DEVIL or ANGEL ???????
 

Ever had that Devil on one shoulder and the Angel on the other????????
Here it is > I have a place to hunt that is bow only. I have no place to hunt gun. The Pa bow season started October 4th. I put in many hours and see lots of deer ,but no legal bucks or mature does gave me a ethical shot. The Pa. early muzzleloader season started " last saturday. You can shoot only does. This is in conjunction with the on going bow season for buck or doe.
Well my neighbor ask me if I got a deer yet.I said nope. He said that is odd for you. I said I have no place to gun hunt. He said heck I only have 2 acres but it butts up against the bow hunting area. Sit there and plug a doe with your muzzy.
So I went out this morning. Arrived and got seated at 5:45 am. About 6:15 I herd deer going by. To dark and not llegal shooting hours yet. It was very overcast and even at legal shooting hour it was to dark. At 7:30 I seen a body moving slowly out of the brush. I took my omega inline pulled the hammer back and waited for the deer to clear the brush. OH no it is a buck and a big one! The devil on my left shoulder said shoot stupid! No one will ever know,just tag it as a bow kill. The devil said it is big,probably never see it again,infact probably the only deer you will get this year. The angel on the right shoulder said,NO that aint right. You wiil loose self respect for yourself. As the huge buck walked within 15 yards and showed off his 13 pts and 20 inch spread I just hung my head and let it walk.It went about 20 yards beyond me made a scrape and turn around and walked past me again.Again I hung my head so not to look at it. I must admit I was tempted. Soon after the rain started falling to I packed up and went home. Devil Or Angel?? Thats the question??????

RE: DEVIL or ANGEL ???????
 

You did the only thing you could do. I believe that karma plays a huge part in hunting success. You just put some in the bank!

RE: DEVIL or ANGEL ???????
 

Just about anyone in that situation would be tempted. You did the right thing though in my opinion. If for any reason it' s peace of mind.

RE: DEVIL or ANGEL ???????
 

We are all human, go back with a bow and show that big buck who is boss, he will come back to the scrape, they are on the two acres because of no hunting pressure.

RE: DEVIL or ANGEL ???????
 

if the season coincide and you can hunt bow or ml take them both with you, i have done it with shotgun before, i sling it on an extra tree step for easy access. p.s.you did the right thing,, my hat is off to you

RE: DEVIL or ANGEL ???????
 

I too would go back with the bow since he may return. Another thing to consider is that in PA, if you are bow hunting, you are not supposed to bring the muzzleloader with you into the woods. You could have it in the truck/car and go back for it and than try with the bow.

Also note that if you don' t get him, hopefully his gene' s will get passed on to future generations and they could look like him.

Good luck in trying to get him.

Tomster

RE: DEVIL or ANGEL ???????
 

It seems you did the right thing by PA law, good for you. This brings up other questions though about state laws. Are some in place just because, or are they there because of studies? If they are there becuase of studies then who did the study and is it creditable? I know up here it seems like some of the laws don' t help with QDM. We have an average of 1(buck) to 6-8+(doe) but still they will not let us shoot doe, why?

RE: DEVIL or ANGEL ???????
 

You did the right thing. Where I hunt you have to tag a doe first before you can shoot a buck with a bow. I hunt middle of the week usually and never anyone else around. I let all types of nice bucks walk right under and by. I' m basically a meat hunter but could never bring myself to the level of a poacher. How could someone shoot a wallhanger illegally? How could you brag about it? How could you live with yourself knowing the truth? My time will come and so will yours my friend, You' ve done the right thing. Now put that pee shooter away, pick up your bow and go get whats rightfully yours.:)

RE: DEVIL or ANGEL ???????
 

well said HaGar!

RE: DEVIL or ANGEL ???????
 

good point about checking law, i answered what would be legal in montana,, always check your own regs. hope you get another chance at that buck and have you thought of putin your bow stand closer to the 2 acre border?