Viking's 09 hunting diary

[EastWaViking]

I figured this might be a good way for me to keep track of all my little hunting stories for the year.

[bow4elk]

what's on the agenda for the fall so we can check in?

[EastWaViking]

Opening Day:  Weird Day.

I got in my tree stand at 5:30 pm, could hear distant thunder but figured I'd get in and see what happens.  By 6 pm I was being tossed around by the wind so much and the lightening and rain was on top of me... I felt like Gilligan trying to control the USS Minnow on the opening of Gilligan's Island.  I scampered down the tree and waited for the lightening to pass.  I was back in the tree by 6:30, a couple minutes later two trucks pull up on the county road 600 yards across the field.  The guys get out and start glassing me!  They are also talking loud, and I'm starting to get mad.  After 20 minutes I grab the phone and dial 911...not sure what they can do, but I call them anyways.  I tell them the guys are glassing me and talking loud, not sure what they are up to but if their plan is to harass me or the deer, it's illegal.  I mentioned maybe it was a drug deal, in hopes of getting a sheriff to drive by.  They finally leave at 7pm.  At least I have the last hour to really hunt.  Finally deer start coming out of the woods at 7:15... at 7:20 two sheriffs cars show up and sit on the road with their lights flashing!  The deer look at them and act a bit concerned but keep enjoying the soon to be third cutting alfalfa.  The cops finally leave at 7:30.  Here comes a nice 4x4 buck.  He's tall but not real wide, maybe 16".  He walks over to the aspen tree about 10 yards from me and starts eating the leaves that fell when the wind kicked up... who knew they liked aspen leaves?  He stood broadside in front of me for at least 10 min, fun to watch.  He then started sniffing where I walked in.
He wasn't spooked, he just smelled something different.  He followed the scent right to the base of the tree.  Here came a glorified spike, he did the same thing.  Farther out in the field I counted roughly 30 deer.  One was the 6x6 I am after.  He was about 200 yards away when it got dark.  I waited until the two small bucks wondered back into the field, slipped out of the tree and walked home.  Fun, but very odd evening.   I wonder what tomorrow will bring!?

[EastWaViking]

what's on the agenda for the fall so we can check in?

Local White Tail until Sept. 10
Wyoming Mule Deer and Antelope Sept 11-18
Maybe a couple more early WT days... Take the kids with me a couple times.  (4 & 7)
Ducks and Geese with my new lab pup
A little grouse, dove, pheasant sprinkled in for good measure.
Late buck if I need it
Waterfowl until it closes.

[PacificNWhunter]

Good luck! Look forward to reading your updates.

[oneezreiter]

Neat idea, I will look forward to the stories.  Day one seems like a good start.

[bowsandhose]

good end to a rough start but i hope your treestand is still up in the morning

[EastWaViking]

good end to a rough start but i hope your treestand is still up in the morning

I thought the same thing.  I took a picture of the trucks...just in case.

[EastWaViking]

Day 2   Slow night  (if you can call seeing 30 deer slow)

Deer didn't start to move until 7:30  Most of them came out where I didn't expect them too, 300 yards to the south.  I was on the ground sitting along a fence line between two alfalfa fields, not much cover.  I did have one small buck come in behind me and directly down wind.  Less than 30 yards broadside and he had no idea I was there.  If done right, scent control works...even on 90 degree days.  Tomorrow... I'm going to sit where the deer came out tonight, and they will probably walk right past where I was sitting this evening.  Just one of the joys of trying to outwit whitetail deer!

[EastWaViking]

Day Three.... Tonight is why I hunt.

