The 5:20 am alarm comes quickly after getting in bed the
night before. I hop up eager to start the day. Deer season had finally arrived
and I was ready to get into the stand. I walk over to the kitchen to fire up
some coffee and get my clothes together. My dad is up by now making his way to
the kitchen. We had talked the night before about where we wanted to hunt on
our 200 acres. We decided to split up and hunt alone. A method I prefer because
you only have to worry about your smell, your noises, and your choices.
I grab my gun and backpack and head towards the ATV. Last night was cold and there's frost covering the seat. This is a great sign. I load up the gear and hop on, it's about a 5 minute ride before I need to dump the ATV. If the coffee hadn't woke me up, the wind chill on the ATV kept my heart beating. I find a good hiding place in some brush for the ATV and slide off.
There's an art to walking that only hunters know. How to make the least amount of noise while sifting through grass and brush is hard task while making it to the blind. If you don't, you run the risk of jumping up the deer bedded down in the woods.
Everything is in slow motion when you hunt. Never have I ever found myself focusing on something more than my hunt. I have waited all year for this. I can't let it be blown after forgetting a step. Once I get into the deer blind and set up everything for the hunt, the best part is divine intervention. The sun begins to rise.
If you find enjoyment in appreciating God's work, a sunset can be argued as one of the more popular forms of his definition of beauty. I am sure everyone has seen one, but how many have actually popped a tailgate and watched a sunset? Not many. I can tell you a sun rise is even more magnificent. A sun casting its light onto darkness is more vibrant as it breaks through the night.
As you sit watching the sun rise and keeping your eyes peeled for a buck, the world begins to awaken. Birds begin the chirp in. The soft coos of dove remind you off past hunts with old friends. The loud thundering of quail as the covey takes off is startling. Every breath of the cold air acts as a natural cleanser of your soul. You can feel the clean air reach your heart, purifying it.
By now a few does are under the deer feeder. I began scanning the trees and brush for any others. You look for anything that might be hidden from the naked eye. As time passes I find myself watching the deer in the pin. Every now and then a smaller buck might join the group and run off to chase a doe. The rut was definitely on. The bucks were pumped up as if they could smell something in the air.
As I am watching for movement between bushes and trees, something catches my eye. I zero in on the movement with my binoculars and catch the outline of a neck and shoulders of a deer. Immediately taking in the size of this body, I knew it was a big buck. My heart started pounding. I tried to find the shape of the antlers but the brush was too thick. He moved forward and I lost him. My eyes frantically moved across the brush looking for movement while my hands grabbed the rifle and slid it out the window for a quick shot. Seconds later the buck stepped out in front into the opening.
The rack was tall, I began trying to count the points, but he was moving too quickly to get a good look. He finally stopped and I counted 8 points. His spread was just outside the ears and looked magnificent.
By now my heart was racing. I had full blown buck fever and my hands were shaking. I tried calming myself by controlling my breath, but that did little to control a natural instinct.
But as I was caught up in the rush, I felt myself hesitate.
This guy was big, but was he big enough? How could I know. It's the first day I have been able to hunt. I have no idea how the rest of the ranch my look. My hand slowly slides off the action of my Browning .30-06 and I use the scope to focus on the antlers. After another 20 seconds I couldn't justify harvesting him this early in the season. I decided to pass. Just then he turned his head, saw a doe and took off.
I've been thinking about him all weekend. It's now Sunday and I'm still hunting the same blind. I haven't seen him since yesterday morning and I'm sure the rut has him pretty busy. I did have the opportunity to look at some other bucks, none of which compared to that eight pointer. That's the beauty of hunting, I hope to see him again.
I grab my gun and backpack and head towards the ATV. Last night was cold and there's frost covering the seat. This is a great sign. I load up the gear and hop on, it's about a 5 minute ride before I need to dump the ATV. If the coffee hadn't woke me up, the wind chill on the ATV kept my heart beating. I find a good hiding place in some brush for the ATV and slide off.
There's an art to walking that only hunters know. How to make the least amount of noise while sifting through grass and brush is hard task while making it to the blind. If you don't, you run the risk of jumping up the deer bedded down in the woods.
Everything is in slow motion when you hunt. Never have I ever found myself focusing on something more than my hunt. I have waited all year for this. I can't let it be blown after forgetting a step. Once I get into the deer blind and set up everything for the hunt, the best part is divine intervention. The sun begins to rise.
If you find enjoyment in appreciating God's work, a sunset can be argued as one of the more popular forms of his definition of beauty. I am sure everyone has seen one, but how many have actually popped a tailgate and watched a sunset? Not many. I can tell you a sun rise is even more magnificent. A sun casting its light onto darkness is more vibrant as it breaks through the night.
As you sit watching the sun rise and keeping your eyes peeled for a buck, the world begins to awaken. Birds begin the chirp in. The soft coos of dove remind you off past hunts with old friends. The loud thundering of quail as the covey takes off is startling. Every breath of the cold air acts as a natural cleanser of your soul. You can feel the clean air reach your heart, purifying it.
By now a few does are under the deer feeder. I began scanning the trees and brush for any others. You look for anything that might be hidden from the naked eye. As time passes I find myself watching the deer in the pin. Every now and then a smaller buck might join the group and run off to chase a doe. The rut was definitely on. The bucks were pumped up as if they could smell something in the air.
As I am watching for movement between bushes and trees, something catches my eye. I zero in on the movement with my binoculars and catch the outline of a neck and shoulders of a deer. Immediately taking in the size of this body, I knew it was a big buck. My heart started pounding. I tried to find the shape of the antlers but the brush was too thick. He moved forward and I lost him. My eyes frantically moved across the brush looking for movement while my hands grabbed the rifle and slid it out the window for a quick shot. Seconds later the buck stepped out in front into the opening.
The rack was tall, I began trying to count the points, but he was moving too quickly to get a good look. He finally stopped and I counted 8 points. His spread was just outside the ears and looked magnificent.
By now my heart was racing. I had full blown buck fever and my hands were shaking. I tried calming myself by controlling my breath, but that did little to control a natural instinct.
But as I was caught up in the rush, I felt myself hesitate.
This guy was big, but was he big enough? How could I know. It's the first day I have been able to hunt. I have no idea how the rest of the ranch my look. My hand slowly slides off the action of my Browning .30-06 and I use the scope to focus on the antlers. After another 20 seconds I couldn't justify harvesting him this early in the season. I decided to pass. Just then he turned his head, saw a doe and took off.
I've been thinking about him all weekend. It's now Sunday and I'm still hunting the same blind. I haven't seen him since yesterday morning and I'm sure the rut has him pretty busy. I did have the opportunity to look at some other bucks, none of which compared to that eight pointer. That's the beauty of hunting, I hope to see him again.
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