2017 Deer Season – Rough Going
Right from the get go, the 2017 deer season has been tough for me. On my first two sits, I didn’t so much as hear a deer let alone see one. Things seemed to get better as on the third sit, I spooked one on my way in before first light. On my fourth sit, I did finally see a deer. That encounter lasted for all of 10 seconds with the young buck. So quick that he was gone before I even thought to try to get the camera on him. This season has felt like someone is playing a game with me. The fifth sit produced deer, multiple deer in fact, but I never quite got the shot. To top it off, the lead doe winded me and blew several times.
I find it odd that this season has seemed to lead closer to a harvest. With each hunt that passes, I get closer. I’ve had many challenges even though I’ve gotten closer. I have found a way to feel like I’m getting worse at deer hunting while at the same time getting closer to harvesting a deer. For more details from these hunts, watch the video below.
Check out my 2015 Buck Harvest, 2016 Private Land Harvest, and my 2016 Public land Doe Harvest
2017 Deer Season – Things Looking Up?
The sixth sit ended up going much better actually. I saw the same group of does as I did on the last sit. The same lead doe busted me again. This time however, she actually saw me (I was sitting in a different tree due to wind direction). She never could get a whiff of me as she circled and circled the stand. A second mature doe came over and tried to help the first doe after also picking me off in the tree. It was about this time that I figured out I had chosen a tree that did not conceal my whatsoever. I must also mention that for this sit I had forgotten an SD card for the camera. I wasn’t able to film any of this.
As the does continued to try to trick me in to moving, I stood completely still. Waiting for my opportunity to draw back must have lasted for 20 minutes or more. Finally, as the lead doe calmed down and started feeding back away from me in the direction they came from, I had my chance. The problem was that my muscles were stiff. It was cold. I was suffering from an adrenaline rush as well. You could say buck fever, but technically speaking this would be doe fever. I tried to pull back but didn’t have the strength.
2017 Deer Season – Maybe Not
Determined to take revenge on the doe that had winded me in my prior hunt and spotted me during that encounter, I took a deep breath and felt my muscles relax as I exhaled. I drew back the bow with ease and settled the 30 yard pin just behind the shoulder in the lower third of her body. A shot I had practiced an uncountable number of times from a treestand in my back yard. As the arrow released, it felt great.
The hit sounded good. As she bounded away, it looked to me like 8 to 10 inches of my arrow was sticking out on the entry side. The shot appeared to be perfectly located. She was at least 60 yards away when I was seeing the arrow but felt like I had a good line of sight. I immediately sent a text message to both my wide and my brother. Normally I would wait until I found the deer to tell my brother. My brother had the chance to be the shooter on this particular morning though. I had a shot by 7 am and had to rub it in. I don’t want to spoil the ending, so check out the video below for the conclusion to this story.