Last Friday I killed a nice fat button buck. Unfortunately no one was there to take pics and it was warm and I had to get the deer in the freezer quickly. However, the stand I shot the deer from is special to me and I fee like telling the story.
I had never hunted it before. It is at the far end of our property and is about 1/2-3/4 mile paddle in my canoe. Last Spring my friend Todd Gregory and I worked on a "wall" of dead pine trees. Years ago beaver had the area flooded and a number of big bull pines died and fell creating in several places a wall that was difficult to get over or around....and it was obvious that the dead tree trunks had fallen across a previously used game trail. We took Todd's chain saw and cut away some of the logs that opened the old game trail to be used once again...at least I hoped that would happen. I made a mineral lick there and within a week we had deer using the trail. Here are the first visitors back in May. You can see one of the fallen pines and the "door" we created.
(http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a322/Arrowworks/SaltlickbucksMay09.jpg)
Later in the summer I put up a tree stand that is almost over the river. Here is the view from the stand as of yesterday when I took some pics to go along this this little story (stories without pics just don't seem right, to me).
This is one of the views as I look over my left shoulder.
(http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a322/Arrowworks/Frontviewfromstand1.jpg)
And another......
(http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a322/Arrowworks/Frontviewofstand3.jpg)
And another....
(http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a322/Arrowworks/Frontviewofstand4.jpg)
A view looking upstream towards the South.
(http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a322/Arrowworks/Rearviewofstand1.jpg)
Over my right shoulder. You can see how close I am to the river.
(http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a322/Arrowworks/Rearviewofstand2.jpg)
And a view toward the North. When I get out of the canoe I let it drift downstream on a long rope. Where it is in the picture it cannot be seen from the game trail.
(http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a322/Arrowworks/Rearviewofstand3.jpg)
Well, it seemed that the trail had seen little use and my camera was out of commission after ants had gotten into it so I had no pictures of activity there for most of the summer. I was unsure about the use of the trail. But it was apparent that deer were leaving tracks in the mud, and droppings when I walked the trail towards the downstream direction. The trail was being used but it was hard to tell how much. So when I finally went in to put up the stand I brought along some corn (legal in NH, especially on your own land) to see if it would have any effect in attracting more deer and set up my reconditioned camera, as well. Before too long I had a visitor. The pictures I had did not tell me much about the deer but seeing one there was promising.
Here's the visitor.....
(http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a322/Arrowworks/Buttonbuck.jpg)
As I said previously, I hunted the stand last Friday. It was a beautiful day and the sit in the stand was great. I had the feeling that this stand held a lot of promise. When Todd and I went in to cut the logs out of the way, we had two deer bedded nearby get up and walk away during our work session. What I like about the stand is the location and the fact that the paddle in gives me the feeling that I am hunting in the wilderness and I have it entirely to myself. The only bad thing about the stand is that the marshy meadow that I am looking into has grass that is four to five feet high, has lots of dead trees in it and holes that are knee deep with water. In short, a great place to hunt because of the security it provides the animals (deer, moose and turkey) but a difficult place to trail and drag....as I was about to find out.
At about 5:30 PM the deer in the pic showed up right under my stand. I had no idea where it came from. It had to have crossed the river. Towards the south (upstream) there are several places where it is clear the deer cross back and forth but this guy sort of came out of the ground.....never saw him or heard him coming.
The shot angle was very steep and I could tell it was a button buck...and he seemed pretty healthy (good eating). For a while I wondered about shooting him. We needed meat in the freezer and neither Laura nor I had yet killed deer on the new property. It wasn't long before the deer was broadside and I decided that everything felt right. I have passed up numerous shots this close but there was something serendipidus (sp?) about the moment.
Without much further deliberation I was drawing my 60# DAS. I took a bead on the heart and before I knew it the arrow was buried nearly to the fletching in his shoulder. As he ran off into the meadow my heart sank. It wasn't until then that the reality of trailing and getting a deer out of there hit me. I knew the shot was deadly.....everything else seemed a bit uncertain. All of these thoughts went thru my mind in a nano-second and as my mind got cloudy I saw the deer go down. Can you spell RELIEF?
