2018 Muzzleloader Season is upon us!!!

[gregintenn]

Good luck and good hunting to everybody going in the morning! Looks like the weather should be in your favor.

[KahrMan]

I will be up in a tree. Good luck everybody. 

[Ronald_55]

I will be at the outdoor range. Next weekend is my first day hopefully. Good luck everyone.

[gregintenn]

I got up this morning, heard the wind blowing, and went right back to bed. Maybe it'll be calmer tomorrow.

[MacGyver]

It’s flat out cold with the wind this morning. 

[Shorty]

It's not too bad back in the trees.  Cold weather didn't seem to help get the deer moving unfortunately.  No increased action on my trail cams, but I did get a pic of the largest  bobcat I've ever seen.

[KahrMan]

I am fixin to head out and sit till dark. At least it is a little warmer than it was this morning. 

[Navy Chief]

Put up a new ladder stand Wednesday about 200 yards from the house, tried it out Thursday morning, took an 8 point at 8:00, and have now been informed that my season is over ... she is NOT buying a third freezer!

[KahrMan]

Nothing was moving this afternoon around me. Saw one tail walking back to the truck but that was it. 

[Alleycat72]

Had 13 at the house this afternoon.

[Ronald_55]

Drove to Columbia ( 4 hours) this morning and got in the woods after daylight. Spooked one in the brush walking in and got grunted at while sitting. Be back at it at daylight tomorrow. 

[Handsome Rob]

I missed the same 10, 3 frikkin' times yesterday evening. I've gotta assume my scope's janked. 3 open field shots, all under 100yds!! 

[gregintenn]

2 hours ago, robtattoo said:

I missed the same 10, 3 frikkin' times yesterday evening. I've gotta assume my scope's janked. 3 open field shots, all under 100yds!! 

It happens.

[bersaguy]

2 hours ago, robtattoo said:

I missed the same 10, 3 frikkin' times yesterday evening. I've gotta assume my scope's janked. 3 open field shots, all under 100yds!! 

I had something very similar back years ago when I was still hunting.  It was during Gun season and my son had come up to visit back when he lived a 150 miles away and had the grandbabies. It was an unexpected surprise and he ask if I had been doing any hunting and I said yea, going in the morning and he said I would go along but didn't bring a gun so I told him he could use the Savage 308 and I use my Marlin 30/30. I had taken a deer earlier that day with the 30/30 and it was at the processors. That shot was about 60 yards in a hayfield that really needed cutting. Went to the same stand and son to another. About 7:30 an 8 point chasing three does busted out of the woods into the field behind the does. The does stopped a few seconds and he stopped and I got 1 shot at about 80 yards and missed. all the deer ran right at me at first not knowing which way the short came from and then stopped again and I popped another round off and missed again at about 60 yards. They discovered where the shots were coming from and turned right towards my Son at a dead run across the field. Just before they entered the woods I was watching through my scope when I saw the buck go down and about a second later heard the shot. Heard that crack the bullet makes in flight then heard that thump like a bullet sounds when it his a big watermelon. I saw him climb down so I climbed down to go help him with his deer. It was just a short walk back to the house to get the pickup truck rather than do all that dragging.

Now I cannot explain why I missed that deer twice with the same gun I killed a deer with the day before. Later that day son and I went out to a field I had set up with a picnic bench and sand bags @ 80 yards and I sent 10 rounds down range at gallon milk jugs of water we had drove down and put up as targets. Busted 1st 5 dead on. Missed #6 and hit the 4x4 wood under the jug and hit the next 3 and the same thing on #10. In the board just below the jug. Next time I took 30/30 I missed another deer so I knew it was new scope time. I don't know what was going on with the scope except it was off and on and not trustworthy enough for me to want to hunt with.   

[gregintenn]

I saw at least 30 deer this morning while in the stand. 5 were bucks, but no trophies. They were running the does like crazy. One young 8 pointer chased a doe all over the hill behind me for at least an hour. Not sure if he ever caught her, but I expect he will.

