Well Friday was the last day of the Mississippi deer season. Tom Pittman aka Spurs and myself set out that morning morning in hopes of getting one more shot before the season closed. The morning hunt was rather uneventful and with highs in the 60s it did not look to promising for the afternoon either. Never the less we headed out for an the afternoon.
Well I was in the tree waiting on go at about 2:30. Well a couple hours went by of me starring at the pics of mine and Toms Talltines risers that Brian was working on. I also PM'd Mantitoba stickflinger to see if he was still lovind his 58"TT. I began to think back on the season. All the highs and the lows; with anticipation of the 4:45-5:15 getting ever so close. Then I get a text from my other buddy got a nice PY opossum coming in should I shoot him. It is now 4:50, I say heck no but I would go ahead and stand up at 5:10 and be ready.
Not long after that I get a text deer coming in from Dow. Then I get one from Tom got two damn wild dogs running all over me. I am thinking great no doubt they are gonna run by me. Tom says I'm getting down. I asked him which way they were headed he said toward you.
Great last day ruined by dogs. About 2 seconds later 2 does come flying by me at about 50 yards. Then I hear a noticeably different gate and some heavy panting, The Damn Dog. He runs to my right opposite of the deer then crashes through a big creek and headed off. I was pissed. I sat there for probably 10 minutes. Heck with it I'm bailing out maybe I can find one to stalk before dark. Hooked bow up and lowered it to the ground. Undid my safety belt and my limiting straps on my lonewolf. Climbed down one time.
Then it happened I heard footsteps coming from the same way the dog had left. It was a deer i reached for my pullup rope started bringing bow back up. I see the body coming it looks big. DAMN!! bow gets hung on limb(always lower feathers up makes it hard to get it back up without a snag) Oh know I see him its the 10. I pulled bow hard it made racket and he froze looking my way. Here he comes. I got bow in hand, untied it, and knocked an arrow.
He is gonna skirt me at 50 I am sick. He walks all the way by me, he hits the trail the 2 does had run through on. He stops, he turns and he is walking on a trail that would take him by me at 27-30 yards. Well now we got problems. I have a limb on the tree and I cannot draw to get a shot on that trail because I am to close the the tree. I cannot ease out to the end of foot platform because my sit and climb top is in the way.
I decide I have to step over the sitting bar. One leg over, He's coming getn close 35 yards. Got to get left leg over, YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME, I am pegged bow in left, and my right leg up like I have a little captain morgan in me. He looks long enough to make me feel like I am getting wobbly and going to fall out of tree. So I eased my right leg down to set it on top of the sit and climb bar. He is still looking, I see it the tail wag. For some reason he takes a dead left which will put him 17 yards dead in front of me if he takes 10 more steps.
Is this really about to happen I am thinking. 25 Minutes left of Daylight on the last day of deer season. Well here he comes!!! I start to draw, AHHH!!!! the wind switches I panic he jumps one big bound I get to draw pick a spot and loose the arrow . Hard 1/4 big game buried to feathers. He bolted like on a death run. He runs 80 or so yards then DEAD Silence. 10 seconds later I hear what I think is a crash. I sit until dark it is 5:35 when arrow was loosed. I ease down the tree and leave didn't look for blood.
Well I get to the camp and we all decide (with the exception of the novice) to wait until morning to track. I knew that the shot went in a little back and did not exit, so there would be very little if any blood.
The next morning Dow Tom and Myself walk to the spit he was standing. We ease the direction he ran find blood but very little. we start to track. Dow and I ease about 40 yards to the right. Anybody that has hunted Mississippi knows that some spots are thick as hair on a dogs back, and this spot was no different. Well no blood or tracks our way, I tell Dow I am going back to last blood.
Then I HEAR IT. I GOT HIM BOYS!!!! Tom had gone straight and found his profound stumbling tracks. There he was laying in the middle of one of the main camp Roads. He had only gone about 90 yards and the arrow was buried in his off shoulder. What a way to end the season With my best friend and a MISSISSIPPI TEN. The Honey Badger (Talltines 55@28 60" bocote and myrtle) had taken It's best buck of the year!!!