muddy
Well-Known Member
I was 7 or 8 and sitting on the ground. My dad was about 50 yards away in another ravine when a small basket 6 point came walking up. It was the first deer I'd ever seen while bowhunting. I was wearing brown work coveralls and had my XI Silverhawk bow. I couldn't have been more scared in my life!! The buck kept coming closer and closer, finally I grabbed my bow and stood up because I thought he might attack me.
I honestly believe that I did that on purpose because I didn't know what to do if he would've came any closer!! Ahh, the innocence of youth. After that excursion my dad let me sit with him in his "telephone pole" stand. It included 4 telephone poles that our neighbor acquired and built a big platform stand. It got me away from the flesh eating deer I believed inhabited our timber and put me next to my protector (my dad). Security was the name of the game then!!!
Another defining moment was when I walked through the timber to my telephone pole stand BY MYSELF IN THE DARK!!! Did I say walk? I meant ran, I ran all the way to the stand because I believed in my heart that either the flesh eating deer, the Jackson County wolves, or the Baldwin Boogeyman would get me. Good thing I was fast cuz they never caught me!!
Another defining moment was when I walked through the timber to my telephone pole stand BY MYSELF IN THE DARK!!! Did I say walk? I meant ran, I ran all the way to the stand because I believed in my heart that either the flesh eating deer, the Jackson County wolves, or the Baldwin Boogeyman would get me. Good thing I was fast cuz they never caught me!!
MadisonB&C
Active Member
Definitely my first deer. Dad and I were still hunting a willow thicket when dad just stopped. I eased up and got this buck centered in my scope. Dad couldn't even see the antlers until he ran off after the shot. The look on his face was priceless!
BW
Member
My most valuable is when my daughter harvested her first deer with a muzzleloader during the youth season.
We used pictures in magazines to discuss the shot placement options and on opening day she placed a shot dead center through the heart of a doe. I'd gladly give up every buck opportunity I have to relive that again.
We used pictures in magazines to discuss the shot placement options and on opening day she placed a shot dead center through the heart of a doe. I'd gladly give up every buck opportunity I have to relive that again.
Buckhunter
New Member
I think my most memorable hunting moment was not a deer hunt but a turkey hunt down around Albia,I was hunting on this morning with my son who was then 13 and had yet to harvest his first bird, we had been working two tom's but they were on the other side of a creek so we waited until they started moving away about two hour's after daybreak[Time mean's nothing when I'm hunt'in] so we moved in to where they had been roosted got setup side by side and started working them back by scratching the leave's and calling very softly and here they came,I could not see him but my son sure could!This bird was so puffed up that he looked like he was going to xplode,anyway I finally seen him and whispered to Matt to wait until I get him to come out of strut, the only problem was he would not come out of strut so I told Matt to "take him". He shot and the old boy went down and the celebration began.I cannot really put into word's what this very special hunt meant to me but I can tell you there's no feeling like it.
My son is now 19 and a great turkey hunter in his own right,he has taken several bird's since but none will be as special as that one 2 year old gobbler on that April morning,it's the reason this sport is so special to me.The memories last forever.
My son is now 19 and a great turkey hunter in his own right,he has taken several bird's since but none will be as special as that one 2 year old gobbler on that April morning,it's the reason this sport is so special to me.The memories last forever.
Shredder
Life Member
This past fall. I took my wife on her first deer hunt with a bow. Forty minutes into the hunt, I let out a rattling sequence only to have a huge 10 pt (170 class) come right in. She was not able to get a shot but I got some great footage of the whole thing. Two days later, She was able to get a shot at a 135" 8 pt. Nerves got the best of her and she missed but the sheer excitement that was on her face gave me confirmation that she was hooked. I have killed some great whitetails over the years but the week she went hunting was the most action packed making it the most memorable.
Shredder220
Shredder220
H
HBH
Guest
Old Buck,
Great topic, with myself recalling many memorable moments, and unable to place them in order, but I'll put down a few.
Alberta -, the second year of hunting whitetails there, back at a long thought of stand, snow, cold, sundown and the yotes greeting the night, just proud to be there.
