Here's the skinny on my hunt

[GRONG]

Ok, here's the events in a nutshell of the days that i got to sit on stand. Every buck I did see during my sits I have pictures of from my cameras so that was cool.

 

Day 1, absolutely no deer at all. 9 1/2hrs on stand

 

Day 2, small 2x3, maybe 50" at most, comes into 12 yards and I pass him but I thought I was gonna have a heart attack, buck fever you know. I had to keep saying to myself, "Quit freakin out and calm your sorry butt down, you're not even gonna shoot for crying out loud!". I kinda laughed at myself. There were 2 other bucks on the slope that didn't come close and one was a nice mid 90's 3pt that bedded down at 55 yards only to get up later and walk away. Around 2:30 a mid 70's 3pt was trying to get a couple of does in the mood but they eventually left him. 10 hrs on stand.

 

Day 3, just before sunup I heard a couple bucks sparring less than 100 yards from me but couldn't see them. About 7:30 I spotted behind me what I think was the same to does as the evening before. They went up on the hill where I'd heard the sparring and one of the bucks tried his turn on them but they ditched them again. After about 20min both bucks casually came wandering off the hill in front of my stand. They fed across to my left and came thru an opening around 40 yards. The lead buck was a wide 2pt, approx 70" or so and the other, a 3pt in the mid 70's I'd guess. I drew on them just to see if I could get away with it and held on both of them but knew that I didn't want to shoot at either... yet. They piddled around just sniffing the air, all the while my wind was blowing right at them pretty hard. Anyway, they eventually turned back and eventually bedded at 55-65yds away. No matter how much I rattled or grunted at them they could've cared less. They stayed bedded for an hour and a half and the entire time the wind was at my back. Eventually they got up and wandered off, leaving me all along once again. Can't remember too much more happening that day. 10hrs on stand.

 

Day 4 I had a little change up. My friend Dave Eklund was camped with me, he had a rifle tag. About 1 the day before he jumped a lion off of a brand new kill. He shot and missed and couldn't get a good enough shot to try again. So my dad showed up the next morning with his dogs. All 3 of us walked down to check the kill first (muley spike by the way). Sure enough the lion had been back. We walked back up to the truck and dad sent me back down with 2 dogs just to see if they could get things lined out. After a few minutes of a few barks and some roaming around dad sent another dog down to me. All the dogs went down and across the draw and immediately jumped the lion out of some brush not 50 yards from me and it jumped in a big oak tree. I couldn't believe it. Dad and I were both expecting a typical day long chase up over and thru a few canyons in hopes of getting a glimpse of it. This was our day I guess. Dave popped him with a .357 to get #8 of his big 10.

 

 

Day 5, I sat in stand till about noon I think w/o seeing a thing so I said to heck with it. I got out of stand and put up 2 digital trail cams over some awesome scrapes I found, hiked back to the truck and drove home for Christmas Eve.

The 27th I got a call from a good friend who had shot twice with his rifle right at dark at a huge buck right at dark but didn't touch him. I sacrificed a day in stand to go out with him the next morning to see if we could get him. I glassed up the buck way down the canyon but he was moving across the slope up towards but across from me and away from Dave, who was on the hill next to me about a 1/3 of a mile away. The buck finally walked up on a doe with 2 fawns and the game was on. Dave never had enough time to get from the hill he was on, to mine, in order to shoot in time. The buck eventually walked over a saddle and that ended our search. I'll post pics of him a little later.

 

