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Joined
Nov 23, 2010
Messages
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Location
On the Mississippi in SE Minnesota
The Minnesota regular firearms season started on Saturday. I don't hunt with modern arms, so decided it was time to get my Isaac Haines .54, made by our own Dave Person to replicate an original, out for the season.

I could have ended my season at 7am Saturday on a very large doe at 25 yards, but it was too early in the season. I'll spend most of my season looking for a mature buck and then, if the opportunity presents, take a doe right at the season's end. Many times this results in tag soup, but that's OK.

Until today, I saw just does every time out. This morning I had come from stand on my own small acreage, had a little late breakfast, then was brushing my teeth looking out the bathroom window when I saw two 2 1/2 year old 8 points back in the woods a ways behind the house. I got a pair of binocs and was looking at them when a large mature buck, bristling and sidling toward them came out of a thicket. I could only assume he had a doe in there as why would three bucks all be together during the rut!

Looking the situation over, I could see the chance for a stalk using trees and terrain. Stalking whitetails? Difficult, but bucks in rut on a hot doe can be pretty stupid, so what did I have to lose?

I quickly threw on an orange hoodie and knit cap, grabbed my Haines and shooting bag and sneaked out a door on the other side of the house. I first went away from them, downhill into a steep ravine using that for cover. I had to go about a hundred yards up that then go up the side and get through a stand of pines before I would be able to see them...IF they stayed around. When I got to the top, I went into a belly crawl through the pines and was able to close within 60 yards of where they were. The two smaller bucks were nowhere to be seen, but the big buck was still there, though in brush I could not shoot through. I couldn't get closer without being exposed, so looked for and found some holes in the brush that, if he got in front of one, would be shootable. I had a good rest on a pine.

He finally moved into one of the holes, but was steeply quartering into me. Since I had a solid rest, I settled the front sight into the notch of the rear and put it about 7 inches below his throat patch and squeezed the trigger. He immediately reared over backwards as the .530 PRB hit the mark! He was thrashing wildly then managed to regain his footing and crashed right over a 15 ft high bank near a gravel hill road and into a thick over grown woods on the other side, stumbling as he went onto my neighbor's property.

I waited a bit then circled around to the gravel road to find where he crossed. It wasn't hard...scraping, stumbling marks painted heavily with lung blood showed the way. Now...I'm red/green colorblind, but even I could follow this trail, although he had just barreled downhill through thick patches of brush and cedars. Problem was, it was so thick I could only see but 10 to 20 yards ahead.

About 75 yards into the trail, I saw him get up and stumble/crash over another bank. I couldn't believe he was still alive considering the copious blood loss. Considering how bad he looked, I proceeded slowly and peeked over the edge. He was laying mostly on his side about 30 yards away but his head was up. If I could move about 3 feet to my right, I'd have a small opening. I very slowly made the move, lined up low on his chest, considering how he was laying, and tried to fight the adreniline to hold the sights steady. At the shot, he struggled a little, then all was still.

I sat there, regaining my composure, loading again, and just watching for ten minutes. Nothing. He was down.

He has five points on one side and seven on the other with double tines in two places. His field dressed weight was a tad over 180 pounds. Overall a really nice mature deer.

In 50 years, I've only successfully stalked a whitetail buck once before, and that was a young buck. To pull this off on a mature buck with a flinter is a dream come true.

20241112_121748.jpg


20241112_121825.jpg


My buddies didn't want to sit still for a pic with so much to smell! 🙂

20241112_125500.jpg
 
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The Minnesota regular firearms season started on Saturday. I don't hunt with modern arms, so decided it was time to get my Isaac Haines .54, made by our own Dave Person to replicate an original, out for the season.

I could have ended my season at 7am Saturday on a very large doe at 25 yards, but it was too early in the season. I'll spend most of my season looking for a mature buck and then, if the opportunity presents, take a doe right at the season's end. Many times this results in tag soup, but that's OK.

