2012 Fletch "Whitetail Wanderings"

[First-light]

good luck this weekend Fletch!

[Fletch]

Thanks guys! Good luck to you as well.

11/14 pm 40

Got out back for two hours in the ladder. I did see two flatheads a bit before 4, too far out.

Bro saw nothing.

I am out of state right now for work hope to get back into the woods for a last bow sit Friday.

Edited November 15, 2012 by Fletch

[Fletch]

11/15

Went down to Tully to put my climber on the tree and make sure everything looked good. Hung a tarsal over a mock scrape. Will drag an estrous on way in tomorrow.

Good luck and stay safe everyone.

[fasteddie]

Good luck gun hunting . Don't forget the Orange ............

[Fletch]

11/17 23

Spent 6 hours on first sit and a big bad zip!! Not a lot of shooting either. Took an hour break and then back in stand for anothr 3.5 hours. 10 minutes before sunset I finally see a deer coming in. Cool looks like a doe....nope a one antler crotch. He come in to 40 yards eases into my mock scrape, glues his nose to the tarsal and the estrous doe pad. Then he pees in the scrape and slowly feeds off. He is one lucky dude!! I had the safety off and crosshairs on his shoulder. After 9 hours of not seeing a thing and never having killed a deer with the 7mm mag I thought about it!! I really wanted to hear that rifle bark! Hopefully a bigger one will come by tomorrow!

4 of us on stand for 31 plus man hours and saw one deer, sad.

[Fletch]

11/18 21 this am

Back down to Tully in the same spot with my climber. Witht the heavy frost I heard deer coming from a long way off. I saw two cutting across in front of me and pickd the bigger at 50 yards and let the 7mm mag rip. Doe went 2 feet straight down. There ended up being two more and they hung around and one was a good doe and the other a fawn. I can just see the back half of the one I shot and I am starting to wonder if I shot the one I thought I was! So anyhows these two hang aroung and bed 50 yards off my left for an hour. They finally meander off and I get down to find a very nice doe. My scale busted but I would but her at 115 - 120 dressed.

Had her gutted and down to the truck by 9:30. Man the hike in is all uphill and steep but the drag out is sweet!!

I spent the next 3.5 hours after a sandwich doing drives trying to put out a deer to my brother in law and a friend to no avail.

Back in the climber for the last two hours. Around 4pm I have the same to deer come out again and mill in front of me for 15 minutes or so until the get enough out front that I have a plan to spook them down the ridge to my bro in law. So I get up and start waving my arms at these two and they look at me for a good two minutes, not the brightest deer, before the take off bown the ridge. After a bit I heard my bil 20 go off. They came right out to him and he took the doe. I would put her at 110 dressed or abouts. I packed out and then heaged back in to help him. I am one beat dog tonight!

From the stand she is the white dot above the dead branch

[fasteddie]

Sounds like a great day of hunting ...... Congrats !

[Fletch]

Thanks Eddie I really need spell check!! Specially when I am tired!!

[Zem18]

Nice job Fletch - Congrats on nice doe. That spot looks sweet too.

[Fletch]

That is the flat on top of a ridge. To my left is bramble and thick stuff, behind me and to my right is the ridge edge dropping down.

Got out just for the last hour behind the house on the field edge stand. My Dad was out for a couple hours. No sightings but a couple shots on the property behind me.

[Fletch]

We interupt this gun season for my pathetic bow season sighting info!! I had a few minutes so like every year I put my bow season into numbers.

I sat on stand a total of 97 hours during legal shooting hours.

15 total deer sighting on stand

9 bucks

4 doe

2 unknown

This make a very poor one deer sighting for every 6.47 hours on stand. This is about half my usual average.

A buck sighting every 10.78 hours on stand. Below average as well.

Neither of my brothers got a deer. They both did have a clean miss, as did I!

I did see two shooter bucks which did beat last year by 2!

Even though it was a slow season it was a success I had a shot at two nice bucks and took a real nice 9 and the freezer is looking better.

Edited November 19, 2012 by Fletch

[First-light]

Nice doe Fletch!

[Fletch]

Just snuck out again tonight for a bit over an hour in my ladder behind the house. Nothing sighted.

I am off of work the rest of week so should be hunting hard. I will be out behind the house in the am with the old man. Who knows yet in the afternoon. I want to sight in my 30 30 with that new reverlution ammo and take a couple deer to the butcher.

