Deer opener report, plus bow hunting update

The firearms opener for deer took place on Saturday, and I was in a stand I had never hunted during previous gun seasons. I wanted to see how it would produce when I was holding as gun in my hand.

Turns out, it’s a pretty good spot. I had a doe walk in around 7, and I thought I would have an easy shot. But, she saw me as I was getting my gun ready and turn and ran before I was on her. I fired as she ran off, but missed. That’s OK. I would much rather miss completely than wound it.

Having gotten a deer with my bow already, I wanted to get a deer for other members of my hunting party. Fortunately, two of the others, my brother Paul and son Andy, came through with deer. Paul got his first deer in four years, and Andy got one for the second year in a row. Around 11 a.m. Saturday, I saw a very big buck cross the corner of a soybean field near where I was sitting. He moved quickly and there was no chance for a shot. Actually, I wish I could have taken his picture with my camera. He had a very nice set of antlers.

Sunday afternoon, I was back in my bow stand in Wisconsin. I had a nice doe come in to 15 yards, but when I drew back, she saw me and jerked her head up. I rushed the shot and ended up hitting her farther back than I wanted to. When I checked my arrow, I was sickened to see that I had hit her in the stomach. It’s a long dying process for deer hit in this part of their body, and I didn’t wait nearly long enough before I started tracking.

I jumped her only about 50 yards away, and she ran toward the edge of the woods. I backed out and came back the next morning. I found her, but I was too late. Coyotes had gotten there first, and there was no meat left.

I got in my stand and endured cold and wind from 1 to 5 p.m. I had two small bucks come in during the last hour of shooting light. One of them came in close enough for a shot, but when I drew back, my arrow made a scraping sound against my arrow rest. Some ice had frozen on the arrow, and I didn’t realize it. Instantly, the buck jumped and ran off. Game over.

It wasn’t meant to be. Oh well. I have had plenty of action and close encounters. This has been a great learning year for me. I think I will walk away a much better bow hunt than when the season started. That is huge in this sport, where even one small mistake can cost you a deer.

But, the season is far from over. In fact, the best may be yet to come. Once the does start coming into estrous, look out. There will be a frenzy of activity for at least several days as bucks start chasing does all over. I have not witnessed that on the farm where I hunt in Wisconsin. Should happen any time.

I decided to stay out of the woods today, and I’m glad I did because target shooting caused me to discover a problem with my release. It wasn’t working properly, and my arrows were flying all over the place. I took it in to A1 Archery in Hudson, and the guy I worked with did some testing, then put some lube inside. Then, I went to the practice range and took some shots. It’s working fine now. So, I don’t have to worry about that. My Scott release, which is the only one I have owned, has been great, and I am so glad I can keep using it. I hope I can stop by A1 in the next few days and give them a deer success story.

I just have to figure out how to stay warm!