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Food And Water
Before the season began my neighbor Dale Morris plowed and planted my seed for my small food plot area. Over the years I've tried large and small food plots and in my experience the smaller variety with good cover around the perimeter draws deer better. By small I really mean small. It's only 22 by 14 yards. But when the plants are growing it brings them in good, as you saw during last December's hunt. 

Here is Dale Morris fixing up the food plot. And my experimental water trough.

In the fall does come to eat the greenery and the bucks come to check out the does. But in the spring and summer the bucks don't generally show up regularly. But once their velvet is shed, based on my observations, I believe they come to see and be seen. The younger ones march around and find out which bucks they can intimidate. They chase and spar with each other. The older bucks come in like they own the place and constantly intimidate the younger bucks. 

Buck "Buddy Groups" are a big part of some bucks life in late August, September and early October. It's as common to see the biggest bucks go around together as it is for two or three similar sixes and eights. When they all go solo the first rut action is not far away.

As a rule my food plot activity draws good in October, slows down in November, and picks back up in December.

Opening Weekend
Between 6:30 and 7:00 the Freak buck walked by my position and I got a picture of him with my new infrared night camera.

At 7:13 a new 8-point appeared at the edge of the woods and walked in my direction.

Cool. It passed by meat about 10 yards.

Then it turned around and came back.

It stopped for a few minutes (12-14 yards) and looked the area over. Then it moved off to the East.

9:30 - Robby Creamer just came in from his morning hunt. He was in the Thicket stand and saw 5 does between 7:15 and 8:00.

John Askew also had good luck at the Middle Tank. Before daylight a handful of huge wild hogs came down his trail. Things were calm until after 8:30. A big bus doe came down the trail in front of John. He drew and as it stepped clear of a small cedar tree he put the arrow where it should go. He got down at 9:00 and followed a good blood trail to the doe. He came in and we returned to load it in my pickup instead of John's ATV.

We drove into town and ate a great lunch at the Red Barn Restaurant. After lunch Robby and I both ate the home made Pecan Pie. A lot of restaurants have pecan pie but you'd have to look long and hard to find any that are this good. 

AFTERNOON HUNT: 
John jumped a doe on the way to his stand at the Rock Ledge. Robbie hunted the Big Foot stand. I got ready for my trip tomorrow to Double G Outfitters. We all saw the same amount of deer ... none.

Bowhunt At Double G Outfitting
TO THE HUNT HOME PAGE


I met our Taxidermy columnists Larry Reese as well as Mike Glanden and John & Whatt McBride at the Double G Outfitting and our host Garrett George gave us all a 4 day hunt to hang on the wall. GO... 

2nd Annual Bowhunting.net Deerhunt With Bill Don


Hunt logs and pics for the 2005 bowhunting event with Billy Don at Wild Horse Prairie Ranch in the Texas Hill Country. GO...

Back Home - Saturday Contd...

Robbie Cramer's Hunt
Robbie Cramer came down Friday to hunt. He saw several does yesterday and 3 does this morning but had no shot opportunity. On the afternoon hunt a group of wild hogs walked down the trail near his tripod stand. He drew and put his pin on the largest one and double lunged it. The hog charged into the thick cedars and suddenly Robbie heard a violent commotion.

At dark Robbie came to get me and we went to track it. We parked my truck and got out. This area is very thick with young scrub oaks and cedars. Getting where you want to go is not easy. 

Robbie said, "Watch this." And turned his flashlight into the woods. Wow!

The first day of season I gave Robbie some white FireTacks and he had pinned them on limbs and marked his way to his tripod stand with them. The 3 FireTacks you see in the above picture led us 50 yards into the trees!  A right turn and another 4 FireTacks and we were at the stand. Bright! Quick to tack up! Easy to see. A product that does what it claims to do. (FireTacks) 

Robbie picked up the blood trail and I circled to the boundary fence 50 yards away and walked along it. The hog was hung in the fence and was quite dead. Then we drove to the Red Barn Restaurant and ordered inch and a half thick steaks. They were great.

