Oct 4th, the first day of the year I get to hunt with my father. For the last 35 plus years we been tramping the dirt fields, leaf cover timbers and flinging arrows here in Southeast Iowa together. This year I have a special lady for which to share those same woods with, but unfortunately she had to work. We woke up around 5am had coffee and she ran me down to my fathers and dropped me off. Dad and I hit the woods around 6:25am I decided to walk a ways to a spot on the back of the farm. I normally hunt from the ground since I have a back problem but this time it was the ladder stand. Quietly I snuck up to it since it's next to a bedding area and layed my walking stick against a tree. Climbed up the stand and hung my bag and Lakota quiver on the hook. Grabbed a 28” wooden arrow and nocked it on my bow. Sitting there in the dark it felt good to be back in the woods finally. Sounds of small animals walking around and the day coming alive to me is like no other feeling. As the sun came up the birds started to greet each other and crows noisily gathered for their morning breakfasts. To my left is a small creek surrounded by head high trees and brush along it's banks. On the other side of the creek a big grassy area where I have kicked up several times a nice big buck. Out front of me is a small clearing going along the creek to a bigger creek. To my left is the pasture and a pond about a hundred yards away. Around 7:30 a huge Redtail hawk lands in a tree in front of me. Hello there Mr Hawk! He either is looking at my exposed face or the squirrel playing in the tree. Hoping it was the tree rat and not my face. Been there before and about got a tattoo (scars) to prove it. Been lucky in the Hawk dept. Always been close to them as they hold a special meaning to me.. I like to think that every time one comes close to me it has a meaning or message for me. What ever pops in my mind is usually what I take from him. This time it was “enjoying life now Vic” uhhh yes!! all the sudden a pack of coyotes start yipping and howling. What the heck?? I've hunted those yotes for years and only one time before have I heard them howling this late in the morning. 8am. The hawk screams out in a answer.. than a lone coyote howls back hundred yards or so behind me from the north. The hawk screams out again in answer. Then flies towards the area the pack howled from... hunters communicating I guess. At 8:30 a flock of geese fly over me singing their way southward. As they got out of sight I sensed something behind me, turning slowly I spot a small doe walking across the pasture to the pond for a drink. I watch her drink for a while and than I hear something to my left. Three does going from the bedding area down to the creek. I hear a grunt! But realize it's not a real grunt. Heck Dads down there along the creek in his stand. I wondered where he was? The biggest doe had to be close to him? Whack! Here comes the doe right at me. After 35 years of hard labor dad can no longer use his regular bows and uses a x one. She passed right on by me untouched. 9:30 a small deer was making it's way towards me from where Dad was along the big creek. Here he come, a small button buck right under me ten feet under my boots. I watch him walk off into the bedding area and lay down. Finally the Iowa winds start to crank up and the morning is well on it's way. Again I hear Dad grunting on his grunt call. This time a Buck answers him to my left from the bedding area. Ever time Dad called the Buck answered. But he wouldn't come out of that brushy patch... I sat there until 10am wind blowing and birds singing but no more deer movement. Finally Dad came walking up the clearing to me and I harassed him about missing that doe. He had hit a limb, guess all bows have that problem once in a while.. Walking out with our walking sticks together talking about the morning felt better than shooting any Booner on my wall. Last night hunted a clover field, sat in a brush pile and not one animal showed itself..
Topic: Any luck Iowans? (Read 801 times)