Until today, I saw just does every time out. This morning I had come from stand on my own small acreage, had a little late breakfast, then was brushing my teeth looking out the bathroom window when I saw two 2 1/2 year old 8 points back in the woods a ways behind the house. I got a pair of binocs and was looking at them when a large mature buck, bristling and sidling toward them came out of a thicket. I could only assume he had a doe in there as why would three bucks all be together during the rut!

Looking the situation over, I could see the chance for a stalk using trees and terrain. Stalking whitetails? Difficult, but bucks in rut on a hot doe can be pretty stupid, so what did I have to lose?

I quickly threw on an orange hoodie and knit cap, grabbed my Haines and shooting bag and sneaked out a door on the other side of the house. I first went away from them, downhill into a steep ravine using that for cover. I had to go about a hundred yards up that then go up the side and get through a stand of pines before I would be able to see them...IF they stayed around. When I got to the top, I went into a belly crawl through the pines and was able to close within 60 yards of where they were. The two smaller bucks were nowhere to be seen, but the big buck was still there, though in brush I could not shoot through. I couldn't get closer without being exposed, so looked for and found some holes in the brush that, if he got in front of one, would be shootable. I had a good rest on a pine.

He finally moved into one of the holes, but was steeply quartering into me. Since I had a solid rest, I settled the front sight into the notch of the rear and put it about 7 inches below his throat patch and squeezed the trigger. He immediately reared over backwards as the .530 PRB hit the mark! He was thrashing wildly then managed to regain his footing and crashed right over a 15 ft high bank near a gravel hill road and into a thick over grown woods on the other side, stumbling as he went onto my neighbor's property.

I waited a bit then circled around to the gravel road to find where he crossed. It wasn't hard...scraping, stumbling marks painted heavily with lung blood showed the way. Now...I'm red/green colorblind, but even I could follow this trail, although he had just barreled downhill through thick patches of brush and cedars. Problem was, it was so thick I could only see but 10 to 20 yards ahead.

About 75 yards into the trail, I saw him get up and stumble/crash over another bank. I couldn't believe he was still alive considering the copious blood loss. Considering how bad he looked, I proceeded slowly and peeked over the edge. He was laying mostly on his side about 30 yards away but his head was up. If I could move about 3 feet to my right, I'd have a small opening. I very slowly made the move, lined up low on his chest, considering how he was laying, and tried to fight the adreniline to hold the sights steady. At the shot, he struggled a little, then all was still.

I sat there, regaining my composure, loading again, and just watching for ten minutes. Nothing. He was down.

He has five points on one side and seven on the other with double tines in two places. His field dressed weight was a tad over 180 pounds. Overall a really nice mature deer.

In 50 years, I've only successfully stalked a whitetail buck once before, and that was a young buck. To pull this off on a mature buck with a flinter is a dream come true.

View attachment 361672

View attachment 361673

My buddies didn't want to sit still for a pic with so much to smell! 🙂

View attachment 361674
You need to write a book! I read every word you wrote and it kept me on the edge of my chair! I felt like I was right there with you! Brilliantly told story, Thanks!
 
Beautiful buck, congrats! Nothing but a few does for me up here on the “range”.
Are you guys still bucks only, except if you draw a doe tag? I've read, and even saw a TV report, that the deer herd up there really took a dive...so much so that the metro folks aren't coming up there much anymore.
 
Are you guys still bucks only, except if you draw a doe tag? I've read, and even saw a TV report, that the deer herd up there really took a dive...so much so that the metro folks aren't coming up there much anymore.
Yup, not many deer and no doe tags, bucks only. Plenty of wolves though….. last years winter helped out a lot. I hunted last year and never saw a deer…. So it was nice to just see something in the bush. Last year I saw more wolf and moose sign than deer sign.
 
The Minnesota regular firearms season started on Saturday. I don't hunt with modern arms, so decided it was time to get my Isaac Haines .54, made by our own Dave Person to replicate an original, out for the season.

