Bowhunting
With Zano - in the Suburbs of San Antonio
Digital
Logs Of a Bowhunt With Zan Christensen - by Robert Hoague
2002
Hunt:
Day
1 | Day 2 | Day 3 Morning
| Day 3 Afternoon | The End |
BOWHUNTING WITH
ZANO - An Online Bowhunt
Zan
Christensen and I are bowhunting deer at Rancho Zano on the outskirts of
the suburbs of San Antonio.
THE END
by Zan D. Christensen
|
 |
Yep, sorry to say, it's the end. Of our hunt together and the
season. But, what an end it was. I couldn't have had a better
time with anyone, anywhere than I did bowhunting with Robert. What
a pleasure it was to have a guest who appreciates the wonderful gift of
life, and has the deep desire to enjoy it. He loves to get after
it and seizes the opportunities as they develop, looking forward to a positive
outcome. Yet, he never expressed dissappointment when a plan didn't
pan out.
I especially enjoyed waking him at 4:30 each morning, saying, " Morning
Sunshine, time to hunt!", and hearing his deep groggy voiced reply of "Sunshine
huh?" as he flipped out of bed. He never once complained about my
oatmeal nor the coffee he washed it down with.
You'd never know how tired he was from the little sleep he got because
of the late night talks, web work and early morning starts each day.
As we walked to our stands with the crisp winter air brushing against our
face he'd flash a million dollar smile, look up into the crystal clear
star laden sky and say, "I love this!".
His bowhunting skills, strategies and hunting ability made my job as
a "guide" very easy. This was the only hunt with a guest I've had
that I didn't worry about their safety, shot judgement and the hunts final
outcome. Thanks Robert, let's do it again next year.
It was the perfect ending to an awesome season.
After reviewing my notes, here's how my season rounded out. I
got to shoot at every buck I wanted to, but my arrows missed three of them.
One big 10pt was an honest low miss at 22 yards, but I did shave a few
white hairs. The next miss was overshot on a very heavy mass, extra
wide 9pt at 14 yards. I tried to make the shot when I really shouldn't
have, considering I had to squat down and twist hard to the right at the
waist to get my arrow under a limb that was between us. I tried to
duplicate the shot the next day and almost fell out of my stand!
The last miss was also overshot at 18 yards on HIM, you know, MY 10pt that
my son Clint got.
On HIM I pushed the envelope for shooting light, a mistake considering
the stand I was in is heavily shaded from the fading light in the evenings.
As hard as I tried to focus on a spot, that spot turned into a large dark
gray deer. As sick as I was about the miss, I was more elated I hadn't
hit him at all.
The next morning, when the "Breaker" buck walked in from behind me downwind,
I was determined to prove I hadn't lost my ability to kill big mature bucks.
As he passed almost directly under me I held off my shot, waiting for the
broadside to materialize. It did, and the spot I purposely focused
on caught my arrow at 12 yards.
I knew it was the shot it was supposed to be the instant the string
slipped from my fingers. The "Breaker" buck is one of my most satisfying
hunts ever.
Zan and the "Breaker
Buck"
Five more weeks of intense hunting for that magnificant 10pt taught
me to pass on bucks I would not have considered in seasons past.
Even though he gave me two more opportunities after the miss, I didn't
take them because of circumstances that just weren't "right". So,
I held off, just long enough for my son (and long time bowhunting partner)
to do it for me; and he did it well. Life is good, very very good.
The following statistics from this seasons hunts reflect just how
fortunate I am to have the time to hunt and a great place to pursure my
bowhunting passion.
Total hunts:
54
Total deer sightings:
96
Does:
48
Bucks:
48
Shootable Does/passed shots:
33/33
Shootable Bucks/passed shots:
39/35
Of course, several of these opportunites were on the same deer throughout
the season. Yet, I'm very pleased they didn't know I was hunting
them. Stand sites, scent control and stand approach/departure routes
all played a role in the awesome outcome of this buck season. I now
plan to take advantage of our extended Doe season.
So, join me in preparing for next season. Get out there and scout,
think about what you find, create a plan and implement your strategy.
Remember, success is best defined as, "when preparedness and opportunity
meet".
Happy Hunting!
-Zano
About
Zan Christensen (Zano)
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