Live for the season...

Dec 30th - Jan 1st

Surprisingly, I've hunted very little since Christmas other than checking fields from the truck a few times before & after work.  This is the first year in too many to count that we haven't headed to Arkansas right after Christmas for a duck hunt.  I have to honestly admit that I have really enjoyed the extended holiday with Brandi & the kids.

Sunday afternoon - I was planning to hunt the shooting house in my river bottom but my neighbor must have gotten a new 4-wheeler for Christmas.  He was making plenty of noise right across the property line, so I decided to head out to our lease at the Grove & climb up in the shooting house.  I ran 3 or 4 does out of the food plot on the way in, but I did have a nice surprise waiting for me!  This rub is on a cedar tree that I can just barely reach around with both hands - obviously made by a GOOD deer!  Funny, I'd looked at this tree every time I hunted this spot & thought that it would be a great tree for a big deer to rub - it was :))  Saw a total of about 10 does,  but no horns.  Still, a very good afternoon for this farm.

 

Monday afternoon - my best afternoon of hunting the entire season!  I was a little late getting back from making my rounds to the out-of-town stores, so once again I planned to run down to the river bottom to sit till dark.  The weather was mild, deer were already starting to hit the fields, & I only had about an hour before dark, so I asked my Molly if she'd like to go hunting with me.  Of course, she very excitedly said YESSSS!  Both the girls are always asking something like "Daddy, when will I be old enough to hunt?".  But, almost since birth, I've had a feeling that Molly is going to be my little huntress.  I simply CANNOT WAIT until the day that they are ready to actually hunt, but on the other hand I was to be very careful & introduce the sport that is such a big part of my life to them in the correct way.  I want them to be old enough to respect both the animal & the weapon, and to understand all the reasons why we hunt.  Until such time that their Mom & I decide that they are ready, I hope to let them tag along with me as often as they will.

We got settled in the shooting house about 4:15 & only had to wait about 20 minutes for the first deer to appear.  Ended up seeing 12 does & 2 bucks.  Molly was able to spot each one as they stepped out into the field & had to check them all out through her binocs!  The highlight of the afternoon was at dark though when she started playing peek-a-boo with one old doe out the shooting house window!  We were going to spook the deer anyway as soon as we got out of the house, so I let her have her fun!  After she had their attention, she insisted of showing them her mermaid doll with the light-up tail.  That really got em going!  Apparently, whitetails don't care much for mermaids - who knew??  :))  PRICELESS!  An afternoon I'll never forget & one I hope that she always remembers as well!

Tuesday afternoon - back to the Grove.  I thought I was getting there plenty early, but at 2:30 I still ran deer out of the plot.  The rapidly approaching strong cold front had them up and feeding early.  Spike & several does.  I was pretty sure that the spike was the only deer that actually saw me, so I was confident that the would come back.  They did - first 2 does back out within 30 minutes, the entire group (spike + 4 does) back within an hour.  They fed until about 30 minutes before dark & then slowly filtered out of the plot.  Nothing else showed before dark.

Monday, Dec 24th

Merry Christmas!

 

From our family to yours, we hope you find joy & peace during this, the "warmest" of all seasons!

Chris, Brandi, Elizabeth, Molly, and Stewart

Dec 20th - 22nd

Thursday morning - Craig & I went back to watch the creek bottom at my Grandfather's.  Craig has not killed a buck yet this year, so he was more than willing to try to help me get a replacement cape for my wide 8.  We had several deer in the field at daylight.  Ended up seeing 3 or 4 bucks & 4 does.  The best buck was a decent 8pt.  Probably a 17" 2 1/2 year old.  By the time Craig had decided that he was good enough to shoot, he was walking strait away from us into the woods.  No shot, but still a good hunt!

Saturday morning - Back to the creek bottom with Craig.  Things seemed to start out a little slower than usual this morning for some reason.  But, we soon had 5 bucks & 3 or 4 does in the field.  The best was a 16" 7pt with a little better than average mass.  Long story short... Craig NAILED him at 200 yds!  This is the first deer he has killed with his new .300 WSM.  Let me tell you, I am impressed - that deer folded like someone pulled the rug out from under him!  Nice deer + AWESOME shot = GREAT day of hunting!  Congrats buddy!

