground blind like I had insulted their mother or something. I couldn't move for half an hour. Buck walks in to my left pushing the does back, I decide he's a shooter (I thought he was the giant 8 I saw the other night) and let the arrow fly. I watched him run and thought I heard him crash but wasn't 100% sure. Shot was high but I got down and found my arrow and backed out because it was almost time for church. I watched the footage and realized he wasn't the big 8 but another deer I had pictures of that I promised myself I would not shoot because he was young and had great potential. Thought it was him Initially after watching the footage I thought it was this young buck But after finding him I realized it wasn't either of those bucks. That young buck is actually a 2 1/2 9 pointer. This buck has very similar genetics but is an 8 point and with this nose I'm going to say older than 2 but I don't know how much older than 2. I'll work on getting him scored this week and once I do I'll enter him in. I told you guys I had a good feeling about the weekend!
Congrats Joe Bear! Great late season action. I agree with you that deer is definitely older than 2.5. Hard to say from those pics but I'd guess 3 or 4. Way to get it done.
I leave here in a few hours for a short business trip to Wisconsin. I'll be home Wednesday night and may try to get out Thursday if I can. Pretty much all of our shooters are just roaming around from stand to stand and we just can't cross paths with them during daylight. They are there often enough during daylight but we are either sitting in the wrong stand or at the house.
