Live for the season...

Molly's Turn!

Soon after Elizabeth killed her first deer, Molly decided that she wasn't so scared of the deer rifle after all. Nothing like having your big sister show you up to get you motivated!  We started practicing her shooting & I was really surprised at how well she did!  She was apprehensive at first, but she quickly warmed up & got excited after seeing how well she could shoot.

Finally everything fell into place & we got to go hunting late one afternoon about a week before Christmas.  Not sure who was more excited - me or Molly!

Well things started out a little slow and soon got slower.  So whats a deer hunter to do when there are no deer around?

I must confess that I took a little nap that afternoon too, but we were both wide awake by the time the first deer made their appearance.  Unfortunately, the spike and handful of does never presented Molly with a shot that she was comfortable with.  We were able to hunt 1 or 2 more times before Christmas, but never did get a shot.  I was afraid that Molly would start to get frustrated, especially since Elizabeth had killed a buck on her very first hunt, but she was a real trooper.  At the end of every unsuccessful hunt, we'd both say "we'll just get one next time!"

Dec. 28th was very cold with the remnants of our Christmas Eve snow still on the ground.  I hurried home from work early so that Molly & I could go hunt the Grove that afternoon.  We put on all the clothes that we could stand (and still be able to walk), put extra clothes + a blanket + a Nintendo DSi in the backpack, packed a cooler full of snacks, and headed to the farm.  About 30 minutes later, we were settled into the shooting house.

We did pretty good for the first hour or so, but then we started getting cold.

Got all warmed up in the blanket and then.... yep, you guessed it!  :)

I woke her up when the first deer stepped out about 4:30.  She got really excited when I told her it was a spike.  We watched him feed around for 5 or 10 minutes, but he never came close enough for a shot.  I could see the disappointment on Molly's face when he left the field, but I could also tell that she was getting cold - real cold.  She finally asked "Daddy, can we leave now?  I'm cold!"  I told her that it wasn't much longer until dark & I really thought that the spike might come back.  I said "come sit in my lap & let's see if we can get you warm."  I pulled her boots off and stuck her feet in a toboggan, wrapped her up in the blanket, and hugged her tight.  Pretty soon she told me that she was getting warmer and thought that she could make it.

Finally, about 15 minutes later, I looked over my shoulder and saw the same spike step out into the field behind us.  I whispered to Molly that we needed to get ready.  The way we were seated, we both had to stand up and turn completely around.  Luckily, the buck was concentrating on eating and never even looked up.  I finally got the window open, the curtain pulled up, and Molly's gun pointed the right direction.

Somewhere about now, we had managed to make enough noise to alert the deer.  Molly had just found him in her scope then he threw his head up took a couple of steps toward us.  Not only was he staring a hole through us, but there was also a tree blocking most of his body.  "Daddy I can't see him now" Molly whispered.  "OK sweetie, here let's try a trick" I said as I tried to sound calm.  I slid her gun about 2 feet to the right.  That was just enough to allow her to see around the tree and get his chest in her scope.  

2 things suddenly occurred to me at this point.  1) in all of our practice and talk about shooting deer, we had only discussed broadside shots.  Molly knew to aim 1/2 way up the body, right behind the shoulder but we had not talked about a frontal shot.  2) Molly had never shot the rifle without me helping to support it.  We practiced with the gun on a shooting stick, with her aiming and pulling the trigger, but with me helping to hold it sturdy.

So with the buck about to flee and me having to hold the curtain up to keep it out of her face, I told her "Just put the cross-hairs in the center of his chest and squeeze the trigger sweetie".  "OK I see him.  I'm gonna shoot..."  BANG!  The buck jumped straight up in the air and then bolted through a fence and into the woods.  I knew immediately that he was hit hard by the way he reacted.  I screamed "you got him baby!"  as I grabbed her for a huge hug. 

What happened next is my favorite memory of the deer season and maybe one of my all time favorite memories as Molly's Daddy.  She looked up at me with tears in her eyes and a surprised look on her face and said "I did?!  I can't believe it!  I finally got one!  I've waited for so long!!!" :))  It almost brings a tear to my eye just thinking about it now.  She was so sweet and so excited!  And honestly, I really had no idea until that moment just how bad she really wanted to get a deer.

