bearcatbaseball10
Member
I'll start off with telling you guys this year has been the most up and down year I've ever experienced. With graduating college....and attempting to find a job in Law Enforcement in the current economy, I was able to spend a lot of time in the stand this year while working a part time job. A lot of time as in 220+ hours in a stand or on the ground chasing the elusive Iowa whitetail. Over the last 3 years, I've been extremely blessed with putting down three bucks with my bow over 140", but never able to break that magical 150 mark. When I set out this year with my new elite (thanks Weasel!), I had the idea that I would take the does that farmers asked me to take, but that I wouldn't shoot anything less than a 4 1/2 year old, or 150". Needless to say, I did my work on the does....but that elusive mature buck never gave me a opportunity. I had several 140's but 3 1/2 year olds around me...but I told myself to eat a tag instead of killing next year's target buck. Needless to say, that tag made a delicious tag soup. :way:
One of the bucks I passed several times. 42 yards here...picture was through the binos with a cell phone
The highlight of my season though was being there with my girlfriend to harvest her first deer...and with a bow to boot. She worked hard all summer to get to the poundage I asked her to be at, and practiced nightly whether I was there or not. She 12 ringed her buck and he went 40 yards and expired. I now know where my Dad stood with always letting me shoot first, it was more the enjoyment of watching someone under your wing succeed at something that they love. :way:
Late muzzleloader rolled around, and with the holiday season my part time job demanded more hours. Around that, and the girlfriend having a late muzzy tag in her pocket, she got first dibs again. She put the hammer down on a nice southern Iowa doe our first night out 10 days into the season in 30 degree weather with 50 mph gusts with my .50 cal. 60 yard off hand shot after a 200 yard sneak, and 30 yards tracking she had another deer on the ground for her first year out hunting.
Now came my time to hunt. Sitting in one of my favorite stands on a standing bean field on Jan. 5th, I saw two shooters in the bottoms...but unfortunately they never made it to me with shooting light still in the sky.
1-9-2012 - Knowing that season was 2 days from being over, I moved an appointment that afternoon to Thursday so I could get out one last time to chase a buck this season. With work all afternoon and evening on the 10th, I knew it had to happen that hunt, or two helpings of tag soup this year. Being fine with that, heading into the stand I decided that I was going to shoot a buck that would top my best ever with a gun, plain and simple. Through the years, during gun season I tend to play trespasser patrol in stands, and do a lot of walking to repay to those that did so for me when I was younger. So to say, I've really never shot a good buck with my gun, several OLD deer, but nothing over 130".
While sitting in my favorite stand over the 1/2 acre of standing beans, about 4:15 rolled around and I spotted my first deer movement. Although a 1/4 mile away, I could watch another standing bean field FILL with deer. By the end of the night, there were 50+ in the field. It was shortly after that, I can start to see does moving out of the scrub around me, and feed in the neighbors picked beans working their way to the bottoms. It was shortly after glassing the bedding areas, I watched as TWO shooters took foot at 4:35. Might I remind you, it was 45+ degrees yesterday AND a full moon. I didn't have high hopes. Watching the bucks move through a field of 20 does, and half heartedly chasing a few, they split. The bleach white buck headed to the other standing bean field, the chocolate started to kind of head my way. I decided there, I HAD to get down out of the stand, with his pace, and the path he has taken before, I needed to be along the fence to possibly get a shot before that 5:35 shooting time rolled around. With several camera photos of this deer, I knew he was coming to the field, but not making it till after dark. I slid unnoticed by the does to the fence line, and apparently just in time. Picking up my binoculars and scanning the scrub in the fence line, he popped out right where I thought he would...186 yards. Knowing there is a SW - W wind behind me, if it gusted West at all, I would be "dead in the wind". Luckly, the wind stayed on my side for most part. Comfortable with that shot, he started to walk directly at me!
