Pennsylvania Flintlock Doe
Hey guys, I’m more of a reader than a poster on these boards lately, but I wanted to share my success story with you. I guess I’ll start off by saying I’m a senior at the University of New Hampshire studying Civil Engineering, so my hunting time is limited to the late flintlock season in Pennsylvania over my winter break. It’s definitely a challenge to hunt deer who have already been hunted for three months, but it’s the only opportunity I have, so I’ll take it.
I had been hunting relatively hard for about two and half weeks without a single deer sighting and only three days left in the season. I decided to mix up my routine and location so I went to a local state game land to give stillhunting a chance in the fresh powder. I arrived around 10am and stopped to talk to a warden and ask him for recommendations. I had two spots in mind, and he suggested one of them. By 10:30, I had my snowshoes strapped on, my backpack cinched down, and my T/C Hawkins cradled in my arms. I was ready for a long slow walk through the woods, which is bordered by cut corn on one side and swamp on the other. I slowly progressed, stopping constantly to assess my location and scan the horizon. The views were beautiful and I spotted a few fox squirrels bounding through the snow.
Suddenly ahead of me I spotted two brown forms slipping through the woods. At first, I thought they were going to cross ahead of me about eighty yards out, not offering a shot, but I quickly stepped to a nearby tree for a rest and to get a better look at the deer. It was then I realized they were angling towards me at a fast walk. I quickly brought the gun up and pulled the hammer back in one motion. As the deer moved closer, I started to wonder if the priming powder I placed thirty minutes prior was still dry since there were enough snowflakes on the barrel to nearly hide the front sight. With my heavy gloves on, I pulled the set trigger and kept my finger well away from the front hair trigger. The deer were moving too quickly to risk a quick peek at my powder for fear of being spotted. Within seconds, the deer were close, and as the lead doe stepped into an opening about thirty yards away and I gave a quick bleat to stop her. The sight picture felt good as I moved my finger towards the trigger, and just as quickly as the deer appeared, a flash ignited in front of my face and smoke filled the air.
There wasn’t any blood at the shot, but lots of dark brown hair. About twenty feet down the trail I found a fine mist of blood, and these mists continued about every ten yards. I couldn’t believe the fifty-caliber hole wasn’t bleeding more and I began to question my shot. Everything felt good and I couldn’t believe this was all the more blood I was finding. Over a hundred yards down the trail I spotted a large tree with a big blood smear on it. As I was examining the tree, I followed the tracks with my eyes as they curled to the right. Twenty yards ahead was my doe, piled up in the snow.
The shot was right where I wanted if she was standing broadside, but she was actually quartering towards me. I hit both lungs, but the shot angled back and the higher shot placement caused the blood to pool inside leaving a marginal trail. Lucky for me, the snow made following it easier. I had a half mile drag to get her back to the truck through the deep snow, but it was well worth it. I’ve always said I’d like to get my deer near the end of the season so I can hunt more beforehand, and this year was no different.
The specifics:
Adult doe (120 lbs field dressed)
T/C Hawkins .50 cal Flintlock
350 gr. T/C Maxi-Hunter
90 gr. Goex 3F
30 yd shot, 150 yd recovery
4th Flintlock deer, 12th overall
First deer with this flintlock (purchased in June)
This was actually the second deer I’ve killed on 13-Jan, the first came four years ago and was the last deer I’d taken with a flintlock before starting college. I hope I don’t have to wait four more years for another smokepole deer.