I'm sure many bowhunters can understand my feeling of sadness as I put my arrow back in my quiver this evening concluding my 2012 whitetail season. As I often do on the last night out, I took note of the various opportunities I have been blessed with this month.
Tonight was a great evening, as I saw 6 different bucks (all 2 1/2 or younger) that all show very good potential for future years. Nothing like ending the season with sighting of future prospects. One of the deer in particular was a beautiful 5x5 with forked brow tines (6X6 I guess) that was likely 130"s for those that relate with scores. The only problem is that 1/2 his rear end was either blown or chewed off....hope he lives!
All in all, November has been quite slow here. Besides the 1st few days of the month and today, the season has been sub par for the effort put in. That said, I haven't hunted nearly as much as previous years due to my need to party hunt. You see, here in Manitoba you can still hunt after you fill your tag, as long as you are within earshot of your hunting partner who has an unused tag. Finding places to set up within 100-150 yards of one another has been tough....especially playing the wind and not trying to ruin each others hunt.
I guess the obvious thing here is that my tag got filled earlier in the season, and I've been holding out on "the gang".
Well,the best thing to do now is tell us everything. :nono:
Rewind to spring,,,,, My new bows arrived as Brian Wessel rolled into bear camp. Of the 3 I ordered I immediately fell in love "my pretty bow". Long riser made of rosewood? and spalted maple, with a checkered grip made slightly lower wrist than normal. The bow has medium limbs making it 62"s and #56@28 which are myrtle with sheep horn tips. This thing is a dream to shoot! (http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu178/ryanderlago/P1000320.jpg)
I know I'm not doing a good job of camouflaging the deer. Focus on the bow people! (http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu178/ryanderlago/P1000321.jpg)
I'm hooked...... :campfire:
Well my season started way later than usual. The deer season opens here in August and runs straight through until the beginning of December. Seems as though everything I owned seemed to break at least once from Sept into Oct leaving me with a truck in the shop and bills to pay. Selling some bows helped take care of the bills but didn't give me that part of the season back.
Finally hit the woods with trail cameras and stands on Oct. 25 with plans to start hunting Nov. 1st. I would be on vacation from the end of October until Nov.27th ...... gotta love a firefighters schedule! My first hunt was great, passing on some young bucks, does and fawns, and getting to watch lots of chasing and vocalizations. I think I had deer around for more of the sit than not...great 1st hunt!
The area I'm hunting has no agriculture but is rather just wilderness. Using open clear cuts to funnel deer, and local cottagers feeding programs, is key in patterning deer movement. That said, big woods hunting is the furthest thing from "patterned" hunting. Baiting deer is illegal here so hunters need to stay over 800 yards from any known food placed for deer consumption.
"my pretty bow"No doubt about that
As most hunters, the wind dictates where I'll be going each day. My hopes were to hunt some public ground for day 2 (Nov.2nd) as it's an area near a cottage subdivision that always holds deer. The reason I like to hunt it early is that the terrain is great for rattling and calling, as well as it needs to be hunted before the cottagers begin feeding the deer. The time frame varies, but a certain lot of cottages order almost ten thousand pounds of birdseed each November for the deer to eat. Without negative intentions, the cottagers make the surrounding 1/2 mile illegal to hunt after the feed is delivered.
As it turned out, the wind did not let me hunt where I wanted which left me going to an old faithful South wind stand on the north edge of a 20 acre meadow. The meadow comes to a point on the north end making it like an inside corner, with the typical deer trails converging 50 yards into the woods off of the corner as the deer skirt the meadow.
Climbed into the stand at 1pm....hoisted up the "pretty bow", nocked an FMJ400 with a 200gr. VPA Terminator, and sat down to enjoy the evening. The temp. was slightly below freezing with a gentle SE wind. The area is all poplar trees which made wearing Skyline camo a must.
2:30 pm a doe approaches from the SE looking back where she came. Moments later a small 4X4 (1 1/2 year old) follows her trail 10 yards from my tree. They both notice I'm there but are not bothered by the foreign object in the tree.
