Second Week of Archery 2015

I’ve always been amazed at how fast luck can change in the outdoor world.  First week of archery season, I was getting a little frustrated by my lack of luck and the fact that I was seeing so few deer.  It seemed as if every hunter I talked to was seeing deer almost every time on stand, and yet there I was with only a couple of sightings, and none of those deer were even remotely in range.  Most of the deer I saw, in fact, were ones that I’d spooked while walking in the woods to and from my treestand.

On Monday night, October 12^th, that all changed.

I’ve had my trail cameras near two apple trees near a known bedding area.  The bedding area had been logged a few years back and has grown up into one of the thickest tangles of brush I’ve ever seen.  It’s almost impossible to navigate except on your hands and knees.  Experience has taught me that when you find cover like that, you’ll almost always find big bucks nearby, and this was no different.  Almost every night, and sometimes twice per night, a big 10-point buck worked his way out of the bedding area and visited the apple trees.  Although the visits were always well after dark, I knew it was just a matter of time until he made a mistake.

That mistake almost happened Monday evening.  About 7pm, the 10-point crossed a tractor trail 50 yards from my stand.  He crossed the opening so fast that I barely had time to react.  Fifty yards is a long shot with a bow, so I doubt I’d have taken it anyway, but it sure got my heart pounding because I knew his next stop would be the apple tree only 25 yards away – well within bow range.

Unfortunately, by the time the deer made up its mind to visit the apple tree, it was too dark to see it clearly.  As I drew a bead on the deer, I couldn’t distinguish any features.  It was like looking at a big blurry shadow.  I’m not one to risk a bad shot.  I knew if I shot at that moment that my chances of actually killing the deer and successfully recovering it were less than 10%.  I’ve always been confident in my shooting abilities, but even I know when to let it ride.  It almost broke my heart to let the deer go.

I gained one positive out of the encounter, though.  As predicted, the deer was now moving earlier in the evening.  A cold stretch of weather was main reason.  Any time you get a cold stretch of weather in October, deer movement increases dramatically, especially if the few weeks before that cold stretch have been really warm.

The cold weather persisted the rest of the week, with a rain/snow mix on Wednesday.  On Thursday it rained sporadically all day but cleared up the last couple of hours of daylight, just as I was slipping into my treestand.

What happened in that final 20 minutes of daylight is what hunting is all about.  I’ve heard it said hunting can be broken down into one simple equation – preparation plus opportunity equals luck.  I was prepared this time.  On Wednesday I’d moved my treestand closer to where the 10-point had come out on Monday and closer to another apple tree along the tractor trail.  I’d also double-checked my bow to make sure it was still accurate and sharpen my own skills a little bit.  I’ve always thought that one mistake bowhunters make is that they spend so much time practicing before the season but very little time shooting during the season.  The problem with that is that when an opportunity presents itself, you could be rusty.  Archery season is six weeks long, after all.  If your shot doesn’t come until week six, that’s a long time to go without practice.

By the time I headed back to my treestand Thursday evening, I felt prepared.  About quarter till seven, I got my opportunity.  The 10-point stepped out onto the tractor trail.  As he slowly approached the apple tree now only 20 yards away, I got ready to shoot. 

Second week of archery season and I already got my buck.  Now what?  There’s still so much fall left.  I think I’ll head out for some squirrel hunting next week.  Also, trapping season starts next Sunday.  Yes, I may have already killed a buck, but there’s still so much to do in the outdoors!