I've had a really slow season this year, up until this past week anyways, when I started hunting an area that I just scouted on Tuesday. I'm finally seeing deer........last night I saw a deer about 80 yards away, and walking away. I grunted at it and the next thing I know he is on a dead run up the hill to me. He ran behind and past me, then cicled to my right. I bleated him to a stop, there was a ten inch diameter tree right at the back edge of his lungs.......I drew and aimed, the last thing I said to myself was.......yup...."Don't shoot that tree". Guess where my Snuffer hit? Yup, I center punched that tree, and the small spike walked off none the wiser.
Fast forward to this morning......at 7:30 I am in the same stand when I see a deer over my left shoulder, nice doe I say to myself.......then, "whoa, nice buck right beside her." The buck was a 135ish ten point, except that his right antler was broken off at the base. I watched as she led him by me at 35 yards, he stopped broadside and rubbed a tree with the broken nub of an antler, and they walked off. Shortly after, the spike from last night followed them into the thicket, there was a ruckus and the spike came running out and up the hill.
An hour later I here some sticks breaking and shortly after here they come again 40 yards to my right. They walk away up the hill, and the doe stops in an opening. Her tail is straight out and cocked to the left and she is pink and wet. I'm pretty sure that he had just bred her in that thicket.
I believe everything happens for a reason, if I had killed that spike last night I never would have had the opportunity to see what I saw this morning. We don't often get to see this type of behavior in New Hampshire........I will do my best to kill that buck, but if I don't I will always remember this morning.
David
Topic: "The Sun Never Sets on a Snuffer........." (Read 428 times)
