First deer of the year
I got to take my second deer ever with a bow last saturday. I was hunting in a stand that i only hung a few weeks ago. The stand is a lock on stand, which i have never been fond of before now. it is positioned between a corn field and a bedding area. So here is how my saturday panned out.
I got in my stand by about 6:15 that morning. I got settled in and it wasnt long before i saw deer coming. The stand is about 30 yards off of a powerline going through my property. I can see bits and pieces of the power line and i was counting on the deer walking the power line then coming into my corn pile in the mornings. THis is exactly what happened. A doe and a fawn came in from the power line and made a bee line for my corn pile. i was going to take the doe because i have only shot one deer with my bow. So i drew back, and was getting settled on the doe and all of a sudden she bolts. Then the next thing i know two dogs come chasing right behind her. So that blew my morning hunt.
That afternoon i didnt get in the stand til around 5. I am sitting there for maybe 30 min and i see something on the powerline again. i finally figure out what it is and it is those two dogs i saw during the morning hunt. The two dogs walk in and wonder around. I let them be, thinking they would move off, but they decided to camp out under my stand. One of the dogs actually laid down right next to my corn pile. So i scared them off. Then about 30 min later i could see them walking down the powerline again, but this time they never came toward me. After all this i am contemplating about getting down and going home, but i decided to just stick it out. Around 7 i hear something behind me and can see i doe coming straight toward my bait pile. She gets to the bait pile and looks straight up at me. I am thinking she has me pegged and will take off, but she never does. She looked up at me probably twenty five times. She would eat corn in between looks. I decided i wanted to take her but she would never give me a shot. She stayed facing me for a good 20 min. Then finally she was about to move off and turned browadside. I estimated her to be about 30 yds away. So i drew back and let the arrow fly. I shot high and spined her and she didnt take another step.
This is the first deer i have ever killed on opening day and only the second with my bow, so i am pleased with how the day went.