 

I am still amazed at the number of bucks I'm seeing in this little field.  Only 10 acres, nothing but pasture, and right on a major hwy.  This is one of those magic places where, for some reason, you consistently see just as many (or even more) bucks as does.  I'm seeing 4 to 5 bucks day-in and day-out.  Plus, I keep seeing different deer.  Not just the same 4 bucks.  I'd like to go back in time & tell the 20 year old deer hunter that I used to be that such places actually do exist!  :))

Dec 16th - 19th

Sunday morning - I went back out to my Grandfather's farm where I had started out Saturday morning before killing the wide 8.  As soon as I parked the truck and started glassing, I could make out deer shapes running around the field even though it was a good 10 minutes before shooting light.  Ended up being 2 fairly nice 6's.  1 has a big-framed rack & is big-bodied.  The other is fairly wide, but young.  I watched these deer for about an hour, then decided to leave & get caught up on some much needed sleep before church.

Sunday afternoon - hunted the shooting house in my river bottom.  This was the first time I've hunted this spot since Jason killed the spike.  I noticed LOTS of new rubs around the field edge on my way in.  First deer out was a spike or 3pt around 4:00.  Next deer was the nice 7pt I've seen here several times.  He's not quite a shooter this year (especially with just 1 buck tag left!), but should definitely make you look twice if he makes it to next year!  Then ended up having 12 or 14 does bail out of the woods right at dark.

Wednesday morning - went back to the field at my Grandfather's.  This is one of those spots that I really am enjoying hunting.  High probability of seeing deer as soon as it gets light, action is normally over within an hour, and I am able to hunt it LOW-IMPACT.  The way I sneak in through the ditch & behind the fence row allows me to get in & get out undetected.  So, as long as I watch the wind, I should be able to hunt this spot as often as I like without altering deer movement.  Anyway, I was a little disappointed not to see any deer in the field at daylight.  But I was patient & was soon rewarded by seeing a wide 6pt come out to my right in the big bottom.  He came out by himself & immediately went to feeding.  [ My theory on why this has become a hotspot is:  these fields are EXTREMELY over-grazed by both cattle & horses.  The pasture was literally eaten down to the dirt.  So, in the last couple of week's Spring-like temps, all kinds of new grass has sprouted - tender & green.  It's almost like having 50 acres of food plot! ]   I watched the wide 6 for 10 minutes or so, all the while hearing antlers hitting together, like 2 bucks in a friendly sparring match.  Then the big-framed 6 from Sunday came out in the little bottom with a doe, although he paid very little attention to her.  He ended up getting close enough for me to get a real good look at his rack.  I discovered he's actually a 7pt.  He's got a 1 1/2" kicker coming off the bottom of one of his beams (future drop-tine??).  Anyway, he ended up jumping the fence into the big bottom & going toward the wide deer.  I then had 2 smaller bucks come out before I left for work.  I suspect these were the guys who had been sparring earlier.

UPDATES:  Sad news from my place.  I got word a couple of weeks ago that my neighbor killed "Longhorn".  This was the big wide 7pt I had trail cam pics of from August.   Alex killed him directly across the river from me about 1/2 mile away.  I really wanted this deer!  Oh well, at least now I know instead of always having to wonder what happened to him.

I just discovered that my processor ruined the cape on the wide 8 I killed Saturday.  This was the first time I ever trusted someone else to skin a deer I was planning to have mounted.  Should have known better...WON'T MAKE THAT MISTAKE AGAIN!  Guess now I'll be trying to fill that last buck tag to get a cape.  :((

Sat, Dec 15th

Every time I start think I know something about these deer, they prove me wrong!  I was really thinking we had passed the peak of our rut, & I had just missed it.  I told several people lately that I have yet to see a big deer with a doe, even from the road.  It seems like I always see a big deer or 2 standing along the edge of a field with a doe while driving back & forth to work, but not this year.... until yesterday!  Left the house at 7:20 to take Elizabeth to school & spotted a big mature buck by himself just a few hundred yards down from the house.  Not a huge rack, but best I've seen here since bow season.  Then, about 4:00, I just happen to be driving past my Grandfather's farm on the way back from my bi-weekly visit to our out-of-town stores, & spot a BIG deer out in a creek bottom with 4 does.  I whip into the nearest drive & glass him from the truck for 5 or 10 minutes.  VERY wide with good tines.  Guess where I hunted this morning??  :))

Started out from the truck at the crack of light.  As soon as I could make out deer in the field through binocs, I bailed out, crawled through a culvert (under the highway), and started glassing for horns.  I make out what looks to be 2 does and a small buck in the field to my left (little bottom) & then a doe with a 16" 8pt in the field to my right (big bottom).  I check the field on my left again & notice a big-bodied deer walking to the does about 250 yards out.  I put the binocs on him & tell he has a head full of horns, but can't tell just exactly how good he is because of the distance & the dim light.  By the time I determine that he is indeed a shooter, he has turned & is walking directly away - no shot.

