Slooshark1
CGN frequent flyer
DEER HUNT 2016
Well this year was the best deer hunt I’ve ever had. In 26 years of hunting whitetail deer, I’ve taken 4 mature whitetails and a lot of does, fawns, spikers, etc. The last decent buck I took was on November 11th, 2005. I was due. This year I started scouting as soon as the snow melted and had numerous trail cameras out. I was determined to get a big buck. I had seen various bucks throughout the year on my cameras but like last year, I never saw the same one twice. I don’t know what makes bucks travel through a specific area, I only know that they do because of my cameras. I’m hunting Northern Ontario forest and there are no bean or corn fields for them to feed in. Everything I’ve read in magazines suggests setting up between a bedding and feeding area and trying to ambush them but I don’t think it’s that simple up here. After 26 years, I really think it has more to do with patience and luck than anything else. The one thing that I’ve done differently this year than previous years is hunt more. If luck is such a huge component of success, then more time hunting should equal more luck. I booked 2 weeks of vacation off work instead of 1 and hunted hard every day of the season. Some years in the past, I hunted harder than others just depending on what was going on at home or at work. Some years my heart just wasn’t in it. But this year, I was keen on shooting a mature whitetail buck. I caught a slight bit of flack from the warden for going for 2 weeks, but shook it off. This deer hunt was unconditional.
Also, about 4 months before the season, I bought this audiobook called “Navy Seal Shooting” by Chris Sajnog, that I listened to while driving. I listened to it over and over and started practicing his shooting fundamentals. In his book, dry fire practice is a big part of his training. So I taped up some deer pictures in my basement, put snap caps in my rifle and practiced dry fire shooting for 15 minutes a day, as he recommended. He also recommended doing grip strength training in order to be able to hold your rifle more firmly so I also did that whenever I was driving in my truck.
A couple of trips to the range had me shooting better than I had ever shot before. It’s funny how after doing something for 30 years, you think you know all there is to know about it and then realize that you really don’t know that much at all. To anyone that is frustrated with their shooting, I highly recommend his book.
Another thing that I had done differently this year was get some ear buds for my i-phone so that I could listen to my audiobooks in my treestand. Now, I know some people might criticize that this is distracting or that the deer might hear it, but let me tell you what it did for me. It allowed me to stay in my treestand from dawn til dusk and kept me looking instead of reading a book or checking e-mails or fidgeting. Everyone else went back for lunch except me.
After doing this for 6 days, I had only seen 2 fawns and a doe. Back at camp, we had a small doe hanging along with a medium sized 8 pointer, and a 4 pointer that a few of the other boys had taken. On Sunday, November 13th, I sat in my stand patiently waiting for a big buck to step out. I had my Remington 7600 Carbine in .35 Whelen resting on my lap. One hand on the forestock and one hand on the pistol grip, waiting for my buck, just as I had done every day previously. At around 8:15AM, I spotted a deer walking through the bush about 30 yards in front of me. I could see quickly enough that it was a small doe, but for some reason, and I don’t know why, I started to shake with excitement. My left knee started to bounce up and down uncontrollably and I slowly took deep breaths to try and calm myself down. I had no intention of shooting this deer but was so excited anyhow. I was a little frustrated with myself but was finally able to calm down enough to get control and stop shaking. I’ve shot a few deer in my life but still get just as excited at 43 years old as I did when I was 15. What’s going to happen when a buck steps out?, I thought. The doe slowly poked around in front of me sniffing the ground and nibbling on vegetation. I watched her for about 20 minutes until she quietly slipped away.
