Post by dougell on Oct 28, 2013 9:55:12 GMT -5
I had one of the best days afield of all time.My daughter had a state 4H show in Harrisburg on Friday and we didn't get home until about 1:00am.Jordan was pumped to hunt in the morning but I had my doubts that he'd wake up.My suspician was confirmed at 5:00am when I let him sleep in and I headed out with my bow.I ended up seeing a slammer of a buck and passed on 2 smaller 6 points and had 5 different doe within easy bow range.It was cold and windy so I climbed down around 11:00am to get home and pick up Jordan.On the way out,I met with my buddy Mike Foust who had come up to hunt with his bow.On the way out we walked up on a bedded 6 point and saw a couple more doe still on their feet.I like still hunting during high winds so my plan was to get Jordan and still hunt into the the wind along a steep ravine where I figured some deer would be holed up.I then planned on sitting on a small ridge looking into the ravine and just still hunt into a crosswind and sit for a while in a few places before getting settled in below a cornfield for the last two hours.We headed out a little after noon and got into some deer right away.Jordan walks with a shooting stick that he can shoot standing up with in front of me and I carry the rifle.When we see deer,he sets up and I hand him the rifle.It takes a few seconds with practice.I thought he was going to get a couple chances but he never got a good broadside shot.We reached the spot I wanted to sit around 01:30.He set up so he had a decent shot in front of him.About every 30 minutes he'd have me bleat with a call.I didn't expect much at that time of day but right at 2:15 he whispered that he were coming from our left.When I looked,he was already on them and tracking the deer in his scope.I knew we had the wind in our favor so I told him to wait until it cleared a lone pine tree.That was the last thing I said.The deer came out behind the tree and stopped briefly at about 55-60 yards broadside.As soon as it stopped,he shot and the deer dropped right in it's tracks.This was his third deer but his reaction was priceless.He high fived me,hugged me and the smile wouldn't leave his face.We waited a couple minutes and went down to check it out.It ended up being a button buck but it didn't matter.He was so proud of himself for seeing the deer first and really doing it completely on his own.
I kinda felt bad because Mike was on his way into the woods and this was one of the spots he was thinking about hitting.He came over when he heard the shot and Jordan's excitement was enough that it probably made his day as well.Watching a young kid's enthusiasm grow for hunting is as good as it gets.For a second,I thought about rushing home and hitting the same stand I'd hunted in the morning but it was way more enjoyable to savor this moment.We took our time gutting and dragging the deer out and of course had to take a bunch of pictures.He hunted last year for the first time and did better than I thought.This year,he's become more patient,more serious and is really starting to have much sharper senses.It's amazing how much a year can make.
I kinda felt bad because Mike was on his way into the woods and this was one of the spots he was thinking about hitting.He came over when he heard the shot and Jordan's excitement was enough that it probably made his day as well.Watching a young kid's enthusiasm grow for hunting is as good as it gets.For a second,I thought about rushing home and hitting the same stand I'd hunted in the morning but it was way more enjoyable to savor this moment.We took our time gutting and dragging the deer out and of course had to take a bunch of pictures.He hunted last year for the first time and did better than I thought.This year,he's become more patient,more serious and is really starting to have much sharper senses.It's amazing how much a year can make.
