No smack talk, no promises...

[mr4pt]

I'm just bowing out quietly to go to bowcamp in the morning.

I talked smack the last two years and got skunked.

I've got to cut my trip short this year. I can only hunt until Monday morning cause I have to go on a business trip to Temple Tx until Thursday and then to a wedding in Pine Bluff over next weekend. Be back next Sunday, Oct 12th to report.

[deerslayer11]

You will be back right in time for my rifle season!
Zap something man. Its all about breaking in new stuff.

[NitroHunter]

Hope you get a good one 4pt.

[Bucktales]

Good luck 4, hope you shoot a hawg.

[mr4pt]

Oct 3, 2008 17:29:55 GMT -5 Bucktales said:

Good luck 4, hope you shoot a hawg.

Not exactly...

I only saw three deer all weekend, and two of them were yesterday afternoon, my last day to hunt. I went ahead and pulled the trigger on a yearling doe, I like to call them 1/2 year olds, sounds better. I shot her at 40 yds and hit too far back in the paunch. I found her in a creek this morning at 2 am.

I also completely SMOKED a coyote at 30 yds. I'm whupped...pics and stories to come later.

[NitroHunter]

Looking forward to the pics. Did you take one of the yote too?

[mr4pt]

Oct 6, 2008 18:37:36 GMT -5 NitroHunter said:

Looking forward to the pics. Did you take one of the yote too?

I wish I could have Nitro, I'll go ahead and tell yall about the yote.

I sat in my stand Sunday morning until 10:30 and saw nothing. I noticed the wind was perfect for a certain stalk I like to make and since it rained all day Saturday and there was a strong south wind at about 15 mph the conditions were perfect for the stalk. It is a small flat above a large bluff that is about 1/2 way down the mtn. About halfway into the stalk I saw a large coyote headed my way with a deer leg in it's mouth. I assume he had visited the gutpile that my buddy left of the doe he killed Friday pm. The yote got 60 yds out and another yote came running from behind and tried to take the deer leg. They wrestled and played around for a few seconds and one of them picked up the leg and ran up 35 yds above me. These song dogs were huge and very healthy, pretty animals. I dropped to a knee and drew back on the one but noticed the second one was going to cross between me and the other one so I swung around on him and when he stepped out at 20 yds I thumped him. The damn thing yelped and then ran STRAIGHT at me. I had to hold my bow out to steer him away. He nose-dived dead at the edge of the bluff, about a 50 yd sprint down hill and across the flat I was on. His last dying kick sent him rolling over the edge and about 5 seconds later I heard him crash at the bottom of the bluff (about a 200' drop straight down). I walked over to the edge and looked for him because I wanted pictures to show how beautiful he was but I couldn't see him and I didn't want him bad enough to find a way down the bluff and drag his ass back up.

[deerslayer11]

Zoop em!

[hunt4fun1]

You drivin or flyin into Texas+

[mr4pt]

drove to Temple...almost 8 hours

[NitroHunter]

Thats a pretty good story. I don't think I would have looked for a way down the bluff either.

[mr4pt]

Warning...Long post ahead.

Friday:
I arrived early that morning and made camp and scouted until around 3:00. When I got back one buddy was there and I told him about a spot that we call "the point" that was full of white oak acorns. It's a spot that rarely has acorns but when it does the deer are in there thick. I saw several piles of deer droppings and two piles of bear scat. He asked if I was going to hunt there that afternoon and I told him no because I wanted to set-up at the edge of the top field and watch it till dark. He went in there and killed a small doe, I knew he would shoot something. Nothing came into the field that afternoon, which told me the deer were on the acorns.
Saturday:
It rained until noon and I didn't see anything from my stand. I have to give props to 10X rain gear, that stuff works and is very comfortable. It rained a steady downpour and I sat in it for 5 hours and stayed bone dry. I got down and was easing thru the woods as slow as I could into the wind back to camp. Have you ever seen something but your brain wont let you believe your eyes? I looked to my left and swore I could make out the outline of a deer's head just over a fallen log but I kept telling myself it couldn't be, I was only 18 yds from it. So I took another step and thought I saw it move. I froze and starred at it for awhile and it never moved but I was sure it was a deer's head (I could only make out 1 ear). Finally I convinced myself that it was not a deer and took another step. The next thing I saw was a large doe stand up behind the log and then trot away. Sat afternoon I sat above the head of a large ravine and saw nothing. Noone killed anything.

Sunday:
I'll start where I left off with the yote. I knew that afternoon would be my last hunt of the camp so I called the "Barn" stand. This is the damndest stand you've ever seen. It's at the bottom of the large ravine I was hunting Sat afternoon and there is an old barn there, hince the name. There are ZERO oak trees and for that matter ZERO food source there. The stand we have up is an old lock-on that is on a crooked tree that leans into you when you get in, very uncomfortable. You only have two or three places to shoot and they are set up for a left handed shooter. There is really no reason to hunt there other than the fact that the first person to set there every year shoots a deer and noone had sat there yet. It's always does and small bucks but I was not going to be picky. Right at dark a spike walks up the side of the ravine about 12 yds away, I could have shot him a 100 times. Dalton can have him. As I was putting away my thermocell and stuff I noticed movement crossing the ravine. I got my release back on and guessed it to be a small doe but by that time it was so dark I couldn't really tell. I decided that if it stepped into the only opening I would have (40 yds) I'd sling some carbon at it. As soon as I thought that, it stepped into the only bit of light I had left and I spilled it's guts. I heard the ever so sickening sound of arrow hitting guts and when the deer ran off I went and found my arrow. It looked like you rolled it in cow crap. I went back to camp. We fried some crappie fillets and taters, drank a few cold brews and about midnight we went to look for it. There was no blood so we spread out for a grid search. After a couple of hours I told eveyone to go back to camp and I would walk the creek back. The creek was only a few hundred yards from where I shot it and I had a strong feeling the deer would head to water, being gut shot. About halfway down the creek heading back to the barn I found her laying in some brush. She was too weak to hold her head up but when I went to slice her throat she tried to stand up. I didn't want her running off again so I shot her in the head with my 5th arrow I keep in my quiver for just such occaisions.

Monday and Tuesday:
I wasn't there but Dave shot an 8 pt Monday morning. Paul and Dave each shot a doe Tuesday afternoon. I think Jeff went home empty handed (which is rare).

All in all it was great as usual. 5 deer down, one yote. The weather was perfect, we ate great, and had great fellowship around the campfire. I've got pictures of my doe and Ty's doe and Dave is going to send me pics of the rest.

[NitroHunter]

Sounds like a pretty great trip, and it says a lot about you as a hunter for hanging in there till you found the doe.
Now it's time for Dalton to start laying the smack down!

[mr4pt]

For some reason, we get a kick out of bloodtrialing deer, it's almost like the camp was not as fun without a few late night bloodtrails.

[mr4pt]

and you are right about Dalton. Our ML season opens this weekend and he is getting that look in his eyes.