Hey everyone! I'm about to do what most of us do from time to time...tell stories. Everyone is thinking, "oh boy another Walt Disney" but you can take it how you like, I think its awesome.
I recently got a new Drenalin and was pumped, so naturally I shot it every chance I got. Almost daily I was shooting in my backyard. Then about the third day I noticed a few deer coming to the edge of my pasture about a hundred yards from where I was shooting. Pretty soon, I was noticing them daily but never at the same time. (Which brings me to another topic I want to mention, but I will wait till later. Two words- Moon Phases) As the days started nearing opening day of archery season I began having friends shoot with me. Anywhere from 2 to 8 people at a time. The deer had absolutely no problem with continuing about their business while we practiced. It even got to the point that turkeys were getting comfortable with me being present.
Now the reason these deer appeared in the same spot is all because of persimmons. They were tearing them up and I just couldn't have that now could I! And I'm not willing to share because I'm just selfish like that.
So I decided one day to go ahead and put a lock-on next to this grove of about 15 trees that is about 10x10 yards. Here's the scenario. The grove sits about 5 yards from a thick woodline made of white oak and cedars. So thick that the only shots I had were in the pasture or persimmon grove. Which made for very easy shots, considering the stand is on the woodline! CONVENIENT!
The first morning I could get away from work I went and sat in the stand I placed. Sure enough an hour after sunrise here they came. RUNNING!!! I'm thinking, "Either thats Sasquatch, or the tornado sirens failed a mile away." Nope, just a herd of deer running to the grove from behind me. Being 30 feet in the air, and the deer totally distracted by the sweet smell of the persimmons, made it easy to get into position to draw. I took my time and picked the largest doe and let an arrow fly. 8 yards later a well placed shot to the lungs downed her a hundred yards away.
I went back to the house and waited for a half hour and returned to find her 20 yards from the pasture. Only bad thing about the drag was the fact it was late morning, 60's, and mosquitoes were thick. Not ordinary mosquitoes, these guys had seargent stripes and armed with mini-RPG's attached to their mouths. Not really but you get the idea of how it felt wearing a cut off.
Second day of an evening, got to the stand late. As I'm setting up in the stand I see something out of the corner of my eye. Its 3 turkeys. And all of them are Toms! I couldn't beleive it. Second day of hunting and I have 3 turkeys within 30 yards. I waited patiently for a shot and let one fly. The arrow made a clean pass and the bird dropped and didn't make a move. Which is very rare since most birds will flop around and carry on reguardless of what you shoot them with. Stunned and still shaking I climbed down as fast as I could...no wait I'm pretty sure that I pulled one of those incredible hulk jumps. Not really but it felt like it. HAHA. I got to the bird and stood over it amazed. Now I've taken my fair share of birds in the spring with a shotgun, but this is the fall and I did it with my bow! WOW, I have vowed to never hunt turkeys with a shotgun again. AHEM 20 pounds, 11 inch beard, and 1.5 inch spurs by the way.
Enough with the bragging. My third day produced zero activity. So I went the 4th day in the morning and waited. Once again just like clockwork at the same time of morning as the last herd, 3 does come along. Basically the same thing happened, only the deer I arrowed this time decided she was superdoe and ran a half mile away. It didn't make much sense. Once I found her it noticed it was a double lung. I waited an hour before tracking too.
Fifth day, and it was of an evening. I went and just before sunset I had a small doe walk right under me. Since I was shooting straight down, I spine shot her. The arrows glances off to the side and missed the vitals. So now here I am feeling like a real jerk. As most of you know what a wounded deer sounds like, you can kind of imagine the sound. Personally, I hate wounding deer and hate the sounds of agony they make. I quickly got down and took care of business. I'm not going into detail of how I took care of it because I'm not proud of it.
Now that I've added some sad drama to the story, I will begin closing. For many years I've hunted the same ground and not once did I ever think of hunting the persimmon trees. I can tell you from now on that I will put meat in the freezer early in the season and then spend the rest of my time chasing old mossy horns. As a result of focusing primarily on antlers instead of meat and rack, I saw a personal record number of wall hangers in a single season. And had a couple close encounters that left me with a series of different emotions, that include joy, excitement, sadness, sickness, but left me even more determined and motivated to do what a lot of us live for. Bowhunting! Thank The Good Lord Above that turkey season comes in April, otherwise I would have withdrawals.
Hope everyone enjoyed the story. I might write some more in the future since I have plenty of stories and many that include pictures. Good night everyone and god bless.
Persimmons=4 kills over 5 days!
The rest of the field I usually have the farmer plant beans or corn and just leave it alone. I bush hog a section in the center during Sept. and plant winter oats and winter peas in it.... usually draws a crowd.Keep up the good work on those does!!!