An hour later I hear a very deep grunt from the east, followed by the sound of a fast trotting deer. A second loud (and very deep) grunt proves he's moving north quickly. The pace of the trotting makes me stand quickly and grab my bow as I look left hoping to get a glance of the buck. Within a couple of seconds he changes his course and is headed straight for me. He then cuts south and then west again in a zig zag pattern. He's now coming straight at me again....and closing fast. At about 12 yards he stops dead in his tracks and looks up at me. (this is all happened so fast I've had no time to get excited.....his behaviour is so aggressive and I haven't even called or rattled yet) I hold my breath for a couple seconds and he relaxes and continues walking.
Good stuff! Still hooked.....
:campfire:
I am waiting patiently...awesome story..PICS??
G'morning! Must apologize for my lack of pics compared to some TGer's. I'm sure many would appreciate the terrain and how the off white Skyline blends in with the white trees and sky.
So the deer continues walking from my left to right and his current path will put him through my shooting lane at 15 yards. I take advantage of clump of poplars as he walks behind them and I come to flu draw. The lane is only a deer and a half wide so I know I must quickly pick a spot and make the shot. I'm not a fan of stopping deer so right on cue he steps out at a slow walk. I focus just above his elbow and instinctively let go. As the string rolls off my fingertips he begins to turn down my lane towards me. It seemed to happen in slo-mo as the arrow struck him down through the back angling towards his back left quarter.
My 1st thought was "oh no" as he exploded out of there making a big hook towards the meadow. Convinced I saw blood squirt out on impact made me hope that this wasn't going to be a tracking job that needed to wait until tomorrow.
60 yards out the buck stopped....looked back over his left shoulder and fell over. REALLY.....Did that just happen? I thought to myself "I usually have to hunt 50 times before I get a shot."
awesome, looking forward to the rest of the story!
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu178/ryanderlago/P1000305.jpg) a short wait I climbed down, verified that there was blood on impact, and followed the route the buck took. 10 yards in I found the back of the arrow.
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu178/ryanderlago/P1000306.jpg) 10 yards further I found the VPA.
20 yards further I could see him. (http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu178/ryanderlago/P1000307.jpg)
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu178/ryanderlago/P1000308.jpg)
:notworthy: :clapper:
Handsome buck and great story!
:thumbsup:
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu178/ryanderlago/P1000310.jpg)I took time to say a prayer before moving him, thanking God for how richly I'm blessed and this gift that I had just been given. I set up my camera on the seat of my lone wolf stand and began taking pix. After the 1st shot I noticed the sun (although overcast) was at my back making the pics darker than they should be.
Nice deer Ryan,
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu178/ryanderlago/P1000316.jpg)I turned everything around, faced west and snapped a few more.
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu178/ryanderlago/P1000317.jpg)
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu178/ryanderlago/IMAG0044.jpg)The following week I retrieved some trail camera pics and realized I had a shot of him a couple days previous.
Congrats! :thumbsup:
Awesome! Thanks for taking us along, great job all around :notworthy: .
Awesome story, wonderful buck! Well done Ryan... :thumbsup: :campfire: I love the look & character of those Manitoba bucks :clapper:
Thanks for the story and pictures! Great deer too!
Congratulations on a wonderful buck!
:thumbsup: Congrats Ryan! Beautiful pictures, it pays to take time with the camera.
Gotta love those Big Prairie Bucks!
Great story and pics.
Thanks for sharing.
Congrats on a great buck :thumbsup:
Wow...awesome deer. Congratulations on a great deer Ryan.
What a beauty.....the bow is pretty nice to! :thumbsup: :notworthy:
WOW!!!!! :scared: Awesome animal .....congrats on a great hunt :notworthy: !!!
Hes special for sure! Love everything about him from the bladed/forked tines to his facial colorations.
Thanks for sharing.
Beautiful buck and beautiful bow! :thumbsup:
Wow Ryan, nice job. Heck of a buck!
