2011 Fletch "the Nimrod Chronicles"

[Fletch]

11/4 am

40 d

Tried the point one last morning behind the inlaws. Sat for 3 hours not a thing. I came out along the ridge and hit 8 scrapes nothing real fresh but they start 25 yards from my set up.

Guess I need to mow the lawn for the last time and get back at em.

Edited November 4, 2011 by Fletch

[Fletch]

11/4 pm

46 d

Out behind the house and sat for 2.5 hours and zip. I need rain or snow or something. I have not seen a deer in .......

[Zem18]

Hang in there - they will be moving even with the warmup. Good Luck this weekend.

[Fletch]

11/5 am

25 d

Brrr a bit chilly this am. Hunted behind the house with my brother. We sat for 4 hours. I had a four point come by at 9:15 am. He came up from behind to even with me about 20 yards out. He got a little spooky and angled away. He is lucky because I am about ready to declare Brown and Down if it is not a button!! I am having the lowest deer sightings of a bow season ever. Feels like gun season! My brother saw nothing.

I have no idea what the bucks are doing. To me it does not even seem like they are getting ready. But then my brother saw a 12 point guarding a doe while he was walking with his lady yesterday evening in the burbs.

[Fletch]

11/5 pm

48 d

Out with my brother again for 2.5 hours. I was down in the hole stand. A long boring night. Both of us had zero sightings.

Clock goes haywire tonight. Oh I hate that!!

[Fletch]

11/6/11 am

33 d

Man it is early, daylight savings time puts a hurt on!! Both my brother and I are behind the house again well before light. It is crisp and very quiet this morning. I have an owl out right of me hoo hooing till it starts to get light. And I hear a fox barking out towards my brothers stand. About 7am I hear something coming from the woodlot behind me and cross the creek. I ease up and turn looking. I spy a young buck working my way. He is angling like he will go right by me and I see he is the 4 pointer. My 9 year old sons voice rings in my ear from last night. "Dad get a deer, I do not care what but I need some deer heart for dinner". With that and me out of town this Thursday through Sunday for work my bow season is running thin. So I know if he gives me a good shot I will take it.

Well he is 75 yards out or so and coming along and then he and I both hear something coming from out left behind me down the creek. And here come another buck either a 6 or 8, not sure on the brows. Well they see each other and the 4 turns towards the 6 and they meet up and start a little sparring match. Nothing real nock down but they got pushing pretty good. This went on for about 10 minutes. Just too far out to get any decent pics but very cool to watch none the less. Well they finally break up and the 6 turns back thew way he came from and the 4 starts back towards me. He cut up my side and I drew back right before he hit a shooting lane at 25 yards and he stopped and hung up. After a bit I had to let down. He started again and I pulled back again and when he got clear I put my 25 pin on him behind the shoulder and I touched the release and hit him. I was a bit high but not bad but as he took off the arrow was sticking in him and I was worried about penetration. He ran out about 50 yards and stopped. I could just see him a bit and turned to grab my binocs and when I looked back he was gone.

So I wait and in about two minutes I hear something running from out left and here comes the 6 running in! He must have heard the 4 run off. So he walks right across my lane trailing his buddy and away he goes. They are both heading in the direction of my brothers stand. I decide to give him 45 minutes to an hour so I sit down and get out my thermos and have a cup of coffee and play some phone Soduko to pass some time.

Well after an hour I am going crazy and call my brother on the cell to tell him I am getting down and tracking. He tells me he saw a nice buck early but before light he could not see the points just the outline and the rack out past the ears. Then he had a 4 point come in and a 6 after him. The 6 was rammin the 4 in the butt and the 4 turned around and the got locked up and the 6 flipped the 4 onto his side and was just beating on him. The 4 moved away and bedded off behind my brother. He could see blood on his side but thought it might have been from the 6. The 6 cut up past my brother and he shot it. It took off and he thought it lied down about 80 yards out from him towards me. Mine at this time got up and moved about 10 feet and bedded again, still within 30 yards of my brother but in the brush. After a few more minutes the 4 gets up and hobbles away. So after hearing this I decide to follow my 4's trail down to my brother. Right before I got to him he said I bumbed the 6 and he got up and went up the hill away from us. I got up to my brothers stand and he got down and we went over to follow the 4 point. He was stone dead about 70 yards from where my brother last saw him. Nice morning for him he got shot and then before he died he got his butt kicked.

