Filled my Second Firearm Tag Last Night...but it was Bittersweet

[Seth]

I've been hunting for a wide 8 pointer that my dad spotted on Christmas eve in a wheat field. Due to the monsoon, I was only able to get three sits in. The first two produced plenty of does and fawns, but I elected to pass and hold out for the chance at this buck he saw. Well last night I finally saw him making his way up the powerline towards the wheat field. Something didn't look right though. After I cranked up the scope to 9 power, I realized he was missing one side of his rack! As luck would have it, he walked straight to me from 200-250 yards away and came out a mere 40 yards away in to the wheat. With him missing one side of his rack, I just couldn't get myself to shoot him. There was a couple does in the field as well about 120 yards away that were feeding towards me. After several minutes, the biggest one finally turned sideways at 109 yards and I let the muzzleloader eat. She dropped in her tracks so no tracking needed. I'm good on deer meat so I am going to donate her to some folk's my dad goes to church with that need the meat. I'm sure they will prefer her over that buck anyways.

I told myself before season that I wasn't shooting a buck unless it was going to beat anything that I had shot before. I've seen two deer this year that would have made the grade. The first was during rifle season about 300 yards away. A spike showed up and the buck ended up chasing the spike off away from me. That buck got killed two days later by another hunter. of course the second one is the one I mentioned in my previous paragraph.

It was a good season though. Plenty of deer were seen, but it just wasn't in the cards for me when it comes to putting one down with a big rack. All I can hope is that some of these deer we had on camera and the one I saw last night will still be around the properties I hunt come next season. I'm about 99% sure that I am calling it a wrap for this year. I've still got a couple bow tags so maybe I'll make it one more time. Who knows!

 

[Mitch f]

No orange jacket.....foul! foul! foul!....Blowing whistle!!! ??

Joshing.

Nice one Seth, that's a long shot for a Muzzle loader!??

 

[snagged in outlet 3]

Orange nothing...

Where's the yellow shirt???!!!

[ness]

1 hour ago, Seth said:

I'm good on deer meat so I am going to donate her to some folk's my dad goes to church with that need the meat. I'm sure they will prefer her over that buck anyways.
 

Kudos to you, Seth.

To me, this is how charity should work. Right down at the local, get to know you, eye-to-eye, person-to-person level. As long as we pay into a huge pot and have somebody far away decide how to spend it, we'll always have waste, inefficiency and graft. We'll continue to train people to be takers, dependent on others. And that's all I've got to say about that.

[Seth]

I promise I had my orange vest on while out in the field. This was taken at the house real quick before we hoisted her up and peeled her out. Inline muzzle loaders are basically just single shot rifles anymore. I'd not think twice about taking a deer at 150 yards with one.

If it had been 80+ degrees, I might have been sporting the yellow shirt.  I had some insulated bibs on over the stuff I am wearing in this pic plus a hand muff to keeps my hands from getting cold. It was chilly and actually felt like a true late season deer hunt.

[Mitch f]

I know a guy and his son from St. Clair who were busted by a game warden because they weren't wearing an orange hat. $119 a piece.