Hunting stories

[musketman]

Now I know I'm not the only one out there with muzzleloading hunting stories to tell...

Let's jog some memories and see what jumps...

Has anyone ever:

Lost sight of their game in the cloud of black powder smoke?

Placed your muzzleloader on the antlers of your freshly killed deer for a picture, only to find out the deer is still alive and has just ran off with your gun?

Got in a hurry and loaded "BALL" first, then the powder? (usualy after you missed the first shot)

Forget to prime?

Get to the woods and realized that you have forgot to fill your powder horn the night before?

Double loaded your gun? (dangerous, but it has happened)

There are so many things that happens while hunting with a muzzleloader, please share them with everyone...

 

A few years ago Tim France, Bear Gallentine and Jack Record went on an August grouse shoot up by Murphy Dome. Since I wasn't there I mention names because both witnesses reported the same story and both are usually reliable. Anyhow....

While they were working their way up through an alder thicket, Tim hollered out "bear". At that point Gallentine replied "What?". Tim said "No, bear sign." Jack asked if it was fresh and Tim replied "It's still steaming."

So, all three of 'em shoved a patched round ball down on top of the shot charges already in their smoothbores as a precaution, and continued their hike. They didn't see a darned thing, either bird nor bear, until they were on their way back to the truck at the end of the afternoon.

Not twenty yards from the truck Tim spooked up a ruffed grouse and made what was probably the finest wingshot of his shooting career. In fact, he was plumb amazed that the bird literally exploded in mid-air. Having center-punched the grouse with a .62 caliber round ball straight up the vent, all that was left was skin and feathers.

I reckon there are more ways than one to skin a grouse.

Swanny

 

[albert]

a few years ago I was going turkey hunting early one morning,and I was walking across a field on my way to the woods where I heard turkeys the night before.I was walking along when with no warning I walked into an electric fence which I had forgot about,talk about a rude awaskening!try that at 5:00 in the morning,your gun bbl. is a real good ground!

 

[Rancocas]

I was hunting deer in Michigan's upper peninsular. I had hiked "way back in there", to a place called White Deer Lake. Set up camp, and was all ready for the opener the next day. Heard wolves howling in the distance as I drifted off to a sound sleep.
I awoke before dawn and found 3 inches of fresh snow had fallen during the night, and it was still coming down. I thought: "Great. This will make tracking easier."
I loaded my percussion, .50 southern mountain style longrifle and began the day.
The wind kicked up, and it turned into quite a blizzard. All day the snow came down.
I sat watching a trail all morning, but nothing was moving. Around 11AM I got up and began to still hunt. I made a large circle of several miles without seeing a single track in the new snow.
Back at camp, I uncapped my rifle, but otherwise left it loaded. I put it in the back of my tent, out of the way for the night. The storm continued all night.
Next morning, dawn found me back trail watching. The snow had stopped falling, but it was bitter cold. Snow lay 2 feet deep on the ground. The first light of day was grey and bleak. It offered no hope of any warming. Not even a bird chirped.
Then, I heard it. The crunch, crunch of an animal walking through the snow. I tensed, and got ready. I brought the hammer of my gun to full cock, while holding my breath in some ridiculous hope that doing so would make the click of the hammer less audible.
Crunch, crunch. It came closer.
A deer! A buck! Only a fork-horn, but a buck none the less!
As it passed behind a large tree, I brought my rifle up. When the deer stepped out from behind the tree, I drew a fine bead just behind it's shoulder, and squeezed the trigger.
Pop! The percussion cap went off, but nothing else did. The deer was gone in a single bound.

I tried following that buck's trail for several hours, but plowing through the snow was wearing me out. The buck kept ahead of me. Several times I found where it had stopped to watch it's back tail and check on me.
The sky was getting dark again. More snow was coming. I went back to an icy camp. The tent walls were covered inside with hoarfrost. Everything outside was white with snow, including me. The day's high temperature was probably in the 20's, and the night was certain to be much colder.
I have a good sleeping bag that is rated to -20. However, I spent a cold, miserable night in it. Next day, it was storming again. The snow level was rising and I had neglected to bring my snowshoes. I had to get out of there!
I packed up everything and began what turned out to be a grueling 3 mile hike back to my truck. And, then I had to drive through nearly 3 feet of snow covering the logging road, for 7 more miles until I was out to the highway!
I admit, I was worried. But, I made it OK.

