The Hunting Times

 Had the gang gather here at the Ranch at 0630.  Let them all pick their spots and the shooting began.  We didn't get a group photo, which I now regret, but you can see some action shots.  There were six hunters (Kathy, Alex, Nick, Zach, Harrison, and me) and five non-hunters (Will, Hadley, Mallory, Wes, and Hailey).  More doves than years' past, but lots more fun!  Enjoy the photos... First dove of the day and Wes is acting as the "dog" Mallory and Will set up in the sunflowers. And according to Will - freezing to death! Will is getting his Hunt On Will waiting on the dirt pile for some action Must be some birds nearby Will putting on a stalk Nick is claiming:  One shot = One bird BUT - this is Kathy's picture of her one shot = one bird. I'm thinking I may have reared a bunch of liars in my family! Nick is stalking the power lines hoping that the doves land in the dead tree! (L to R) Harrison, Alex, and Will are coming back from the curve. They were t...

Well, it is muzzleloader season in Indiana.  And after a brief 9 days in Cancun, I am back out in the woods.  We don't need any more deer for us.  I am hunting a nice doe to turn into salami for gifts.  As Indiana rules go, you are allowed ONE buck for the entire year.  It can come by any legal method, but you only get one.  Me?  I already shot a buck so no more for me. So out I go on a 30F (-1C) evening with plenty of wind.  I stay on the top at Marshall's and walk along the Bailey property line.  I jump a small 6-pt buck on Bailey's N end and he runs N into the Killing Finger.  Hopefully he hasn't pushed any does out! I get to the finger N of Bailey but S of the Killing Finger and post up overlooking a ravine, the bottoms, and the Killing Finger.  And I wait.  For the first 90 minutes I see nothing but squirrels and a single rabbit.  Then, four bucks walk out and feed S of the Killing Finger (in the cornfield across the ...

Four of us went out this morning - two to Marshall and two to Neal.  We started in the barn at 6:45 am.  Legal hunting light was 7:20 and we only had a 5 minute drive anyway.  We had a toast - see previous post - and then headed out. I walked to the bridge and cut in along the creek.  I wasn't 15 yards into the grass when a small buck came walking directly at me.  I dropped to a knee and waited for a good shot.  He kept coming until a car passed along the road - then he grew suspicious of me, exposed in the grass.  When he turned quartering to, I put a 300 BO through his left front shoulder.  He ran maybe 50 yards and dropped. At about 9:30, Nick started walking S to help me drag the buck while Alex and Harrison walked off Neal back to the truck.  Nick jumped ten deer and they scattered at his attempted shot.  No more deer.  Nick made it down to the bottoms and pushed three doe to me.  When one turned broadside at 20 yards, I p...

Since I was 12, maybe 13, I have spent Thanksgiving with my Dad, my cousin, and my Uncle out in the deer woods.  Our Thanksgiving meal?  Cold ham sandwiches.  This was 38 years ago... As time went on, things changed a bit - like you could shoot a doe versus buck only; we would come in for lunch at my Uncle's place, take naps and then head back out that evening.  What didn't change was that we were always hunting deer on Thanksgiving.  Old Man Time marches on.  Marriages, kids, loss of hunting properties and finding new ones, and eventually old age itself made it all but impossible for our fathers to join us in the woods.  We would still get together, tell hunting stories (aka lies from faded memories), and have a toast of Schnapps, bourbon, Scotch, and / or beer.  Sometimes we would break out deer salami and even sometimes we never made it to the woods before it was time for lunch.  Zero regrets.  All happy memories. What I don't remembe...

 All three of us went out this morning.  We rolled at the same time (6:45) but legal shooting light has changed to 7:13 am.  So we had plenty of time.  I told the boys we had not been successful due to our light drinking load.  To compensate I took a cooler of beer with us today. Alex walked to the stand on Neal, Nick hit the N fence row on Marshall, and I again went to the bottom. Alex saw 8 deer to the property N - where we do not have permission to hunt.  And thus he did the right thing and did not shoot.  Ethical. I had a large doe walk into me from the N.  She was in bow range at 30 yards.  But as she was facing me, it was a poor shot.  She winded me and turned broadside for about 0.25 seconds.  As I pulled my gun up she bolted. Nick, on the other hand, had a buck walk out into the cornfield at 8:55.  His shot cut the buck's heart in half at about 100 yards.  The deer didn't go 30 yards. Finally we have meat in the fr...

 Alex was out of town so Nick and I went out for a hunt this morning.  Nick walked to the killing finger, S of the fence row.  I walked to the bottoms.  Even before I left the road, three doe spooked and ran N.  We sat for the next three hours and didn't see another deer. It was a sad walk out for Nick and I got another ride from the bridge back to the truck today.  Thanks Ben!