We went out and lightened up the clothes and got my son and went in and dragged the buck over to where I have a game cam and gutted him and got him out. He is the heaviest 1.5 year old I have ever weighed. He hit 134 pounds dressed. I was like no way so actually weighed myself and the scale is on.

We then went back in after the 6. I lost blood quick it was just drops. We spent the next 3 hours scouring the area. I even went home and got my dog who is half bluetick coon hound to see if she could pick up the trail. We got a bust. I am pretty sure he got him in that high spot just under the spine. Hole so high no blood and not anything vital enough to kill him quick. Hope he makes it.

Well he is no monster but I am very happy with him. My freezer and my son thank me. Not the best pic he actually has forks and the two brows are too short to count.

Oh and before I wrote this we just got done eating fried heard. mmmm

Edited November 7, 2011 by Fletch

[132 eight pointer]

Congratulations. I would be very happy to get one like that.

[First-light]

Nice Fletch!

[fasteddie]

Nice going getting the buck . Congrats Fletch !

[Fletch]

Thanks guys took a day off hunting to recharge!!

[Fletch]

Went to do something in the kitchen around 4pm or so yesterday and right out the back door 5 feet from the house are 3 big fat cock pheasants. The kids were both watching them as I ran to get the camera but the dog needed to see them and spooked em before I could get a pic.

Wouldn't mind putting an arrow through one of them! I have never eaten pheasant.

I stayed up watching my team get beat on Monday Night Football so when the alrm went off at 5am I turned it off.

Edited November 8, 2011 by Fletch

[Fletch]

11/9 am

47 d

Got out behind the inlaws for 3 hours. Nothing going on early again. Then at 8:20 or so I see a deer coming across the crick out in front. A doe with two fawns coming behind it. They cross too far off to my side for a shot. At 9am I am just starting to get my gear packed up and I hear one walking in behind me. The 4 point I saw last Wed. here comes right up to me and walks through my lane at 12 yards. Too bad the doe did not do that.

It was getting pretty warm and I continued to pack up and leave after he left the area.

I am heading out of town tomorrow for work and will not return until Sunday. Hopefully in time to get out Sunday afternoon. Good luck out there everyone!!

[Zem18]

Congrats on the buck. I knew you'd score in the end.

[Fletch]

11/13 pm

61 d

Well got back from my trip. I think I got home at 2:50pm and was in my stand down in the hole at 3:30pm. Warmer than I thought it was out and nothing moving until late. At about 4:30pm had a small buck maybe a 4, 5 or 6 pt. come by in front of me. He caught my wind and realized this was the one day I was not up to par with my scent control. Being young and dumb though he stood in my shooting lane broadside at under 20 yards for 10 minutes. Then very slowly circled behind me and away. It is now past legal and I am just waiting to get him out of range so I can get down without spooking him. Of course I hear another on coming so I wait and another walks by behind me. It was too dark to see any headgear but by size and it was alone I would guess another 1.5 year old.

My brother was also out and did not see a thing.

I am sleeping in tomorrow the last 3 nights have been long.

I also saw over 50 dead deer on the drive back yesterday, most bucks and most between Harrisburg and Binghamton.

[Zem18]

There are alot of dead ones here in Binghamton. I see several heading to work everyday. Saturday I took the family out to eat and on the way home we almost pasted a beauty of a 10 point. What a monster this thing was.

[Fletch]

Guy that works for me hit two with his Avelanch on the Thuway the other day. $7000 damage. Ouch

[Fletch]

11/14 am

50 d

Sat in the climber behind the inlays for 2.5 hours. Man not a thing. My mil said there was a big buck in the back yard yesterday at 7 am.

[Fletch]

11/14 pm

55 d

Snuck out to the close field stand out behind the house for the last hour. Only thing I saw is my dog trailing me to the stand after I was in it for about 15 minutes. Shoo Shoo go home!! lol

[Fletch]

11/16 am

39 d

2 hours in the climber behind the in-laws and not a thing. Kinda slow last couple days. Out again in the morning and afternoon tomorrow. Winter storm watch coming in.

