Post by take'em on Oct 6, 2012 21:40:39 GMT -5
Well, what a night! Not to be outdone by Croc, I headed into my stand yesterday afternoon for the evening sit. I had two dry does coming faithfully but I was after the one I'd named "Scar". Scar was a HUGE doe that I missed last year at 2 yards, straight down. Yes, I've practiced THAT shot many times since, lol! I nicked the side of her with my broadhead leaving a mark on her side. That's where the name came from. Anyway, this year the trail cam showed that she'd strapped on the feedbag and put on another 10lbs, dry again. From her size and grey colour, I could tell that she was an older deer and she'd make a great harvest where she wasn't reproducing anymore.
It was dead quiet in the woods, not a breath of wind. The odd leaf was falling and two quarreling squirrels were keeping me entertained. I had just positioned my camera for magic hour when I heard the rhythmic crunching of leaves behind me. From my vantage point 16' up, I saw motion out of the corner of my eye. Scar! I stood quietly and reached for my bow in slow motion. Seconds seemed like minutes as she cautiously approached. She'd take one careful step and scent the air, nose straight up, in an effort to detect anything unusual. As she got closer to my shooting lane, my heart was pounding out of my chest! There was one spruce tree (that will NOT be there in the future) in the way of a perfect broadside shot but I was patient and waited for those two extra steps. When she took that final step, her vitals were exposed and I came to full draw, picked my spot, took a deep breath and squeezed my release…
www.youtube.com/watch?v=znd2afcK0hE&feature=youtube_gdata_player
My ST Epic flew true and hit exactly where I'd aimed. The Meat Seeker performed flawlessly and punched an inch and a half hole through both lungs, a complete pass through! When the Quikfletch looks like this and the Nockturnal is lit up, it's a happy day…
I could see blood on the vanes from the stand and a good hit was confirmed by watching the video a few dozen times, lol! I climbed down after 20 minutes and after an easy tracking job of approximately 30 yards, I found my harvest. She was one of the largest does I'd ever seen, let alone shot…
With darkness setting in, I quickly gutted her and remembered a certain tracking job I helped Croc with on opening day. I was 2km back in the woods with a very large deer and last year's back injury (hauled a small buck out from the same spot last year after that foot of snow fell, compressing my sciatic nerve) fresh in my mind. Let's call Croc! Well, gawd love him, he drops his plans, packs up his new game cart, makes the 30 minute drive and navigates to me in the pitch black of night. THAT'S a friend indeed! We packed her up for the wheel out and off we went…
www.youtube.com/watch?v=xv8xPxIuITg&feature=youtube_gdata_player
Down the old road we went, Croc pulling and me navigating. When we came to the beaver pond, we simply lifted either end of the cart and waded through the knee-deep water until we came to the dam, lifted her up and over and from there, despite a rocky path, it was fairly smooth sailing until we got to the river which had to be crossed. I'd strung a hefty rope across the span a few weeks earlier so we clipped one end of the cart with a carabiner to the rope and carefully carried her across where my father was waiting with his truck. In the back she went and after a short drive, she was home in the garage. I'd like to thank Croc and my father for the help. They went beyond the call of duty. It was an adventure for sure and it was nice to see the practice paying off and a plan coming together. It was an incredibly satisfying harvest and an epic Croc and Take'em adventure!
It was dead quiet in the woods, not a breath of wind. The odd leaf was falling and two quarreling squirrels were keeping me entertained. I had just positioned my camera for magic hour when I heard the rhythmic crunching of leaves behind me. From my vantage point 16' up, I saw motion out of the corner of my eye. Scar! I stood quietly and reached for my bow in slow motion. Seconds seemed like minutes as she cautiously approached. She'd take one careful step and scent the air, nose straight up, in an effort to detect anything unusual. As she got closer to my shooting lane, my heart was pounding out of my chest! There was one spruce tree (that will NOT be there in the future) in the way of a perfect broadside shot but I was patient and waited for those two extra steps. When she took that final step, her vitals were exposed and I came to full draw, picked my spot, took a deep breath and squeezed my release…
www.youtube.com/watch?v=znd2afcK0hE&feature=youtube_gdata_player
My ST Epic flew true and hit exactly where I'd aimed. The Meat Seeker performed flawlessly and punched an inch and a half hole through both lungs, a complete pass through! When the Quikfletch looks like this and the Nockturnal is lit up, it's a happy day…
I could see blood on the vanes from the stand and a good hit was confirmed by watching the video a few dozen times, lol! I climbed down after 20 minutes and after an easy tracking job of approximately 30 yards, I found my harvest. She was one of the largest does I'd ever seen, let alone shot…
With darkness setting in, I quickly gutted her and remembered a certain tracking job I helped Croc with on opening day. I was 2km back in the woods with a very large deer and last year's back injury (hauled a small buck out from the same spot last year after that foot of snow fell, compressing my sciatic nerve) fresh in my mind. Let's call Croc! Well, gawd love him, he drops his plans, packs up his new game cart, makes the 30 minute drive and navigates to me in the pitch black of night. THAT'S a friend indeed! We packed her up for the wheel out and off we went…
www.youtube.com/watch?v=xv8xPxIuITg&feature=youtube_gdata_player
Down the old road we went, Croc pulling and me navigating. When we came to the beaver pond, we simply lifted either end of the cart and waded through the knee-deep water until we came to the dam, lifted her up and over and from there, despite a rocky path, it was fairly smooth sailing until we got to the river which had to be crossed. I'd strung a hefty rope across the span a few weeks earlier so we clipped one end of the cart with a carabiner to the rope and carefully carried her across where my father was waiting with his truck. In the back she went and after a short drive, she was home in the garage. I'd like to thank Croc and my father for the help. They went beyond the call of duty. It was an adventure for sure and it was nice to see the practice paying off and a plan coming together. It was an incredibly satisfying harvest and an epic Croc and Take'em adventure!
