Your First Deer

[keystoneman 85]

So when did you bag your first deer? How old were you, what gun did you use, lets share our first deer stories. As we know you never forget your first!

[keystoneman 85]

I was 12 and it as 1997. I was my first year at deer camp officially as a deer hunter. I had been there plenty of times prior for trout season and other family gatherings so it wasn’t “new”. However, this was something special for me, I was pumped.

County: Tioga

Monday morning we had some snow and my father and I were hunting out of a homemade box blind about 10 feet up in the Y of a large tree. The tree stand over looked thorn apples in the front, woods to the rear and right, and a swampy golden rod area to the left. Early in the AM we had 4 doe and a 6 pointer feeding almost directly under our tree stand. Me being so small I was unable to hang over the side of the stand and shoot basically straight down - my only shots were 20 + yards out. My dad waited quite a while; I could tell he wanted the deer to move out so I could get a shot. I remember tugging on his jacket and asking him "please just shoot, please". After a little bit more pleading he did just that - he unholstered his S&W 686 and let that .357 bark - man was it loud and the buck dropped in his tracks. I was so excited I was shaking and I wasn't even the one to shoot! We got down out of the tree and he showed me how to gut the deer. He was going to drop me off with my Uncle on his way back to the truck but I insisted on helping him "drag" it. In retrospect I probably made it more cumbersome but dad didn't mind. The rest of the evening we watched over a wooded hillside that dropped down to a creek. I saw quite a few more doe that afternoon and one more shooter buck who just didn’t cooperate.

Tuesday had my father and I at my uncles stand which overlooked the corner of the pasture, crab apples, and a small wooded flat. Because my uncles tree stand is much smaller we chose to hunt from the base of the tree. I guess Monday had me spoiled since we had action from first day light right on up till quitting time. Through out the morning I hut the grunt tube, my dad let me have at it even though he never used one. It was fun and hey I saw them do it on TV. Did it help bring in the buck I was about to see, probably not - but then again there is a chance! It was now close to 10 AM when I could hear aggressive footsteps (leaves crunching) the sound was coming from behind us up the steep steep hill. I looked at my dad and he said to be ready but also to expect it to be another hunter. It seemed like forever before I got a glimpse of what was causing all the ruckus. Finally a large bodied buck cleared the top of the hill and started to graze in the crab apples. I rose to my feet and fired one round from my Marlin 30-30, the deer dropped. My father and I hurried over to the deers side, my dad kept telling me how large the buck was (body) – he was baffled. It still is by far the heaviest deer I have shot – wish I would have got a weight! The thing was as old as the hills. My dad showed me the deers teeth or lack thereof, later we compared to his buck back at camp and he showed me the difference, guess time in the backwoods really does a number on their teeth over the years. My buck could have used dentures! It was also my first experience with tarsal glands which this buck still had and they were still quite stinky. This furthered my deer 101 education. The buck itself was a typical run of the mill Tioga half rack 3 pointer but I was so proud, I think dad was more so.
My first year was a success and my first year had me hooked for the rest of my life. Thanks pops!





Messing with dad at Camp



My Uncles "tree" where I scored Tuesday.



Dad with his 6 and a few other buck from camp that Monday.



Me with the same set of deer. (Jacket might be a bit big)



Me and my 3 from the article in the paper. (Can't seem to find the woods pic of my first deer, bummer)



Homemade mount job from my first year (far left)

[Germothy]

