Move along please.
So, happily I moved along.
I was out deer hunting yesterday. I have an antlerless permit and I have been wanting to fill that tag. I love venison but not enough to sit around and wait on deer with the proper sized head gear. There are lots of does on this property and so I have been excited about pulling this permit. I am perfectly happy to eat a doe.
I got to the field I was going to hunt around. I know there are lots of does that hang out there because I flush them with regularity when I am quail and woodcock hunting. I have also seen some pretty good scrapes there too. I decided to eat my lunch and watch the field. As I was eating, I watched a deer cross the field. With the binoculars it did look like a doe so I watched what she did as I ate my lunch. I watched where she went into the woods, pretty much where I expected, and I never saw her come out. Not that that meant much because she could have just walked directly away from me once she got in the woods and I never would have known. But I have watched deer often enough during my quail escapades and I knew there was a good chance she was in there. So, I finished my sandwich and slowly got my pack and gun and all that fun stuff ready to go. Then I slowly walked the edge of the field to where I saw her go in. It's a pretty spot, lots of acorns, some thick stuff to hide in. I watched and waited and walked slowly but no deer busted out of there. So, I found a log to sit on. About five minutes after I got all settled, I hear some rustling. There are lots of squirrels but I watch anyway and eventually see a deer making its way out of the thicket where I thought it might have been hiding.
Of course my heart begins beating ten thousand miles an hour...so much that I wasn't sure the log wasn't also thrumming with my heartbeat. It sure felt like it. Anyway, the deer was very unconcerned as it wandered its way to me. Zig zagging through the brush. That deer just kept meandering and I couldn't tell for sure buck or doe. I was pretty sure it wasn't a big buck because I couldn't see any obvious headgear. But what is it?!?!?!?!?!?!
After pausing in some super thick grasses that are shoulder high on me and feeding for a while, the deer came back out the way it came. It was only about 30 feet from me and I couldn't see it!!! I was vibrating and telling myself to calm down for cryin out loud! Well, the deer walked into the open and I could see it was a little buck. He had short little spikes. If he had spikes that were less than 5", he would have been legal. I couldn't be certain he was less than 5" and the point of the antlerless permit is to try to cull the does. There are LOTS. So, I let him wander away. He never knew I was there.
I sat for a little while longer and headed to where I had originally planned on going. Yup. There was a nice scrape.
I also had busted a bunch of deer out of the brush in getting there. I didn't intend to, but it also wasn't surprising. So, I went to find a log to sit on when I found that my spot was already taken. I decided it was best to move on.
I found another spot to sit and wait. I saw some does but they were nowhere in range and not coming my way. I left before the witching hour of sunset because I am not a good tracker at night and I had a very early morning appointment at the hospital this morning. I didn't want to risk losing my deer. I can always come back. On the drive out I saw LOTS of does. A few really big ones. I got to the field next to the check station and there were about a dozen does hanging out in the corner.
In talking with the FWC manager and the check station manager, they were saying that no one ever hunts that field. So, I have a good spot to have a decent chance at a nice doe. I also found out that my permit is actually good all season (through the end of January), not the 13 days that is listed on my permit. The FWC managers are very upset because a lot of people are not aware that the permit is good for the whole season and they need the doe herd culled. Hopefully next weekend though I will be punching my doe tag and I can move on to quail and woodcock hunting there.
So, happily I moved along.
I was out deer hunting yesterday. I have an antlerless permit and I have been wanting to fill that tag. I love venison but not enough to sit around and wait on deer with the proper sized head gear. There are lots of does on this property and so I have been excited about pulling this permit. I am perfectly happy to eat a doe.
I got to the field I was going to hunt around. I know there are lots of does that hang out there because I flush them with regularity when I am quail and woodcock hunting. I have also seen some pretty good scrapes there too. I decided to eat my lunch and watch the field. As I was eating, I watched a deer cross the field. With the binoculars it did look like a doe so I watched what she did as I ate my lunch. I watched where she went into the woods, pretty much where I expected, and I never saw her come out. Not that that meant much because she could have just walked directly away from me once she got in the woods and I never would have known. But I have watched deer often enough during my quail escapades and I knew there was a good chance she was in there. So, I finished my sandwich and slowly got my pack and gun and all that fun stuff ready to go. Then I slowly walked the edge of the field to where I saw her go in. It's a pretty spot, lots of acorns, some thick stuff to hide in. I watched and waited and walked slowly but no deer busted out of there. So, I found a log to sit on. About five minutes after I got all settled, I hear some rustling. There are lots of squirrels but I watch anyway and eventually see a deer making its way out of the thicket where I thought it might have been hiding.
Of course my heart begins beating ten thousand miles an hour...so much that I wasn't sure the log wasn't also thrumming with my heartbeat. It sure felt like it. Anyway, the deer was very unconcerned as it wandered its way to me. Zig zagging through the brush. That deer just kept meandering and I couldn't tell for sure buck or doe. I was pretty sure it wasn't a big buck because I couldn't see any obvious headgear. But what is it?!?!?!?!?!?!
After pausing in some super thick grasses that are shoulder high on me and feeding for a while, the deer came back out the way it came. It was only about 30 feet from me and I couldn't see it!!! I was vibrating and telling myself to calm down for cryin out loud! Well, the deer walked into the open and I could see it was a little buck. He had short little spikes. If he had spikes that were less than 5", he would have been legal. I couldn't be certain he was less than 5" and the point of the antlerless permit is to try to cull the does. There are LOTS. So, I let him wander away. He never knew I was there.
I sat for a little while longer and headed to where I had originally planned on going. Yup. There was a nice scrape.
I also had busted a bunch of deer out of the brush in getting there. I didn't intend to, but it also wasn't surprising. So, I went to find a log to sit on when I found that my spot was already taken. I decided it was best to move on.
I found another spot to sit and wait. I saw some does but they were nowhere in range and not coming my way. I left before the witching hour of sunset because I am not a good tracker at night and I had a very early morning appointment at the hospital this morning. I didn't want to risk losing my deer. I can always come back. On the drive out I saw LOTS of does. A few really big ones. I got to the field next to the check station and there were about a dozen does hanging out in the corner.
In talking with the FWC manager and the check station manager, they were saying that no one ever hunts that field. So, I have a good spot to have a decent chance at a nice doe. I also found out that my permit is actually good all season (through the end of January), not the 13 days that is listed on my permit. The FWC managers are very upset because a lot of people are not aware that the permit is good for the whole season and they need the doe herd culled. Hopefully next weekend though I will be punching my doe tag and I can move on to quail and woodcock hunting there.
. When I first got back to WY in November, I was checking where I stepped, even though there was snow on the ground 