Like I said yesterday, I decided to go south to the corner of the big field where I saw most of the deer cross last night.  I walked down there and located the main two crossings and found a great place to sit with a couple old aspen trees and tall grass along the fence line to hide by.  Soon I saw deer coming, just a few does and fawns and a small 3 pt.  Around quarter to 7 they decided to cross into the field I am hunting.  The small buck and a doe with two fawns go North up the fence line and cross about 80 yards away.  Another doe and fawn cross right where I expect them to, at 32 yards.  I watch them for a while and see that about 8 more deer are crossing the field that leads to the fence line and field I am hunting.
Suddenly the fawn out in front of me starts one of those spastic playful runs, bucking and swinging it's head, just enjoying being a fawn... well that ,for some reason, startles the doe a bit and she jumps back across the fence, which startles the deer that were coming, soon they were all running back towards the woods!  All except a couple small bucks who where trying to figure out what the problem was.   I sat there for a while and saw a few deer coming out of the woods and crossing up North where I was sitting last night.  One was the decent 4x4 I passed on opening day.  Finally at 7:45 I see more deer heading towards me, one is a real nice 4 or 5 point in the 135 to 140 P&Y range.  I thought to myself.  He's not the big 6x6 but if he pops out in range he is still a trophy.  I start to get ready as he gets closer.  I think to myself, "he's heading right to the crossing, this is it!"
Just as he gets to the 32 yard crossing... he turns north and goes a few yards then hops the fence where there is no trail!?  I range him... 44 yards.  Side note: (A few years back I took my 50 yard pin off after wounding the first and only big game animal of my life, a real nice WT buck at 48 yards.  It was a good looking shot, and to this day I don't know why I didn't kill him.  I followed him for 2 days in the snow and finally lost his tracks when it started to rain.  I went home and took off the 50 yard pin that same day.)  Anyways back to this evening.... 44 yards, sure I can shoot a good group at that range, but what the deer does while the arrow is in flight is what I can't control.  He walks out to 48 yards and I think "oh well" I'll just watch him maybe he'll feed this way.  A few minutes later he is directly down wind from me and unlike the small buck last night, he smells that something isn't right.  He isn't real spooked just on alert.  He walks fairly quickly to the fence and jumps back across it and starts feeding again.  Now it is 10 minutes until 8.  I see more deer heading towards my field up North so I grab my fanny pack and crouch down and start sneaking up the fence line.  I get about 60 yards from the deer and I can see one is a real nice buck... maybe the 6x6??  I sneak a few yards closer hoping to get in range for when they cross.  Suddenly one of the does starts down the other side of the fence line right towards me.  I crouch down and clip on my release.  Here she comes, I am hoping she will cross right in front of me at about 15 yards and the rest of the deer will follow.  She keeps coming and right behind her I see antlers....BIG ANTLERS.... the 6x6 is right behind her less than 10 yards from me!   I stay real crouched down and draw, in hopes they will pop out right in front of me....no, they keep coming on the other side of the fence!  Before I know it the 6x6 is broadside at 8 feet... yes really, 8 feet!!!  I am on one side of the fence he is right on the other side directly across from me... broadside!  I put all of my pins right behind his shoulder, there are three or four blades of dry grass between him and I but at that range they will not effect anything.  I look at his antlers, perfect 6x6... tall and beautiful perfectly silhouetted in front of the orange sunset, velvet intact.
I want to shoot, my heart is pounding, it is an amazing moment.... BUT.... I have not asked that land owner permission to hunt his side of the fence!  I know the folks and have hunted ducks there before, but I have not talked to them yet this year.   About that time a smaller buck jumped the fence right in front of me about 20 feet away, he sees me and snorts.  The 6x6 twitches but still stands there a few more seconds before bounding away.  He stops about 70 yards away and just stands there.  I let down my bow, smile a bit, kind of chuckle, knowing most people would have shot.
I stand up but stay low and sneak down the fence line towards home.  My heart is still pounding and I think to myself, I will not see that buck again this early season.  He will be nocturnal from now on, and a road hunter will probably get him in late rifle... but, even if I don't get a deer this year, I have a mental image of a great buck and a story of a hunt most people will never experience.  And that is why I hunt.

Here is the buck from a trail cam pic I got in Aug.  And a side note... I just called the land owner and he said "no problem, shoot him next time".  I figured that's what he'd say.

[Elkric]

Lol.     All I have to say is ....  You are the man!    Great hunt and great story.    Hope you bump into him again.     You deserve it.    That is atough one to swallow, but it will all come back to you in the end.   I'm  definitely impressed.

[Machias]

   Very nice buck!!!!

[Caseyd]

You never know he could be there tomorrow!

[BLKBEARKLR]

Don't kill it just yet, your stories are keeping me going!!!!!


But on another note, good luck to you, that is a nice deer...

[BLUEBULLS]

you are the man.... not many people can say that they have the ethical sense that you do... I hope you get him, you deserve him!