I got wifely permission to go hunt last Saturday afternoon (pleading the opening day helped).
I go to the intersection of 2 trails that I've had the same bachelor group on camera all year (a prong, a 10 point and a mature 9 point). I set up sitting with my back to a tree about 20 yards off the trail and wait. Saturday the wind was out of the NE which was bad for my lease but what the hell, right?
Sure enough like clockwork around 6.30pm I see a movement out of the corner of my eye, it's the prong browsing his way slowly down the trail. I wait for him to put his head down and stand up behind the tree.
I'm watching for 10 minutes as he slowly moves past me, just when I'm thinking he's solo, just off the trail I see Mr. 10 point raise his majestic head. He's not as carefree as the prong and something doesn't feel right to him. He isn't looking at me, rather he's looking past me he's not too anxious just very attentive to something down the trail past me. He takes 4 or 5 steps and stops behind a tree, all I can see is his head and neck and his rump.
A 35-40 yard shot is my personal comfort zone anything more and it's not ethical for me, and this big guy needs to take another 5 paces. He puts his head down, I draw the bow... Then a bunch of crows in the woods behind me get into a fuss about something or other and that's all my 10 pointer needs, an excuse not to keep coming down that trail. He puts his head up and makes an abrupt right turn away from me and trots 10-15 yards directly away from me where I lose him in the brush. Of course it turns out that the 9 pointer was right behind him and goes trotting off too, he also drags the prong who is now 10 yards past me back up to the other trail!!
Dammit! probably my best chance this season to nail this guy before he gets horny and stupid crows ruin it. I'll be crying in my beer over this one for a while.
P.S. If it was rifle season I would have filled my buck tag.
I go to the intersection of 2 trails that I've had the same bachelor group on camera all year (a prong, a 10 point and a mature 9 point). I set up sitting with my back to a tree about 20 yards off the trail and wait. Saturday the wind was out of the NE which was bad for my lease but what the hell, right?
Sure enough like clockwork around 6.30pm I see a movement out of the corner of my eye, it's the prong browsing his way slowly down the trail. I wait for him to put his head down and stand up behind the tree.
I'm watching for 10 minutes as he slowly moves past me, just when I'm thinking he's solo, just off the trail I see Mr. 10 point raise his majestic head. He's not as carefree as the prong and something doesn't feel right to him. He isn't looking at me, rather he's looking past me he's not too anxious just very attentive to something down the trail past me. He takes 4 or 5 steps and stops behind a tree, all I can see is his head and neck and his rump.
A 35-40 yard shot is my personal comfort zone anything more and it's not ethical for me, and this big guy needs to take another 5 paces. He puts his head down, I draw the bow... Then a bunch of crows in the woods behind me get into a fuss about something or other and that's all my 10 pointer needs, an excuse not to keep coming down that trail. He puts his head up and makes an abrupt right turn away from me and trots 10-15 yards directly away from me where I lose him in the brush. Of course it turns out that the 9 pointer was right behind him and goes trotting off too, he also drags the prong who is now 10 yards past me back up to the other trail!!
Dammit! probably my best chance this season to nail this guy before he gets horny and stupid crows ruin it. I'll be crying in my beer over this one for a while.
P.S. If it was rifle season I would have filled my buck tag.
