Muzzleloaders are great!!!

[Swamp Buck]

Friday Dec 7th was opening day for muzzleloading deer hunting in Michigan's UP.

I had gone out to my stand at 2:30pm for an evening hunt. It was a cold day, starting out at 22 deg F when I went out, dropping to 12 deg F by dark. About a half hour before dark, a nice forkhorn buck stepped out and offered a broadside shot at a range of 30 yards. I raised the rifle, took carefull aim and pulled the trigger. The scene in front of me was enveloped in a cloud of white smoke.

I reloaded and started to track the deer. The blood trail was fairly easy to follow with sprays of blood about every 10 feet in the foot of snow on the ground. I found the deer piled up after it had only gone about 65 yards.

I have shot several deer over the years with a centerfire rifle, and bow & arrow, but never before with a muzzleloader. I felt like a kid on Christmas morning.

I used a Lyman GPR 54 cal I had put together from a kit with a patched roundball and 95 grains of FFg black powder. The ball passed completely through the deer taking out both lungs and the top of the heart. :thumbsup:

 

[rabjr]

Ain't it great? Grats on your deer SB. :thumbsup:

 

[GreyWhiskers]

Congrats! :thumbsup: GW

 

[roundball]

You are officially hooked now...congratulations!
:thumbsup:

 

[The Baron]

Great job Swamp Buck! :thumbsup: I shot my first BP deer this morning too, and I was as excited as you! It sure is addicting, eh?!

 

[smo]

Great work Swamp Buck, sounds like you had a great hunt. :hatsoff: Good Luck & Good Shootin'

 

[Rebel]

Congrats on the first of hopefully many.

 

[jethro224]

Good shootin' Swamp Buck! Grats! :hatsoff:

 

[jtmattison]

Congratulations!
It's a great feeling isn't it?

:hatsoff:

HD

 

[wvbuckbuster]

Glad you got him! Really adds something to the hunt carring a front stuffer. Hope my .54 does as well This week.

 

[snagg]

Really nice going. :hatsoff:

 

[Mountainman56]

Congratulations. :hatsoff: You are hooked now for sure. Your poor centrefire rifles will be feeling more and more neglected all the time.

 

[PitchyPine]

Good going, congrats. :thumbsup:

 

[playfarmers]

That is one that you will never forget. I can close my eyes and still see my first muzzleloader deer, and that was about 20 years ago.

 

[Halftail]

Congratulations Swamp Buck!
Your in trouble now!For the next 11 months you'll think of nothing else but Hunting with your muzzlelaoder and the only thing that will quench it a bit is many trips to the range for practice. :grin:
Like Playfarmers said,I too can remember my first Deer with a muzzleloader.There's no greater Rush in the Hunting woods for me anyhow!

 

[Swamp Buck]

Thanks for everyones responses. I'm still fired up about it - it feels like the very first deer I got.

Now I have visions of getting a deer with a flintlock with cast lead round balls I made myself. I guess everyone is right - "I sure am in trouble now"!!!!! The only thing I can do now for this fever is to feed it - why fight it!

 

[RC]

Atta boy and Congrats Swamp Buck! :thumbsup:

 

[brew]

Yeeee Haaaaa! Nice work.
I know the feeling. I too got my first muzzleloader deer this year. It feels good doesn't it.
Would love to see a photo.

 

[wirehairman]

I too shot my first ML deer this year. It is an undescribable feeling. Congrats! :hatsoff:

 

[PA16th]

Traditional muzzeloading adds to the hunt. Sounds like you are hooked.
Congratulations on a successful hunt.
Gets me excited for PA season, except for the 12 degrees.