My daughters smile, in reply to my question of "so what do you thing of this deer hunting" just after her killing, her first buck with one shot while sitting on my lap to gain the needed height to reach a much needed rest for the gun.
On bended knee, in an Iowa biar patch giving thanks to god for the wonderful buck whose long life I just took, after two years of pursuit, the heartache and exuberance, only a hunter knows.
Many Thanks
HBH
Great topic, with myself recalling many memorable moments, and unable to place them in order, but I'll put down a few.
Alberta -, the second year of hunting whitetails there, back at a long thought of stand, snow, cold, sundown and the yotes greeting the night, just proud to be there.
My daughters smile, in reply to my question of "so what do you thing of this deer hunting" just after her killing, her first buck with one shot while sitting on my lap to gain the needed height to reach a much needed rest for the gun.
On bended knee, in an Iowa biar patch giving thanks to god for the wonderful buck whose long life I just took, after two years of pursuit, the heartache and exuberance, only a hunter knows.
Many Thanks
HBH
CamoMan
New Member
It's a toss up - both involve my son, Taylor. I've mentioned these before, so I don't mean to be redundant . . . but you did ask. One of the moments was being with Taylor as he took his first deer on December 27th. He shot a doe with our muzzleloader, and made a perfect shot at 70 yards. The excitement was more than I can really describe. The other great moment was when he and I were walking back to the truck after our first bowhunt this year. He had gone with me some the previous year, but this was the first deer hunt for him. As we walked across the picked beanfield, he stopped, looked at me and said, " Thanks for taking me hunting with you. It's okay that we didn't see anything, because it's just fun hunting together". I'm not a real emotional person, but that moment chokes me up everytime I think of it. If you have a child that is interested in hunting . . . take them with you. You will not regret it, and they will never forget it.
Old Buck
Life Member
What great stories! It is amazing how many either involve a shared experience with someone special or a great challenge-or both.
I've got mine narrowed down to four. One is a late muzzle loader hunt in SW Iowa with my son, then 10 and daughter 7 at the time. A frieind had set up a blind on a bean field for us. We got there late because I knew the kids wouldn't have fun once they got cold. Soon two fawn came over the hill walking toward us. I videotaped as they got closer and closer. I thought my son would never shoot. The barrel kept weaving around and I tried to calmly keep saying, "It's ok to shoot now. OK, they're close enough....."
When he finally did shoot and the smoke cleared we could see both deer heading back over the hill, one obviously hit. My daughter wanted to run after them immediately but I wanted to reload in case another shot was needed.
I reloaded I giving my son the camera and asked him to distract my daughter. She was taking dance at the time so he said, "April, dance!"
We must have been quite a sight, I'm trying to reload the muzzleloader, my son is trying to run the camera and my daughter is outside the blind dancing in the snow while shouting "Dad, I want to get the deer now!"
She did track it on a run and is still good at tracking deer almost 10 years later. I've got to find that tape so we can all watch it again.
I've got mine narrowed down to four. One is a late muzzle loader hunt in SW Iowa with my son, then 10 and daughter 7 at the time. A frieind had set up a blind on a bean field for us. We got there late because I knew the kids wouldn't have fun once they got cold. Soon two fawn came over the hill walking toward us. I videotaped as they got closer and closer. I thought my son would never shoot. The barrel kept weaving around and I tried to calmly keep saying, "It's ok to shoot now. OK, they're close enough....."
When he finally did shoot and the smoke cleared we could see both deer heading back over the hill, one obviously hit. My daughter wanted to run after them immediately but I wanted to reload in case another shot was needed.
I reloaded I giving my son the camera and asked him to distract my daughter. She was taking dance at the time so he said, "April, dance!"
We must have been quite a sight, I'm trying to reload the muzzleloader, my son is trying to run the camera and my daughter is outside the blind dancing in the snow while shouting "Dad, I want to get the deer now!"
She did track it on a run and is still good at tracking deer almost 10 years later. I've got to find that tape so we can all watch it again.