Here is a picture taken after the next morning's hunt.

Robbie Cramer and his first wild hog of the year

Double Kicker Buck

Saturday's temperature drop made the difference, the deer started moving. Saturday afternoon the Double Kicker Buck came into my hunt area ripped up a tree, and more. Here's what happened and the pics. GO...

Double Kicker Hunt (Day 2 - 4)
On the second day I switched to a treestand 90 yards from the food plot. I've had a North Starr Treestands "Steel Starr" in this tree for 3 years and hop in and out of it at will. (North Starr Treestands) In the woods I saw the Double Kicker buck and his gray running buddy. I don't have a clear view of the food plot from here but I saw deer parts in it.

Day 3 
I moved to a different stand where I can watch the back fence corner of my corral. This fence line and corner is a good deer funnel and the trail I saw the bucks on yesterday goes through here. I have a "Boss Star" treestand from North Starr in this tree because the seat turns and I need that here because there are shooting lanes to the left, right and in front of my tree.

Several does walked right by me before I saw the Double Kicker bucks tall antlers a little further in the woods than I wanted them to be. 

He was alone and seemed interested in something ahead of him. 

An 8-point walked into view and the two bucks watched each other. 

Then they both looked into the woods and walked in that direction.

As darkness came several deer slipped through my area in the fading light. The Double Kicker walked right under my tree but I could not see my pins clearly. He headed toward the food plot. I didn't want to spook him so I sat in the woods an hour after dark -- until I felt deer were out of the area. When I finally got down I made it to the house without hearing any deer snorts. Tomorrow I'm going back to the Double Bull.

4th Day - Here He Comes...
Two sixers came to the food plot and drank water from my water tube. They walked around and saw something and left. Before long the Double Kicker buck walked into my view and I took its picture as it got closer.

It stopped and looked in my direction. There was time for another picture so I took it. The buck seemed to be staring at me.

And just as quickly and deliberately as it came up it walked away. My thoughts felt scrambled. I did not expect this. Did he leave because there were no does or other deer. Or because he had seen me or the camera? And is he gonna be back?

Water Where There Isn't Water
This year I had some water holders made (picture above) with 4 foot lengths of black plastic pipe. At first deer didn't use them but at the suggestion of a local sheep rancher I tossed some dirt in the bottom and deer used it right away. A nearby 55 gallon drum with a hose in it supplies it with water. Here is one of the does drinking from it.

Double Kicker Hunt - Day 5 - Banging Heads

The Double Kicker buck walked in my direction and when he stopped and watched the other two bucks I checked him with my Nikon rangefinder, 24.5 yards. I stayed behind the camera tripod but carefully picked up my BowTech. I wanted him a few yards closer and if he did I was ready. GO...

Double Kicker Hunt - Day 6

I was early. The deer were late. Both Double Kicker and his Buddy walked through the high grass surrounding my food plot. I took a quick pic of each of them, set down my camera, and got my BowTech and waited at the ready. Several times, I checked him with the Nikon rangefinder. I don't like to shoot past 20 yards and prefer closer and Double Kicker stayed out of reach. No other deer were in sight and they left in a few minutes for some place unknown. Like I said yesterday, I better get some shooting done.

Double Kicker Hunt - Day 7

A 6-point came from my right and the Buddy started toward the deer and Double Kicker followed. I can't believe my good luck. No time to fool around now. GO...

Double Kicker Hunt - Last Hunt - It All Comes Down To This ...

He took off after a doe and chased her all around the place. Then they both stopped and stood apart. I range findered him at 27.5 yards. There were several deer closer to my Double Bull blind and he walked over to them. I pushed the yardage button ... 18 yards.  To the Hunt & Pics...

Double Kicker Hunt - Pictures & Hunt Comments

At 5:30 I woke up, didn't have to do it this morning but I was too antsy to sleep any more. The outside temperature display on our atomic clock read 29 degrees -- the first cold day of the season. Pictures and Hunt Comments ...