My 2011 Deer season

[soup]

Well it's been a wild ride so far..... Sorry if it's a long read.

I'd posted back in Nov about my first archery hunting experience. It was quite a thrill having a huge buck within 15 yards and not being able to move just being able to to watch it. I considered that a gift and didn't expect many more like it.

Come regular firearms season I went up to camp (2F) for 2nd week hoping the nice bucks I was seeing during turkey/archery were still around. First day a few hours into the hunt I see a nice sized buck but it's only a 4 Point. I figure it's going to be a good week and maybe I will be lucky enough to get a deer. I didn't see another buck all week. I put some miles on the ground too. I was lucky enough to see deer every day in the woods but no buck. I kept thinking back to the gift I was presented with in Archery that I didn't get a shot on.

I did have an antlerless tag for 2f but decided I wasn't going to use it as the woods needed the doe more than I did. I also kept hearing in the back of my mind one of the other guys at camp who always says "got to stop shootin' all the dang does"

FFW to Thursday of 2nd week and I've been hunting hard. Sunup to Sundown every day. Sometimes covering as much as 10 miles of mountain side. I was getting beat up and sore but I was seeing deer every day and loving it. Still no buck.

Mid morning that Thursday I'm hunting a ridge when I come up on 2 Deer bedded down. I was able to watch them for what seemed like an eternity but only seeing one in it's entirety I didn't want to spook them hoping the other was a buck. The one I could see was a very large doe, one of the biggest I've ever seen in the woods. I'd thought about using the antlerless tag as I had more than a handful of good shots to take but I just kept hearing "got to stop shootin' all the dang does" I watched her walk away with the other doe she was with.

I realized I had just turned down the 2nd gift I was given this deer season.

I finished off my deer season at camp that Friday afternoon by doing what I thought was the only right thing left to do. I went to visit the spot where I shot my 6 point last year. It was my first Buck (deer) ever and nothing will ever replace that memory. After a nice walk up the mountain I arrived. I was sitting at the spot where I took that shot reliving that moment taking in the unusually warm weather when I decided that regardless of the outcome this would be a fitting end to my trip to camp this year. After about 15 minutes I headed back down the mountain to the car and then back to camp.

I left camp that afternoon with no deer taken but more importantly with no regrets.

The last Saturday of the 2 week season I found myself home from camp early and after having replaced the brakes on my car I had some time. I decided to hit up a small piece of county property that they allow hunting on. I was going to take the bow but because it was pretty windy I decided on the shotgun.

I get there about 11:30am and I'm the only one there. "Fantastic!" I think to myself. I get everything together and I started working a ridge line when out of the corner of my eye I see movement. I stop and I see it's a nice sized doe. I have 2 antlerless tags for 5C and planned on using them so I waited for the deer to come into what I thought would be a good shooting lane. Not even in the woods 30 minutes and here comes a nice doe.

I'm pretty excited at this point and I'm shaking a bit and she nears. I steady myself and look through the scope of my shotgun waiting for her to come into view along the path I know she is taking. She steps into view just as a huge gust of wind blows. I pull the trigger and she runs away. I watch her run into the wooded area. My heart sinks... I just know I missed but how???

Swinging in the breeze was a hardwood vine and I can see the perfect shot I put on it. Dead center of the vine is a nice bullet hole. Apparently just as I shot the vine was blown right into the path of the bullet. I thought "Really? I can't even make this stuff up" I figured at that point I was destined to go deer-less this year. I walked around a while looking for blood just to make sure it was a clean miss. Nothing was found.

I just missed the 3rd gift I was given this deer season. Later that day I had another opportunity on a small doe but I let her walk which I felt pretty good about.

Wednesday Dec 28th I decided to use as one of my flex days for work and hit the woods. After having a horrible day in the woods that Monday I was looking forward to a day in the woods with less pressure.

I met up with my 2 buddies and we decided to go to a local State Park. We saw more orange than anything and decided to go elsewhere. My one buddy decided he was going to go to work instead....

We got to the new location about 10am and work out a plan. We're the only ones there (no other cars) I'm feeling pretty good at this point. at about 11:15 I'm walking a hill through some rough briers and sticker bushes, getting pretty cut up. I look down and I see a knife on the ground in a sheath and pick it up. I think "That sucks that someone lost their knife" and put it in my vest next to my knife when I realize I forgot mine. Then I think it's a sign something good is going to happen.

15 minutes later I get to the top of a ridge that looks down into a swampy area and get tangled up in briers. As I'm trying to get my leg free I see 2 doe within 30 yards. I leveled the shotgun but couldn't get a shot I was comfortable with. I guess the bigger doe spooked and took off running with the smaller one not far behind. I took a guess at where they were going and found a small shooting lane. It was about 50 yards away shooting down at about a 30 degree angle on the edge of the briers and trees into a small open patch of tall grass. I had about a 6" square opening between branches to shoot w/o deflection.

I was looking through the scope when the bigger Doe went through with no shot. The smaller one seemed to hesitate for a split second and I pulled the trigger. I don't know what happened after but I saw it run into the woods following the other. I thought "Crap I missed again" I got a text from my buddy "Was that you?" I replied "Yeah, missed" I texted my fiancee to tell her I missed again.....

I after about 10 minutes (what seemed like an eternity) and I had put one of my orange hats in the tree I was next to as a reference and decided to go check out the area to again make sure it was a clean miss.

As I get to the area where I had shot at the deer I come up on one of the best sights I've seen all year:



I'm ecstatic at this point. I sent a text to my buddy on the other side of the ridge that I hit it and asked him if he wanted to come track it (he's never done that before) I waited for him to get to where I was before following what turned out to be a very good blood trail.

Not even 20 yards away there she was... I couldn't believe it. 50 Yards looking down through a small window of bushes and trees it was a perfect heart shot.

She was a little smaller than I had thought (We guessed about 75 lbs field dressed) but it was ok as I knew none of it would be wasted.

It's hard to explain to others how I can feel this excited/happy about a small doe but thinking back to all of my experiences this season with all of the could have, should have's, frustrations and almost's it really made for one of the best hunting seasons I've had so far.

I think I'm going to finish off this late season trying to get my first archery deer.

[jgaffney]

Awesome story! Thanks for sharing.

[GrumpyBear]

Nice hunting season.Congatulations on the doe,hope you get a chance to use your bow.

[bt-99]

Good Read
Took a lot of patience but it worked out great.congrats

[BIGSHOVEL]

Most of my fondest memories involve no antlers, and I have shot a ton of big game with antlers, elk, mule deer, whitetail, antelope, moose, caribou and lots of bears outside of PA. The cicumstances of the hunt will always trump horns and your enjoyment of your time and the company you kept while doing it. Good for you for sticking with your season.

I am going out with the flintlock tomorrow with two life long friends. We only have doe tags left. We will shoot doe's and have fun doing it, regardless of the outcome, I will cherish that time in the field.

[disturbed]

Sounds like you had a very good season.Dont let misses get you discouraged as they happen to everyone.I get the same adrenaline rush you do when i just see a deer and i think thats one of the reasons i still hunt.I had 6 doe run up to me within 5 minutes this morning and i missed twice and both times they were standing broad side looking down the hill.It happens and i will be there with my smoke pole tommorrow morning looking for the same rush.