Buck #3
Well I have a cool story to add to this. I went out with my uncle yesterday morning to try and fill our last tag. I asked him where I should sit giving him first dibs on any spot since he hadn't shot anything yet and I've had 2. He told me where to go and sit saying there was a spot that was easy to find. I walked to this spot in the dark and it was quite a walk I do say. Well when I get there I'm looking with my flashlight and wonder if I just sit on the ground or what and what direction do I face? Well I put my pack on the ground and have a seat looking into the main bush.
It's snowing real nice and am enjoying watching the squarrels quarrel when about 8:00am I notice a nice wooden stand that my uncle was reffering for me to be in. I'm wondering if I should move now since it's prime deer moving time. The stand is facing the opposite way I am sitting so I wonder if I'm makin a mistake so I walk the 40yds and climb up and get myself comfy as quiet as I can.
Lo and behold about 15 min. after I settle into the treestand I see movement, about 50yds behind where I was sitting on the ground. I see 2 does coming into the field and coming towards me. As I'm preparing to take the lead doe I see more movement behind them. As I try to see what else may be coming I see rack. I see 2 good racks and a couple more deer coming. Now my mind is going a mile a minute wondering if I should take this doe getting closer to me or wait and try to get another good buck. I see the does stop about 50yds out but are on the alert and sniff like they smell something. Guess what? I left my pack where I was sitting and I know they are smelling it. Now I have a dilema. There is a bushy tree in the way so I can't get a shot at the does yet but I do have a 100yd shot open at the buck with the white rack if I lean over to my left. The other buck jumps a small fence to join the does in the field. Not as big as the white racked buck. Well the does whiff the pack and hightale it out of there causing al the other deer to take off too.
The white racked buck just stands on the trail 100yds out. His head is behind a tree but his body is open, not moving. Well I lean over as far as I can to my left to shoot arout this large tree the stand is attached to. I know my rifle shoots 1" groups at 100 so my confidence level is high. I have my arm supported and my cross hairs are rock steady. I am gently squeezing the trigger waiting for the telltale kaboom that comes after ignition of a blackpowder firearm, but all I get is "click". I'm using the same primer I used 2 days before on the rainy morning. "Oh my God" my mind thinks, I am going to blow this because of my own stupidity. The buck doesn't move. I open the bolt and close it to reset the pin again and I repeat the process. "Click" I do it one more time "click". 3 times, no ignition and the buck just stands there. I am just about to give up when I think try to change primers.
There's no way I can do this without spooking him. I lean back behind the tree to hide and start the process. I get the old primer out, open my velcro pocket as quietly as I can and load up a new one. I get set not knowing what I'll see as I lean over around the tree to my left and guess what? The buck is still standing there. I line up rock steady like before, squeeze off, "click". My heart is about to explode, I haven't been this excited and stressed in a long time. I do the bolt thing, rock steady, line up, cross hairs perfect, squeeze off, the Rem. 700 bolt action muzzle loader barks, smoke everywhere.
I watch the buck run, tail down, my indication of a hit. I watch him run into the bush and up a small rise and collapse. You can't imagine what a feeling I felt after all that I had gone through. To cut this short, I climbed down and retrieved a nice 10 pt., 2nd biggest deer in my hunting carreer, but when I took out my camera, the battery was dead. I will get a pic up of the rack this weekend sometime. Lots of lessons on this hunt. Every primer I had on me I had on the rainy day and my camera battery was pooched. I'll do better here on in. Hunt over. All is good. Can't wait till next year. Love this gun.
John