5:15, I have time. Pick up the range finder, 118 yards and closing. Then 80 yards and still strait on. I remember thinking to myself, "keep the cross hairs on his V, if that wind goes west, you gotta be ready." About that time, he stops and goes full alert, strongly quartering too. A NO NO with a bow, but a go with the gun. I let the hammer fall, and 300 grain slug sink into his chest. I watched him wheel 90 degrees immediately and head into the bottom carrying his front leg. I heard him headed strait south and then....nothing.
5:23. The texts went out, and calls were made. First to my dad, then girlfriend, then the friend frenzy started. I made the decision to back out, and wait for Dad to get there. It was an easy way to give the buck an hour and half waiting for my Dad to arrive at the farm. Keeping myself busy on the phone, time flew by and I headed out to meet my Dad at the last spot I saw him. With my girlfriend being a mediator on facebook for all my friends wondering if I found him or not, we took trail, or well tried. No blood...what so ever at the shot place. We headed into the scrub, and within 3 minutes I hear Dad yell I got him! I couldn't help but take off running to where he was. Not a single drop of blood, but he made it barely 30 yards.
7:07. With a high five and hug from my Dad, the celebration text and calls went out. I had in my hands my best gun buck ever. Not a monster, and not my biggest, but a stud in my book. He is the pay off to my hardest deer season ever. 220+ hours were put into this deer in a stand, and I don't even want to think about the time trimming, planting plots, checking cameras, etc....and for that, he's going on the wall at 141 2/8.
I gotta take this time to thank my Dad. For everything he taught me, and taught me the right way. He hasn't got to hunt with me much the last couple of years for health reasons and other various reasons, but has been there for EVERY buck recovery of mine, and I wouldn't have that any other way. I have to thank my land owners for letting me go in there and set stands, scout, and hunt countless hours, and always taking the time to talk and share stories with me. My family for always putting up with my hunting talk and lingo. And lastly, my girlfriend for always encouraging me to stay after it no matter how frustrated I got this year. :way:
Thanks for reading, and with no further typing here is my 2011 Late Muzzleloader harvest.
(I apologize for the blurryness, this camera's flash struggled with the dark, but this is purely to show his body size. )
Trail Camera Picture 18 days before...
Here is the bullet that I managed to dig out. It's a 50 cal 300 grain Barnes Expander MZ. Backed by 2 pellets of Magnum Triple 7, it entered just left of his neck "V" through the front of his chest at a strong quartering too shot, traveled through his heart and caught the connection between both lungs, through the liver and through 6 ribs. I recovered it just infront of one of the rear legs, just under the hide in this condition. Very impressed with the bullet performance.
Thanks again for reading guys and gals!
One of the bucks I passed several times. 42 yards here...picture was through the binos with a cell phone
The highlight of my season though was being there with my girlfriend to harvest her first deer...and with a bow to boot. She worked hard all summer to get to the poundage I asked her to be at, and practiced nightly whether I was there or not. She 12 ringed her buck and he went 40 yards and expired. I now know where my Dad stood with always letting me shoot first, it was more the enjoyment of watching someone under your wing succeed at something that they love. :way:
Late muzzleloader rolled around, and with the holiday season my part time job demanded more hours. Around that, and the girlfriend having a late muzzy tag in her pocket, she got first dibs again. She put the hammer down on a nice southern Iowa doe our first night out 10 days into the season in 30 degree weather with 50 mph gusts with my .50 cal. 60 yard off hand shot after a 200 yard sneak, and 30 yards tracking she had another deer on the ground for her first year out hunting.
Now came my time to hunt. Sitting in one of my favorite stands on a standing bean field on Jan. 5th, I saw two shooters in the bottoms...but unfortunately they never made it to me with shooting light still in the sky.
1-9-2012 - Knowing that season was 2 days from being over, I moved an appointment that afternoon to Thursday so I could get out one last time to chase a buck this season. With work all afternoon and evening on the 10th, I knew it had to happen that hunt, or two helpings of tag soup this year. Being fine with that, heading into the stand I decided that I was going to shoot a buck that would top my best ever with a gun, plain and simple. Through the years, during gun season I tend to play trespasser patrol in stands, and do a lot of walking to repay to those that did so for me when I was younger. So to say, I've really never shot a good buck with my gun, several OLD deer, but nothing over 130".
