My 2011 Kansas Deer Story

[Huck]

My 2011 Kansas deer story starts back in March of 2011.  I had been interested in getting a R/D longbow for a while, ever since I had shot my cousins J. K. Traditions Kanati.  My wife and I were getting some tax money back from Uncle Sam so I started looking on Tradgang hoping to find a good deal.  I came across Mike Gerardi’s add for a 58” Super Shrew Samurai.  It was 60# @ 28” which would make it about 57# at my 27” draw, perfect, just what I was looking for.  I sent Mike a PM and then a money order and it arrived via U.S. Mail a week or so later.

I liked my new bow, it was good looking and shot just like I wanted it to.  It was a little different than shooting my Morrison recurve, I struggled with it for a while, shooting it off and on thru the summer.  Around August I got serious about it, I quit shooting my recurve and shot the Shrew only.  I figured out I needed to grip it a little tighter than a recurve, that helped, and then I got some different arrows with a little lighter spine and that helped out even more.  By mid September my shooting had improved and I was confident that I could kill a deer with it.

The Kansas Archery season opened up on September 19th this year, but between my work schedule and my family (my wife Shelly and I have 5 wonderful children) I didn’t get a chance to get out until the end of October.  I wasn’t worried about it, I had taken off November 9th thru the 18th for vacation and I planned to hunt hard then.  On the few times I did manage to get out between October 26th and the 30th, I had intended to shoot a doe if one walked by.  I seen deer each time I went out but had no shots.

I was ready to get some hunting in when my November vacation finally arrived.  I was excited about a new stand I had hung on a pinch point connecting several ridges way back on some public ground close by my house.  The ridge ran SSW to NNE so I needed a north to west wind to hunt the spot.  You could get there by walking but it would take you a good hour and a half and you would scare half or more of the deer you where there hunting in the process.  The best entry was to paddle a canoe across the lake about a half mile or so and then climb right up and into the stand.  

The wind was from the NW on November 10th so I got up early and paddled across the lake in the dark and got into the stand about 45 min before sunrise.  I just knew it was going to be a good day…

More to come later.
Huck

[Bryan pinick]

Sounds good already.....  

[rastaman]

[Huck]

It was November 10th, it was a cool clear morning, the wind was steady out of the NW, and I was sitting in a new stand I hung in a pinch point I had found the previous February while scouting.  I was bow hunting again! It felt good!

 I had a great day in the stand just watching the endless parade of deer go by.  I passed up 11 or 12 does and had 3 small bucks come by but nothing that I was ready to put my tag on.  Paddling back across the lake that night I couldn’t wait to get back in that stand.

As it always seems the weather doesn’t want to cooperate.  The wind changed that night to a southerly direction and stayed there thru the end of my vacation.  On Monday, November 14th it was out of the NW early but changed to SW before midday so I didn’t get another chance to hunt that stand.

I do have several stands set up for a SW wind, we seem to get a lot of them during archery season.  I had hung a stand on my neighbor Joan’s place at the end of September.  Joan lives about half a mile south of my house.  She’s an elderly lady who never married and has lived in the same house since she was two.  Her and her brother Dave split the property after their parents pasted, Joan got the old house and 30 acres and Dave got 35 acres.

Joan’s property is mostly pasture ground.  It is sloped a bunch from south to north, falling close to 100 feet in elevation in a quarter of a mile.  The southern half if pretty rough and has several intersecting hedge rows and a good pond.  I hung my stand in a good tree overlooking a little flat area covered in CRP grass next to the south fence.  The ground fell off quickly to the NE so it was perfect for a morning hunt with a SW wind.  There is a wood lot that goes east and west along the ridge top to the south and down to the fence on the property line.  I couldn’t hunt the woodlot because it was on the adjoining property, but there were several trails that crossed into the flat area and I found several deer beds on the flat area as well.

I hunted that stand once in October and almost got a shot at a fat old doe but she didn’t take that last step I needed.  I hunted it the mornings of Friday and Saturday the 11th and 12th of November.  I saw deer both mornings and passed on a young 8 pointer there on Saturday.  I hunted other stands I had up the rest of the week without taking a shot, passing on several small bucks.  I did see a 3 ½ year old 10 pointer in the evening of Thursday, November 17 but he didn’t come any closer than 60 yards.  

I work nights, 12 hour shifts from 6pm to 6am, and I was scheduled to return to work on the evening of Friday, November 18th.  I got up that morning to a hard blowing SW wind, I almost didn’t go hunting but I thought I better go cause I was scheduled for the next 5 nights and had plans for Thanksgiving so it would be my last chance before rifle season starts…


More later.
Huck

[mmisciag]

Huck,

Nice writting... Not sure what is going to happen for you but I hope it is good. (:

Martin

[Big Ed]

[Shan]

[wapiti792]

[steadman]

Great story telling. It was a pleasure to meet you while I was out there Huck.

[snakebit40]

[Altiman94]

I'm really enjoying this story!  Can't wait to hear more!

[Bernie B.]

This story has to have a harvested deer at the end...right?  I'm looking forward to checking back.

