Week two of rifle season was completely different than week one. I changed stands and jumped a deer as soon as I got into the woods. I've been hunting for almost half of my life now and for the first time, as I walked into the woods alone, the sound of something so close that I could not see did not send my heart beating out of my chest. Instead, I listened to see if I could keep it from running too far away by slowly continuing on to my stand. It was warmer than the week before which meant sitting for 12 hours would be much more bearable. I settled into the stand quieter than I normally do, knowing that the deer was not too far away. There was a slight breeze coming from behind me and I shifted a few inches to use the wall to block...
If you had asked everyone in the room to vote right then and there, I would bet that supplemental feeding of deer would have been made illegal. The room was packed with people at the Augusta Civic Center, listening to a presentation by Dr. Krysten L. Schuler, Wildlife Disease Ecologist at Cornell Wildlife Health Lab about her research on Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) and what is being done in the 26 states currently impacted. CWD is caused by a mutated protein that are found in prions. Deer shed prions through bodily fluids and once in the soil, CWD can stay there for months if not years. The worst spreaders of the prions are those big, adult bucks that we all covet. CWD is fatal and in the same family as Mad Cow Disease. The...
I am beginning to learn how to age a buck on the hoof. It can be hard in the woods with branches and bushes blocking pieces of the animals but I want to work on it and see if it will help my patience as I wait for the bigger bucks. I have gotten pretty good at aging does based on their face structure and the size of their features. I have not had the opportunity to harvest a doe, so I can't say for sure if my calculations match the actual age of the deer but I am working on it. I have a nice, healthy heard of deer living around my house and it’s not uncommon to see an older doe with some yearlings or even fawns throughout the summer. Their longer features means an older animal and if you are patent enough...
I threw the car into park and ran inside, peeling off layers as I went. I traded my heels for wool pants, boots and blaze orange. I grabbed the gun and left. There was less than two hours of daylight remaining and a snow squall predicted for the next hour as a cold front moved in. It was 3pm when I walked into the woods and climbed into the Sky Condo. The big buck's tracks ran along the ridge to my right, so I turned my body to face in that direction. I was hoping that I would catch him as he did his loop. It seemed like a perfect night to have deer move. I looked to my left, scanning in front of the Sky Condo. I was startled to see three deer walking at me. The snow on the ground made...
Some women have the type of attitude that lets you know that they can and will accomplish anything that they set their mind to. Lorri Nelson is one of those women... There is a shock factor that comes when you shoot the last animal needed for your grand slam. After years of hard work, learning to hunt each animal and a little luck, Lorri Nelson accomplished her grand slam when the cow moose dropped to the ground. “It was only four hours into the hunt,” Lorri said, “We didn’t bring the trailer or 4-wheeler because it was rattling so bad and we didn’t want to spook anything.” They had done some scouting ahead of time and were now looking for a cow moose in Zone 6. “I saw her entire body move in the...
I didn’t see the fawn but I watched in slow motion as the doe hit the corner of the oncoming jeep and disappeared into the tall grass. I hoped that it was just a brush with the bumper and that she would be OK. The driver pulled over and began to walk along the edge of the road to see if the deer was OK. I pulled over on the opposite shoulder and asked if he was OK. We saw the doe struggling to get up and she made a horrific noise. I assumed that she had a broken leg so I asked my mom to leave me on the side of the road with the driver and go to my house to get the gun. I placed a call to dispatch was put in touch with a warden. He asked if I was able to dispatch the deer and if I wanted to. The last thing I wanted was for this...
We moved to a new house about a month ago. The second night that we were there, a doe came out from the woods. Since then, we have had three does hanging around, one of which was VERY pregnant the last time we saw her (I am hoping for twins!) They are out on the back lawn at least twice a week and one morning, I had a doe only a few yards from the house. When I threw open the curtains, she just looked at me and kept eating. If I draw a doe tag this fall, they are not necessarily safe but until hunting season arrives,, we will keep watching...
As I climbed into the Sky Condo to start the 2017 hunting season, the top step broke off from the tree sending a chuck of wood to the ground and leaving the bulk of the rung hanging down to the next step. I lifted my gun off my shoulder and slid it onto the floor of the Sky Condo and them threw my backpack up. I got myself into the stand and looked down at the damage. We were going to have to replace a few rungs before the following week. And my silent entry into the woods was anything but. I sat there for a couple of hours and then headed for my stand in the woods to see if anything was walking through. I was cautious walking in and looked for any sign of brown. I made it around the corner when I...
If you do not follow me on Facebook, then you don't know that Dad totally schooled us in how to shoot a big buck. Did some scouting, brought his gun, right place, right time, incredible buck! (Mom's flip phone doesn't take great pictures) So, that leaves Hubs (who has a doe permit) and I (who does not) to attempt to get a shot at one of these big bucks! The competition is on!