[Ronald_55]

Got to see 3, one I think was a buck, but he stayed in the brush. The 2 does stayed behind enough trees to keep me off a shot. Those, 2 fox squirrels, a chipmunk, and some type of crane flying over made for nice watching.  Maybe I get a shot tomorrow before I head home. 

[Handsome Rob]

Well.....it turns out I hit him perfectly the first shot. He ran across an open field. I shot & he walked off into a brush pile. 2 minutes later 'he' walks out of the brush pile & starts feeding. I shot again & saw dirt fly under his belly. Shot again & saw dirt in the same spot buy he's had enough by then. I never even considered going to look for blood because he acted unharmed.

I wouldn't have guessed in a million freaking years that there was already a nice buck in the brush pile when mine ran in there.... A buddy hunted there today & found him 10 feet from where I shot him. Really unfortunately, coyotes got up in his guts & ruined both hams & the 240gn Magtech took care of the offside shoulder

[KahrMan]

Nice buck Rob!

[MacGyver]

Huh. That is a crazy story. 

[gregintenn]

I've noticed a high percentage of deer I've taken with a muzzleloader didn't act at all like they were hit. They often just mosey off a little way, lay down, and die.

[Omega]

14 hours ago, robtattoo said:

Well.....it turns out I hit him perfectly the first shot. He ran across an open field. I shot & he walked off into a brush pile. 2 minutes later 'he' walks out of the brush pile & starts feeding. I shot again & saw dirt fly under his belly. Shot again & saw dirt in the same spot buy he's had enough by then. I never even considered going to look for blood because he acted unharmed.

I wouldn't have guessed in a million freaking years that there was already a nice buck in the brush pile when mine ran in there.... A buddy hunted there today & found him 10 feet from where I shot him. Really unfortunately, coyotes got up in his guts & ruined both hams & the 240gn Magtech took care of the offside shoulder

Well, at least you can make a European mount out of him.

[bersaguy]

I can remember hunting with a buddy of mine in Muzzle loader back years ago and I can tell you this. When he shot one they didn't walk anywhere. We where hunting the Islands on Percy Priest Lake before they added them to Long Hunter Park and he was up in a tree stand surrounded with Cedar branches and I was down the ridge was him about 40 yards.

I saw this big 8 point walking on top of the ridge and knew it was going to walk within 15 to 20 yards right in front of him. Sure nuff, I saw his Hawkins barrel come out of the cedar branches so I focused on the deer though my scope. When he fired I watched the deer get pushed about 5 feet straight side ways and fall down. Never even kicked.

He hit the deer in left front shoulder and needless to say front shoulders were junk. Just to let folks know Steve was a meat hunter and he couldn't get a neck shot which is were he prefers to shoot a deer so he took what he had. He is a big guy and he uses maximum powder load the gun will handle and hand casts his own bullets and they are very soft and expand to about the size of a silver dollar when he takes them out of the deer. Many times he saves them and makes new rounds out of them. Steve lived off the land and if he didn't hunt food he grew it in a huge garden and he as his wife canned food they grew.

He didn't own much more than the small house they lived in and the 200 acres of land he owned. Wife coked on a wood stove and they heated with wood. Drove and old Ford truck or his tractor around his land. He never had a land line phone but did buy two cheap Cell phones back years ago so he and his wife could keep in touch with each other and a few friends. Never owned a computer. I have not talked to him is several years. Tried calling him a couple times with no luck. He lives about 90 mles from me so I don't go visit. Don't even know if he is still alive.

Edited November 12, 2018 by bersaguy

[Ronald_55]

Well we got rained out this morning. Neither of us wanted to get soaked and then ride home 4 hours. Got breakfast and saw 5 deer on the shoulder grazing before we got 2 miles down the road. Oh well. Had fun with Dad and don't have to butcher anything I guess. 

YANAHLI was all grown up since Dad was there 2 years ago. Looked like no one had bushhogged and it was 6 foot tall. Tough to get across the field and no way to hunt it. Even a tree stand would have not helped. In years past he has hunted the edge of the fields and done pretty well.