I could have ended my season at 7am Saturday on a very large doe at 25 yards, but it was too early in the season. I'll spend most of my season looking for a mature buck and then, if the opportunity presents, take a doe right at the season's end. Many times this results in tag soup, but that's OK.

Until today, I saw just does every time out. This morning I had come from stand on my own small acreage, had a little late breakfast, then was brushing my teeth looking out the bathroom window when I saw two 2 1/2 year old 8 points back in the woods a ways behind the house. I got a pair of binocs and was looking at them when a large mature buck, bristling and sidling toward them came out of a thicket. I could only assume he had a doe in there as why would three bucks all be together during the rut!

Looking the situation over, I could see the chance for a stalk using trees and terrain. Stalking whitetails? Difficult, but bucks in rut on a hot doe can be pretty stupid, so what did I have to lose?

I quickly threw on an orange hoodie and knit cap, grabbed my Haines and shooting bag and sneaked out a door on the other side of the house. I first went away from them, downhill into a steep ravine using that for cover. I had to go about a hundred yards up that then go up the side and get through a stand of pines before I would be able to see them...IF they stayed around. When I got to the top, I went into a belly crawl through the pines and was able to close within 60 yards of where they were. The two smaller bucks were nowhere to be seen, but the big buck was still there, though in brush I could not shoot through. I couldn't get closer without being exposed, so looked for and found some holes in the brush that, if he got in front of one, would be shootable. I had a good rest on a pine.

He finally moved into one of the holes, but was steeply quartering into me. Since I had a solid rest, I settled the front sight into the notch of the rear and put it about 7 inches below his throat patch and squeezed the trigger. He immediately reared over backwards as the .530 PRB hit the mark! He was thrashing wildly then managed to regain his footing and crashed right over a 15 ft high bank near a gravel hill road and into a thick over grown woods on the other side, stumbling as he went onto my neighbor's property.

I waited a bit then circled around to the gravel road to find where he crossed. It wasn't hard...scraping, stumbling marks painted heavily with lung blood showed the way. Now...I'm red/green colorblind, but even I could follow this trail, although he had just barreled downhill through thick patches of brush and cedars. Problem was, it was so thick I could only see but 10 to 20 yards ahead.

About 75 yards into the trail, I saw him get up and stumble/crash over another bank. I couldn't believe he was still alive considering the copious blood loss. Considering how bad he looked, I proceeded slowly and peeked over the edge. He was laying mostly on his side about 30 yards away but his head was up. If I could move about 3 feet to my right, I'd have a small opening. I very slowly made the move, lined up low on his chest, considering how he was laying, and tried to fight the adreniline to hold the sights steady. At the shot, he struggled a little, then all was still.

I sat there, regaining my composure, loading again, and just watching for ten minutes. Nothing. He was down.

He has five points on one side and seven on the other with double tines in two places. His field dressed weight was a tad over 180 pounds. Overall a really nice mature deer.

In 50 years, I've only successfully stalked a whitetail buck once before, and that was a young buck. To pull this off on a mature buck with a flinter is a dream come true.

View attachment 361672

View attachment 361673

My buddies didn't want to sit still for a pic with so much to smell! 🙂

View attachment 361674
From one mn deer hunter to another congrats me and mine are up here in Gods country nw corner of the state you know “Walz said nothing there but rocks and cows “ well at 70 and 2 cataract surgeries on each eye I can’t see the sights well enough to hunt I still shoot paper but deer shots are 50-100 yards so it’s nothing but scopes for me it’s raining here and I have the heat on sitting on a 3 acre plot congrats on a magnificent buck
IMG_4309.jpeg
 
I have the heat on sitting on a 3 acre plot
I am a few years younger and still sitting regular treestands or on the ground in my turkey chair, but sitting for long in the cold on those devices is getting harder and harder. 2 1/2 to 3 hours and I'm done. Told my wife that I can see why guys make nice box blinds and sit in a comfortable chair with a heater on! I like being in the open of nature, but it won't be long and I'll have a couple box blinds on my place as well. đź‘Ť
 
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