WNYBuckHunter's Outdoor Journal

[Fletch]

Awesome day!!

[NFA-ADK]

Wow that sounds like he really had fun, great post!  That guy who claimed it was his deer would not have walked away so easy if I was thier but with the kids present I understand holding back, what a jerk!  A day he will never forget, those remarks put the icing on the cake.  EPIC hunt and this kid is now hooked for life! 

 

Congrats on one of the best days in the woods I have ever heard of for a new hunter!  You just made a hunter and best friend for life!   Father son just does not get any better than this!  Awesome! 

[Lawdwaz]

Nice story and pics John.

[burmjohn]

Awesome

Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk

[fasteddie]

I like the fact that hunters will take their young kids hunting with them . My oldest son does that . He is taking my 9 year old grandson to camp with him this weekend . He has taken the younger twine ( boy & girl ) out back on his property and shot deer while they were with him . All 3 have enjoyed the experience . 

Keep it up !

[dbHunterNY]

crazy Hooks and the kid's buck almost look the same.  I'm taking they definitely are different deer though.  sounds like charma has come full circle to that one guy and kicked him in the rear.  our QDM area has the biggest buck so far this year taken by a youth hunter.  anyone that loses sleep over just the idea of a kid taking a buck you've been after needs to have their head removed from their rear and ego deflated often.  as for your day it sounds like it couldn't have gone much better.  congrats on the freezer filling and memories no 4.5+ yr old buck could match.

[moog5050]

Congrats!  Ignoring the idiot, sounds like a perfect opening day!

[WNYBuckHunter]

crazy Hooks and the kid's buck almost look the same.  I'm taking they definitely are different deer though.  sounds like charma has come full circle to that one guy and kicked him in the rear.  our QDM area has the biggest buck so far this year taken by a youth hunter.  anyone that loses sleep over just the idea of a kid taking a buck you've been after needs to have their head removed from their rear and ego deflated often.  as for your day it sounds like it couldn't have gone much better.  congrats on the freezer filling and memories no 4.5+ yr old buck could match.

 

Yeah different bucks taken on properties about 3 miles apart on the same morning. Hooks definately didnt have the mass or tine length of the other buck. He might have a tad wider spread though.

 

Thanks! It was definitely a great day!

[WNYBuckHunter]

After opening day the week had its ups and downs for me. Sunday morning we went out for a little bit, but didnt see anything. We didnt end up hunting the afternoon, as my son was beat from the day before. Monday morning I was on my own, and ended up torquing my back while I was loading up the ATV. Im still not sure exactly what happened, but by noon I couldnt walk and had to be taken out of a hay field in a truck. I went home and spent 2 days on the couch. Wednesday I got back out there, and sat in a ground blind overlooking a creek bottom and a few ridges for the entire day. That morning I saw a shooter buck chasing a doe, but never had a shot, then another small 4 point chasing a doe. A little later I saw a deer all the way across a brush lot and a field, so I got my binos out and took a peek. I about dropped my binos when I saw the deer. He looked to be at least a big 10, but more likely a typical 12 point frame. He had a huge body and was just walking up the edge of some timber. He was heading toward a brush lot that we acquired permission to hunt this year, but my back was a mess an d there was no way I was gonna try and chase him down and make a mistake that could push him out of the area. After that I saw 7 or 8 more does, and that was it for the day. Thanksgiving I started out in a blind, and my back was feeling good, so we did our usual Thanksgiving drives. On the 3rd drive of the day I acted as the primary shooter for 3 escape routes coming out of a small block of timber and thick brush. First deer out was a half rack spike, which got a pass. Next came a doe, and Im still not sure how, but I missed her as she crossed the field. Last, 2 does squirted out into a hay field off to my left. I knocked the first one down with a good high shoulder shot, and then I never had a shot at the second, as she ran directly away. We did a couple more small drives and then I headed to my evening stand. That evening was very windy, and I didnt see any deer. Friday morning I went to the same stand and ended up seeing the big 8 Im after walking up a farm road a few hundred yards out. I was feeling good and decided to make a move to try and cut him off. I carefully stalked up to a trail that would put me out on the nose of a ridge where Id have about 150 yard shot if he had continued his same path. When I got there, I saw a small buck heading in the same direction the big 8 was, so I setup and watched. I sat there for a couple of hours before I figured the 8 had already gone by or bedded somewhere between where I was and where I had last seen him. Not wanting to pressure him, I backed out. Over the weekend I had family stuff going and didnt end up back out again. It was a good vacation overall though. Had the best opening day Ive ever had, introduced my son to hunting, saw some awesome bucks, spent lots of time with great friends, and put 3 deer in the freezer. Just a couple more weekends of deer season left for me. 

[WNYBuckHunter]

Recap of this past weekend. Saturday I got down to the farm to meet up with some of the guys around noon. They wanted to do a couple of drives on the farm that has been extremely unproductive this year. The deer have been around, sign and cam pics verify this, we just havent been seeing them while we are hunting for some reason. Something has changed there and we just cant seem to put our fingers on what it is. Anyhow, we did the first drive and 9 does came out. Only 3 offered anyone shots, and one of the guys made a good shot on one of the big does. Next up, we pushed the typical escape route from the last drive back the other way in case some of the deer that bounced out of the first one holed up in there. One doe came out but offered no shot. The pushers ran across a deadhead buck, probably from bow season, in the creek bottom. After that I just wanted to go sit for the afternoon, so I headed up to the other farm and met up with two other guys that would be there that evening. We all headed to our stands after figuring out where we would be. I ended up seeing a couple of fawns, and nothing else from my stand. One of the other guys saw 20+ deer and ended up taking 2 nice does.

