Larry A. Smail's Blog

 I hunted all day in the cold teen temperatures and wind. I mean all the day with no breaks for lunch or getting warm.  I pushed in the morning hours for my step-father, Bob. I saw a lot of deer.

At one time I noticed a deer pawing the ground at over a hundred yards. The deer bedded down. I could see other bedded deer, too. The woods conditions are still

Old Jacob my fifty caliber flintlock.

crunchy due to single digit temperatures and not enough snow to insulate the leaves and ground. I crawled on my knees and occasionally scratched at the leaves. I made the distance to about ninety yards before the deer began standing. they weren’t overly alarmed hence the slow walk over the hill. Bob saw the eight deer, but the distance was too long for a shot.

I saw two does moving along and I waited. later, once I realized they weren’t going to come my way I tried a stalk. I saw the one doe at about fifty yards and raised the flintlock and decided to not shoot since everything wasn’t focusing well.

I almost went home around 1:00, but that urge to hunt pushed me along. Good thing that urge did for I was still seeing deer. I watched a doe go downslope behind a fallen wild cherry tree. The doe saw me but stopped anyway. I watched for a bit and lost the deer visual. I eased downslope when I saw the deer farther down the hill. This doe worked along and began a slow feed towards me, but very slow.

As I watched and waited a legal buck walked past her at about fifty yards. The rack appeared to be about 16 inches across. The right antler had the three points up making it legal. The buck walked behind the down cherry tree as well.  Later, Two more doe showed up with him. There must be good food supply for they fed for a long time. I was behind a tree for over two hours often shivering. The buck walked below me again and bedded down.

The doe below me appeared close. I elected to wait to about thirty-five yards before shooting. Upon shooting the doe flinched and walked a short distance and stopped. I couldn’t see a hit, but I knew the shot connected. The doe laid down. Amazingly, the buck remained and the other two deer continued eating. After a wait I began approaching the doe I had shot. She jumped up and went a short distance. The next shot finished it. The time was 3:50 P.M.

The bedded buck.