Yeah, that thread by Guru a couple weeks ago when he hunted during gun season on his folks property kinda struck a cord with me. So, I decided to go back home myself this year on NJ's gun opener, back to where I grew up,back to where I built my first treestand at age 12, in 1968. Back to the place where I killed my first buck a year later. Back home.
Unlike Guru, I had to hunt solo, Dad's been gone for 4 years now, and my little guy is livin' large out in Wyoming. At least Mom is still there, living in her dream house they bought in 1950.
I had been scheduled to work today, but the boss told me to take the day off and that we'd start the new job Wed. Cool. I had been daydreaming about taking my recurve and hunting Turkey Hill on the 6-day firearm opener, and now I could.
It was forecasted to be in the 20's with a high of 34 today, not bad, except the wind. 20-30 mph with gusts to 40. Perfect. Mom's place sits in a little hole with a brook running through it.
I went there Sat. and checked it out.Not much sign anywhere. The spot up by the "holes" was where I was thinking I'd go. But. Man, down there on the "flat", close to where I had my original treestand, was talking to me. So I slept on it.We go over there every Sunday for dinner anyway, I'd set the stand up then.
The guy they bought the place from had planted a bunch of Norway spruce way back when. Perfect for a bowhunter to stand in in late fall. This is the one I picked out, it's about 50 yards from my first one.
See that opening to the right of the spruces closest to the road? Well, there used to be a maple tree there, that's were my old treestand used to be. My first buck came through the opening between the spruces,and dropped with a load of 00buck in the neck at ten yards.
Back to the present. I get in my stand well before daybreak, listen to the wind blowin' and reminice of opening days gone past. I think I finally figured out how to keep my feet warm. 2 pairs of wool socks, Schnee's warmest pacs, hand warmer packs on top of the boot toes which are now inside boot blankets. And I can still move around on the old Lone Wolf silently. I'm here for a day long sit.
It's just getting light enough to see and I decide to hang up the bow, move my pack down to one of the screw-in steps and take down my pull-up rope in case one comes in behind me. I sit back down- there's a deer out in front of me about 40 yards, ease up the binos, doe.
After a kind of disappointing fall bow season, I had decided that the first buck I get a chance at today is going down. Well, she's acting a bit jumpy, wind is swirling, I had just been making some movements/noise, who knows, maybe some other hunter bumped her out. She walks out of sight to my left.
A minute later, here comes 2 fawns. And a buck. Adreniline pours into my blood, I swear, as I get older, and that happens, my heart feels like it's going to blow!
So, they're all feeding, doing deer stuff, the buttonbuck is pretending to spar with the antlered buck, and they just keep heading my way.
They get to about 15 yards, the edge of the spruces to my left, no shot, and kind of hang up.Here comes the doe. Right in behind me. Hits my track and trails me right to my tree. But she keeps right on going. A couple minutes later the fawns leave the buck and join the doe. They all know something's up, but they aren't sure what it is.
He's still at 15 yards, blocked by branches, he takes a couple steps closer, stops. Then he jumps! runs a couple steps, stops at 10 yards. No shot. Here he comes, I start drawing back...
Topic: Inspired by Guru, hunted the old homestead (Read 1787 times)
