A Fine Opener!

[kennym]

 This is gonna be good!!

[imskippy]

Oh yeah. Liking the way it looks so far. How high do you climb? it looks pretty high from the vid?

[IB]

Dang Curt....I think the problem MIGHT BE, your so high up in the tree, it's taking longer for the picture to get back to your camera, THEN to photo BUCKET      You could hunt Ducks with a rake at that altitude......Keep it commin

[leatherneck]

Ahh the Sunday afternoon story.  

[Guru]

Well good, I'm glad it works, but unfortunately, I can't get the others to load, so it's going to have to be pix....

I'm about 18ft. at the platform. The video makes it look like I'm way higher....

Not 15 minutes later, and from exactly the same spot the spike appeared, I see more movement. Before I even pick up the Leica's and I see a rack!

I check him out quick, and say to myself, "8pt and he's gonna die"! I grad my bow off the screw-in hook. Now I have two big scrapes off to my right, and although the spike paid no attention to them, I thought this guy might, so I waited to commit to any direction to shoot.

 He did just as the spike and was walking right by them. As he got closer, I was now on the fence about shooting. I saw he wasn't an 8 pt. as I had thought. He was a 3x3 with one short brow that might make an inch amking him a 7pt., only about 14in. wide, and short tined.Stout, but not real big bodied.....a real nice 2 1/2 yr. old buck.

 He poked his way by at 12yds.,I honestly was having a hard time deciding to shoot him.My head was spinning trying to decide....

It's amazing how fast thing flash thru one's mind at a time like this.....

"It's only opening day/but it sure would be nice to have a decent buck this early"

"You have two buck tags/fill one then hold out for a big one"

"You have pix and know about some other bucks that are much bigger"

"You just got a pic of much bigger buck not far from here"
 

All this and more as he was only 12yds away and walking by. In the end I just listened to my heart and hung my bow and quickly grapped my camera out of my pocket.....

That's when he stopped at the scape and put on a show......

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Like I said, the vid's won't load, but I got him working that scrape....

  So as you know now, the blood wasn't his. But again, I knew my ruse was working, I just needed a bigger buck.....or a doe    

[Guru]

I eventually lose sight of him as he headed off eating acorns.....

A few minutes after he goes out of site, I hear a little commotion, then hear a grunt, then as I look over ,I see a doe bolt out of some thick stuff. Seconds later a flash of antler behind her!  

 "Good buck"!

They head away, and I immediatly grunt to try to stop them. They are about 50yds away and going further out.  But then I see the doe curl back and head toward me, and the buck was behind her!

 Heart pounding now, I again try to check the buck out with my bino's....it's was the same 7pt.....

So now I knew I wasn't going to shoot him, but her......that was another story, she was in trouble if she came close enough!

Problem was she was a little edgy as she was coming from where I'd walked in. I'd come in from the right way, she wasn't supposed to come from that direction. I'd figured any deer walking over there would have already walked by me. So if they spooked, no biggie. But here she was, poking along, cautious, but with the buck behind her....she kept coming.

As she got to about 30yds. and was still coming I slid my hand into the grip of "Timex"......

[Tim Kosteczko]

Very interesting .., u have my full attention

[KentuckyTJ]

Deer tease!

[sleepingbear]

come on now

[BowHuntingFool]

Yes, very interesting.... bummer, I gotta go to work for a little while!

[BrianO]

Waiting on this story is like waiting for next years deer season.  

[Tim]

Great stuff Curt!

[Guru]

She kept coming and as she was passing behind the same triple trunk tree the spike and 7pt walked by, I started to draw and made a soft grunt with my voice....she never hesitated.....

As she angled away the big Snuffer took her in the back of the ribs, and she was behind the big trees in a flash. But before she disappeared, I could she blood instantly gushing out. She crashed off thru stuff no deer in a "normal" state of mind would think about going thru.....

 There was no doubt about the outcome of this one. I looked with my bino's and could see the start of a profuse trail......here comes the 7pt.......

 But once again he got a free pass. But don't think for a second the thought of doubling up didn't enter my mind      

 I could have shot him at the same exact spot as I did her as he was scent trailing her steps.....

When he finally left....I packed up, and heading down the tree with the Lone Wolf. By the time I got all set, it was about dark.

Had it have been during the day, I wanted to get the whole blood trail on video as I walked. I wanted to show how a razor sharp Snuffer empties out a deer. But with the brush she'd run thru, my camera in one hand, and my Main Beam flash light in the other....it would have been too difficult to get good video.

 But I did take few pix, but they don't really do this trail justice....
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 The arrow, an old CX Terminator 60/75(from Hot Hap in the white elephant exchange), with a a 285 grain Snuffer, and a total arrow weight of 630 grains. Somehow the arrow shaft split and I lost the insert ans Snuffer. When I picked up the arrow I figured I must have stuck it in the opposite leg. But later on I'd find that I never touched the off leg. Only thing I can figure was that it hit a rock on the far side as she squatted down at impact....I'll have to go look for it....

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 Finish up in a few minutes.......

[tarponnut]

Awesome! I'll be hunting the great state of NY in two weeks!

[Owlgrowler]

Nice!!  Good shot

[RC]

Good deal Guru!! Enjoyed the hunt and pics. You got more restraint than I do. I`da gaffed the 7 point as a first buck of the year ....and double.Great hunt.RC

[bigbellybuck]

Sweet!

[BCWV]

Good deal! Loved the story and the pictures.

[twitchstick]

Great story and pics.  

[Guru]

Thanx guys...

Robert, I've passed up some way bigger deer in the mid-west, but I believe that might be the biggest I've ever passed in NY....

Because the Snuffer had passed thru her at an angle, the angular cut made by the big BH was amazing....check out the exit.....

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"Timex", my 63# Kempf Kwyk Styk, the CX/Snuffer combo described earlier, Sitka Gear clothing...equals one happy hunter!  A bit of redemption from my morning dabacle'\\....

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While field dressing it wasn't hard to follow the angular path the Snuffer cut. Huge cut thru the liver, just nicked the back/bottom of near lung, then layed the heart right open...shoul;d have taken a picture. But I was in "get this deer home" mode.....

  So, like I started out with, things weren't what they may seem. So sorry to disappoint if you were thinking I'd shot the buck.

But in the end, I'm happy with my decision not to shoot the 7pt, happy to have a great experience watching him,getting some pix and video, and very happy to get some meat in the freezer.

I have a lot more tags to fill