So Day 6 finds me back in the stand before sunrise, wondering what I missed the day before of course. About 8 I heard a buck pawing in the oak leaves probably freshening a scrape. He finally showed himself off to my right. By this time I had told myself that this late in the season if that ugly 2pt comes near me he's gonna get some carbon flung his way in hopes of filling a tag and ridding him of the gene pool. He was all alone and I grunted at him a time or two. He was about 80yds away but this time he paid me a little more attn when I grunted. He kept trying to walk away but the grunts finally got his interest and he turned around and slowly came my way. He unfortunately was in the thickest crap he could've been in and had to keep going around fallen pine trees so he couldn't just walk right over to me. I stood up and turned to my right incase a shot opp arose. I ranged a clearing where I thought he would come thru at 50 yards. He went behind some trees and I drew. When he hit the clearing I had my 50yd pin on him and made a couple noises to stop him. He stopped broadside and I let her fly! It all happened so dang fast I really am not sure what the crap happened. By the time I let it go, him flinching(I think), the arrow somehow managed to find it's way towards his head. Last I saw the arrow it was deflecting off of his right antler. He jumped and ran maybe 40yds at most, shook his head and went back to feeding as if nothing had happened. My nerves were wrecked and my knees were about to buckle so I had to sit the heck down and relax! Anything with antlers still just rocks me when it comes time to shoot!!! So anyway, he walked off and about 45min later a small 2pt walks across the hill in front of my stand. In mid walk the darn thing plops down and beds at 42yds, facing me. Luckily his head and shoulder were behind a tree so I didn't have to suffer with having a staring contest with a little fella. Anywho, about 30min later he got up and walked off. Around 11:30 I got sicker than crap and had to get the heck out of the stand. I got the heck out of there and did what you have to do when your sick and slowly ambled back to the stand. Since I knew I didn't have the energy to sit anymore I decided to check one of my cameras. Sure as heck the freakin day before, here's 4 pics of the huge eyeguarded 2x4 buck that I've dreamed of getting a chance at, worked the scrape over at 5PM!!!! Who knows if he woulda given me a shot but it woulda been neat as heck to see the sucker in real life for once! That's the way it goes I guess.

 

I took the next day off for sick leave and enjoyed the heck out of my 8 month old son and wife.

 

Day 7, today. I got all clean shaven and pretty (LOL) thinking this is the day it was all gonna happen. I sat for a little over 10 flippin hours and never saw a dang deer! So that's how my season ended. Hopefully I'll get to sit for another 3-4 days this coming week but I got to pay bills too so it's time to start chasing those mountain lions again.

[az4life]

Josh

Determined should be your middle name! Great update. Maybe your sickness had something to do with the missed shot?

 

Go ahead and take some time to pay the bills. Let things settle down again in your stand area and then go take that big guy! Sounds like he is yours to be had.

 

Good luck.

[billrquimby]

Josh

Determined should be your middle name! Great update. Maybe your sickness had something to do with the missed shot?

 

Go ahead and take some time to pay the bills. Let things settle down again in your stand area and then go take that big guy! Sounds like he is yours to be had.

 

Good luck.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

 

Dittos from me, Josh.

 

Bill Q

[CouesWhitetail]

Thanks for the story Josh! At least you are having lots of activity around your stand. Someday you will see that big buck there while you are there. Hope it happens shortly. That's some long hours in the stand!

 

Amanda

[Guest Ernesto C]

Sweeeeeeeeeeeeett!!! Josh.You the man! When I grow up ......I want to be like you

 

Ernesto C

[bowsniper]

What a blast!! Here's to your dry adrinal gland!!

 

bowsniper

[DEERSLAM]

Josh,

Sounds like life is pretty dang good

Thanks for the update and looking foward to some more pics and stories.

[GRONG]

Bowsniper, what is an adrinal gland?

 

I hope to have some more exciting stories in a few days, I'm headed out around noon for a few more.

[111]

Great story. Man I would of fell out of the stand due to a butt cramp or sleepy eyes, but you hung in there for more hours than I could handle in a stand.

[BowhuntCoues]

Great story Josh. Keep them coming and good luck in January.

[Shiras]

Josh,

I think it's time for some Thrasher mag camo. I really think that would do the trick.

 

I bet you'd be able to "fastly plant" a carbon right behind the shoulder...no pun intended

 

Good luck man. -Shiras

[GRONG]

You know I've thought about wearing my Thrasher shirt incase I killed one. I'd have to take some trophy shots with my buck and my shirt just to crack you up! LOL!! Maybe it'll do just the trick to turn things in my favor.

[Redbeard]

dang dude. It's bad enough sitting in a tree all day in August. Keep it up though and you will get one.

[ScottAdams]

Neat story Josh! Hang in there, your time will come.

 

Scott

[GRONG]

I'm thinking about hitting it for the next couple of days, we'll see. I'll let you guys know if anything good happens.