I continued to sit there and watch the same ravine, sitting in my portable stand, 2 hands on my rifle, patiently waiting and listening to my audiobook, “Terminal Impact” by Charles Henderson. Just after 10AM, I spotted another deer, a bigger deer, walking through brush on the same path as the doe. I shouldered my rifle and took the safety off as quickly as I could before he stepped out into the open. I saw horns, put the illuminated dot on the front shoulder and squeezed straight back on the trigger. Boom! He dropped in his tracks and thrashed all over the place. I pumped another cartridge into the chamber and kept watching him. Suddenly, he leapt to his feet and took 2 full bounds in front of me and, Boom!, I shot him again. This time he went down for good. He twitched a little and was dead. Then I started to shake and tremble all over again. I took the cartridge out of the chamber lowered my rifle out of the stand. I could barely climb out of the tree I was shaking so bad. When I stepped off the last rung onto the ground, I fully reloaded my rifle and walked over to him. I couldn’t believe it. I know there are bucks out there that are bigger than this one, but I think this was my 2nd biggest buck I’ve ever taken. I was so excited, I just couldn’t believe it. I looked at where I had hit him and both bullet holes were about an inch apart. Not bad, I guess. Thanks Chris Sajnog! The first one probably would have done the job, but I wasn’t taking any chances. I’ve heard too many horror stories of people losing big animals. My rule is if they’re still standing, keep shooting.
I called in the extraction team, who were back at camp hanging up a nice 7 pointer that one of our new members had taken just an hour before and they brought the quad by boat to edge of the swamp where I was hunting and then drove back to where this big fellow was laying.
We took our kill site pictures and then dragged him out. I was excited to finally get some blood in my boat. We loaded the quad back into the flat bottom boat and were getting ready to head back to camp when the boat started to drift away. I reached out with a paddle to Rod who was standing on shore. He reached out to try and grab it and lost his balance and ended up plunging into the frigid water up to his waist. We consoled him by laughing hysterically while he climbed back out of the lake. I paddled back in and picked him up.
Then we headed back to camp and got him hung up and celebrated with a bottle of Jaegermeister that we passed around to toast a fantastic morning. That was the best day of deer hunting I had enjoyed in many, many years. But there was more to come.
My wife and son were traveling back home to Sudbury for a few days so that he could come hunting with me. I drove into to town on the Monday night and we all had supper together. I hadn’t seen him in about a month and a half, since he lives in Toronto. We were really happy to see each other.
The next morning, we left our house in the dark and headed back to the landing where we were going to be picked up. My buddy Keven met us there with the boat and we headed to camp, unloaded all our gear and got dressed and ready to go. We hunted hard all day but didn’t see anything.
Wednesday morning, we went to a spot that had produced well in the past and set up. My son only has an apprentice license, as he’s only 13 years old so we can only share a firearm for now. We sat there for a few hours with no action. He needed to poop so I told him to walk about 100 yards downwind of me and I sat there with my rifle. I was listening to my audiobook quietly when I saw a large deer cross an opening about 80 yards upwind from me. I knew from past experiences in this spot that the deer would likely step out in a spot that was 25 yards in front of me. I shouldered my rifle pointing it at that spot and breathed deeply, for fear of getting the shakes again. Suddenly he stepped into my crosshairs and I pulled the trigger. He was quartering on and I hit him right through the shoulder blade. He dropped straight down and didn’t move. I couldn’t believe it. He didn’t kick or twitch, or anything. He was just dead. He was sitting on top of his back legs and was as still as stone.
I ran up to him and called for my son to come over and see. My son had just about had a heart attack when he heard the shot. He was impressed. This deer was a horse. I don’t know what he weighed but he was definitely bigger than the one I had taken 3 days prior. He was an 8 pointer with nice thick antlers and pretty symmetrical. His neck measured 31 inches in circumference. My son field dressed it, with my guidance and helped drag it out. I had hoped that he could have shot a deer but that’s just the way it went this year. I was happy that he was there for the experience. This time, I didn’t shake at all. Not sure why. I sure was excited though.
This was definitely the best deer hunt that I’ve ever had and not only because of the success that I enjoyed, but because of the guys in the camp, the great food and the fact that my son was able to join me for a few days. I really enjoy hunting with him most of all. I’m looking forward to many more seasons with him.
When I arrived home at the end of it all, I was alone with my dog. Everyone else was gone. I sliced up and cooked the heart and ate it for supper with some mashed potatoes and a couple of glasses of Jackson Triggs Cabernet Sauvignon.