While sitting in my favorite stand over the 1/2 acre of standing beans, about 4:15 rolled around and I spotted my first deer movement. Although a 1/4 mile away, I could watch another standing bean field FILL with deer. By the end of the night, there were 50+ in the field. It was shortly after that, I can start to see does moving out of the scrub around me, and feed in the neighbors picked beans working their way to the bottoms. It was shortly after glassing the bedding areas, I watched as TWO shooters took foot at 4:35. Might I remind you, it was 45+ degrees yesterday AND a full moon. I didn't have high hopes. Watching the bucks move through a field of 20 does, and half heartedly chasing a few, they split. The bleach white buck headed to the other standing bean field, the chocolate started to kind of head my way. I decided there, I HAD to get down out of the stand, with his pace, and the path he has taken before, I needed to be along the fence to possibly get a shot before that 5:35 shooting time rolled around. With several camera photos of this deer, I knew he was coming to the field, but not making it till after dark. I slid unnoticed by the does to the fence line, and apparently just in time. Picking up my binoculars and scanning the scrub in the fence line, he popped out right where I thought he would...186 yards. Knowing there is a SW - W wind behind me, if it gusted West at all, I would be "dead in the wind". Luckly, the wind stayed on my side for most part. Comfortable with that shot, he started to walk directly at me!
5:15, I have time. Pick up the range finder, 118 yards and closing. Then 80 yards and still strait on. I remember thinking to myself, "keep the cross hairs on his V, if that wind goes west, you gotta be ready." About that time, he stops and goes full alert, strongly quartering too. A NO NO with a bow, but a go with the gun. I let the hammer fall, and 300 grain slug sink into his chest. I watched him wheel 90 degrees immediately and head into the bottom carrying his front leg. I heard him headed strait south and then....nothing.
5:23. The texts went out, and calls were made. First to my dad, then girlfriend, then the friend frenzy started. I made the decision to back out, and wait for Dad to get there. It was an easy way to give the buck an hour and half waiting for my Dad to arrive at the farm. Keeping myself busy on the phone, time flew by and I headed out to meet my Dad at the last spot I saw him. With my girlfriend being a mediator on facebook for all my friends wondering if I found him or not, we took trail, or well tried. No blood...what so ever at the shot place. We headed into the scrub, and within 3 minutes I hear Dad yell I got him! I couldn't help but take off running to where he was. Not a single drop of blood, but he made it barely 30 yards.
7:07. With a high five and hug from my Dad, the celebration text and calls went out. I had in my hands my best gun buck ever. Not a monster, and not my biggest, but a stud in my book. He is the pay off to my hardest deer season ever. 220+ hours were put into this deer in a stand, and I don't even want to think about the time trimming, planting plots, checking cameras, etc....and for that, he's going on the wall at 141 2/8.
I gotta take this time to thank my Dad. For everything he taught me, and taught me the right way. He hasn't got to hunt with me much the last couple of years for health reasons and other various reasons, but has been there for EVERY buck recovery of mine, and I wouldn't have that any other way. I have to thank my land owners for letting me go in there and set stands, scout, and hunt countless hours, and always taking the time to talk and share stories with me. My family for always putting up with my hunting talk and lingo. And lastly, my girlfriend for always encouraging me to stay after it no matter how frustrated I got this year. :way:
Thanks for reading, and with no further typing here is my 2011 Late Muzzleloader harvest.
(I apologize for the blurryness, this camera's flash struggled with the dark, but this is purely to show his body size. )
Trail Camera Picture 18 days before...
Here is the bullet that I managed to dig out. It's a 50 cal 300 grain Barnes Expander MZ. Backed by 2 pellets of Magnum Triple 7, it entered just left of his neck "V" through the front of his chest at a strong quartering too shot, traveled through his heart and caught the connection between both lungs, through the liver and through 6 ribs. I recovered it just infront of one of the rear legs, just under the hide in this condition. Very impressed with the bullet performance.
Thanks again for reading guys and gals!
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