Well, I got started late with hunting. Went hunting for the first time ever in my life last year at the age of 34.
Heck, I never even owned a gun until my father-in-law gave me his 22 Mag rifle a few years ago.
Took up shooting last year and then decided I wanted to try hunting, so I took the hunter safety course. I figured that I would go out with someone who knew what they were doing, so I went out to Ohio to go out with my step-father-in-law, Jim. Got my first shotgun, a barely used Browning BPS 12 gauge. (no rifles for deer in Ohio). Got a slug barrel and a scope for it.
After sighting it in and practicing during the summer, I felt I was ready.
My in-laws have a good size piece of land, so we hunted there. The weekend before the season started we went out and set up our tree stands(another first for me).
Finally, opening day came. I don't think I slept at all that night. We got up at about 5:30 and got geared up. It was about 35 degrees outside and drizzling. Since the tree stands were right on the property, we were only a 5-10 min walk out the door to them.
Once I was up in my stand, I thought to myself, "Ok, I am about to kill something today."
Anyway, 1, 2, 3 hours past...absolutely nothing, besides a squirrel that I felt like shooting after two days of hearing him scuffling along the ground thinking he was a deer moving Finally about 10, I see movement on the hill in front of me. It's a doe coming practically straight towards me! This was it! The adrenaline kicked in....heart started beating faster, I could feel myself shaking. I slowly raised my gun, got her in my sights, took off the safety. I couldn't stop shaking. She was moving quick now and I didn't want to just wound her. Well, by the time I got a clear view of her again, due to some brush, she was already at my 5 0'clock, which being in a tree stand, puts the tree at six. Needless to say, I missed my chance.
Safetied the gun and sat back down wanting to punch myself for not taking the shot. Well, at least I had got the initial "gitters" out of my system and I wasn't going to miss my chance again.
Of course, I sat there and waited and waited and waited.
Anyway, the sun was starting to go down. It was about 4:30. At this point, I was mentally kicking myself for letting that doe get away. All of a sudden, I see movement on the hill in front of me again. It's another doe at about 45 yards. Got my gun ready and no "shakes" this time. It was GO time. She stopped and presented a perfect broadside shot. Got her lined up for the shot, took off the safety, started moving my finger to the trigger...and out of the corner of my eye I see something flutter on the hill where she came from. I take a quick glance over and it is a BUCK! (Shakes started to come back from excitement and had to mentally calm myself down.) He came trotting down right past her and stopped about 10 yards in front of her. Got my sights on him right as he started moving again. I followed him as he moved through some trees, but no good shot presented itself. In the direction he was heading, there was some really thick brush and a couple of downed trees from a beaver. If he got into that, I wouldn't be able to see him. As I followed him, I just started to tell myself, "you'd better take this shot or you are going to miss him and the other doe." He started getting into the thick stuff and I was mentally begging him to "stop, please stop". He finally paused. I could see the his lower neck and upper chest through a 10 inch gap in the trees. I knew it was now or never. To tell you the truth, I don't even remember the shot. Didn't feel any recoil or hear any bang...all, I saw in my scope was him drop to the ground. From where I was, I couldn't see if he dropped or took off, although I could see something in the spot where I shot. Looked through my scope again and, sure enough, I saw his head laying there. OH, BTW, the doe was spooked by the shot, but I don't think she knew what it was or where it came from. She trotted over towards the buck and then started to walk right under me! She actually was about 20 ft below me. I didn't know what to do. The thought came to shoot her too, but then I figured that probably wasn't legal, plus, I was more concerned about if I actually got that buck. So I rack the empty out of the gun, which practically hit her on the head, and she bolted.
Emptied and lowered the gun and then climbed down. As I walked to the buck, I reloaded, because I wasn't sure what to expect. I found him and probably walked a 20 ft circle around him trying to see if there was any movement. His head was resting on a downed tree, so it looked like he was raising his head. I waited about 5 mins and called Jim to come and help. Afterall, this would be my first time gutting a deer, too.
I didn't see any movement or breathing and finally walked up and poked him with a branch. Nothing. He was definitely down. I couldn't see where I had hit him. It turns out I got him through the spine at the base of the neck(right where his next is bent in the pic) and the exit wound was out his right front shoulder.
So, I consider it as beginners luck. Opening day of my first ever hunting trip and I get an 8 pointer(approx 140 lbs.) Saw absolutely nothing the next few days that I could get a shot at, but I was more than content with my first deer.
Well, I definitely got the fever and will be out there this year again. Man, why did I wait so long to start hunting.

[keystoneman 85]

Nice! Next time ya got a deer on the move try to do a half azzed doe bleat with your mouth, it stops them everytime! I use it a lot now. Just be ready when they stop since they won't stop for long before they know somethings up.

[NikeBauer21]

Was out with my brother-in-law, in Snyder County. There is a small patch of woods we go into around a farm. He was at one end, I was at the other. It was one of those crappy rainy/sleety days and nothing was moving... at all. So after a couple hours, I figured, screw it... So I started walking over towards him and half way through, I kicked up 3 doe. (it was the last day mind you, so I was going to shoot anything... but usually I try not to shoot a doe until the last day) I quickly lined one up with my 7mm Mauser and took a shot. Dropped it in one shot on the spot.

Nothing exciting, but that was my first.

