The only thing better would have been if fate would have taken him within range of one of my tribe.
When bucks advertise they attract the attention of more than just other deer.
The sign was/is there.
Scrapes are a favorite of mine. I sit over them hoping the buck will show, and they never do.
I`ve learned a bit. I personally think it`s better to shadow the scrapes...downwind from them. They usually just scent check them, unless it has rained.
I could not see the scrape(s) from my perch, but knew they were there. He came out of the thick stuff, and walked right to the first scrape. I could hear everything he was doing. On to the next...same thing, only this time I could see clumps of dirt and leaves flying. My twelve yr old was hiding on the ground about forty yards from the action. I figured he was going to bust out of hiding and run the bugger down at any moment.
Before I knew it, he was suddenly on a runway that would put him on a collision course with me.
At five yards he stopped to get a nose full of some cover scent I had put on a log. The angle was bad, quartering towards me a bit. I was only about ten feet up, hidden in a big poplar tree shrouded by some perfectly placed White pines.
He was so close, I could see his nose moving as he inhaled the scent. I knew I could make the shot, and my set-up would back me up. He was SO CLOSE!
My Magnus-1 plowed it`s way through everything vital, and lodged in the ground. 750 grains of arrow pushed by 73 lbs. He did his best to escape, but only made it 25 yards. In a few seconds, it was only the sound of the wind in the now barren trees. He lay at my feet amongst the fallen leaves.
Me and my boys talked and laughed and celebrated as we did the long drag back to the truck.
As I said, I would rather have the encounter go to them, but who is to argue with fate.
My fifteen yr old was having his own drama, as he had a buck bed within thirty yards of his Predator recurve, only to catch a whiff of human, and swiftly vanish.
The cover scent, "Evercalm" in stick form. Seemed to work.
I am thankful and proud of my/OUR National forests.
A big part of true freedom, is our ability to hunt.
I miss you Brian Krebs!
Topic: Tonights hunt (Read 477 times)
