Got into my stand late this morning with only 5 minutes to go before legal shooting hours. The wind was not in my favor so I hung the pee stick close to the stand and climbed in. After quietly racking a round, I checked time until the magic minute arrived. Not a minute passed when I heard a snort about 100 yds away and heard the deer walking straight towards me. He came into view at about 70 yds and before putting the scope on him I knew it was a buck I wanted to take. With the crosshairs set between his shoulders the buck continued walking quickly straight for the stand. I waited for an opportunity to take a clean shot when 50 yards from the stand he made a fatal turn that exposed his vitals. As he stepped slightly broadside to maneuver around a bush, instinct set in, and before I had a chance to think about my shot the trigger was squeezed and the buck took off with his head down. 100 yards away I heard him thrashing in the brush, then stop, then thrash some more, stopping again, then one more series of bush whacking as he circled around and layed down. A 20 minute wait felt like hours, but with no further sound coming from that direction I felt like it was time to check for blood. The trail was easy to follow with the fresh snow still laying on the ground in the woods, but the snow wasn’t necessary. It was evident when I reached the point where he was standing when I pulled the trigger that it was a heart or lung shot. The blood trail looked like it came out of a hose and less than 50 yds from where he was hit he took his final breath. Hunting the big woods is not an easy game here in the arrowhead. Several of my seasons have been spent without a single deer seen during shooting hours. Each year, countless hours are spent in the stand critically pondering what I am doing wrong and planning what I can do better next year for a more successful hunt. I’ve come to the conclusion that I am not a great hunter. I am always learning and getting better, but when it comes down to the truth of the matter, the deer I have taken up here have always been opportunities better attributed to good fortune or God’s blessing, depending on your view. My view of this morning’s encounter will be granted as God’s blessing. It was too perfect to be good fortune, it was too easy to be skill, and it truly was a blessing. So today I want to thank my maker for provision and I want to thank you for reading. For the rest of you still hunting this season, I want to wish you good fortune and blessing, have patience and aim true!
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