Life is awesome.
Well this year was the best deer hunt I’ve ever had. In 26 years of hunting whitetail deer, I’ve taken 4 mature whitetails and a lot of does, fawns, spikers, etc. The last decent buck I took was on November 11th, 2005. I was due. This year I started scouting as soon as the snow melted and had numerous trail cameras out. I was determined to get a big buck. I had seen various bucks throughout the year on my cameras but like last year, I never saw the same one twice. I don’t know what makes bucks travel through a specific area, I only know that they do because of my cameras. I’m hunting Northern Ontario forest and there are no bean or corn fields for them to feed in. Everything I’ve read in magazines suggests setting up between a bedding and feeding area and trying to ambush them but I don’t think it’s that simple up here. After 26 years, I really think it has more to do with patience and luck than anything else. The one thing that I’ve done differently this year than previous years is hunt more. If luck is such a huge component of success, then more time hunting should equal more luck. I booked 2 weeks of vacation off work instead of 1 and hunted hard every day of the season. Some years in the past, I hunted harder than others just depending on what was going on at home or at work. Some years my heart just wasn’t in it. But this year, I was keen on shooting a mature whitetail buck. I caught a slight bit of flack from the warden for going for 2 weeks, but shook it off. This deer hunt was unconditional.
Also, about 4 months before the season, I bought this audiobook called “Navy Seal Shooting” by Chris Sajnog, that I listened to while driving. I listened to it over and over and started practicing his shooting fundamentals. In his book, dry fire practice is a big part of his training. So I taped up some deer pictures in my basement, put snap caps in my rifle and practiced dry fire shooting for 15 minutes a day, as he recommended. He also recommended doing grip strength training in order to be able to hold your rifle more firmly so I also did that whenever I was driving in my truck.
A couple of trips to the range had me shooting better than I had ever shot before. It’s funny how after doing something for 30 years, you think you know all there is to know about it and then realize that you really don’t know that much at all. To anyone that is frustrated with their shooting, I highly recommend his book.
Another thing that I had done differently this year was get some ear buds for my i-phone so that I could listen to my audiobooks in my treestand. Now, I know some people might criticize that this is distracting or that the deer might hear it, but let me tell you what it did for me. It allowed me to stay in my treestand from dawn til dusk and kept me looking instead of reading a book or checking e-mails or fidgeting. Everyone else went back for lunch except me.
After doing this for 6 days, I had only seen 2 fawns and a doe. Back at camp, we had a small doe hanging along with a medium sized 8 pointer, and a 4 pointer that a few of the other boys had taken. On Sunday, November 13th, I sat in my stand patiently waiting for a big buck to step out. I had my Remington 7600 Carbine in .35 Whelen resting on my lap. One hand on the forestock and one hand on the pistol grip, waiting for my buck, just as I had done every day previously. At around 8:15AM, I spotted a deer walking through the bush about 30 yards in front of me. I could see quickly enough that it was a small doe, but for some reason, and I don’t know why, I started to shake with excitement. My left knee started to bounce up and down uncontrollably and I slowly took deep breaths to try and calm myself down. I had no intention of shooting this deer but was so excited anyhow. I was a little frustrated with myself but was finally able to calm down enough to get control and stop shaking. I’ve shot a few deer in my life but still get just as excited at 43 years old as I did when I was 15. What’s going to happen when a buck steps out?, I thought. The doe slowly poked around in front of me sniffing the ground and nibbling on vegetation. I watched her for about 20 minutes until she quietly slipped away.