Excellent job,congrats for this fine buck and good shooting.
Impressive buck,thanks for sharing. :thumbsup:
Great buck, beautiful bow, and a good story to boot. Congrats!!!
Way to go !! Super nice..
What's a big buck like that gross score ?
Congratulations on a great buck! Very nice looking bow! :thumbsup:
that is one nice buck!
Sorry, for the double post.
Well done Ryan. Great photos ! Maxx
What a beauty! I love those thick dark antlered Canadian bucks. Way to go Ryan!
Ry, Ry, Ry...great story and the pics are too cool (aside from the goofy hat of coarse :p )
You are a hard huntin' whitetailer. Those woods up there are BIG...the ability to cone down those expansive woodlots to any resemblance of a funnel takes skill...or a blessed guy in a funny hat :) I am thinking skill with a reward from the big fella though!!!
WAY TO GO MY FRIEND :campfire:
What a brute!!
Congratulations Ryan.
:thumbsup: :thumbsup:
Very nice indeed. :thumbsup: :thumbsup: I haven't seen Skyline snow camo in quite some time. Good stuff.
I like the hat!
That's about the warmest hat you'll ever wear. And you'll need that in November on the Prairies.
Now that's what you call a buck! Congratulations on that beautiful deer! I love the color of those antlers! :clapper:
Bernie Bjorklund
NC Iowa/SW Wisconsin
Awesome buddy! Congrats!
I was just thinking about your fall Ryan and wondering when hunting story time was coming. Every fall the story is great.
Great buck. And as you probably guessed, enjoying the story.
Ryan what a great buck!! he is just beautiful!! congrats my friend!
That's a great buck! congrats :thumbsup:
Great buck and great story, Ryan! congrats!
What a great story! Thanks for sharing ryan! I'm with mike takes a skilled hunter to nail down whitetails in the big woods. Congrats thanks for sharing your blessings!
Congrats on the fine animal. Thanks for sharing :campfire:
Beautiful buck and story felt like I was hunting beside you
WOW, great story and awesome buck. Congratulations. :thumbsup:
Nice!
Great buck Ryan. That hat must have the mojo also.
Are you bringing that bow to bear camp? I would love to test drive it.
Way to go Ryan! Nice Buck! :clapper:
Nice Buck!
Excellent story and great buck! Thanks
Congats Ryan!!!!!!!!!!!!
Great story. Thanks a lot.
Holy Smoke..what a buck ! congrats !
Man what a buck Ryan.....Blessings from Our Provider :clapper:
Good read...... I like the walking up pics :goldtooth:
Well done Brother!!!
Awesome buck. Congrats. :)
Nice one, congrats :thumbsup:
Great buck Ryan! Great story as well!
Well it was well worth the wait for the story and pics. Congrats on a great buck!! :clapper:
:thumbsup: :archer2:
Nicely done Ryan!!! Very cool buck. Mike
Congrats Ryan!! What a great buck :thumbsup:
Congrates,Ryan! Man that is a dandy. :thumbsup:
Awesome Ryan! Congrats!!! :clapper: :clapper: :clapper:
What a huge animal. I love the moss still on his antlers, great pics and great story!
Good job. I love the color variation in the buck's face.
Beautiful buck!!!
Great stuff
Ryan what is your arrow and bow set up i like the look of the rest set up Thnaks Shane
Great looking bow and buck to go with it, good job with the story too!
very nice , congrats :thumbsup: :clapper:
Great Buck! Congrats and thanks for sharing!
That's a Great Buck! Congrats.
Great buck my friend, nice to hear the story again and see a some more pics. You definitely deserve that buck, but I do miss the mustache in your usual Movember Hero pics :)
What a nice buck! Congratulations!...Kenny
Wow...thanks guys for the overwhelming feedback! This buck was certainly a gift buck, not one I deserved, but one early enough in the season to allow me to spend plenty of my vacation time with my family!
Mike...I'll be sure to bring the bow to bear camp for you to shoot. You can even hunt with it if you like.