After all deer have cleared the field, I jump in the truck & drive down to the lower end of the big bottom.  I grab my gear & walk across the bottom to the creek.  There is a smaller hidden field (about 5 acres) across the creek where I have killed deer before.  I run one doe out of the bottom & see the small 8 as he tops the wooded hill on the other side.  I've been set up (just hunting on the ground) for about 30 minutes when a pretty nice 8 pt come out & starts feeding directly in front of me.  This deer literally walks to within 3 steps of me & never spooks!  This is the closest I have EVER been to a live buck!  This pic is with my camera phone at about 25 yards after he walked off.  I'm already pretty happy with the hunt - but wait, it gets better!  :))

The 8 feeds for about 30 minutes & is joined by 2 does.  One of the does is about to get as close as the 8 did, but spooks & they all leave the field.

10 or 15 minutes later, I look to my left & notice a doe walking across the field towards me.  Then, right behind her - THERE HE IS!  I know immediately that he's a shooter, but put the binocs on him just to be sure.  Yep, no doubt - the big wide deer from the afternoon before.  About 100 yards, one shot from the 300 Ultra Mag - the rest is history!  21" wide, 10 points (only 8 are really long enough to count) - my best rifle kill.  (For some reason, all my other big deer have all been killed with muzzleloader, go figure!)

Dec 10th - Day 4 in Iowa

3rd day of hunting - we decided to head back to the blind where I killed my deer.  Just too many buck sighting to let this place go!  Forecast was for a low of 4 Monday morning, so we were very pleasantly surprised to wake to a balmy 12 :))  Seriously, it is funny how your perception changes when you are in this kind of weather.  Believe it or not, it was a relief to see 12 degrees!

Got settled in the blind about 6:40 and sat till 10, but did not see a deer!  I had checked current weather on my Blackberry & saw a "Major Winter Storm Warning" message, so we decided we had better get back to the room to check a more detailed forecast.  We did jump several deer, including a small buck and another "shooter" buck on the way back to the truck.  Man, this little farm is unbelievable!  Saw 12 bucks, 7 (possibly 8) I would have gladly shot - all in 4 days! 

 

This was the view out my window Monday morning.  Another cold, icy day.

 

 

 

Well, the forecast was not good.  Southwest Iowa was expecting up to an inch of ice followed by 2 to 5 inches of snow.  So we made the decision to pack up & start heading East after the afternoon hunt.  Our biggest fear was that we would get stuck in the room & not even be able to get out to the farm to hunt if we stayed.  Or, if we were able to get to the farm to hunt, that the deer would be in lock-down mode due to the ice.

 

Before going back to the room to pack, we build a small blind in the spot where I got the 9 pt on video the day before.  Rick was planning to sit here till dark hoping the 9 would come back.  We also did a small drive on the way back to pick up his pop-up.  I managed to run several does and 1 small buck out to him, but no shooters.

 

 

Got packed & made it back to farm around 3.  Rick went to the newly made blind & I hid in an old barn next to another cornfield.  I had seen several deer in this field after dark the day before when I was on the way to pick up Rick.  The plan was if I happened to see a shooter first, I was going to call him & he would try to get over to the barn before dark.  Rick had deer come out first - 2 does around 4:30.  The crossed the draw & headed toward the blind exactly like the 9 had the day before.  All was looking good until they got close enough to smell something they didn't like.  Wind was good, so they must have just smelled where we had worked earlier putting the blind together.  I ended up seeing 2 does & a small buck. 

We decided to head directly East instead of back toward Kansas City due to the impending weather.  We made it to Iowa City before stopped for the night.  Didn't see any precip until we woke up to freezing rain this morning.  I could see traffic moving pretty good on the interstate out our hotel window, so I really wasn't worried about travel until the power went off right as we were leaving.  All ended up being good - temps got above freezing around Peoria, IL and have seen nothing but rain since (We are on I57 in IL as I am writing this).

This has been a great trip!  I had been saying all summer that I hoped we would get to hunt in some snow and cold weather, & boy did we!  Plus, we got to hunt some new country, saw a ton of deer (including some REALLY nice bucks), AND we are taking home a brute, what more could a deer hunter ask for?! 

