yellowknifedave
Regular
- Location
- Somewhere in SK.....
Sunday morning I snuck into my hunting spot just prior to legal hunting and prepared to spend the day sitting there at the junction of four nice trails. I waited about 20 minutes then let out a few quiet grunts on the tube.
The ravens and magpies were going crazy about 225 yards west all morning. I imagine someone dropped a deer and didn't retrieve it a few days earlier. They were really active and vocal all morning.
I waited another 20 minutes or so, and saw a huge coyote with a thick beautiful coat pass about 15 yards north of me. I let him pass, and then did a few more grunts on the tube.
Another 20 minutes of listening to the ravens, and seeing a number of them pass overhead, and I decided to give the rattle bag a crash. Then I remained seated for a spell to see if I could bring anything in.
About 10 minutes later, my leg was asleep from sitting still for a little over an hour. I quietly, slowly stood up to help the blood flow. Whoops! A thunderous crash through the bush about 30 yards to the West let me know that the big buck that was coming in didn't like the looks of the strange human letting the blood return to his feet.
By this time the morning coffee had worked its way through my system, so I figured while I was up, I may as well go water a tree. Slowly and quietly, I walked down the little ravine behind me about fifteen yards and let watered the vegetation. I finished up, zipped up, and pulled out a nicorette inhaler to give myself a quick fix. As I slid it into my pocket, I noticed the little meat buck sniffing my backpack, rattle bag and grunt tube where I left it. It got nervous, and turned and started to return to the East, from where it had come.
I quickly shouldered my rifle, gave my tongue a click, and it stopped long enough for me to gently squeeze the trigger from basically underneath him at 15 yards. Good thing the scope was set at 1X.
I heard the hit, saw the kick, and got ready to tag my kill. What is that? The silly bugger seems to have turned west again and jogs by at 15 yards. By this time I have reloaded my rifle barrel, shoulder the rifle again, but tell myself, this thing is dead! I aimed true, heard the hit and saw the kick. I wasn't going to sink another round into the buck; I would just wait for it to fall and then retrieve it. As I dropped my rifle, I heard a gurgle just a few yards from where the buck was when I shot it............
The excitement being over, I climbed out of the ravine, and sure enough, my young buck was dead on the ground, 10 yards from where I had shot him. There was a huge blood trail for the 10 yards. The bullet had gone in very low behind the shoulder and exited through the neck. I looked to the west, and a doe that was with the two bucks was standing in the clearing looking at me. I raised my rifle again, lined up the crosshairs on the heart, then slowly lowered my rifle and dug out my tag (I hold an either ### and two supplemental mulie tags). She was mine if I wanted her, and I already had my morning chores going on. I may see her again next weekend.
Then I thanked the deer for providing food for my family, tagged it, gutted it, skinned it, quartered it, and hauled it the half mile to my suzuki. All in all a very nice morning.
I am very glad I had faith in my shot and did not pull the trigger on the second near identical buck that was there. I wonder what would have happened had I not gone down the ravine when I did. Would the three deer have come that close to my position? Would I have taken a buck and the doe?
Something for me to think about. All in all, a very pleasant morning in what has been a very busy fall at work.
YKD
The ravens and magpies were going crazy about 225 yards west all morning. I imagine someone dropped a deer and didn't retrieve it a few days earlier. They were really active and vocal all morning.
I waited another 20 minutes or so, and saw a huge coyote with a thick beautiful coat pass about 15 yards north of me. I let him pass, and then did a few more grunts on the tube.
Another 20 minutes of listening to the ravens, and seeing a number of them pass overhead, and I decided to give the rattle bag a crash. Then I remained seated for a spell to see if I could bring anything in.
About 10 minutes later, my leg was asleep from sitting still for a little over an hour. I quietly, slowly stood up to help the blood flow. Whoops! A thunderous crash through the bush about 30 yards to the West let me know that the big buck that was coming in didn't like the looks of the strange human letting the blood return to his feet.
By this time the morning coffee had worked its way through my system, so I figured while I was up, I may as well go water a tree. Slowly and quietly, I walked down the little ravine behind me about fifteen yards and let watered the vegetation. I finished up, zipped up, and pulled out a nicorette inhaler to give myself a quick fix. As I slid it into my pocket, I noticed the little meat buck sniffing my backpack, rattle bag and grunt tube where I left it. It got nervous, and turned and started to return to the East, from where it had come.
I quickly shouldered my rifle, gave my tongue a click, and it stopped long enough for me to gently squeeze the trigger from basically underneath him at 15 yards. Good thing the scope was set at 1X.
I heard the hit, saw the kick, and got ready to tag my kill. What is that? The silly bugger seems to have turned west again and jogs by at 15 yards. By this time I have reloaded my rifle barrel, shoulder the rifle again, but tell myself, this thing is dead! I aimed true, heard the hit and saw the kick. I wasn't going to sink another round into the buck; I would just wait for it to fall and then retrieve it. As I dropped my rifle, I heard a gurgle just a few yards from where the buck was when I shot it............
The excitement being over, I climbed out of the ravine, and sure enough, my young buck was dead on the ground, 10 yards from where I had shot him. There was a huge blood trail for the 10 yards. The bullet had gone in very low behind the shoulder and exited through the neck. I looked to the west, and a doe that was with the two bucks was standing in the clearing looking at me. I raised my rifle again, lined up the crosshairs on the heart, then slowly lowered my rifle and dug out my tag (I hold an either ### and two supplemental mulie tags). She was mine if I wanted her, and I already had my morning chores going on. I may see her again next weekend.
Then I thanked the deer for providing food for my family, tagged it, gutted it, skinned it, quartered it, and hauled it the half mile to my suzuki. All in all a very nice morning.
I am very glad I had faith in my shot and did not pull the trigger on the second near identical buck that was there. I wonder what would have happened had I not gone down the ravine when I did. Would the three deer have come that close to my position? Would I have taken a buck and the doe?
Something for me to think about. All in all, a very pleasant morning in what has been a very busy fall at work.
YKD
