Fieldmouse

Way to go. Just remember an 8 from everyone wins this.

GR8atta2d

Great job Derek!

I've had a pretty active couple of mornings.. Yesterday I saw 2 spikes mill around under me for quite a while, then later a really nice 5 point came along. I had plenty of time to watch him as he fed back and forth on the abundance of acorns. He'll be something if he makes it another year or 2. He was Heavy racked carrying great mass. He had some palmation on his one side. It was a great sit.

Today in on a local farm, I watched 5 doe cross from feeding to a bedding area at 8:00 am, no chance for any type of shot. Prior to that a "deer" slipped the opposite way. I couldn't tell much more than that.
I'm going in at noon-ish to relocate a stand to an area closer to where they were crossing. It's much to thick to have any chance from my current set-up.

extreme1

Congrats on another doe derek,lots of meat for the freezer now.
Good luck on connecting on a buck.
Hunting pretty hard since the opener.The weather definately isnt cooperating though,Rain and wind everyday.
Last night I sat in one stand on the edge of a field just inside the hardwoods,Poured for 2 hours,got soaked,then it got nice for the last 1.5 hours.Quiet at my end of the field and at around 6:30 I look into the other corner of the field with the Bino's where I placed another stand and low and behold a beautiful 8 pointer comes out and feeds like its no ones business.
Going back out tonight,Can any of you guess where I will be sitting tonight

Good luck guys,Lets get some on the board

Scott/IL

I think I am finally all setup for my vacation in early November. I finally got all the small details worked out about a new farm I have access to. The farm is just under 500 acres, but something like 470 is just flat ag fields/cow pasture. The main thing is a steep creek running the lengh of the farm on the west side. On either side all the way down there is a very steep hill with a bunch of small trees. Deer sign was very spread out, and I was having a difficult time visioning how the deer were moving around.

I then went up to the north end of the property where 2 smaller ditches ran into the large one. On both sides of these small ditches were EXTREMELY steep ditch sides and some really tough brush, thorns, and everything else. Then right in the middle there was a high spot that was LOADED with tracks. I hurried up and put a stand in the biggest cluster of trees I could find (only 16 feet). I'm going to leave this spot alone for a few weeks, hopefully I can come back to find a bruiser cruising by.

Also, we are getting a pretty hard rain a few times a week and the crops haven't even started getting cut yet. The corn was supposed to be ready 2 weeks ago, but all the rain is putting a halt to everything. Makes the hunting rough, as I still have 2 more sets that need put up once the corn comes out, and my best stand is in the corner of what is now a standing corn field.

markjenna

Well I saw her tonight. She is an Albino Doe and she is a big one. She was about 50 yards out and I didn't like the shot. I let her pass on hopes of getting her later. She is going to be a nice mount... I can't wait. Also saw 10 Turkeys tonight and they weren't close neither. Hope I get her before my buddy does.

Fieldmouse

A friend of mine just showed me a little Albino up the street from me in another town. Who knows, I might need to hunt it to go with my pie bald mount.

As a side note, I think it time to post another pick of our Avatar model. Just got it this morning.

GR8atta2d

Dawn broke late on this windy drizzely, morning. Even though it was a good twenty minutes into shooting time, the low valley held onto the darkness like a child clutching a favorite teddy bear. My eyes would be my only tool, as the damp forest floor, insulated all movement. At twenty yards the dark blob turned into a deer feeding towards me. As it turned I saw the slight glint of antler. I figured it was the 5 point I had seen earlier in the week. As his head turned I pulled up my binocs to try and add details in the glooming darkness. It was a a different buck, a good buck! He worked his way below me, and worked a licking branch and paw at a scrape. At this point in the underbrush, all I could see was his movement. I reached for my bow shielded by the very tree he was marking. He stepped out, I countinued glassing trying to determine if he was a shooter. He had 5 good tines on his left. He had an unusually long G2 on the right but I couldn't see anything else on that side, not because it wasn't there, but because I never had the right light and angle.

He stepped into a wide open lane, at 15 yards. Did I have enough information to shoot this buck? The light was good for a shot, but I still wasn't 100% sure it was "the" buck. Was I looking through the eyes of a hunter, or was I now looking through the optimistic eyes of a shooter? Many things raced in my mind..the stands I hadn't yet hunted...the bucks I've seen during late summer scouting, last years buck...all these things swirled in my mind as time was in both slow motion and fast forward at the same moment.

Finally I asked myself, as I walked the crimson trail, would I be sure that at the end would be a buck worthy of ending my season? Is it possible that the ground could claim some of what I "thought" I saw?

I watched him walk out of sight, never knowing the turmoil he left in my mind.

The next 3 hours were spent wonderring....but there is only 1 thing I could have done differently, and that was shoot.

I truly think I let one slip...but hopes are high and redemption may be as soon as this afternoon...and then again, I may never know!

markjenna

Well got out in the stand tonight when the wife got home from work. Got in around 4ish and about 4:30 is see 2 Toms and 8 hens heading to me across the bean field. I am like cool, I can fill my turkey tag, maybe. Then I see a doe at the top of the bean field and the turkey start to move out. I was like well that doe must be messing with them. I look over to my right and not one but TWO BIG ASS eight pointers are standing 100 yards away. They must of went about 140 on one and 160 on the other. Behind them was a weird ass deer. It had a fork on the left side and on the right side it had some type of antler grown straight down, nothing going up. Awsome, the deer must of been about 2ish.. Gonna be cool to see what that is going to be in about 3 years. Just when I get pumped I glass back to the turkeys, two DOGS are rolling across the field. They must of been chasing the deer. I was pissed. I am such an animal lover and dog lover, but if those dogs would of came closer, WELL. Well everything took off and then it was dark.. Great night, and at least I saw what was rubbing all those trees of mine.........................Saw those two big 8's and a Piebald doe this week. Great hunting so far. I for sure am back out tomorrow...... Going to go down to about 30ish tonight...

Boys I am going to try my best to put a 140-160ish on the board for us. I saw them tonight and have proof they are there.. Bring on the rut......

markjenna

OH ya, hey Fieldmouse is that hottie married and if not are you hooking up with that or what......LOL

Nice picture for sure..........................Tell her I said.........HOW YOU DOING.......LOL

GR8atta2d

Keep after'em Mark..at least we are seeing a few shooters!