 

Dec 9th - Day 3 in Iowa

Rick decided to hunt the pop-up where I killed my buck.  The amount of deer sign in the snow on this 160 acre tract is just unbelievable (not to mention the 6 or 7 mature bucks we have seen in 3 days)!  I went along to help him spot deer and to hopefully get something on video.  Saw several does & one small buck early, but nothing else.  It was 12 when we left the room this morning and 13 when we left the blind at noon, but at least the wind was a lot calmer.  Al in all, we made it through the 5 1/2 hour sit pretty well.

 

 

 

We pulled one of the cameras down when we stopped for lunch.  14 pictures in about 48 hours.  More bucks than does.  This was the best - not a bad deer... (if you're wondering - date & time are wrong on the pic)

 

 

This afternoon, Rick & I decided to split up.  He went back to my blind & I went back to the large tract to watch a cornfield.  We both figured that with the cold temps, deer would be seeking protein.  Wouldn't you know it, about 4:45 a 20" plus 9 pointer comes out & heads to the cornfield with 4 does.  I got some pretty good video of him, but no still pics.  Rick saw nothing from the blind.

 

Ok - hope you'll indulge me with 1 more pic of my deer :)  I just cannot get over the bodies on these deer!  The yearlings are bigger than our full-grown does and the bucks just blow your mind!

Dec 8th - A Very Good Day!

First things first - I got him!  I killed this gnarly 'ole brute about 11 this morning.  He really wouldn't score real high (as if that matters), but he is cool as heck!  19" wide, left brow broken recently, right beam broken in velvet, couple of kicker points, tip of one ear ripped, right eye gouged, oh & did I mention 250 ++ lbs on the hoof!  How could you ask for more "character" in a deer than that?? 

Ok - on with the story...I don't mind admitting that after seeing all the bucks yesterday I didn't get much sleep last night.  I felt like I was 8 years old again waiting on Christmas morning.  The alarm FINALLY went off at 4:30 and we were off to the farm by 5:15.  It was 19 with a wind chill of 4 or 5 when Rick dropped me off at 5:45.  (Temps fell throughout the day - down to 13 by noon)  It took me about 15 min to walk to the blind and probably another 10 min to get dressed.  Let me give you a rundown on what it takes to keep warm in a pop-up on a day like this:

Insulated underwear, fleece pants, 2 fleece pull-overs, goose down coat, arctic weight goose down coveralls (borrowed from Dwain - these have actually been to the Arctic!), knit face mask, 2 neck gator's, orange toboggan, orange vest, heavy-weight socks, insulated boots, silk glove liners, insulated gloves, hand warmers, and a wool blanket!

 

This is my set-up.  Nestled in among the cedars.  Didn't have a single deer even look my way - awesome location!

Finally got settled and quite about 6:15 - a good 45 min before shooting light.  First deer came out about 10 minutes before good light.  A small buck, a couple of does, and an 8 pt.  The 8 came out & made a scrape about 40 yds in front of me.  I could tell he was a good deer, but just didn't have enough light to tell exactly how good, so I let him go.  Needless to say, I was feeling pretty confident right about now.  Then, deer movement pretty much stopped until 9:30.  At 9:30, a spike came running down the draw from my right to left.  I lost him behind some brush when he got in front of me.  Then, when I was glassing to my left trying to pick him back up, I SAW HORNS!  BIG 8pt about 100 yards away.  I must admit, I broke nervous.  I thought he was going to bail off down in the draw in stead of breaking out in the open.  I could see him pretty good through my scope, but there was A LOT of brush in front of him.  I know - I should have been patient - I should have waited, BUT I just knew the Savage could sneak one in there.........it didn't :((  Later, I could pick out the limb that I had hit earlier by looking thru my binocs.  First miss for my beloved Savage - guess it had to come sooner or later...  Oh, and of course after the miss, the buck ran out in the open & stopped just long enough for me to ALMOST get reloaded :))

Things settled back down and I was starting to think about lunch.  I sent Rick a message to see if he wanted to break long enough to eat.  Here is our exchange:

11:00 Me - when u want break for lunch?

11:01 Rick - Any time u get ready

11:02 Me  - Pick me up at 12?

11:04 Rick - Ok any thing movin over your way?

