2014 Off Season Support Group Deer Season Thread

[Sidinman]

First deer I ever took was with a Marlin 444.  Great brush gun for our TN woods.  Glad to see it's still popular.

I will say one thing that Hornady 265gr FTX did one heck of a number on this little doe. I hit her at the top of the back and there is a spot larger than a softball missing. I forgot my handgun when I left out this afternoon, and this shot as I was high on the back was not a killing shot. Had to finish her off with this cannon, shot her in the head, not a pretty site. But she never moved another muscle.

[Slappy]

Another doe down tonight!  Fairly interesting story too.  I saw 2 spikes that I passed on and only had about 15 minutes of legal light left.  Then this doe caught my eye leaping through the beans at about 250yards.  Its too far for my comfort level especially with the quickly fading light so I wasn't going to shoot unless she got closer.  Well she stopped for a bit and started chewing up some soybeans and with about 10 minutes of shooting light left, I decided I need to try and get her to come in closer.  So I grabbed my grunt call that will do fawn bleets and started bleeting at her.  She quickly snapped her head around and looked my direction, then started walking to me!!  I will be honest, that is the first time I have ever used a call and seen it work.  So that was a great learning experience.  Anyways, she got within 150-175 yards of my stand and facing straight on at me and with literally 3 minutes of legal shooting light left, it was now or never.  

 

So I zoomed in on the Leupold scope and decided I was going to go for a neck shot because it was really my only option.   If I shoot left or shoot right, its a clean miss and she wont be wounded.  No harm no foul.  If I hit low, the bullet would exit the back of her neck and enter back into her through the backstrap and into the guts.  So I didnt want to shoot low.  If I shoot high, it will go over her head and miss her rear end and go safely into the ground.  

 

 I aimed right beneath her chin and sllloowwlllyyyy squeezed the trigger.  BOOM!! All I see is my muzzle flash for a second.  Then when my eyes adjust back...no deer running.  So I'm thinking, well I either missed her and she ran off and I just didnt see her, or I dropped her in her tracks.

 

I went to go find her and there she lay.  Apparently, I shot just SLIGHTLY higher than where I was aiming and the bullet went into her nose, through her brain and exited below the base of her skull/upper neck area.  It was not gory, just a simple entry and exit wound and it did the trick.  That was literally the most humane shot I have ever made on a deer!  She was a big momma too which is good.  Going to keep the backstrap and tenderloins whole and get the rest in jerky, spicy breakfast sausage and grind.  So far we have taken a total of 9 doe off our property. 

Edited November 28, 2013 by Slappy

[Slappy]

That is a real nice stand. Could have used it yesterday and I would not have gotten so wet.

 

Thanks.  Sometimes it just doesnt feel like hunting when you are in it.  Its too comfortable. haha

[Wiljo05]

Against my better judgment opinion going to sit in the cold in the morning. I keep telling myself its tradition!

[Sniper23]

I'm already in a tree waiting for the deer. Good luck to everyone and please be safe.

[DaveS]

I'm already in a tree waiting for the deer. Good luck to everyone and please be safe.

You be carefull out in that cold Brother! I want to go really bad, but I can't handle this kind of cold anymore. It's suppose to warm up this weekend some so I will get out a bit.

 

Dave

Edited November 28, 2013 by DaveS

[Wiljo05]

The truck said 14 degrees when I pulled into the lease this morning...I made it till 9 somehow. Shot a coyote at 40 yards at 7:15 and watched a tiny racked 4 pt about 20 min later. He sniffed the coyote and then walked right over it.

[gregintenn]

                  [url=http://s612.photobucket.com/user/gregintenn/media/IMG_2385_zpsddff940f.jpg.html][/URL]

It was COLD this morning, but the deer were moving. This is the first time I've carried this old 303 Savage, and though it's old, it still works. A doe and a small 6 point buck.

     [url=http://s612.photobucket.com/user/gregintenn/media/99%20savage/IMG_2287_zps34d8ed1c.jpg.html][/URL]

No scope! :D

Good luck to everyone, and have a great Thanksgiving! Gregintenn butcher shop will be in operation tomorrow. These will be sausage and jerky.

Edited November 28, 2013 by gregintenn

[DaveS]

The truck said 14 degrees when I pulled into the lease this morning...I made it till 9 somehow. Shot a coyote at 40 yards at 7:15 and watched a tiny racked 4 pt about 20 min later. He sniffed the coyote and then walked right over it.

You're a better man than me. That 4 pointer would have come home with me!

 

DaveS

[DaveS]

                  

It was COLD this morning, but the deer were moving. This is the first time I've carried this old 303 Savage, and though it's old, it still works. A doe and a small 6 point buck.

    

No scope! :D

Good luck to everyone, and have a great Thanksgiving! Gregintenn butcher shop will be in operation tomorrow. These will be sausage and jerky.

Nice Greg! Congrats!!!

 

DaveS

[Wingshooter]

Nice deer!

I was out there in my stand an hour before daylight, and wow it was cold! 18* before I hit the woods. I was dressed for it though and had a good time. The squirrels were tearin' the place up, but I didn't see any deer. I stayed until about 11:30 eastern. I was thankful to have the opportunity this frosty morning to go hunting with my dad and enjoy the great outdoors while carrying a firearm :) The deer are thankful for the turkey that has pulled me out of the woods and towards the dinner table ;) The turkey ain't so lucky.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Eat, sleep, then eat some more :)

[Luke E.]

