2017 Hunt for Bambi

[cynthialee]

Today is day one. I will update as I hunt up till the end of the hunt or I get my deer.

I am not a morning hunter at all. I only go out in the afternoon and early evenings. When I go out in the early morning I am miserable. It is cold and I have not had enough coffee.

I enjoy the afternoon and evening hunt time. It is a good time of day for me.

Anyways...this afternoon was a bust. Too much rain and cold wind. So I stayed in until the rain cleared this evening.

As I was just out scouting and really didn't expect to find game I took the CVA Hawken Pistol in .50 well as I was scouting out the area I flushed a grouse. Turns out I should have brought the smoothbore. Of course there was grouse...I had the wrong gun. I brought the pistol for a couple reasons. One being I was more scouting than anything. I figure if I just happened onto a buck at the right distance then I could take it. Also... :redface: I really bruised up my bicep with the Hawken the other day. 2 times I got stupid and tripped the hair trigger before I was properly settled into my shot and it slammed me hard. At a bench the Hawken is hard enough on me, that mess up really hurt. I have a huge bruise on my arm now. The pistol is lighter to carry and doesn't tax my shoulder or arm.

So I stayed out until it was at that point of twilight I can no longer shoot and went home.

I did find a few promising game trails. The fields were not full of deer at dusk as usual. Wonder why they didn't come out today? I spent a good amount of time watching the forest/pasture edge line to see where they are entering the cow fields as I usually do but the deer did not cooperate.

 

[Wes/Tex]

Couple ideas...
1) Hold .50 in one hand and the .55 in the other ala Jeremiah Johnson

2) Get a tube of Arnica gel at Walgreens, Walmart, CVS, etc. Great for sore aching muscles and bruises

3) All the very best in putting Bambi in the freezer

Don't be discouraged, no matter how many guns you have it's never the right one in your hands. Ma Williams had the answer. It was...
"Just think of it as humility training son"!
:wink: :thumbsup:

 

[Britsmoothy]

Keep reporting :hatsoff:

B.

 

[Wes/Tex]

Just keep in mind why you're doing all this! :wink:
https://i.pinimg.com/736x/8b/e9/54...6518eb7021ca--venison-meals-venison-steak.jpg
https://i.pinimg.com/736x/b4/be/23...884dc5e--parmesan-broccoli-broccoli-pasta.jpg
https://i.pinimg.com/736x/3d/53/47...enison-steak-marinade-marinades-for-steak.jpg
https://i.pinimg.com/736x/95/c4/6d...3cc78b--lo-mein-noodles-wild-game-recipes.jpg

 

[Silky921]

Nice pep talk Wes/tex. That got me motivated to deer hunt and I wasn't even planning on doing much.

 

[cynthialee]

Those pictures are motivation indeed!

We have clear skies today. After a rousing game of Dungeons and Dragons this afternoon I will make my way to my spot and watch the forest line.

 

[hanshi]

You need a hard head like I have. I'll fire the heaviest kicking rifles known to man and pay no attention to any pain until after I get home and see the bruises; then I forget I have them. I take recoil like a stump even though I'm a "little feller" but it takes a few hours for it to get to my brain.

I've owned rifles up to and including the .458 Win mag. I've gotten "gun headaches" from some of them but I can't seem to learn. As you already know, off the bench is the worst; why can't I learn like you have?

 

[BrownBear]

...why can't I learn like you have?

:haha:

You and me both.

Whole lot of folks smarter than I am. I'm putting Cynthialee on that list! :thumbsup:

 

[BigBoreBLR]

When I shoot bench, I bring plenty of wood or a cinder block to bring the gun up high. almost sitting upright. When you dive forward into the becnh to lean forward on a low bench, you get bit...

 

[Britsmoothy]

When I shoot bench, I bring plenty of wood or a cinder block to bring the gun up high. almost sitting upright. When you dive forward into the becnh to lean forward on a low bench, you get bit...

:metoo:
B.

 

[cynthialee]

I spent a couple hours out in the forest today and I am not liking what I am not seeing...
What I am not seeing is lots of fresh deer poo, well worn trails with fresh tracks and fresh scrapes. I didn't see any deer in the cow pasture this evening either.
What I am seeing is lots of coyote poo.