Bernie Bjorklund

NC Iowa/SW Wisconsin

[Huck]

The wind was howling that morning, blowing at 25mph gusting up into the mid and upper 30’s.  I decided to go to my stand on Joan’s again, I hadn’t hunted it in 5 days and it was good for the wind.  I climbed up about 40 minutes before daylight and I was glad to have a harness on.  The wind was blowing and moving all the trees around including the one my stand was in.  I sat seeing nothing move and decided to rattle a little at about 8:30.  I grabbed my rattle bag and hit it as hard as I could for about two minutes.  I put it back into my pack and turned back around and caught movement to my north coming up the hill.

It turned out to be a little 4 pointer so I grabbed my camera instead of my bow.  I started taking pictures of bucks I didn’t shoot a couple years ago just for fun.  I took a few pics and then I hear something running thru the wood lot to the south.  I turn and see a doe running down hill with a good buck on her tail!

The doe came to a stop pretty much straight south of me in the wood lot.  I only caught a glimpse of the buck as he went on past her and behind some trees.  He was definitely a shooter buck, I could tell he was wide, heavy, and I thought I saw a drop tine.  They milled around in the wood lot for long while, eating and looking around, take a few steps and eat and look around.  The whole time this is going on the little 4 pointer is frozen about 30 yards NW of my stand, he’s just standing there watching the doe and the buck.

The doe finally feeds down and crosses the fence and starts feeding on the flat area out in front of me.  The buck crosses the fence SE of me and watches the doe and the little buck.  I have no shot because he is in some thick stuff, I need him to move about ten more yards out into the open.  The doe moves a little again and the buck comes in and stops a few steps short of a clear shot.  There is a big old hedge tree in front of him now, if he goes to the south side of it I have no shot. If he passes it on the north side he will walk right out giving me a shot at about 14 yards.  I almost couldn’t believe my luck as I watched him step to the north side of the tree.  I’m thinking “Wow, am I really going to get a shot at this buck?”

He stops next to the tree watching the doe and little buck, he’s quartered towards me pretty good, I need him to take another step or two.  He stands there for a minute then takes two steps and stops, still looking at the little buck.  I slowly turn a little, bring my Shrew bow up, and pick a spot tight behind the shoulder.  I can remember starting to draw, concentrating on my spot, hitting anchor and the string slipping off my fingers…


More later.
Huck

[snakebit40]

This is the second story in two days that I've been following and the writer drags it out      Can't wait for the rest of it! Bring it on!!! Thanks for sharing      

[Huck]

He jumps the fence in two bounds and heads straight west along it.  I see the fletched end of my arrow sticking out about ten inches right behind the shoulder as he clears the fence.  Two more bounds and the arrow is gone, broke off as he passes a tree.  He makes it about 35 yards and I can remember second guessing my shot. “Why was the arrow sticking out?  It looked a little low? How much penetration did I get?”  Just then, at about 40 yards he stops and turns a little.  I can see the exit hole low and back a ways, still in the ribs.  He stands for just a few seconds and stumble and falls.   I can remember thinking “HOLY @#&%! I JUST KILLED THE BEST BUCK OF MY LIFE!”

I sit down and watch him.  He tries to get up a couple of times then is still.  The doe and little buck are still close.  They both move over by where my buck is laying dead, the doe gets nervous and moves on to the east up through the timber.  The little buck gets closer, he gets a nose full of my buck, snorted and takes off back down the hill.

Sitting there I’m so excited, I grab my phone a send out a text to my wife, kids, and a few friends.  I wait about 15 minutes and then climb down, put my gear away and go to where he was standing when I shot him.  I don’t need to blood trail him, I know where he’s laying but I curious about the blood trail and I want to find my arrow.  I find the back half of my arrow just over the fence.  The blood trail is good, blowing out both sides.

I get to my buck and I am excited.  My best buck ever.


 

 

 

 

He’s a main frame 8 pointer with an extra point next to his right brow tine, he has a kicker off his left G2, and a 5 inch drop tine off his left main beam.  

He must have been slightly quartered too me when I shot him because my arrow entered just behind the near shoulder and angled back, exiting about 4 ribs back.  The Wensel Woodsman Broad head was sticking out the far side about ½ an inch.  I grabbed the broadhead and pulled it on through.  Later when gutting him I checked and I hit both lungs and caught the top edge of his heart.

I ran home to get my wife so she could take some pictures, and I wanted to get my youngest boy to help me “find” my deer.  CJ is 3, and he loves to shoot his bow.  He was so excited about helping me “find your buck!”

It was fun seeing his reaction when we got to my buck.  He wasn’t quite sure what to think about it at first. He was a little hesitant then he got over that and I think he was almost as excited about it as I was.  It was a great day that will live on in my memories for a long time.

Here in Kansas we only get one buck tag, and I was extremely happy to hang it on this deer.  So it looks like my season is pretty much over, I will get out a few more times and try to fill a doe tag.  My oldest boy David is 15 and wants to shoot a deer with his bow this year so I’ll get to do a little hunting with him, and Matthew my 12 year old wants to shoot his first deer this year as well, only he’ll be using a rifle.

Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed it.
Huck

[kennym]

Excellent all around Huck! Bow,deer writing,takin the kids huntin!        

[Whip]

What a buck!  Great story, great shot, and a set of antlers to keep those memories burning fresh for the rest of your life.
Congratulations!!

[Altiman94]

Huck, great buck!  I'd be happy to hang my tag on him too!  Where did you get that vest?  I'm looking for the exact same one!

[Montanawidower]

double wow!  that's huge buck in my book.  Congrats

[steadman]

Congrats Huck! A great buck