c_lou's 08 hunting season

[c_lou]

Monday, Sept. 29th

I got out to my stand around 3:45. It was a long, windy sit. I am finding that I don't like sitting in the woods when the trees still have their leaves. It gets dark a lot quicker than if I was sitting on stand overlooking our CRP field. It was pretty windy and it was tough go at hearing approaching deer. In total I saw 3 squirrels.

Deer seen for the Season - 0

[c_lou]

Wednesday, Oct. 1st

Well I got up in the tree last night and had a pretty good night. I found it gets darker in the woods faster with the leaves on the trees. I need to sit my field stands. Now being that we are in a Earn a Buck zone, I need to tag a doe before I get my buck sticker. So can you all guess what the 2 deer were when they came walking by? Doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure it out, Yup both were bucks. Niether was a buck that I would have thought about shooting. The first was a nice big bodied 6 pointer, missing his brows. The second came through not more than 3 minutes behind him. A smaller basket 8. He grunted at the first buck, sounded like a 6 year old trying to pick a fight, he had a high pitched grunt. I couldn't see them but I could hear them, and it sounded like they were having a little disagreement about this piece of land.

It's just good to see deer. Saturday is the next night out.

Deer seen this Season - 2

[c_lou]

Saturday, Oct. 4th

Headed out to the stand around 4pm. The night was beautiful and calm. It was the perfect night for the deer to be up and moving. I guess nobody told that that to the deer. I had a nice sit and I still don't like hunting with all these leaves on the trees.

I won't be making it out for about a week.

Deer seen this season - still 2

[c_lou]

Wednesday, Oct. 15

I finally got a chance to get out and spend some time in the woods. It was another windy night. It's getting better out in the woods with some of the leaves coming down. I can see a little bit further. No deer walked past me tonight. This weekend is Wisconsin's Anterless only gun hunt. I can bow hunt but must have orange on. I don't think I am going to hunt, but I am going to fix my stand that I found out has developed a squeak. I may put up another stand, depends on how ambitious I get.

Deer seen this season - stuck on 2

[c_lou]

Tuesday Oct. 21st

My Tuesday didn't go as planned. Well actually it did, I just didn't do what I was suppose to do. I had a doe come in around 5pm. She hung around for an hour just munching and taking her sweet time coming into range. She was pretty distracted by the neighbors cutting their corn, so that let me get away with quit a bit of movement to get ready for a shot. After an hour or so she finally gave me a 30 yard shot, slightly quartering to me. I took the shot through a small opening and connected with her front shoulder. She took two big bounds and stopped just behind a tree. She must have stood there for 15 minutes or so and then I watched her walk off into the CRP field. Now the big debate started, do I get down and check my arror or stay in the tree and wait for dark. I made the decision to get down and go check my arrorw. I was just about ready to get down, I had my bow tied to my drop rope ready to lower it down, when I heard deer coming. I got my bow off the rope and an arrow knocked just in time. I nice 8 pointer came trotting past me at 10 yards. The nice thing is he never even knew I was there.
After dark I got my FIL & BIL to help me do a little tracking. We found my arror and blood right away. There was a pretty good blood trail so we backed out. I started thinking to myself, where she stopped and stood there was impressive blood. The thing is it would have been impressive if she had only stood there for a few seconds. She stood there about 15-20 minutes so I was thinking that it wasn't that impressive after all. I went back out Wednesday for 4 hours and searched the CRP field, but with grass as tall as me and thicker than I have ever seen it, I had no luck.
After going over the shot, looking at my arrow, and broadhead blade that was bent pretty good, I am pretty confident she has just a good dent in her shoulder and a cut that will heal over. Don't get me wrong, I am sick to death that I blew the shot, 30 yards has been money in the bank all summer.

Deer sightings are picking up. I am hoping this year ends up like 2 years ago. I shot and lost a doe (that lived) and the next time out I nailed a doe.

[c_lou]

Tuesday Oct. 28th

Windy, Windy, Windy, but you can't see deer from the couch, so out to the stand I went. The wind started to subside a little bit around 5:30 or so. No deer but tomorrow looks a lot nicer. A bit warmer and little wind.

[c_lou]

Wednesday Oct. 28th

I got settled in around 3:45. There I sat until 6:00 when I heard a deer coming down the ridge to the south of my stand. I picked her up about half way down and was pretty certain she would come past my stand based on how she was moving. She got down to the ditch and into some thick brush, that's when I lost sight of her, but I could still hear her down there. That's when I noticed a second deer coming in behind her. I picked up the second deer coming down the side hill to my south as well. About this time I picked up the first doe again and she was on a path to walk behind my stand. I couldn't get into position for the shot because low and behold the second deer made it to me and was standing directly in front of me at 15 yards. Seeing that the second deer was a doe, I turned my attention to her. She made her way past my stand on a trail that is 10 yards to the south of me. She stopped perfectly in a shooting lane, and that's when I let the WASP Jackhammer tipped Goldtip eat. She ran 50 yards back up the hill to my south, stopped and did a death tumble back down the hill. About 10 minutes later she let out her death bawl and I knew she was down for good. All of this happened within 5 minutes. After my FIL and I found her, I noticed the shot placement wasn't the best. It was high and a little far back. I am pretty confident that I did some damage to the main artery that runs along the back of a deer.

