Wish I could say I had a good evening. Got nothing but wet tired and hungry Got setup in a ground blind on some public land and wasn't even there an hour before a huge thunderstorm moved in. Had to break out the poncho, pack up and move into some thick pines. Still hunted until the rain died then walked the atv trail a bit and checked out the edge of a field (private property) and of course deer and turkeys way out there. Got soaked mainly because of the humidity. Most of my important gear is dry. But I left early, after all that hassle I didn't even want to setup again and think about dragging a deer up and down hills through the mud. Kinda sucks not having some sort of private land to hunt with ag fields nearby. Deer around here seem to flock to them - seems like all the private property is like a country club for them. The good public land I normally hunt was completely full today so that's why I had to hunt this other property. It's something like 7,000 acres of watershed land and there's deer here but they're sparsely populated. It'd be a part time job to scout around so I could hunt good spots and see deer more often. I just don't have that time :/ Sometimes I feel like I'm just wandering around up there and hope for the best.
Nope, pretty uneventful hunt. I did find a nice stand of oaks that are being visited regularly that I am going to hunt next time out if I have the right wind.
It was raining here on Friday, so I went for a little walk with the bow. Walked to a small clear cut and noticed a doe and 2 fawns feeding. Tried to sneek around the clear cut but there are so many acorns you can't walk without making noise. I made it about 40 yards and noticed a small buck around 35 yards away. No shot even if I wanted. Saturday morning was still raining so once again I stayed on the ground. I hung some camo netting and made a small blind near a few pines. Around 7:15 a small 7 pt. came in feeding on acorns. He was 25 yards away for over 30 minutes. Also saw another small buck pass by. Sunday no deer. No shooters yet, but sure is nice to see some deer.
Moved a stand to a new location. Put up a camera on a trail near by a week ago. Got one nice picture of a buck. Once this week is gone I'm hunting all next week for antelope in Wyoming. It won't help this contest, but it should be fun. Once I get back I'll be hitting the deer hunting hard.
Finally......last week. Did some final tweaking to my gear over the weekend, shot the new NAP Killzone practice heads to confirm they are flying like field points. Uh yeah no problem there. First 2 shots at 30 yards and I ran the 2nd one right up the first destroying a perfectly good GT UL Pro arrow. Also shot Kathi's broadheads from the Strykezone crossbow and changed out the blades after I was done. I have her shooting 2 3/4" cut 125gr Vortex heads. I've had these lying around unopened for YEARS and finally found a use for them. They fly like darts and just about cut my broadhead target in half! :O At 123ft lbs of KE it should drive that big cut through without issue. Camo is washed, hung and packed away....stands hung.......bows tuned. Ready to roll. Thank God, you guys hunting already are killing me.
Awesome! Sounds like you're ready! Heading out tomorrow evening with my buddy on his private land. We've hunted that area once so far this year so I'm anxious to get out there. Haven't even checked the cam we have up in about 4 weeks! There's one 8pt around and if he's put some weight on he may be on the list. Plenty of does though. Then Saturday, back to public land where I saw the bigger 8pt and does last week. Can't wait!
This last week is killin' me... My equipment is shooting dead-on. All I gotta' do is finish painting the front porch, level the parking spot for the new camper, wash all my camo, and oh yeah... purchase my license! Then on Monday (10/1)... it's hunting, hunting, hunting!
Checked the trail cameras for the last time today. Ill post some pics up tomorrow. Got a couple of small bucks but no shooters. Will be washing my clothes tomorrow. Gear is packed and ready. Still shooting my bow once every morning. Still havent decided where Ill be hunting at Saturday morning. I have two spots Im debating on going to. Also have an afternoon stand picked out right by food plot. (Radishes) Might go hunt with one of my friends that afternoon too so who knows where Ill be. Just ready to get out there. Called off work Friday and Monday. Lets get some deer down Team 8!!!!
Well I checked my cam today and not a deer on it, corn wasnt hit at all in a week, I'm thinking they are hitting the acorns this week on a different property, but we will see once I get into the stand. Unfortunately can't hunt opening, but I'll be out that afternoon hopefully putting a doe down.
Heres a couple of bucks from trail cam check on monday. No shooters but good to see some running around. Hope they make it.
Cam pull from my buddy's farm before my evening hunt last night: Looks like the same one from earlier in August. Hope he hangs around!
How many of you guys are heading out in the AM? 8 hours from now I expect to be in a tree waiting patiently for daylight!
This guy right here! and Im pumped!!! I wont get into the stand until 6-615. Good luck dude. Take one out.