I got lazy and slept in the last two mornings, been quite a while since I slept past 7am two days in a row!!

[Fletch]

11/21 am 30

Out behind the house with the old man. I had a button buck come in from behind and feed around me right under me about 4 feet from my tree and out in front of me. He was around me for about 20 minutes. He was a pig for a little button. Hope he calls this stand home for a few years! About 7:45 I had another pass out about 200 yards. All alone and small, probably another button. Sat for 2.5 hours Dad did not see anything.

[Fletch]

11/21 pm 53

Got out in the rabbit hole for 2 hours. Real quiet and did not hear much shooting anywhere tonight.

Back at it in the morn!

Happy Thanksgiving to all!!

[Zem18]

Happy Thanksgiving

[Fletch]

11/22 am 29

Got out in the old hole stand. Before I even sit down I hear bang up the hill where my bro was headed. We were running a bit late but it was early, 6:40 tops. Guess my brother jumped one going in and it must of went by someone in the field behind this property. He said his a$$ pucked a bit, it was close. About 45 minutes later I hear bang up the hill again and bang again. 3 does walked out in front of my brother and he just filled two of his tags. The third went by me a bit later but I could not get a good judge on her size so she got a walk. Few minues later I had a small deer, it was a buck with a broken off rack go by me. A few minutes laster another buck with the smallest one antler I have seen might of been 3 inches with a litte fork. He then went up past my brother. Sat for another hour then it was time to gut and drag. Two nice does maybe 105 and 110. I will put up pic later.

Too fat on turkey to go out tonight!!

[Fletch]

The boys draggin!

[Fletch]

Lets see Turkey day afternoon I just got fat and did not get back out.

Friday we got out behind the house my Dad and brother and I. We did not see anything my brother and I pushed two bedding areas hoping to put one up for Dad. No luck.

Saturday it was just howling wind so I went back to bed in the morn. We went to Howland Island my brother in law and I in the afternnon. I did a doozy and drove 45 minutes there got all gear and set to go and the bolt to my rifle is on my bench back home! So I did some exploring and prayed not to see a deer!!

Sunday I was in the hole again and at dawn had one go by but I could not tell if it was a doe or that buck with the broken rack. In the afternoon the two brothers and I went back to Howland Island with no luck. On the way home after dark right after we get off the island a nice buck runs across the road in front of us.

I will get out back in the am if I get up. We have an inch or two of snow.

[Fletch]

10/26 am 30

Got out back for an hour and a half. Hit 13 sets of tracks on way to my stand all had to be made since yesterday morn. Guess there is a deer or two or three left!! Snowing pretty good out. No deer sighted. I fly out to Charlotte in the morn for work so I will not be out again until Friday.

[First-light]

Nice does Fletch, they will eat good!

[Zem18]

Yes those are some nice sized deer. Congrats.

[Fletch]

Thanks guys!

Well I am back from NC.

11/30 am 24

Got out back for 2 hours. Still some snow on the ground. It was cold and quiet. I did sit in wrong stand, on the way out there was a fresh set of tracks crossing by my tower stand that were not there when I went in.

I think down to Tully tomorrow.

[Fletch]

12/1/12 all day 30-37

Headed out to Tully this morn. I overslept so was there later than planned but was still up in my climber before 6:45am. Sat for 2.5 hours with a stiff wind right in my face. I was alright but my feet got cold so I headed to the truck for a sammy and a coffee. After shooting the bull with my bro, Bro in law and a buddy I decided to still hunt around the pond. About an hour in I jumped a decent looking doe and she peeled off to the right and I cracked off one then she hit another hole I cracked another I saw her flinch then and out of sight. I headed over and saw blood in the snow and soon came to her bedded still alive and she jumped up and I missed number 3. I am now out of bullets in the 7mm. Dig another out of my pocket and following and see her again and kill a sapling on shot 4!! Dig out last bullet out of another pocket and I came up on her facing dead away. I got a rest against a tree and when she turned her head put a shot through her neck and dropped her. Good thing I only had one more shell and that was buried in my backpack!

I get up to her and oh no she has one antler in velvet and hair 3.5 inches long! She is a doe has all the doe gear. I made a quick call to the local DEC guy and got confirmation I should put my buck tag on it so now I am doe only. Hope I do not see a banger in the next two weeks!!

I will get some pics up tomorrow. Supposedly 1 in 20,000 chance in NY of a doe having an antler.

[Fletch]

Here she is,