I am thankful to the man upstairs for providing me the oppurtunity to take one of his most magnificent animals. I would also like to thank my wife who is the most understaning person I know. She may give me some grief about hunting but she never stands in my way when I want to get out there.

NOW ON TO THE BIG BOYS!!!!

[c_lou]

Saturday Nov. 1st

It's finally the weekend. After a good night of trick or treating with the family, I was ready to hit the woods. I got settled in around 3:30 and it wasn't 15 minutes until I noticed a doe walking down the draw about 75 yards in front of me. She milled around for a bit before making her way back up the ridge to my south. About 10 minutes I see a buck making his way up that same ridge, nose to ground. I threw a snort-wheeze at him, he stopped and looked my direction, and kept on a going. He wanted nothing to do with me. He looked like a nice buck, but I only seen him from the side.

There was nothing but a few squirrels until 5:45 when a doe walked in behind me. She made her way up the hill to my south and walked away. I will be back out tomorrow.

[c_lou]

Sunday, Nov. 2

I brought the decoy with me because I was going to sit a stand that I have a good shot at a field edge. I started out forgetting the rattle bag. I set the decoy out into the field hoping a buck would be walking the field edge. To make a long story short, my doe decoy was the only deer I saw all night. I don't know what happened but I have yet to see a deer from this stand. It seems deer sightings have gone down every year from this stand. I don't know if I am to close to the bedding area or it's just that there hasn't been anything planted in the field for a couple of years. It's suppose to get warmer the first part of this upcoming week, and then cool off into the 30's by next weekend. I probably won't hunt until next weekend, it's suppose to rain the next few days.

[c_lou]

Saturday Nov. 8th

After a week of Wind, Rain, & Snow I decided I couldn't sit in the house any longer. It was suppose to be windy with snow flurries. I got both while sitting on stand. That's all I got, no deer sightings. The wind was blowing pretty good and gusting into the 20's mph.

[c_lou]

Sunday Nov. 9th.

I had plans to fix my stand that squeks today. I found out why is squeks and I had a pretty good plan to get it to stop. I brought out another tie down strap and wrapped around the tree and attached it to the stand. I then cut the strap that was causing all the noise. I got in stand and that's when the trouble started. The strap I cut must have been taking more weight than I figured. The stand started to slip slowly down the tree. I quickly got out of the stand and decided I would have to fix it another day. I moved the another stand. It was not as windy as yesterday, but there was enough to make it difficult to hear approching deer. Around 5 I heard a deer coming. It was a small buck and he was on the hill side to my south. I grunted, he stopped, looked my way and continued on. I snort-wheezed, he stopped looked my way and continued on. I had my doe decoy out and he still wanted nothing to do with me. It was just nice to see deer.

Next time out is on Tuesday to fix my stand.

[c_lou]

Tuesday Nov. 11th

It was a terrible day in the woods, weather wise that is. If it wasn't sleeting, it was snowing, if it wasn't snowing, it was raining. I didn't see a deer. Tomorrow is a new day.

[c_lou]

Wednesday Nov. 12th

Today was a great day. It was quiet, the ground was wet so no crunchy leaves. It was nice so I got to skimp out on a layer of clothes. I was walking to my stand and kicked out a doe and a nice 10 pointer that were bedded down in the high grass along a fence line. That's the first nice buck I have seen all year. I figured today was the day. I got set up and fixed my noisey stand and set up the doe decoy.
About 3:30 I see a deer making it's way down the woodline towards my decoy. It's a small 6 pointer, so I don't even reach for my bow. He wasn't quite sure what to do with the decoy. He stayed about 10 yards away and kept flicking his tail back and forth. He would take a few bounds then stop and come back towards the decoy. It's almost like he wanted to run, but couldn't give up the chance at love. Finally after about 10 minutes, he must have figured out that she wasn't going to move and he took off.
This weekend looks to be my last chance to bow hunt for the year.

[c_lou]

Saturday Nov. 15th.

I figure anytime now these deer will start "Rutting". I have talked with numerous people around here who have all said the same thing, the bucks just aren't into the does yet. Very, Very little chasing is going on.
Anyhoo, I decided I can't shoot them sitting on couch, even if the wind is blowing a nice 15 -20 mph. I got out to my stand around 1:30. Not a thing, nothing, nada, zip, zero, zilch. There is some guys who have been running around the fields behind our property. I am guessing they are getting set up for gun season. They have been back there more than a few times. I am guessing that they are scaring deer out because of what they are doing.

[c_lou]

Sunday Nov. 16th

Perhaps my last day to bow hunt for the year. I got to my stand around 1:30. After I got settled in I did a grunt/bleat sequence. I looked behind me to see a deer making it's way away from me at about 50 yards. I don't know if he was there when I got in my stand or was making his way towards me when I was grunting. Fast Forward about 30 minutes. I do a grunt sequence again and I look to the south and see a deer coming. I deperatly looked for horns, but found none so I didn't pick up my bow. It looked like the same little deer that I seen earlier. He milled around for a bit before making his way back the way he came.

I sat until 5:10 or so and got down. It had gotten windy while I was on stand, and that's the story of my season.

It seems this year has been windier than normal. I can recall only 1 or 2 nights where wind wasn't a factor, in the past it was always the opposite. However, I did get me a nice size doe (and she tastes yummy) and I had a great time just soaking in God's creation.

I can't wait for gun season. I get to see friends & relatives that I only see once a year. It's not about the deer hunting for me, it's about reconnecting with those that I don't get to see often enough.