2020 Gun/Rifle Harvest Thread

[UpStateRedNeck]

Very happy.  Not my biggest, but probably biggest rack in 15 years.  Decided I'd cruise the hillside this morning, wet leaves and very little wind.  

On my way down the first long stretch of logging road my bootlace broke.  So about 15 seconds into retying it I hear something very in squirrel like.  Look down towards the sound and there he was.  Gun up, he's standing behind a tree.  Steps out after a minute, off goes the gun, down he goes.

Shot went in the left shoulder and out the right low run cage, diaphragm intact, not a morsel of meat ruined, heart was just obliterated.  Happy!

Took a couple hours to get the quad down close, and then hoist him out if there then back out again.  Little dicey, some side slippage getting out.  The hill drops 1000 feet in half a mile, and that stream bed is deep on top of that.

[greensider]

First buck is from archery season second is from gun season 

[TreeGuy]

Very happy to have this guy hanging. Been an interesting season to say the least, but I will not be eating a tag. This Franklinville ridge runner made my night with a little help from my Savage 220. 35 yard poke. Didnt go 20. Great set of loins on him !

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[WNY Bowhunter]

Big old doe down...

 

 

[Don_C]

So I was in the stand by 6:45 this morning, there was about 5 inches of snow on the ground so no need for a flashlight which was nice. I started seeing movement about 7:15 about 100 yards below me, a few does moving into a stand of mature pines, then a few more. I have seen virtually nothing since opening day of gun so I was feeling good about this. A few does here and there meandering though the creek bottom kept my attention for the next half hour or so. Out of the corner of my eye I catch a big doe trotting up the hill to my left, I have no idea how she got there, or where she came from, then I see a deer behind her and put my scope on it, its a buck!. I see the rack and move the crosshairs to the shoulder and let 'er rip.  It looked like he dropped, I think... The doe is standing 75 yards to my left, unalarmed, looking over her shoulder at where the buck was. I put the scope on her but decide not to shoot. I sit tight for a few minutes while she feeds her way up the hill a bit more. I climb down and find the buck right where he was standing.  I recognized this buck as the one we called the "the crab claw buck" I have pics of him 30 yards from where I shot him. He broke off half of his split G4 (?) on his right side since the last video/pics. Really cool buck. It was quite a job getting him dressed, out of the woods and into the truck alone. I have never really cared how much a deer weighs, but I just may go grab a scale, this one seems very heavy!

 I also found two beds in the snow within yards of him, I am wondering if he wasn't bedded with that doe only 75 yards from me and I never saw them? 

 

 

[Lucky118]

First day 4o buck. Not a great pic but it  had an 18 inch spread. Huge buck. Shot him 2 1/2 miles from the car. Dragged him 300 yrds and said screw this and cut him up right there  and  walked it back to car. Bringing  a back pack nxt yr.

Edited December 5, 2020 by Lucky118

[Lawdwaz]

Had a pretty busy day yesterday.  Shot a good adult doe around 8am, she ran the wrong way on her death run.  About 60-70 yards into the nastiest of thorn apple/redbrush tangled crap and it was downhill the wrong way.  You see, she was on a ridge and of course its a 50-50 shot whether they go north or south.  South is bad.......

Oh well, I guess I can still drag uphill in the nasty stuff.

 

In the afternoon I had a cold, wet sit for a couple hours before 5 doe & fawn came out on the edge of a field.  I looked them over good to assure I didn't shoot a fawn and shot this nice doe.  The first one in the morning dressed out at 120lbs and this one 131lbs, both with heart and lungs removed. (inside joke just to stem off the cackles from the Peanut Gallery, lol)

I used my 300WSM rifle with 165gr bullets.  The first doe was about 100 yards, the second one was about 160.  Both were one shot kills....

[DanD]

Finally was able to let the muzzleloader bark Friday afternoon with the new BH209 and Barnes combo. Looked like they were just up and causally feeding along the hillside. 75 yard pass through (you're looking at the exit) and she piled up at about 30 yards. Wish I would have weighed her before I started skinning, she may have been my largest doe to date. 

[Billdogge]

Ruger American Compact 7mm-08 shooting Federal 140 Trophy Copper filled my buck tag tonight. Shot was 40 quartering to. DRT. 

[Jmp209]

I wasn't really sure if I wanted to make a post about this or not but I figured it wouldn't hurt to share it here. I've been very fortunate to take several bears over the years and when I cut a bear track last Saturday I couldn't help but shift my focus from deer hunting. It wasn't real fresh but several times in the past I've been able to follow older tracks a short distance to an area where the bear has hung around for a while and the sign got much fresher. I figured I had nothing to lose and I knew of some thick beech brush and left over tree tops from logging that I'd seen bear sign in just a few weeks ago. Since the tracks headed back toward that general direction I circled back and around the whole area and found no tracks coming out. I met up with my dad and I put him on the downwind side of the brush lot where if the bear went back out the way it came in that my dad may be able to get shot. I circled back around and still hunted my way through the brush and after about an hour and a half I was getting to within 75 or so yards of my dad but still hadn't cut a bear track. A few minutes later I could see his orange hat through the brush and thought the bear must have angled further than I thought since still no tracks. As I came up to a tree top I'd stopped for a minute and just looked around while deciding which way to go around it and saw a fresh track just 20 or so feet in front of me. I followed it with my eyes and could see it went through the tree top I was standing next to and was quite shocked to see a bear staring at me through the brush at only 15 or so feet. I've heard of bears holding tight to cover but never expected it would let me walk that close without busting out of there. Everything happened real fast at that point as I immediately took aim under the chin while also taking a step backward to try to get something between me and the bear. It felt like a now or never moment and in a split second from seeing the bear one shot to the neck put it down instantly. 

[The_Real_TCIII]

First deer with the Hawken


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[Robhuntandfish]

Forgot to post it here.  Last gun weekend doe with the 06 thanks to an invite to the Lomax buckform. 

[Arcade Hunter]

Congrats, Guys!  Nice Bear

[Enigma]

Saturday 12/19/20. 815AM. 7P stateland. NEF Huntsman, 250gr TC shockwave. 40 yard shot, 40 yard recovery.

My contribution to the @Swamp_bucks stateland smokepole snowshoe spike slaughter. I was just the lucky chump pulling the trigger.

Best day and most fun I've had in the deer woods in 15 years all because of SB. His generosity and drive to help a fellow hunter knows no limit. They don't come much better than him.

Edited December 20, 2020 by Enigma