[Fletch]

11/17 am

Decide to try down in the hole in the am even though I usually use it as a pm sit due to noisy getting in and sightings higher in the evening. It was quiet this am and I thought I might catch some moving. Well no luck at that. Sat for 2.5 and nadda. I did pull my pop up blind from up top on the way out. With gun starting I did not want it to disapear from somebody lost on our property.

Edited November 18, 2011 by Fletch

[Fletch]

11/17 pm

After my appointment with my oncologist (yea clean 7 years now!!) I headed down to Tully just to give the spot I will be opening day a quick look over to make sure they did not clear cut it or anything. All looked good and I saw some sign so maybe a little luck!!

Came back home and got out behind the house in my favorite ladder stand. Had one small buck work by me quite a ways out at about 4:30 or so. Looked like another 4/6 pointer.

[Fletch]

11/18 am

34 d

SNOW!! First snow on the ground about 3/4 of an inch. And I screw it up!! I am coming down sick so yeterday I was beat and took a dose of niquil and went to bed at 8pm. Well my wife set off the fire alarm at 9 something and woke the bejesis out of me. Auto fire dispatchment. I went back to bed and let her deal with the fire department! So I overslept my alarm by 1.5 hours!! I still got up and was in my stand by 7am legal time but I am usually in 45 minutes before that and I went to a closer stan my permanent one instead of the farther favorite. I only sat an hour and did not see anything. There were a few sets of tracks from the night on the way in and under the stand. All solo so probably bucks cruising. Well that is the end of bow for me this year.

Edited November 18, 2011 by Fletch

[Fletch]

Well here is the final tally for bow season.

77.5 hours in the stand during legal shooting hours. 12 buck and 9 flathead sighting, a few of which were buttons. So my doe sighting is way low.

I saw 1 buck every 6.46 hours and 1 any deer in 3.69 hours.

As I said before that is a very bad average for me, not really sure why./ I know we have had quite a few roadkills around the land. Not a real lot of yote activity.

I did have a successful season though. Best parts were getting in the ground blind with my son. We will do more of that next year as well as getting a reaised box blind built we can hunt out of. And also the taking of my buck which is seven years in a row with a bow kill.

I have the laundry going now with the hunting clothes and getting out the gun stuff. Looking forward to getting out tomorrow with the Old Man and my brother and brother in law.

Good luck to all you guys and be safe. I want to hear some good stories!!

[Fletch]

11/19 and 11/20

Well we hunted the usual state land in Tully. 5 of us Saturday and 4 of us Sunday. My BIL Saw one button in two days on stand. I saw 0 on stand and a couple jumped walking no shots. My Dad just hunted opening morning and saw 0. Now the other two a buddy saw 3 on Sat no shots and 7 on Sunday, missed a doe and missed a good buck we put out on a drive. My brother saw 1 to far out Sat morn, then 10 on evening watch. Got one small doe. Had a 10 point at 30 yards he could not shoot because it was in the brush. Had anothe 6 or 8 pointer come in after he shot the doe and was not positive the doe was not a spike ao had to pass. Then had a 9 come in at dark. Sunday he saw 4 on first watch but no shots.

There were a lot of hunters out Saturday but shooting was not a lot. Sunday there was quite a bit of shooting. Lots of people seeing deer.

I was wearing deer Kryptonite all weekend to keep them away!!

I did see a nice 10 point and 7 other deer driving to hunting Saturday before light. The 10 point was 5 miles from my house standing on the side of the road right in front of the land I have posted where the hole stand is. So I drive an hour away to hunt!! lol

Back at em tomorrow have the day off.

[Fletch]

11/21

33 am 37 pm

Hunted behind the house for 2.5 hours this morning. My Dad also got out. I saw one small deer at 90 yards or so just after legal. I would guess he is the button I have seen a few times. We went back out after coffee for another 1.5 and nothing.

I went over to the hole for 2.5 hours in the evening. I really had a good feeling but that did not pan out!

Got to work the next two days so I will try to sneak out in the morning to watch some more trees!