Home Range Change For Hunting Prep - pics/vids hvy - added more pics 10/06

[ber643]

I went out last night and shot a dzn out of my climber - I HAD THE WORST  eve of shooting i've had since mid-summer - and maybe since I switched to all trad. Ya'think maybe I got pre-season jitters - LOL? Anyway, during those 12 I had three PERFECT shots, and knew they were/would be, so whatever it was, I knew without a doubt that it was just me. What a time for it to happen though. When I climbed down to get my arrows, I decided to shoot some off the ground (to salve my wounded ego, and confidence). I wasn't on top of my game but at least did enough better to ward off the jitters - LOL. I think I just attempted to climb/shoot too soon after gorging myself on Pizza - but what a shocker, two days before season opener. If I feel good about it tonight, I'll try it again - to get myself squared away again - I hope     :D   If not, I'll just stop thinking about it        .

[ber643]

Well, believe it or not, I did get a deer this morning - even though it was white, and had been shot a few times:

   

So far it's the only one I've seen since the season started here - LOL

I got it at a second hand store we go to on a regular basis, for $10.00 It's called a Monster Tough Bag and is painted similar (deer body W/vitals) to my smaller bag targets. I placed it on my range, in front of the old, dry foam tgt w/ the two round spots (that I don't like to shoot at very often anyway), which helps to support it. At least for now. Not that I really needed another target but, like I said before, the variety is great. Besides it is in good shape and was too good a deal to pass up.    :D

[ber643]

This afternoon I got a bright idea, and took a pair of old, too short, camo, Carbon arrows that I've had around for years, installed small, sharp, 85 gr field tips on them. Then I put them down trough the grommets in the top, corners of the "new" bag tgt. and shoved them about 4 inches down into the top of the old foam target to help hold the bag in place. Seems to work pretty good.

 

[ber643]

I got up in the climber this evening and shot at the new bag and the big round foam target with the deer painted on. Six shots at each - missed the kill zone once on both/each. Made me feel pretty good overall (after the other evening's "poorest of all summer" performance).

[ber643]

Well, I have something else to show you - but first I want to add this picture of the new (large) bag target, taken from the perspective of the shooter, on the ladder stand:

 

(Back in a minute)

[ber643]

Would you believe - today I got my second "Deer" of the season (seems I'm stuck in a rut - a pretty good rut though because at least I'm having fun).

This deer my wife got me for my birthday. I know, she got 1/2 of my ladder stand for my birthday but I didn't know she had the deer back when I started redoing my range. neither of us knew at that time that the tower was going to have to come down then. Yesterday she surprised me with this little feller (still early for my Birthday in Oct., but that's the way she is can't stand to keep someone's gift until it's time - LOL - besides she figured she'd better give it to me before i ran out of space). He must be the runt of the litter but has a huge rack - LOL. I put him back behind the "Doe" on the first part of the range:

   

Oh-oh! When I got up on the ladder stand to take a pic of this update, it became obvious the Runt's big rack was blocking any shot (from there) at the pig beyond him:

   

Soooo - I moved the big rack to the "former" doe and gave her/him a sex change         . Then I took some old broken 3D "antlers" and made a fork horn out of the "newbie" little guy:

   

He didn';t seem to mind because he had a big protector in his "bachelor buck group" now - LOL.

Now this is how that part of the range looks from the shooter's perspective on the ladder stand. The fork horns do still block the pigs head but I don't want to hit there anyway. I may move the newbie backwards a couple or so inches though - just to protect his new antlers - LOL:

   

I did some shooting from the ground this evening and all 12 shots were great, except one, and it could have worked out OK. Didn't shoot at the newbie yet, as I didn't want to shake his new headgear loose - LOL

("Cold front" coming in tonight but it was still above 90 today. One of these fine days I'm gonna get out and get a real, live deer to report though - I hope, I hope, Ihope, ihope, ihope .....................)

[GRINCH]

Good luck Bernie.

[ber643]

Thanks, Larry, looks like cooler but perhaps lot of showers during the coming days - we'll see - LOL

[Don Batten]

feels good out there this am Bernie. Hey I just noticed Lee Hinton's post on here about the rig that holds the ladder stand to the tree. I remember exactly where you saw one. It was at the guilford bowhunters club house. the shoot that you and I went to a few summers back. Had to run out of a thunderstorm and hangout in the club house for a while. That's where we saw that rig and alot of nice whitetail mounts as well. Good luck on your hunting. DB

[ber643]

Yep, Don, and I got to thinking about that too, and wondering if that wasn't it, because Lee was there too and I believe he took me back into the clubhouse and introduced me to the guy that had/made it. Thanks for verifying my fuzzy memory - LOL

Thanks for the good wishes, buddy. This evening should be a good time to go out for sure. I was just out putting a little more glue (5 min epoxy) around The little fork horn's antlers, and I could swear my old, scarred thumb started getting cold - would you believe it?   (It reacts badly to "cold" weather)    :rolleyes:

[ber643]

Finally got out hunting last evening (cold front) but all I saw was one little Vole messing around in the forest floor litter, right beside my chair - but he didn't stay around me very long. Cute little feller.

[ber643]

I was pretty busy yesterday and today but this evening I just had to get out and shoot a little. Since the new little Fork horn is my first ever NEW 3D target, I decided I should record the first shot on him, while I was at it.

From 14-15 yards:

 

Then I decided to go on and record the first group (not so good as a consistent group but good hits anyway - and the newbie is now christened as a bona fide member of the range - holes and all):

 

[broketooth]

tear it up bernie

[ber643]

LOL - keeps me from thinking so much about wishing I had a good, close place to hunt, Ruddy. I'm probably safer at home anyway - and I certainly get to shoot more arrows    

[ber643]

BTW, it turns out that the Pugnacious little buck with the big rack is a new McKenzie target, called "Lil Mack", instead of all the names that I've called him here - FYI - and I think my wife (and one of my cats) have fallen in love with him    

[ber643]

Another change to the Home Range. In order to have my climbing stand free for hunting (if I need/want it), today I hung my loc-on (and strap on ladders) to the Sweet Gum tree that I had the climber on. Here's a couple pics taken from two sides of it. It is a little higher than I used the climber, so I had to cut a couple more branches from the Swee'gum.