Developed this a few years ago when I got the 4 wheeler. It's just so dang hard to field dress one on the ground that I dragged it down to the cabin and hung it up. I did the head down thing for a while but just for giggles (and after learning a new way to skin and gut catfish) I tried this. Now we used to hang them a bit higher but the old board across the trees got weak and we replaced it, just lower than it should have been. What I found was you can make your normal incision around the private areas and get a good shot at the pelvic bone. With that removed, I just stand up and unzip the body cavity with a gutting hook, open the neck area and cut the throat and the whole gut pile will just fall out at your feet. Leaves the carcass less bloody and lets us drag the still intact gut pile up the hill a bit (and wait for coyotes). It just became my way when I can hang em. If I hunt other areas, I still do it the standard way on the ground.

By the way, a fellow showed me how to quickly skin and gut a catfish by taking a big spike nail with him. Hang the cat by the nail through the skull, make a slit all the way around the head and one long slit down the length of the back, grab a pair of needle nose pliers and PULL. Fish is skinned. Unzip the gut, cut the head off, severing the throat area and just pull down, fish is now gutted, ready to fillet or just fry depending on size. I figured why not try it on deer. It worked.

Cool. I may give it a try next go around. Thanks for the explanation.

[TNMTBik3r]

Truck said 14 degrees for us this morning too. Went with my FIL and a friend out to the farm, I saw 4 deer and put two of them on the ground (does). Had a group of three walk up behind me at 7:00 and dropped one, was waiting and fixing to climb out of my stand to gut her when another doe came up in front of my at 7:50. Broadside shot at 60 yards, I couldn't pass on it.

My FIL put a doe on the ground too so we had three to take care of today.

It was a cold day but the deer were moving!

[Sidinman]

Nice deer Greg, and a really nice looking ole rifle. Congrats to ya!

[Handsome Rob]

It was COLD this morning, but the deer were moving. This is the first time I've carried this old 303 Savage, and though it's old, it still works. A doe and a small 6 point buck.

No scope! :D
Good luck to everyone, and have a great Thanksgiving! Gregintenn butcher shop will be in operation tomorrow. These will be sausage and jerky.

I thought you'd be taller.....

Anyway, nice deer & a gun that makes me go all wobbly-kneed every time I see it! :)

[DaveS]

I thought you'd be taller.....

Anyway, nice deer & a gun that makes me go all wobbly-kneed every time I see it! :)

Rob; what DOESN'T make you go all wobbly-kneed when it comes to rifles? J/K Bro

 

Dave

[Handsome Rob]

Rob; what DOESN'T make you go all wobbly-kneed when it comes to rifles? J/K Bro

Dave

Lol! Not much if it's got nice wood & blued steel. A lever just ices the cake! :D


Sent outta my ass by flying monkeys.

[FJCrusing]

Deer down on 11/27 around 4:45PM EST.  Snow hunting 2013 - Hunting on the family farm in West Virginia.  Saw 9 does that day and no horns.  Went ahead and took the biggest doe I had seen all day.  She was a big one!  Shot with a Remington 700 .308 WIN and Leupold VX2 scope. 

 

Not sure what happened on this first picture.  My cousin couldn't quite figure out how to take pictures with my Android:

 

 

 

She had to be at least a 150lb doe.  Two of us struggled just to get her on the back of the 4 wheeler (after being field dressed).  Should be good eats! 

[gregintenn]

I thought you'd be taller.....

Anyway, nice deer & a gun that makes me go all wobbly-kneed every time I see it! :)

Thanks. I'm 5'10" :shrug:

 

You should get yourself a Savage.

[Handsome Rob]

If I could find one I could afford I'd be all over it! To my mind they're the prettiest classic rifle ever built

Sent outta my ass by flying monkeys.

[DaveS]

Deer down on 11/27 around 4:45PM EST.  Snow hunting 2013 - Hunting on the family farm in West Virginia.  Saw 9 does that day and no horns.  Went ahead and took the biggest doe I had seen all day.  She was a big one!  Shot with a Remington 700 .308 WIN and Leupold VX2 scope. 

 

Not sure what happened on this first picture.  My cousin couldn't quite figure out how to take pictures with my Android:

 

 

 

She had to be at least a 150lb doe.  Two of us struggled just to get her on the back of the 4 wheeler (after being field dressed).  Should be good eats! 

Nice Doe!!!

 

Dave

[FJCrusing]

Nice Doe!!!

Dave

Thank you! I don't know if the temperature broke freezing that day but the deer were moving and all over the place come dusk.


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[Slappy]

Nice doe FJ! She should be good eatin indeed! How far was your shot?

[FJCrusing]

Nice doe FJ! She should be good eatin indeed! How far was your shot?

I'll have to admit it was not a difficult shot. I was hiding inbetween some hay bails and watched her come in from 400-500 yards out and I finally took the shot around 75 yards. It was windy and snowing so I was glad it ended up being a fairly close range shot. Biggest doe I've ever shot.



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[Slappy]

Hey, it doesn't have to be a difficult shot to be a good shot! I'll take an easy shot any day! That's cool you were able to watch her come in from so far away. They really gets the heart pumping when they start heading to you.