I waited a minute or two to clear my head and descended the stand. I walked to where the deer feel....or so I thought. I couldn't find him. I went back to the canoe thinking that I had only imagined him going down. I took off two layers and went to the site of the hit. About ten yards away a lot of blood about waist high. Ten yards farther another big blotch and then nothing. The high grass and rough terrain under it was not easy to negotiate. Then I noticed blood on the ground under the grass. It puzzled me as I was pretty certain that I did not get a pass thru. I followed the specs of blood until they, too, vanished. I had only gone about 30 yards and it seemed like the deer, as seen from the stand, had gone quite a bit farther. But then I picked up the tell tale smell of a stinky buck. A glance in the direction of the breeze and there he was...he hadn't gone 30 yards. As I pulled him from the wet hole he had fallen into I was surprised to see my Razorcap protruding directly between his front legs...I did get two holes! When I finally got him home and did the autopsy it was apparent that the broadhead had severed every major blood vessel leaving the heart. In addition his tarsal glands were totally black and pungent so I removed them for use later in Nov. when the rut is in high gear.
I had a really genuine feeling of accomplishment as I loaded him into the canoe and paddled out that afternoon. It had been a beautiful afternoon, a quick clean kill, first deer taken on our property, a new potentially productive stand and after doing this for more than half a century it was almost like the first time.
Gorgeous area, nice pics!
Great view of where You hunt Bill. Thanks for the great story and congrats on taking a nice fat tasty button buck from Your own property. Something to be proud of for sure.
Great job Bill....congrats!
David
Beautiful turf....
Good Job.
Brett
:thumbsup:
Nice set up Bill! Congrats!
Hey, Dave....what happened to the bear you showed on the Trail Cam thread?
:thumbsup:
Right on Bill! Nice pictures too.
well done you are indeed blessed with such a lovley place.
One of the nicest things about the property is that it is pretty much surrounded by posted land and is land locked, as well. The owners of the farm that abuts the land asked us to buy it as some others were looking to get access and use the riverbottom for mud racing, dirt biking, etc. In exchange they allowed us a right of way using their old logging roads and allow us to keep a couple of canoes at the river. We can also hunt their property. The only bad thing about the property is that it was logged over a while ago and there is no mast there. but the other properties have lots of oaks and beech trees. I've planted an apple tree and have other things in mind to do....grapes, elderberries, etc. However, we can bait in NH so we do but the best hunting is during the rut....it seems to be a natural corridor and is also a bedding area. We often get deer up from their beds as we paddle by. Saw a really nice looking spike horn two days ago that I could have shot from the canoe but it was one of those "we saw each other at the same time" kind of situations...not enough time to make a move.
Great story. :thumbsup:
Bill, Nice pics and a great story.Hope you do as good on your moose hunt.
"Serendipitous", what a beautiful word!
I think I remember your post about buying this land, and the plans you had for hunting it. It sounded like a paradise to me. The canoe journey takes you back in time, as well as to an otherwise inaccessible place that is yours and yours alone.
I can only imagine how you must feel, and taste that first bit of fork-tender venison that you and your wife will share. Favor? Roast a bit of tenderloin over the fire on a stick, and sip some Port (GOOD Port!) with it.
Life then is better than that enjoyed by any king in history.
Killdeer
Great story and great pics...thanks for sharing!! :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup:
Congrats :thumbsup:
Beautiful story and property.
When you get a chance Bill (or anyone up there);
would you please, let us know when the Poke and Hope is scheduled for next year.
Best wishes for your continued success on your new property.
Bill, thanks for taking the time to tell that story. Congrats!
Congrats Bill!
Congratulations, and thanks for sharing pictures of your special spot!
nice spot. Congrats on you deer.
Killy: The tenderloins were great....and the wine. You are correct about your memories of my tales of buying the land...and the moose we got two years ago. And....the canoeing in does make one feel like going back in time. But I'm really going to a special, private place. If only they could do something about the highway noise.
Billy, the Poke and Hope is always the weekend after the fourth of July. If you are planning on coming keep in touch because things could change. Two of the real workers in getting the shoot organized are fighting cancer last I heard.
To the rest of you, thanks for the kind words and taking time to read the story. I'm about to turn 66 and would have preferred to have had this place 20 years ago. However, my retirement years have been greatly enhanced by getting a chance to own my own hunting property. I guess that is what the story really was about...not killing a deer so much but more of a sense of gratitude for having found a wonderful woman who helped make it possible and to share it with......a lifelong dream. Now I just need to stay healthy and limber so I can take full advantage.
Thanks for sharing Bill. Great Story.
Beautiful piece of ground.
what an absolutley beautiful piece of propertey.
Great story, Bill. Thanks for that. Congratulations on your deer! Jawge