[bigdog02]

I think I was maybe 13. Second season I had hunted. (so this was 16 years ago).
Using a Marlin 336 30-30.
My dad had moved to his stand maybe 100 yards up the mountain, so it was me alone.
I was shaking like a leaf, so I fumbled the safety off and made sure it was cocked and took aim. I was still pretty green to hunting and to shooting the bigger calibers (i was very comfortable with shooting .22s, but the 30-30 was a whole new ballgame.)
Well I pulled the trigger and obviously flinched, pulled the gun down too fast to see if I hit her, and who knows what other errors. I knew I hit her since she did not run out of view, but through the trees I could not see her.
I still had not chambered another shell at this point and then is when it hit me....the LOUD BAAAAAAAAAAAHHHH BAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHing coming from behind some scrub.
I spined her pretty bad, and she was still alive and was crying out.
Well I started freaking out. I am trying to work the action of the gun and trying to move from my stand to get a better view so i can put another round in her.
I am trying to do too much at once, so of course, I can not get the lever on the gun to go and she is just crying and moaning to beat the band. By that time also I am crying as well, because I feel terrible.
I get another round in the chamber and get her into the scope and Holy God, she is trying to crawl away on her front legs moaning and bawling the whole way. I quickly got 2 more shells into her (1 would have done the job, but I was a total wreck).
It took my dad a good long while to get me calmed down and he talked me through what happened and how I handled it and he did a lot to make me feel better about it - he truly made the difference right then and there for me as to whether I would ever pick up a gun and hunt again.
The whole experience really helped to shape the hunter I have become and my ethics and my own personal code that I follow while hunting.
So to all you dads/uncles/mentors out there - when it comes to a first deer, you all can really make a huge difference.

(for the rest of the story, the doe turned out to be a button buck, and was just a little fella)

[NikeBauer21]

....

Yea, it can really rock you sometimes when you're young.

You want to hear some more bone-chilling screams... I was out with my uncle in my second year, and his father-in-law. A couple doe came running across in front of me and towards them (I had no DL left that year). Then I hear a shot and a loud screaming/squealing. The FIL had shot a doe and took it's bottom jaw off. Creepiest sounds ever. I really felt bad for it though, even though it wasn't long until he finished it off.

[Buckster]

Shot my first when I was 16. Just before the season started I took a small piece of plywood and a 2x4 for a stand. I walked around scouting until I found a well used trail. Placed my stand out on 2 big branches of a pine tree. When the season started I clibmed onto that plywood with my feet dangling in the air and waited. After about 2 hours 3 doe came right down that trail. I put my scope on the biggest doe and watched them walk right to me, telling myself if they keep walking a closer shot is better. The lead stopped about 8yds in front of me and looked up in the tree right at me. I thought "busted". I pulled the trigger, saw 2 deer run up and 1 deer disappear. The doe ran about 3yds and piled up behind a laurel bush. Shot that doe square in the chest front on. I'll never forget that deer looking at me when I shot. I was using my dads .270win 760 gamemaster.

[thefirstndsecond]

Well,

When I was younger I only hunted with a Club and only during six day firearm in NJ. This was difficult because of school.

I was 19 and started bow hunting with a couple of friends. My first year of bow hunting my father only wanted me to shoot a buck (he didn't realize how difficult it was bow hunting).

My friends and I convinced him to let me shoot a doe.

SO one morning I woke up late and rushed to my tree stand. I get there, attach the climber, and then realize I forgot my release. I walked back to the club, got the release and trekked back to the stand. By this time is was light and the fog started to lift over the bog.


Then at about 8:10 AM a doe started out of the edge of the bog and towards the blueberries.

I let her have it broad side. She went abut 15 yards and dropped. The arrow went right through and cut arteries.

She tasted great.


Jennings Bow 60lbs
Game Getter II's
Terminator 125's
API Grand slam Magnum
NJ Pine Barrens
1995 or 1996

[VMJade]

First Deer was actually last fall, at Gran Mountain, Leon County, Texas. It was about 1800, on the last day of the hunt. So far, we'd seen more armadillos, raccoons, and crows than I could count, but the Deer had been around while we were going to and from the stands, and then had better things to do once we'd set up. I had a Ruger M77 MK II stainless in .243, and had just about given up hope, when a pair of does broke from cover in a dead sprint to the feeder.

Well, hell, I thought to myself. They were moving too fast for a clean shot, but at least I could say that I'd seen something.

Then...they stopped. The smaller doe was facing away from me, and the larger of the two was in a perfect broadside position about 150 yards away. I very slowly moved my rifle into position, started to worry about missing, got a sight picture, worried about a miss, held half a breath, (and, shockingly, continued worrying about missing) and squeezed the trigger...which was unusually firm for some reason.

Safety was on- what a stupid, rookie mistake! The deer, happily enough, didn't notice me, and didn't hear my whispered curses, or perhaps thought that if I was dumb enough not to remember the safety, I couldn't possibly shoot straight when I got back on target.

15 minutes later, she weighed in at 110 pounds, and I felt as light as a feather. My single shot had bisected her heart, causing her to take one step and fall.

That backstrap is still the best meal I've ever had.