R
rattle them in
Guest
It seems like it is quite an experience hunting and taking game with a child. My daughters are 9 years and 5 months old. The 9 year old's job about August - September is dragging my bow targets around the yard while I sit in the treestand in my backyard to give me different distances to shoot from. I bet the neighbors don't know if to call the mental ward about a man sitting in a tree for hours or child labor authorities for making a child work for hours on end. She loves it as she shouts "YES" when dad hits a bullseye. So until my children hunt I will settle for the backyard bowhunts.
Until then the greatest memory is when I was 13 years old and my best friend was also 13 and my dad decided to get out of his deer hunting group so he could take me and my friend. We went to his deer hunting groups meeting the night before so he could catch up with some of his friends. I heard one guy say to dad "It's too bad that you have to take those kids hunting I don't think you 3 will see anything you need to have a bigger group to really get the deer moving. Dad replied "We'll see what happens." That statement ate at me all night because I didn't sleep a wink.
Then on the second 3 man deer drive my dad pushed a 4 acre timber to me and my friend and after 3 shots rang out I had put 2 slugs in one side and my friend put 1 slug in the other side of a 154 inch 8 pointer.
I tell you what there was never a deer now or ever brought through town with more pride then the 3 of us had on that special day. Boy what a day. To top it off my friend then shot a respectable 7 pointer and dad shot a doe that day and we were tagged out. I think dad did that because he was tired of walking and so I didn't have to ask him to write me a note for school on Monday.
That deer gets switched every 10 years between my friends home and mine.
If someone can reply on how to put pictures in these stories I will post a picture. Thanks. I will then post a picture how our group and our deer have grown over the years. Still only 11 people in our group and only 2 over 31 years old.
To the guy that said you will never get the deer moving. You can do it with 1 or 100 people it's all desire.
Until then the greatest memory is when I was 13 years old and my best friend was also 13 and my dad decided to get out of his deer hunting group so he could take me and my friend. We went to his deer hunting groups meeting the night before so he could catch up with some of his friends. I heard one guy say to dad "It's too bad that you have to take those kids hunting I don't think you 3 will see anything you need to have a bigger group to really get the deer moving. Dad replied "We'll see what happens." That statement ate at me all night because I didn't sleep a wink.
Then on the second 3 man deer drive my dad pushed a 4 acre timber to me and my friend and after 3 shots rang out I had put 2 slugs in one side and my friend put 1 slug in the other side of a 154 inch 8 pointer.
I tell you what there was never a deer now or ever brought through town with more pride then the 3 of us had on that special day. Boy what a day. To top it off my friend then shot a respectable 7 pointer and dad shot a doe that day and we were tagged out. I think dad did that because he was tired of walking and so I didn't have to ask him to write me a note for school on Monday.
That deer gets switched every 10 years between my friends home and mine.
If someone can reply on how to put pictures in these stories I will post a picture. Thanks. I will then post a picture how our group and our deer have grown over the years. Still only 11 people in our group and only 2 over 31 years old.
To the guy that said you will never get the deer moving. You can do it with 1 or 100 people it's all desire.
H
huntress
Guest
I've had alot of memorable hunting experiences,none are more memorable than the other but this season's bow kill was pretty memorable
The day before,a Sunday,I was out hunting in the morning and missed 2 bucks right under my stand! Basically it was because the bow I was shooting was my dad's before he got a new one,and this bow had no let-off and was really "finicky".So we get home and my dad tells me about a used Hoyt bow down at the bow shop,which is 5 minutes from out house,cool huh!?
