Deer Hunt Recap

I'm sure sooooooooooo many of you are wondering, "How did Efen's deer hunt go?"

As you may recall, the place I was going is only 30 minutes or so from my house...then maybe another 20 minute walk through the woods to my stand.

Let me give you a quick recap;

Alarm goes off at 4:00 AM. Get up, stumble to the kitchen for my coffee, only to discover I had reset the timer for 4:00 PM, not AM.............fuck me. While I'm standing there, trying to focus on those little fuckin coffee maker buttons, I hear a noise from the outside. Oh fuck me again....raining like a sonofabitch and its a whopping 35 degrees....plus windy as hell.

Okay, 'back in the day', I woulda said 'big fuckin deal' and just put my 'rain shit' on and off I'd go. Instead, I turn on the local weather and yep....it's raining...and cold...and wind up to speeds of 40 MPH...glad I got confirmation on that shit. Uh, this is no longer 'back in the day'...so I said 'fuck it', and went back to bed.

Slept another couple of hours, got up....weather still the same though the rain has slacked off quite a bit...gettin some sleet instead. I can handle sleet, it just bounces off of you, still don't care for the wind though.

Finally, about 10:00, the rain/sleet stops, the wind doesn't but wtf....it IS opening day and all. I had all my hunting shit in the truck so I was pretty much ready to go anyhow. I stop at a little diner close to where I'm going, to get my thermos filled with coffee. Fuckin place is packed with hunters who had already said 'Enough'. While waitin for the gal to get my coffee, I strike up a conversation with an older guy sittin at the counter. He asks me where I had been hunting and I tell him I haven't yet, just going out. He laughs and tells me I might as well pull up a stool and sit there all day cuz "there aint no use going out in this weather.....the wind is goin to hold 'em down all day".

Ya know, I knew he was probably right, especially on the 1st day of rain and wind...deer don't like that stuff, especially the wind cuz if they can't hear, they get real spooked. But, I told the guy I was going to try anyhow. He laughs, again (wtf buddy, it aint that funny), wishes me luck and out I go.

I get to where I can pull off to an old logging road. Put on all my cold weather shit (fuckin boots...why didn't I buy a new pair w/ 'speed lacers'?), get my gun, my 'thermo seat-cushion' and backpack and start my trek through the woods. My stand really isn't all that far into the woods but there's alot of thick brush plus I have to go down a steep fuckin draw then halfway up the other side. Finally I arrive. Climb up that fuckin stand (after tying my unloaded gun to a rope so I can pull it up) and settle in....I look at my watch....12:45...only 4 hours of hunting time left.

The thing about the wind is besides lowering the windchill 'bout 20 fuckin degrees, it makes you think you hearing shit walkin in the woods, with all the leaves rustling and small limbs breaking. So your head is pretty much doin that fuckin 'swivel' thing every 30 fuckin seconds.....cuz even though 'you know', you just can't take a chance by ignoring the sounds.

Fast forward 4 hours......I haven't seen one fucking thing, not even a fucking squirrel. Even the birds have said 'fuck it'. I climb down and my feet feel like blocks of ice. I can take the cold very well, 'cept for my feet. I don't care how many pairs of thermal socks I wear or how fuckin expensive my hunting boots are....my feet always freeze. But, I know as long as I have some feeling in them, frostbite is not a concern. I make my way back to my truck and back home I go.

Sunday, 4:00 AM. Get up, check weather...its good, a little colder, but hardly any wind and no rain. Have my coffee (at the correct time), dressed and out the door by 4:50.

Drive by yesterday's diner (which opens at 4:00 AM during Opening Day weekend)....only a couple of vehicles there. Park, use my flashlight to get thru the woods, up to my stand, check watch. It's almost 6:00. Fuckin perfect.

As lifeless as the woods were Saturday, Sunday was like Mardi Gras. By 9:30 I had seen 8 deer (either too small or does), a zillion squirrels, and 15-20 turkey (all in one group). Now, this was more fuckin like it.

I knew by all the distant gunshots that the deer were moving all over the place. About 11:00 I could hear something coming towards me and I knew it was a deer. It was, a good sized doe with her tail straight out. This was a good thing because it means the doe is 'ready' and there's a buck trailing her. Maybe 2-3 minutes goes by and I hear him. He's coming down the draw at a full trot...one thing and one thing only on his mind (geez......fuckin guys). The doe has stopped about 30 yards from me, looking back towards him....but at about the same eye level as me. FUCK....while he may not spot me, she certainly will if I move....or 'scent' me first. The buck comes in, maybe 60 yards out. He's pretty big, bigger than the one I posted a picture of. He's staying back in some brush, moving much slower. I can't get a clean shot so I'm waiting til he walks where there's an opening. He's getting closer, I can tell more by sound than actual sight tho I do catch bits and pieces of his rack. At least a 10 point. I slowly move my hand up to my gun's safety, 'click'. I'm ready now.......there's a narrow opening he's going to have to walk through..no more than 40 yards away now...here he come's..I can see him in the brush in my scope...Oh yeah...5 more yards..c'mon..come to Efen..."SNORT"...fuck..I knew it..the doe has either seen me shift in my stand or has 'scented' me...and she sounds her alarm and bolts right into the brush. The buck stops, turns, and takes off like a scalded cat, right back where he came from....all I can catch is a glimpse of his white 'flag' as he disappears. Me....I'm sittin there thinking WTF just happened?.

Oh well....thats part of it, which is what makes it so much fun for me. Actually, I had virtually the same scenario occur several years ago. I really don't care if I 'pull the trigger' or not. Hunting, to me, is about the things you get to see and experience, things that most people never get a chance to enjoy. I mean, how cool is it to be in the woods, watching all kinds of wildlife in their natural habitat? A few years ago I got to see a bobcat chase and catch a chipmunk and a hawk swoop down and grab a squirrel. These things are priceless to me.

I probably won't hunt anymore this season. I don't care. I already consider it a successful deer season :)