Well its been a long year. So far, i have right around 90 hours of treestand time logged in with only a doe to show for it. I have seen a good number of bucks, many larger than this one, but for one reason or another, i just couldnt close the deal, either i would make a mistake or deer being deer, would somehow do what they werent supposed to. Anyhow, yesterday afternoon i was tossing and turning about going hunting, then i realized you cant shoot them unless you are in the woods. I headed out to my favorite stand, where i have shot my largest buck, and also seen a massive 130-140 this past monday. As i was getting out of the truck, i saw a broken racked 8 point making some scrapes along a field edge, so i knew it was going to be a good night. I quickly got to my stand which was near a creek crossing. There were scrapes on both sides of the creek along with a mock scrape about 10 yards from my stand. All the scrapes were within 30 yards of me. I sprayed some dominant buck piss in the scrapes and hung an estrus scent wick in a small limb nearby. I then settled down and enjoyed. About a half hour into the hunt, i saw a decent buck, i couldnt tell if he was an 8 or a 7 point, but i could tell that near the tip of his right main beam something was going on, i think it was a small drop tine, but i never got to look at it upclose through the binoculars. I decided he was a shooter cause of this and picked up the bow. He was about to enter a shooting lane when he casually looked up and saw me. He then stomped and walked off the other direction. Darn it, i thought thinking there goes my shot again[:@]. I sat down and about regrouped. At this point i was pissed and said the next legal deer that shows up is getting it. About a half hout later, this guy showed up. He came in from the opposite direction and headed to my estrus wick. He mingled there for about a minute facing me. There was a small branch with some leaves that i needed him to clear, but he soon did and i came to full draw, but before i could anchor, he looked my way. I froze and held for 45 seconds. At this point a flock of geese landed in the field nearby and he looked that way. I quickly anchored, placed the pin on his shoulder and let the NAP Spitfire do its work. He didnt kick or run off, but simply bounded 4 hops away, stopped and looked around. Im thinking, no way i missed, but 2 seconds later, he fell over stone dead, no kicking or thrashing. I was estatic. It felt like the weight of the world was lifted off my shoulders. So many highs and lows this season, but i got one down. I then called my buddy to share the good news, and as i got off the phone, i had a small 6 point walk right into my setup. It was a great night. I havent scored him yet, but he will be around 100 inches i think. Sorry for the bad pic, but the good ones arent on the digital camera.
Nj buck down
