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3rd
Annual Bowhunt - 2006
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Bowhunting.Net
3rd
Annual Bowhunt - 2006
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Whitetail Bowhunts - 2006
Bowhunts and on the spot pictures -- by Robert Hoague | Sponsors of 2006 Whitetail Bowhunts | Bowhunting.net Annual Bowhunt | | Wade Nolan Writers Camp Hunt - October | Wade Nolan Writers Camp Hunt - November | Bowhunting Deer
At Home - 2006
What
To Do Now?
Dec 24 - A New Bomber ... Close In the pre dawn hours I had to take my buddy Perry Wicker to the Emergency Room and it cut 3 hours out of my sleeping time. When the alarm went off at 5:00am this bowhunter was shot. I decided to keep sleeping and when I woke up I'd go out for the rest of the day. I woke up at 8:50 feeling much better than I would have on 5 hours sleep. A couple of things came up and attended to them but lost some hunting time. I was in the blind at the
Point minutes before 11:00. Once again I had my laptop and today I put
the pictures and pages together to tell the hunt the last 3 days. As I
type I look up very frequently. A few minutes after 3:00 I looked up and
saw wild turkeys walking by on both sides of the fence. They did not make
a sound and if I hadn't looked up when I did I would have missed them.
They were all hens and I passed.
Back in the area where I took the above picture I saw a big bodied deer taking shape as it walked out of the trees. HOLY COW! What a rack on this big buck. Heavy. And very wide. Probably 40 yards away. I wanted to take its picture. I wanted to look at its big rack in my binoculars. But there was no time! It was on the way! The doe was one step on the opposite side of the fence, 14 yards from me; but the space between the barbed wires is wide enough to make a confident shot if the deer is close to the fence, especially since I am in the ground blind and the angle of the shot is flat with the ground. The new bomber buck stopped 6 paces on the other side of the doe but he didn't look at her, instead he stood erect, head high, looking straight ahead. My heart beat was definitely noticeable. I checked my arrow on the rest again. It was still ok. I told myself, "This is what I came for. It is going to happen. All I need to do is put the arrow in the kill zone." Now the bomber turned toward the doe and walked closer. Making a breathy sound, almost a hiss. He stopped perfectly but the doe was between us. I waited for the doe to step out of the way. Ready to draw. The button buck freaked and ran past them into their back trail. The doe followed ... with the bomber two steps behind. They were gone! This was the finest buck I've ever seen on the home hunting grounds. I breathed deep and slowly let the air out through my mouth. Then I unhooked my FlatHead release (Fletcher Archery). For some reason I had an off the wall thought that for all the hours spent deerhuntiing the release is the least used item. But it plays such a vital part in the hunt. Minutes passed quickly and
I replayed the scenario over and over in my head. At 4:31 the doe and button
buck came into view again. I hooked the FlatHead on my string loop again
as they came out of the trees into the small opening where I originally
saw them I was hoping they would continue to walk along the fence again.
But they didn't, instead they turned west and walked away. I unhooked the
release and took their picture one handed -- the doe is in the lead with
the button boy following. And they are taking their business some place
else.
Another hour and a half I slipped quietly out of the area and walked to my truck in the light rain and shadows of pre darkness. What a day. How lucky I am to see this buck and be so close. Today he avoided an archery lesson. But I've got one planned for him the next time our paths cross. Tomorrow is Christmas and I won't be able to hunt. But I will be back at the Point on Tuesday looking for this new bomber buck. Life is indeed good.
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