Well after shooting it,I love it and it is mine for $150. We get it all set up,I go out that night but nothing.The next day after I get back from classes,I go out by myself(my dad is working).The wind is perfect for the stand I'm in. I see a doe but it is out of range and walks off. I decided to get my eyes that way and a little while later I hear branches snap.I turn and here comes a deer right down the shooting lane behind me,headed right at the tree I'm in! I get up and wait and the deer keeps coming then stops below me about 5 yards from the tree,slightly quartering away but mainly broadside. I begin to draw but the adrenaline shooting through me has me stuck,lol! I can't draw back! The deer doesn't know a thing.Finally I take a deep breath and draw the bow back,putting the pin behind it's shoulder and thinking "follow through on the shot".I squeeze the trigger on my release and hear the arrow hit the deer.The deer,a little spike,takes off running,the arrow didn't pass through so as the deer runs,I can here the arrow hitting branches.I knew I hit a little high but felt somewhat confident,I was praying! I hear a couple big cracks and then silence.I get down,find the blood trail,which is not great,but not bad either.I call my dad on the walkie talkie and drives over and helps me track.We follow the trail and as we go under these pines,my dad stops to get the flashlight out becuase it is evening and under the pines makes it darker.As he does that,I look up ahead of us and see my arrow sticking straight up from behind a log,"There's my arrow!" I tell him and begin walking to it.Not only was it my arrow but it was my deer!It went down where I thought it did,when I heard those branches crack,I thought it had to of gone down. The arrow was a few inches below the spine,but it hit the lungs and the deer basically died from internal bleeding,as we found out later cleaning it at home.What makes this memorable is how I found the deer when I least expected it and was so thrilled to find it before my dad did,lol! First shot at a deer with my new bow and my second bow kill
kbgibby
Threebeards
Mine was a number of years ago along the Skunk River north of Ames. I was set up with my bow in a ground blind; basically sitting on a log against a big old stump. Late afternoon, a big doe with two young of the year came along and the little button buck came up close enough to almost touch. I just froze and watched ... he'd stand and look at me trying to figure out what I was, jump straight up, then stare some more. The little doe came up too, though not as close. Mama stood about 25 yards out feeding, and occasionally stamping her feet. They all finally just moved on. Whole thing lasted about 20 minutes and was truly a fun experience and better than some successful hunts!!!
Threebeards
Threebeards
BugleMIn
New Member
My most memorable hunt has more to do with the plan than the execution. Jan 3, 2002, I knew the deer were coming through an area. Waited patiently for the right day with perfect west wind. Snuck in and set up my climber. Waited for 12 does to walk by at 20 yards, the buck was last in line.
Finally they get by me and the buck goes behind the block tree (tree blocking his head so he doesn't see me draw). I drawback and he steps out. I was higher in the tree than I thought and when I went to aim downward my facemask style stocking hat didn't move with my head. I was looking into the face covering part of the mask.
I couldn't see my peep. Here I am with a 150 class buck at 20 yards and at full draw and I can't see him thru my sights. I take the finger and thumb that my release is in and am trying to tug my face mask out of the way.
By now I have 3 does and the buck looking at me, with that headlight look, wondering what is that?
I couldn't get my mask out of the way while at fulldraw. So I thought I would compensate, a very poor decision on my part. I let it fly, afterall it's only 20 yards, right? Shot right over the the top of him. He ran to 40 yards staring at me and wandered off.
Like I said it was a perfect plan with poor execution. But more memorable than the big bucks that I have killed. The hunt and the could of, would of's thrill me, the harvest seems to take the fun out. Maybe because I know it is over for another year.
Finally they get by me and the buck goes behind the block tree (tree blocking his head so he doesn't see me draw). I drawback and he steps out. I was higher in the tree than I thought and when I went to aim downward my facemask style stocking hat didn't move with my head. I was looking into the face covering part of the mask.
I couldn't see my peep. Here I am with a 150 class buck at 20 yards and at full draw and I can't see him thru my sights. I take the finger and thumb that my release is in and am trying to tug my face mask out of the way.
By now I have 3 does and the buck looking at me, with that headlight look, wondering what is that?
I couldn't get my mask out of the way while at fulldraw. So I thought I would compensate, a very poor decision on my part. I let it fly, afterall it's only 20 yards, right? Shot right over the the top of him. He ran to 40 yards staring at me and wandered off.
Like I said it was a perfect plan with poor execution. But more memorable than the big bucks that I have killed. The hunt and the could of, would of's thrill me, the harvest seems to take the fun out. Maybe because I know it is over for another year.