I continued to sit there and watch the same ravine, sitting in my portable stand, 2 hands on my rifle, patiently waiting and listening to my audiobook, “Terminal Impact” by Charles Henderson. Just after 10AM, I spotted another deer, a bigger deer, walking through brush on the same path as the doe. I shouldered my rifle and took the safety off as quickly as I could before he stepped out into the open. I saw horns, put the illuminated dot on the front shoulder and squeezed straight back on the trigger. Boom! He dropped in his tracks and thrashed all over the place. I pumped another cartridge into the chamber and kept watching him. Suddenly, he leapt to his feet and took 2 full bounds in front of me and, Boom!, I shot him again. This time he went down for good. He twitched a little and was dead. Then I started to shake and tremble all over again. I took the cartridge out of the chamber lowered my rifle out of the stand. I could barely climb out of the tree I was shaking so bad. When I stepped off the last rung onto the ground, I fully reloaded my rifle and walked over to him. I couldn’t believe it. I know there are bucks out there that are bigger than this one, but I think this was my 2nd biggest buck I’ve ever taken. I was so excited, I just couldn’t believe it. I looked at where I had hit him and both bullet holes were about an inch apart. Not bad, I guess. Thanks Chris Sajnog! The first one probably would have done the job, but I wasn’t taking any chances. I’ve heard too many horror stories of people losing big animals. My rule is if they’re still standing, keep shooting.
I called in the extraction team, who were back at camp hanging up a nice 7 pointer that one of our new members had taken just an hour before and they brought the quad by boat to edge of the swamp where I was hunting and then drove back to where this big fellow was laying.
We took our kill site pictures and then dragged him out. I was excited to finally get some blood in my boat. We loaded the quad back into the flat bottom boat and were getting ready to head back to camp when the boat started to drift away. I reached out with a paddle to Rod who was standing on shore. He reached out to try and grab it and lost his balance and ended up plunging into the frigid water up to his waist. We consoled him by laughing hysterically while he climbed back out of the lake. I paddled back in and picked him up.
Then we headed back to camp and got him hung up and celebrated with a bottle of Jaegermeister that we passed around to toast a fantastic morning. That was the best day of deer hunting I had enjoyed in many, many years. But there was more to come.
My wife and son were traveling back home to Sudbury for a few days so that he could come hunting with me. I drove into to town on the Monday night and we all had supper together. I hadn’t seen him in about a month and a half, since he lives in Toronto. We were really happy to see each other.
The next morning, we left our house in the dark and headed back to the landing where we were going to be picked up. My buddy Keven met us there with the boat and we headed to camp, unloaded all our gear and got dressed and ready to go. We hunted hard all day but didn’t see anything.
Wednesday morning, we went to a spot that had produced well in the past and set up. My son only has an apprentice license, as he’s only 13 years old so we can only share a firearm for now. We sat there for a few hours with no action. He needed to poop so I told him to walk about 100 yards downwind of me and I sat there with my rifle. I was listening to my audiobook quietly when I saw a large deer cross an opening about 80 yards upwind from me. I knew from past experiences in this spot that the deer would likely step out in a spot that was 25 yards in front of me. I shouldered my rifle pointing it at that spot and breathed deeply, for fear of getting the shakes again. Suddenly he stepped into my crosshairs and I pulled the trigger. He was quartering on and I hit him right through the shoulder blade. He dropped straight down and didn’t move. I couldn’t believe it. He didn’t kick or twitch, or anything. He was just dead. He was sitting on top of his back legs and was as still as stone.
I ran up to him and called for my son to come over and see. My son had just about had a heart attack when he heard the shot. He was impressed. This deer was a horse. I don’t know what he weighed but he was definitely bigger than the one I had taken 3 days prior. He was an 8 pointer with nice thick antlers and pretty symmetrical. His neck measured 31 inches in circumference. My son field dressed it, with my guidance and helped drag it out. I had hoped that he could have shot a deer but that’s just the way it went this year. I was happy that he was there for the experience. This time, I didn’t shake at all. Not sure why. I sure was excited though.
This was definitely the best deer hunt that I’ve ever had and not only because of the success that I enjoyed, but because of the guys in the camp, the great food and the fact that my son was able to join me for a few days. I really enjoy hunting with him most of all. I’m looking forward to many more seasons with him.
When I arrived home at the end of it all, I was alone with my dog. Everyone else was gone. I sliced up and cooked the heart and ate it for supper with some mashed potatoes and a couple of glasses of Jackson Triggs Cabernet Sauvignon.
Life is awesome.
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