5 Pines Farm Whitetails 2014

[LITTLEBIGMAN]

outing 43 the Andy Ivy Stand.
 
 red line is the logging road, red arrow wind and blue anticipated deer movement

No one has hunted this ridge stand for almost a month. I took Dave up to my stand ( 11) and doubled back to #15.

Very warm today. 50 degrees F! We walked up the ridge in our undies and in a fog so thick I almost got lost.!  I am sure Dave was wondering where the hell I was leading him.

At first there was no wind and then the forecasted Southerly kicked in. I kept expecting the fog to blow off the bluff top, but I could see no more then 25 yards the entire time I was on stand.

The Bard owls were very talkative today. Their catawalling was very comical. They started out above me on the ridge and slowly moved my way. There were at least 3 maybe 4. Eventually they were in the trees all around me. Heard them fly in and saw the shadow of one. One deer started snorting from my company's direction but I saw no deer once again and did not jump any on my return hike home.

The mornings views looked like this.
 
 

[pitbull]

Jim, your property is a slice of heaven on earth, I feel a buck coming soon!    

[LITTLEBIGMAN]

outing #44   Yurt stand

I had every intention of heading up top and trying some decoying out of the 90 degree stand. But it was so hot and there was a fine mist of rain in the air. The weather forecast was not calling for rain but I decided I would hunt close to home in the event it got any wetter.

 

Close to the yurt at the base of the steep bluff, on a wide contour trail are two hang ons.

One for me and one for right handers.

The orange lines are the three deer trails that intersect just below the stand. The shot is only about 12 yards but steep.

I had just climbed up and was fooling around with my seat cushion when I spotted a doe standing just 50 yards away!. Darn! She didn't stand there long!

The mist eventually stopped but it stayed overcast for the remainder of the day . About an hour before sunset , I started using my grunt tubes. I have a soft one and a loud one. I do a loud grunt followed by a couple of soft grunts about every 20 minutes. Just before last light the wind was almost zero and I made a single loud grunt.

I heard a stick crack to the south and  instantly made out the body of a deer coming towards me on the top most trail. A 2.5 year old 8 point was slowly coming my way. A very nice deer but not one that I want to kill quite yet.

The thermals busted me any way before he got even close to the shooting spot. He stopped short at about 20 yards. Then he reversed directions. I gave him a couple of softer grunts and he stopped and looked around. When he started to move again , I decided to send him running hoping another and larger buck might be near by. So I gave him a wheeze and he busted out of there like he was kicked in the rear.

I followed the wheeze with some more soft grunts but nothing else was coming to the call.

I think this spot has real potential but I believe I will move the stand one tree over and keep it lower to the ground so that the shot angle is not so severe. The hill is so steep here that if I am only 8 feet up in this next tree it will put me at least double that over the deer's head.

The shot distance will still be no more than 15 yards and I think this other tree is also a little more our of the deer's line of sight. I'll shoot some pictures tomorrow.

[Cyclic-Rivers]

Looking Good Jim. Neat encounter with the Buck.

[wislnwings]

I really enjoy following along as your season progresses.  Thanks for taking the time to post and allow us to tag along.

[CoachBGriff]

Good luck Jim.  We are supposed to be getting a cooler front coming through this week here in Missouri, so I imagine you all will be getting one soon too!

I hope it brings you some movement.  Thanks for keeping the thread updated and going!  Lots of us thoroughly enjoy it!

[CoachBGriff]

double post

[LITTLEBIGMAN]

outing #45  logging road ladder.

Just a little further up the deer trail from where I called in last nights buck is another stand which is new this year. I sat in it once earlier this season. You will recall that I hung a portable in it after the last hunt. That worked out well, but the morning passed with out any deer being seen.

I am happy to report that I can shoot all the way to the logging road! Here is a picture from when I retrieved my practice arrow on the way out. The stand is in the center of the frame.
 

[LITTLEBIGMAN]

outing #46  No stand hunted off the ground.

Last night a friend sat in the hay bale. He had 2 small bucks and 5 does in the green field but could not get a shot.

They came down this trail from the timber and stayed on the far south east end of the field.
 

So I decided since we had a wind out of the NW, that I would carry a chair down and just sit in the corn south of the green field.
 
the hay bale is #3 . I sat six rows into the corn at the star

[LITTLEBIGMAN]

I cut two shooting lanes.
 

About 4pm that Button buck that I see every time I sit here showed up. He ate for a while but then a gust of wind scared him back down into the creek bottom. At 5 pm he returned. He fed all over the green field. Twice he went past me at 12 to 15 yards. He looked at me several times but did not make me out.  I couldn't see up the hill and I relied on his body language to tell me if more deer were coming into the food plot.

At 5:30 he was clearly watching something up the hill. I slowly turned my head and spotted a doe standing at about 40 yards up the hill on the middle trail . Then she moved forward and another doe was right behind her.

They entered the green field and turned left and headed straight at me. The first doe walked to the edge of my first shooting lane and stared at me head on . She knew something was out of place. I should have sat deeper in the rows of corn.

She slowly turned to her right and approached the 2nd shooting lane. I came to full draw.  She stopped just short of the lane. I decided to shoot between two corn stalks. Very stupid decision.

At the release I could see my arrow nicked one of the stalks of corn. The arrow struck the deer and I swear I saw blood in the air! But I had no idea where my arrow had hit her! She spun , made it to edge of the field and fell down! Only to leap right back up and tear off up into the old pasture hill side.

[LITTLEBIGMAN]

I waited about 15 minutes and crept out to the green field. I found a few flecks of red where she was standing when I hit her. I walked the edge of the field until I found more blood and was sure of which trail in the grass she flew away on.  I then went to the yurt to wait for my two hunters to come in from their hunts.

We returned 2 hours later. We picked our way thru 50 yards of waist high grass by spotting a red drop here and a red drop there. She was doing us a favor by staying on a heavy deer trail running on this lower end of the hill. Clearly moving fast. Finally the blood improved. I still had no idea where my arrow had hit her.  The blood got seriously heavy and then there was just a stream of blood in the grass and then there she was.

 

I am still finding this hard to believe. My arrow shaft was broken off an inch behind the broad head and lying next to her. The broad head was lodged 2 inches below her left ear in her neck! The vpa cut her jugular!

An irresponsible shot resulted in a deer that was dead in seconds! A very lucky deflection to say the least.

I think I am done doe hunting till December and will now focus on killing a good buck!

[Benny Nganabbarru]

Mate, you're like a general with all your battle plans and intel! Great job, nice deer!

[pitbull]

Very nice doe! Congrats!  

[steadman]

Congrats bud  

[Homey88]

Nice job,big doe, congrats!

[Whip]

We all strive to do things right every time but we thank Lady Luck when she chooses to smile!  Congratulations Jim!

[Kopper1013]

Congrats glad it worked out for the better

[wapiti792]

Jim sometimes adrenalin and "want to" makes us her slave! You did the responsible thing (as always) and followed her up, giving her time.  Alls well that ends well, toast her with a little red wine and enjoy the gift. The kind of work you put in, heck you earned it    

[Biathlonman]

I'd rather be lucky then good!

[tracker1]

Congrats on another nice doe