 

[djnye]

say there friend, you were in my back yard. i live about nine miles north of ishpeming. hunt that woods all the time. you must have been there in the summer to have such nice weather. isn't it marvelous here(please don't tell anyone though). up in the country where you were most of the deer migrate fom to the yards in the lowere elvations and along the lakes. but--the ones that remain behind are sometimes called swamp bucks and they look like ponies. it's a big woods so they wander a lot and you could wait on them forever. i think it is best to walk. i'm glad you enjoyed yourself here.

daniel

 

[Rancocas]

Howdy djnye;

I lived in Taylor, MI., a suburb of Detroit for about 15 years. I retired in '99 and moved down here to warmer climes in Tennessee.
However, I sure do miss the U.P. of MI. I hunted the McCormack Wilderness around White Deer Lake, plus fished the lake in the summer. (Whew! Those 3 miles is a long way to portage a canoe!)
I also hunted quite a bit down around Iron Mountain. I still have a friend who lives there.
I had some good times there in the U.P.

 

[Rancocas]

Hey djnye;

I just looked at your profile and saw that you are a canoe builder.
I am in the process of building my first wood-strip canoe right now.

 

[djnye]

canoes are wonderful. i scratch make black ash baskets, and occasionally make bark canoes. even make a lot of my tools. if you are up this way stop by--or i get down your direction in the spring at the shoot in friendship in june. maybe i'll see you there.

daniel

 

[Buck Buster]

Left the house about 4:00 A.M. one morning several years ago. As soon as I arrived at my honeyhole in the woods, realized I had left the lead at home. Percussion was already loaded but felt I needed some extra. Called the wife by cell phone to get out of bed and bring more. Hunting Club was only 40 miles from the house! She brought it, but I'll go get it myself nextime.

 

[BrownBear]

Had to wonder why I bothered with a double barrel the first time I hunted showshoe hares with a muzzleloader so long ago. White rabbit, snow, white smoke. You get the picture!

 

[BS]

The first buck that I ever shot AT! In MI. years ago, I was setting with my TC Hawken, 50cal., it was cold and snowy. I could hear him coming, then I could see him. I pulled up and had to shoot over a limb. He stopped, I waited, Gun up and ready. He just stood in the brush, watching and waiting. Then he stepped into the opening, BOOM, the Hawken roared, the deer ran. He ran toward and by me, then stopped and looked my way, as to say "What ta Hell was That" and off he trotted. Looking back where I had taken the shot, I could see a nice Half Round in the limb that I was to shoot over. That big ole gun got heavy as I waited and "sunk" lower. Lesson Learned!

 

[Rocky Johnson]

Tryed to shot a doe with a recurve bow years ago. The doe was standing on the other side of a rabbit apple tree about fifteen feet away when I shot, the arrow stuck in a limb where i could reach it. It was my last arrow and she stood there while I tryed to pull the arrow out of the limb. The broadhead came off the arrow so all I could was throw an apple at her and that hit a limb also. Rocky /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

 

[Rocky Johnson]

opps that was not a muzzleloader story.Sorry. Remember there is plenty of room for all of gods creatures, right next to the mashed potatoes. Rocky /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

 

Twas a cold November day here in Kansas as I remember. I was huntin' with my old rusty-trusty 10 gauge double smoker. I came up to the river at a sharp bend on a high bank and just to my right was a flock o' geese well within shootin' range. Well sir, just as I started to pull down, a flock o' Mallards an' Pintails landed to my left. Now I had a problem. Couldn't shoot at one flock cause the other would jump. Just then this big ol' 9 X 9 bull elk steps out straight across the river from me. Now the problem was really compounded. Boys, I don't like to brag, but bein' quick witted like I am I stuck them barrels into the mud. I took aim at the elk and let fly with both barrels. The barrels burst, sendin' fragments both directions, killin' plenty o' geese an' ducks. The mud and pellets continued straight across an kilt the elk. Now, the recoil from that ol' gun knocked me down an' I fell on a covey o' quail that had been layin' there and hadn't flushed. I got up, still dizzy, an' fell into the river. When I came up, my shirt was so full o' trout that it burst a button offn' my shirt and kilt a bobcat that was a stalkin' a martin in a tree. The cat fell dead an' landed on a big ol' tom turkey that was ahidin' in the tall grass, killin' him. But the best part was that mud an' pellets went clear thru that ol' elk an cut a big ol' maple tree clear in half, which fell in the river an' made a big ol' mess o' syrup, which we bottled an' sold.

Now, I know there's them that would say all this just couldn't be. But I still got that shirt with the missin' button just to prove it's all true. Honest Injun!!! ::

 

[No Powder]

What no JHawk :bull: