How has Everyone’s Hunting Season at Home been?

[IdaRam]

Oh shit!

 

[K-man]

Well we all know @Royal27 turkey came from an enclosure.....you can see the fence in the background.

 

[Lee M]

Just an small 6 point, but a fun hunt with some older hunting friends and family that got me started 40 years ago in my early teens.

 

[BRICKBURN]

Tasty...

 

[IdaRam]

Well we all know @Royal27 turkey came from an enclosure.....you can see the fence in the background.

Yup, them Texas Turkeys are DUMB! Throw up a pole fence and voila! Low fence Turkey hunting!

 

[IdaRam]

Just an small 6 point, but a fun hunt with some older hunting friends and family that got me started 40 years ago in my early teens. View attachment 210382

Congrats Lee! It doesn’t get any better than that. Adding to the memories with old friends and family, PRICELESS!

 

[Royal27]

Well we all know @Royal27 turkey came from an enclosure.....you can see the fence in the background.

I had to be careful on that hunt! The turkey was just the other side of a barb wire fence which I used to rest my elbow on. I was at least smart enough not to rest it on barn.

 

[PARA45]

Congrats, that is one fine mule deer, and great story. Thanks for sharing!

 

[mikeinarkansas]

No buck yet this year....too much work which is just unacceptable. I hunt with a long time friend and his 20 something year old son. The son has a bunch of trail cameras out and keeps tabs on what's going on. He'll show his dad the pictures but won't tell him where they're taken . He will however text me and say "Mr. Mike I got a picture of this buck at X spot". This is not a great picture but I'm looking for this big rascal in the last few days of rifle season......

 

[BRICKBURN]

Who stomped on the phone screen?

Good luck with that Buck.

 

[sierraone]

For Arkansas, that it a trophy deer!

Good Luck!

 

[mikeinarkansas]

Who stomped on the phone screen?

Good luck with that Buck.

I keep telling him to get a good case lol

 

[MS Hitman]

Took this doe with my .300 H&H.

 

[Ridgewalker]

Took this doe with my .300 H&H.View attachment 211403

Mmmm...she looks plump! Should make some delicious eating!

 

[PARA45]

That is good size doe, I'm sure she'll eat good. Congrats!!

 

[tarbe]

My son took this 8 pt on our place in MO 9 minutes into the season.

Next day he saw an 11 pt from the same stand! lol

We've only taken a few deer off the place in the past 5 years, so I told him to feel free to pop whatever...we wanted meat in the freezer.

My brother-in-law took a doe the next day.

 

[BRICKBURN]

-25C and a friend in the tree stand while I covered the ground on a drive. Lots of close encounters with does and small bucks. No luck with a trophy that day.

Wild Horse breeding herd. (actually Feral) Always fun to see them when you are out in the woods.

At last light one evening I lay down in the snow after creeping up within 200 yards of a herd of Whitetails. As my eyes watered with the cold wind I finally sorted out the buck I wanted to take.
I watched and waited as the clock ticked down as he slowly meandered among the herd. Finally, he came clear and provided a broadside shot.
I squeeze the trigger with my now frozen finger and watch him drop instantly. Hmmm. I quickly reload (Africa training) and continued to watch for a moment and nothing. The other individuals in the herd would wander up to him on the ground and jump back. Start to bolt and then return. This confirms that he is on the ground. I wait another few minutes and then start the walk back to the truck to drive through the drifted snow to recover the beast. (Note: my severe knee injury hampering my stomping around on foot too far)

Within minutes I arrive at the scene with high beams on and ..... I can not see him. ???
I start the lighthouse search pattern, circling and I still can't see him. Thinking I have lost my mind and ability to navigate I stop, check land marks and determine that I'm in the low spot where I should be. I back the truck up to a higher vantage point and leave the lights in the suspected fall area and start the search on foot with the added assistance from our head lamps. Lamps plural, as my two hunting partners of the day are in on the search now. Snow should make this simple with a rather distinct contrast with red and white.

I walk back to the 200 yards to the shooting position, to determine the exact angle of the shot from my body outline in the snow. I lay down and determine a distant land mark and walk in a direct line to the back stop and find the bullet path in the snow fifteen yards behind the deers position. It was an 18 inch path about an inch wide from the expanded bullet.
Retracing very slowly along the bullet path I encounter the interference I have created with my lighthouse search pattern with the truck. @#$%^&*. Although, there are so many deer tracks it is hard to distinguish what is what.
I finally find a pin head size dot of blood and three hairs in some undisturbed snow. There is nothing else.
We expand the search pattern and circle and circle for hundreds of yards in every likely direction.
We go back to the truck and I search the field with head lights in the unlikely areas. Nothing....

Incredulity has shifted to dejection and then I am angry with myself and I can not comprehend what has occurred. The shot was from a bipod at a relatively short distance taken from a solid prone position.

I returned the next day. What a difference the sun makes. I re-search the entire area on foot. You can see so much more with daylight. Still absolutely nothing.
With walking sticks I slowly cover the closest trees and eventually determine this Buck has left no trace of injury beyond the pin prick of blood and three hairs.
How he would drop like a stone, stay on the ground not moving for five minutes and them magically get up and disappear I have no idea.

This story all leads up to the culprit being discovered on the next hunt.
As I got out to hunt I noticed my bipod was loose. Wondering how that would happen I grab a screw driver and tighten it. It won't tighten. Out comes the front lug from the fore stock. WTF!?
I ended up repairing the faulty lug by remelting the plastic stock, re-drilling the hole and installing some steel backing that the screw can actually bite into and hold. Future purchases of any plastic stock are on hold.
Slide forward to the next hunting day. Again step out, note the bipod of loose. Double WTF!
I attempt to screw it down tighter and the bi-pod falls off.

The weld broke free.

I have to give the Harris bipod a little leeway here. I have used it for years without any issues and I routinely use it as a crawling aid and put significant weight on it as I stalk game.


I think I have discovered the multiple culprits for the earlier poor performance. Not to shift blame, I am the operator of the tools and need to ensure they are in working order. This was a big lesson. I have never encountered anything like this in my life before.

Thankfully my brother in-law is a master at welding. He did a superb job repairing the weld and it was better than new. I re-checked the zero on some targets and had my confidence back in the machine and the operator. (I think)


On the last day we were able to hunt the freezer was calling and the trophy hunt was over.

The family success. Taken at 200 yards. One and down. Very happy hunter.

Last day at last light (20 minutes left) this buck came trotting across a fallow field in search of friends. I got down into a good prone position, settled the bi-pod and made damn certain everything was in order.
He stopped at the tree line and stood broadside at 380 yards. I sent a 180 grain TTSX from the 300 Win Mag and it felt like a good shot.

At the shot I heard the loudest "Whack" I had ever heard instantly after the deer was hit and noted is reaction. He jumped the fence and entered the woods and disappeared from sight. (Lingering doubts from weeks earlier. Until I see proof on the ground.) Thoughts screaming through your head as you do the follow up; "That sound was strange, was it a bone?", "I hope this is not a repeat", etc.

I had set a waypoint of the shooting position and again had to drive around to the opposite side of the field for recovery. Fallow fields that have melted will swallow you and your truck like a Muskeg.

Double walking sticks to keep me upright on that recovering knee I eventually found the location of the bullet impact. There was plenty of sign; blood and hair. Now, into the trees. Again, so many deer tracks that it took some considerable effort to determine which tracks were his and the direction of his egress.
After I followed the trail ten yards it turned into a track that a blind man could follow. He went exactly 40 yards after bullet impact. The bullet had passed through and had hit a frozen poplar tree square on and that is what created the incredibly loud whack I heard. Another new one for me.

No selfies in the dark. A quick antler shot in the shed will have to do.

Venison in the freezer and some rattling antlers for my young spotters.

 

[Ridgewalker]

He stopped at the tree line and stood broadside at 380 yards. I sent a 180 grain TTSX from the 300 Win Mag and it felt like a good shot.

Venison in the freezer and some rattling antlers for my young spotters.

Very good report! I wonder if you hit the first one’s antler? A buddy did that at some 300 yards. Went to it. Leaned his gun on it to take a picture and it picked its head up and was shaking it! He grabbed his gun and shot it laying there. Found a perfect 30 caliber hole through one antler.
Crazy!

Thanks for sharing a tough story!

 

[MS Hitman]

Take another doe with my .275 yesterday evening. Finally starting to fill the freezer.

 

[cagkt3]

Took the wife out this morning, and she doubled up. A nice little cull 8pt and a doe. Kind of second guessing taking her to Africa...