Thanks again Gang...Ryan
Attaboy Ryan
Nice addition to your collection.
Thanks for taking everyone on the hunt. Great words and pics by the way.
Congrats
Mo
Ryan
I just want to know ONE thing.....
How did you make it through a story that long without ever once typing "eh?"
Beautiful buck buddy !!
:thumbsup:
{Big Sexy seal of approval}
Good one! - no - great one!
What a nice buck and love that bow!! Congratulations on both!
-Jay
Great job.....what is broadhead your using
QuoteOriginally posted by Jerry Bellmyer:
Great job.....what is broadhead your using
That looks just like the 200g VPAs I have in my quiver. That Derlago cat has good taste in just about everything, but especially bows, arrows, and broadheads. A guy could do worse than to copy his equipment choices
EXACTLY Reehan, that's it? Just
another P&Y whitetail? Don't you get tired of that???
:thumbsup:
Too funny Steve! That's like asking my kids if they're tired of candy?
And as for you Big Sexy.....I write the story then I go back and delete all the "eh"s. Guess that's why I live in C eh N eh D eh!
WOW, awesome buck and great pics too!
:thumbsup: :notworthy: :notworthy:
Well Ryan, I've been waiting for you to post pics and a story of this years giant... As I knew it would be forth coming... Because that's what's you do... Every year!! :readit:
Congrats man! He's a beautiful buck! I'm glad you didn't have to get butt-sores to get him! :jumper:
Congrats Ry... great buck, I'm not surprised. You deserve it for all the hard hunting you do. Rich
Nice buck , congrats :thumbsup: :clapper:
Congrats, and great buck buddy !!!!! :notworthy:
Wow Ryan, just another "GREAT" big woods buck. Way to getter done. :thumbsup: :thumbsup:
That is way Off the Charts!!! :clapper:
Very Unique rack.....gotta love it....that's what keeps us after them.....congrats!
Very nice heavy buck ah! congrats
thats a stud of a deer
Great story and great buck! That's awesome!
Nice buck Ryan!
Ryan,
I'm not sure how I missed this thread earlier but congratulations on a super buck! That's a great looking bow too!
Looking forward to being back in Manitoba next June.
Bryan
And all this time I thought you just didn't care Bryan! HA!
Thanks again everyone....already prepping for next years.
Ryan
That Buck is a stud,congrats Ryan.
Just read your story Ryan. Beautiful buck and nice bow to! Great pictures... Your whitetail success stories are just amazing, only surpassed by your bears both as a hunter and an outfitter. Congrats!
Hi Ryan,
unbelievable I almost missed this topic....
All I can say is "WOW! A beautiful bow and a giant doe, who could ask for more?????
Gongrats!
Really special buck! Man that looks COLD!!!!!!brrr :thumbsup:
Wow Ryan....great job! I just can't get over the size of the deer up north. :eek:
Way to go there young Feller !LOL.Love the story and the picture,especially the way you always do it,giving thanks to such a great animal.Them fellers down south just getting a tad jelous of all the goodies we got right out our back door,and shoot me thinks we aint tawking no differant than the next feller,Eh buddy !
Surprised to see this up this morning! Thanks everyone for the kind words. I am certainly blessed to live in such a game rich province!
Too funny Steve! And as for "young"...not really feelin' it anymore, gonna be 40 come spring. Mentally not much beyond 12 though.
Thanks again guys!
LOL,Yes ,Young is just in our minds,I'm still 12 but actually 60 this year,Man times Fly.So wish many of our southern brethern could experience some of our Canadian hunting,it would blow there minds,All the best my friend,from what I hear keep up the good work LOL.
Great story and a very handsome Buck!
Thanks!
Don't know how I missed this story, but I'm glad I saw it this time around. Great story about a beautiful whitetail.
He's a beauty!! Congrats
Great Buck and Bow! Congrats!
He's a beauty!! Congrats
What a grand animal, congrats on putting it all together!!