About this time, I start to type no when a spike bust of from behind me to my right.  So, I start to type spike when I hear hoof beats.  I look over my left shoulder & see HORNS!  He stops about 50 yds in front of me, behind a cedar that I have used to hide my blind.  No doubt - shooter.  I can see him fine with my naked eye, but when I raise the gun, there is a cedar branch in front of my scope.  Finally get repositioned & get the shot off.  Hear the bullet hit & see the deer lurch.  I take my  time reloading & then send Rick another TXT:

11:06 Me - Just shot 1, just now!

I had a little trouble picking up blood - it looks funny WHEN IT FREEZES AS SOON AS IT HITS THE GROUND!  He ended up running about 50 yds, crossed the draw, died at the top of the other side, slid 30 feet strait down, and landed in the creek.  Luckily, Rick brought the landowner with him, so the 3 of us were able to get him out.

I have certainly killed deer that would score higher, but this was probably the "coolest" day of deer hunting I've ever had.  Combination of snow, cold weather, and some awesome encounters, not to even mention the kill!

Day 1 - Scouting (Dec 7th)

Got to the farm to meet the landowner about 10.  After talking for a few minutes and getting a few pointers, we headed to his North tract.  This tract is 160 acres with 1 wooded draw, some scattered cedars, pasture, and a small corn field.  Man, let me tell you - this snow is AWESOME for scouting!  As soon as we stepped out of the truck at our first stop, the crossing where we parked looked like an Interstate from all deer tracks!  We had probably had walked 300 yards when we jumped our first group of deer.  About 5 does with about a 140" 10 pt.  Very wide, but points were not extremely long.  Walked another 200 - 300 yards and had 4 bucks stand up about 50 yards in front of us.  2 were big shooter 8 pts, 1 was a dink, and 1 was a PIG!  Main beams came out even with his nose, appeared palmated (sp?), and he looked to have points going everywhere!  Put the Cuddeback in a funnel near this spot.  Hope to get some action on it soon.  Also found a scrape that had been worked since the snow last night.  VERY exciting!

 

 

Saw these guys on the way to the South (larger) tract.  2 big rooster pheasants - wishing I had a shotgun right about now :)

 

 

 

Every corn field we looked at had spots like this where the deer had pawed through the snow to get to the corn.  Keep in mind, it didn't stop snowing until late yesterday afternoon - so this sign was either made last night or this morning.

 

 

We ended up seeing one 8pt and several does on the larger tract.  Also saw 2 other fresh scrapes and a bunch of rubs, including a couple of huge ones!  Also set a camera here.  Hope to post a few pics from it as well.

 

I must admit, I saw more bucks today than I expected to see all week.  Needless to say, we are excited about tomorrow's hunt!  We are both hunting pop-ups - I'm on the 160, and Rick is one the larger tract.  Temps are supposed to be in the low 20s all day, with light snow, sleet, and freezing rain.  Also expect NE winds around 10 - 15.  A little on the cool side, but much better than Sun & Mon!  After Sat, the next few days may be brutal...

We Made It!

Rick & I left Fayetteville around 5:30 this morning.  Other than a slight bottle neck South of Nashville, traffic was fairly light.  Made St Louis by 11:30 or so.  Smooth sailing until we ran into our first snow in Columbia, MO.  Let me tell you, it's not just drivers from the South that can't drive in the snow!  We probably saw 10 - 15 cars crashed in ditches off the side of the interstate between Columbia and Kansas City.  We did manage to make Kansas City by 4:00.  Of course, we had a mandatory stop to make in Kansas City.  Anyone who has ever made a hunting trip to the west or mid-west knows that it is impossible to drive I-70 through KC without stopping at Cabelas!

 

 

Just a little snowy, but that just added to the excitement!  It took a lot of restraint, but I only spent $37 :(  A new pair of cold-weather socks, glove liners, and a bottle of wind direction indicator powder (left mine at home).  Brandi would have been proud that I didn't spend more! 

 

From KC, we headed north to Clarinda, IA.  Again, the slick roads & over-cautious drivers slowed us a little bit.  Finally got checked-in about 7:30.  Looks like there is about 4" of snow on the ground here, with temps in the mid-20's and absolutely no wind.  These would be PERFECT hunting conditions, but I'm afraid our weather is going to go to heck before Sat.  We expect lows to drop another 10 degrees & winds to pick up to 10 - 15 mph.

Plans for tomorrow are to head to the farm around 8 to check-in with the landowner and locate some stands that are already in place.  We also have 3 digital trail cams and a couple of ground blinds that we hope to get set up on some hot sign.  One good thing about the snow is that is should make scouting a little easier!