This week is early muzzleloader season here in Pennsylvania. We can take antlerless deer and black bear. It’s probably my favorite season for a slew of reasons: Beautiful Fall weather (usually), leaves turning color, game animals not yet on high alert and pretty easy to stalk or call in, the smell of wood smoke, etc Mid October is a perfect time to be afield.
So late today I took the rifle of my dreams for a short walk. Probably three minutes into the walk and I saw several deer feeding in a field corner. So I stopped dead and held still until they seemed to stop looking in my direction. Shuffling a few slow steps right and a few slooow steps forward put me up against the messy field margin and looking through the vegetation at the deer. The only one that offered a shot had seen me but wasn’t too concerned. After a couple minutes of standing still, and slowly glassing to ensure it was a doe and not a button buck, it was clear I could slowly shuffle two short steps left and have an unobstructed 75 yard shot through the last bits of field edge vegetation. A pretty good cover to stalk from. So I raised the rifle, pointed it at the deer, and took my slow shuffle steps. Aimed carefully at the base of its neck, and…click. No bang.
Pulled the hammer back, aimed carefully again, this time at the neck of a curious deer looking my way, and KaPow.
It went down in a heap.
The other deer took a long time to clear out, and I waited because I didn’t want to spook them. Eventually they went inside the field edge and i walked up to my… tiny button buck.
My eyesight had told me it was an 18 month old doe, probably 80 pounds and perfect for harvest. As wrong as that was, because he probably weighed fifty pounds soaking wet, at least my lyin’ eyes didn’t miss the shot.
Easiest, shortest drag back to the truck in PA hunting history.
So late today I took the rifle of my dreams for a short walk. Probably three minutes into the walk and I saw several deer feeding in a field corner. So I stopped dead and held still until they seemed to stop looking in my direction. Shuffling a few slow steps right and a few slooow steps forward put me up against the messy field margin and looking through the vegetation at the deer. The only one that offered a shot had seen me but wasn’t too concerned. After a couple minutes of standing still, and slowly glassing to ensure it was a doe and not a button buck, it was clear I could slowly shuffle two short steps left and have an unobstructed 75 yard shot through the last bits of field edge vegetation. A pretty good cover to stalk from. So I raised the rifle, pointed it at the deer, and took my slow shuffle steps. Aimed carefully at the base of its neck, and…click. No bang.
Pulled the hammer back, aimed carefully again, this time at the neck of a curious deer looking my way, and KaPow.
It went down in a heap.
The other deer took a long time to clear out, and I waited because I didn’t want to spook them. Eventually they went inside the field edge and i walked up to my… tiny button buck.
My eyesight had told me it was an 18 month old doe, probably 80 pounds and perfect for harvest. As wrong as that was, because he probably weighed fifty pounds soaking wet, at least my lyin’ eyes didn’t miss the shot.
Easiest, shortest drag back to the truck in PA hunting history.