Some kind soul (that was sarcasm..) decided that today would be a good day to find his group with his rifle about 2/3 a mile away by my guess. I'd hear three shots in a couple minutes time, a wait of about 5 minutes then 3 more shots over a couple minutes then some silence. This went on for about 30-45 minutes. Off in the distance I heard 2 single shots. One shortly after I got out there and one about an hour later. Miles away. Certainly muzzle loaders, they have a distinctive boom. Hope they got their deer. I am certainly not seeing much sign of deer this year.

We had a number of predators in the area this summer. Cougars, and bears. I think they did a number on my deer population.

One highlight of the afternoon, I flushed a Great Horned Owl and he took flight from one tree to another. Only the 3rd time I have seen one. 2 of those times were right here on this property. The other time was in a zoo, so I didn't get to see it fly. Them dudes are huge. Did you know they have been seen predating on other raptors? Yeah they are tough and not messing around.

I also surprised a squirrel as I was climbing the hill trying to be sneaky and the little bastard snitched me out to the entire forest. He is lucky I don't do revenge murder....

 

[BrownBear]

I think they did a number on my deer population.

Can't say about your terrain, but I've spent over 20 years watching coyotes, cats, deer and elk interplay on our place in the Rockies.

Pretty much the deer and elk both ignore the coyotes. They go elsewhere to calve, but start returning late spring once the youngsters really have their legs under them.

We always know when there's a cat around because the deer get real skittish, then move out for a while. You can tell when the cat has left, because the deer pop right back onto our place. Never seen enough of the elk and cats together to know what's going on.

I can see the constant presence of cats on your place pushing the deer out for a while. But I'm betting they'll be right back once the cats move on and push the deer from that place toward yours.

 

[Shooey]

Just a suggestion...maybe try hunting the approach to the field, instead of the field. Try to find them before they arrive at the field. Good luck to you!

 

[cynthialee]

Suffering a Fibromyalgia flair today. Pain level moderate-severe.

Not hunting today.

I hate fibromyalgia.

 

[coloradoclyde]

Some kind soul (that was sarcasm..) decided that today would be a good day to find his group with his rifle about 2/3 a mile away by my guess. I'd hear three shots in a couple minutes time, a wait of about 5 minutes then 3 more shots over a couple minutes then some silence. This went on for about 30-45 minutes. Off in the distance I heard 2 single shots. One shortly after I got out there and one about an hour later. Miles away. Certainly muzzle loaders, they have a distinctive boom. Hope they got their deer. I am certainly not seeing much sign of deer this year.

Gunfire has a positive affect on deer hunting...Utter silence scares the manure out of them...

 

[Britsmoothy]

My wife and daughter suffer with that too.
Regards.

B.

 

[cynthialee]

I saw a number of deer today. Not a one with antlers. But that is heartening somewhat. Also none of the deer I saw were in range, so if it was any deer like past years I still wouldn't have gotten a shot. I considered playing sneaky and seeing how close I could get to the does just to practice my skills, but I am still dealing with a mild flair. So I just stayed put. When I feel good and I am not doing anything else I take such opportunities. Sorta like counting coup ya know?

 

[Wes/Tex]

:wink: As a youngster my 'hunting uncle' taught me to really stalk deer. It is possible to get close enough to toss pine cones but I doubt I still have the patience let along the flexibility I did then! :haha:

For the aches I still recommend you try to find Arnica gel. Stiffness, bruises, etc. are what it's made for. I've never tried it for fibromyalgia since one of the few things I don't suffer from...that I know of. :v We got it first from my step daughter who thought it might help Bev's deteriorated hip. Sadly the joint was too badly deteriorated at that point but it did relieve all the stiffness and pain from her arthritic hands just rubbing it on her hip.

 

[Grumpa]

Sorta like counting coup ya know?

Two thumbs up!

Richard/Grumpa

 

[BrownBear]

Sorta like counting coup ya know?

Oh yeah. I love hunting but we only need one deer a year. And our season runs August 1 through October 31 around the house and clear through December 31 a ways off. I could shoot a deer opening day most times, but then what would I do for the next 5 months!!!!

Whole lot of coup counting going on. Great practice for "real" hunting, once I decide it is a good day to take a deer.