 

Sunday Morning I was a little late getting to the farm, but we had a super thick, soupy fog and you couldnt see more than 25 to 30 yards anyway. I sat in a stand overlooking a food plot and some of the cow pasture for a while, with no sightings. I decided I would go do some still hunting around 10:30. I started out on one end of the farm and headed to a large gully where we usually see alot of deer activity. Immediately upon sneaking in there and getting a good vantage point, I saw a deer in the bottom. I checked it and it was a button buck. I watched him browse around before he headed into a thicket. I stood for about 20 minutes and ended up getting a glimpse of a couple of big does on the other side of the ravine, heading to a large open field on the neighboring property. I headed back the way I came, and then stalked over to another area to overlook a different section of the bottom. Immediately after coming back to the main path along the pasture fence, there was a young doe standing 30 yards away. She saw me, stood there for a minute and then took off. I headed over to the spot, and watched that section of the ravine. I saw a small fork horn move through before I decided to head to a different area of the farm. Once I got to the next area, I started slowly walking through and noticed a fawn doe browsing in a thicket. I kept moving and didnt see anything else there. It was noon by that time and I figured Id head to the truck and go grab some food. On the walk back, I came over a rise and there in one of the food plots was a decent doe munching on some turnips. I got my gun up and dropped her where she stood. Got the ATV and went to pick her up. She looked to be a good 1 1/2 year old, not huge, but would be great table fare. I got her taken care of and loaded up to head home. Once I was home, she was skinned out, quartered and in the fridge within an hour. That puts me at 4 does so far this year. The freezer is looking good, but Id really like to take one more doe. Hopefully next weekend. I saved a DMP so that I could try to fill it with my daughter. That will be the name of the game next weekend to cap my season. I doubt Ill be doing anything with ML season seeing as my freezer should be plenty full and I cant shoot a buck anyhow, but who knows.

[Fletch]

Way to go! She will be good eating for sure!

[WNYBuckHunter]

So the last weekend of the season was pretty uneventful. Saturday my daughter and I got out to an area that has seen very little pressure this year. Its a large brushy area with horse trails carved out, and the deer normally bed in there and then stage before heading to the open fields to feed. We ended up seeing 2 does at about 200 yards, but had something down in a draw that I couldnt see spook them and they went back into a thicket without stopping. That was it for us that hunt. Sunday my daughter wanted to head back to the same place, so we did. We saw one deer, but it was too late to shoot.

 

I really doubt I will go out next weekend, though the weather so far looks very promising. I might have to sight in the front stuffer and get out there for a hunt or two. We will see. If not, its ok, my freezer is pretty full already, and I cant shoot a buck if I hunt the farm anyway.

 

I hear so many guys complaining about their season this year. Im not sure if its just that Im in an area with good deer numbers or what, but I feel like I had a pretty good season overall.

 

I pulled most of my trail cams yesterday so that I can go through and replace batteries and move them all to food sources so that I can start getting an inventory of bucks that made it through the season. Ill get them back out this coming weekend. Theres two that I havent seen in a while that Im worried might have gotten taken by a neighbor we havent heard from, or went on an excursion and got shot. Time and cams will tell though.

[dbHunterNY]

season here was definitely alright.  changed things up from the norm due to the weather and some putting too much pressure in areas.  sounds like it was a decent season.  I'd probably go out with the smoke pole and just enjoy the view.  make it a scouting/inventory thing or shooting session if you see a wounded deer or predator.  no pressure hunts are the best kind.  bring a HD video cam with you too.

[WNYBuckHunter]

So I haven't had much time this winter to get out and do much. Did zero small game or predator hunting. I did get out once so far for shed hunting. Did a quick once over of our food plots and some of the major trails near the thick stuff. Found a decent 4 point shed from one of the local 2 year olds smack in the middle of one of the WR plots.

 

 

 

[WNYBuckHunter]

I took Haley out to get her a few shots on my 12 Ga semi that we will be using for turkey. She was a little nervous, as it's the biggest gun she's ever shot. After 2 shots, the nerves were gone. She felt a bit more comfortable using the shooting stick. I had her take 2 shots with no ear plugs so she knew what to expect. She did pretty darn good.

[Lawdwaz]

Good luck to you and Skillet with your children on the Youth Hunt!

[WNYBuckHunter]

Thanks Larry

[dbHunterNY]

good luck John.  be sure to share pictures when she flops one.

[grampy]

Kids will always do well when they have a good mentor! Best of luck to you and Haley this weekend!

[WNYBuckHunter]

Thanks guys! I hope I can at least get her on some birds. My whole turkey season this year will be an effort to get her a chance. If I get some time behind the gun, then thats ok. Ill probably spend most of it filming her hunts.

[LET EM GROW]

Good luck, like to tag a bird myself this year, but 2 youths and a fiance that wants to get her 1st bird also, well they're being my priority this spring! looking forward to the stories!

[WNYBuckHunter]

Stopped into Dicks last night on the way home and picked an Ameristep Doghouse blind, so we are now all ready to go. Just have to get my backpack loaded up so we can head out Sunday morning!

[moog5050]

Good luck John. Hope your daughter bags one. Looking forward to the hero shot!

[WNYBuckHunter]

Thanks moog. Are you gonna be at the banquet tomorrow?

[moog5050]

Thanks moog. Are you gonna be at the banquet tomorrow?

Can't go this year. I agreed to attend a fundraiser for my kids school - that will not be near as fun. Have fun at the banquet.