Archive for October 2014

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I'm feeling a little under the weather but wanted to get out in the AM because I have the day off and am ready to spill some blood. I'm ready to shoot the first mature doe I see. The weather was calling for wind guests at 20MPH but the wind was southeast which was perfect for the location I was heading. Even with perfect winds I still got winded at about 40 yards by two yearlings. The only explanation was thermals.

Went to an area I did some scouting before the season started below a clover food plot and an oak ridge. I followed a really heavy trail in and set up in a spot that had trails crossing each other. I found a massive rub on a tree that I couldn't fit my hand around. Other than that I didn't have any action.

I had to work in the morning today but got a text from my Dad around 9:00AM that he shot a buck. He was just getting ready to get down from his stand on top of an oak ridge bordering an old field area that is used for bedding. He spotted a buck coming it turned at about 40 yards and he shot it with his crossbow.

There was a major warm front carrying a lot of rain it started last night with high winds and lasted until about sunset today. I decided not to go hunting in the morning because of heavy rain and wind but headed out to November to hunt my ghost. I set up along an old logging road just up from where I had seen him 4 days ago.

It was a dark gloomy day all day and I was watching the trees blow in the wind from the comfort of my couch trying to talk myself into going out to hunt. After an hour or two of the sportsman's channel I motivated myself to go out.

Every Columbus day for the past three years I have hunted a location I refer to as Delta Hotel, I killed my first buck with a bow two years ago so I decided to make this location an annual visit. It is a pinch point between bedding and a corn field that gets cut within the next week or two. On the way into my stand I walked through a large field and kick out 5 plus deer. It is frustration when that happens. I was in my stand by 6:00AM and hunkered down and waited.

I went out both in the morning and evening today, I walked over 3 miles in the morning round trip and didn't see a thing because of a south western wind. We generally have a prevailing eastward wind. But that same westward wind would give me a record breaking night for buck sightings on stand and give me an opportunity at the Black Ghost; the biggest buck I have ever seen in the woods, on a trail camera or on Facebook of bucks killed by friends.

Courtesy of Bigdeerblog.com

Today begins my 6 day vacation and I was grinning ear to ear walking out to my car from work. I hurried home got changed and hit the woods behind my house. I set about 30 yards below our Brassica food plot that has been getting hammered. I wasn't entirely happy with the tree I picked once I got up in it I had very few shooting lanes but it was too late to get down my climber and move. It wasn't more than 20 minutes and I heard something swishing through the leaves.

My Father-in-law killed a decent 8 point last night. As it came down to him it was making a scrape and rubbing his face on some branches above the scrape. He also saw two other scrapes on his way to the stand. All the bucks tines were broken off at the tips most likely from fighting. It is very early for this kind of rutting activity in PA but also very exciting.

After battling rain and wind in the morning I didn't feel like going out for nigh stand because of 10 to 15 MPH wind guests but the excitement of the first day provided just enough motivation to slip into my damp camo and wet boots (Yes I need to drop a little money for a good pair of waterproof boots.) to head out to my stand. I was very excited to try my new stand location just below an elevated clover pot surrounded by white oaks. Although I thought if I were a deer I would go right through there I was dealt a double skunking on the first day.

It's finally here! The first day of archery all of the preparation and waiting is over. After much thought I decided to set up an an old clear cut section that had a small opening in the middle and catch anything coming back to bed for the day. I scouted this location about a month ago and saw a lot of deer beds and heavy use on travel corridors.