So we got our stuff together and hurried to get down before dark.  We found the spot where the buck had gone through the fence,but I was just a little concerned when we didn't find much blood.  I told Molly that he would probably run straight down the hill since he was hurt and that we'd just take our time and look really good.  I was concentrating on the ground, trying to find any trace of blood when Molly started yelling "Daddy I see him!  There he is!  See him - he's laying right there!"  Sure enough, he was!

Once again, I'm not sure who was more excited, Molly or me!  But I am sure of one thing - I have never seen a hunter more proud of their first deer!  

 

November Surprise

As a hunter, I am very blessed.  Not only do I live in one of the game richest Counties in Tennessee, but I also to have access to several hundred acres of private land - most of which I either have exclusive or near-exclusive hunting rights on.  I have been hunting  some of the same farms for 30 years now, and have consistently killed deer & turkeys on them for most of those 30.  I often find myself wanting to hunt some of my "old favorite" spots to reflect on memories of seasons past even though this year's sign tells me that another, newer stand location might be more productive.  That being said, there is still something very special to a hunter about killing a deer on your own property.

Brandi & I bought 40 acres in the late 90's with the plans to build our "dream home".  It borders the Elk River & contains a good mix of hardwoods & bottom land.  We are in a part of our County that has historically grown some very big deer, but with very few exceptions they have always seemed to avoid our place.  Even still, my river bottom is my absolute favorite afternoon stand.  It is one of those places that you are almost guaranteed to see a bunch of deer, no matter the weather or time of year.  It is not unusual to have 20 + does feeding around the bottom any afternoon of the season.  Prior to this year, I had only killed 3 deer on my place in the 12 years we've had it.  Plus, I've let several friends hunt & kill deer over the years.  All of these hunts were memorable, but none resulted in a "big" deer. 

Fast forward to the Thursday after Elizabeth killed her deer.  It was early muzzleloader season, but I was taking the kids to school instead of hunting.  We had just pulled out of the drive when a really good buck crossed the road in front of us & ran onto the property that joins mine.  I stopped the truck in the middle of the gravel road that we live on & said "WOW kids - LOOK at that deer!!!".  He looked to be a big framed 8 pt with extraordinarily long beams that came out past his nose.  Elizabeth tried to claim him but Molly quickly reminded her that she had already killed a deer so to be fair, this buck should be Molly's.  I thought it was hilarious that they were fighting over this deer that we would most likely never see again!  

I had had a trail camera out on my food plot in the river bottom since August & had not gotten a picture of ANYTHING bigger than a spike.  So I really thought that us seeing the big deer was just a fluke.  He was probably living across the road, just happened to be ranging a little farther then normal that morning, got spooked by my truck, and just happened to cross the road & run in the direction of our property.  I had very little confidence in ever seeing him again.  All that changed the next afternoon when I went to check my camera.

 

Not a great picture, but definitely the same deer - those long beams were unmistakable!  This picture was actually taken the night before the kids & I had seen him.  1 visual & 1 picture on consecutive days - NOW, it was time to get excited!  

It was the next afternoon before I was able to hunt him.  Weather was a little cooler than typical for our early muzzleloader - low 60's when I got to the stand that afternoon with a forecast of mid 30s for that night.  I don't remember the exact number, but I think I had 6 or 8 does out feeding in the plot by 5:45.  I had taken my eyes off of them for some reason (probably to send one of my buddies a text).  I saw him immediately when I looked back up.  A very big bodied deer with a head full of horns had just stepped out of the woods & was feeding back behind the does.  One quick check with the binocs was all it took - IT WAS HIM!!!  Funny I had ranged the treeline where he came out just a few minutes before.  Nearly 200 yards - not exactly an easy shot for a muzzleloader, but definitely doable for the Savage.

I eased the window of the shooting house open, tried to still my beating heart & settle the crosshairs behind his shoulder.  I touched off the shot, heard the bullet hit, & watched him run the few yard back to the edge of the woods.  I could still see his rack through the trees, he had stopped but he didn't go down...  I quickly found him in my binocs - he was standing in a ditch that runs behind my food plot.  All I could see was the top of his neck, his head, & his rack.  I knew that he was hit hard but he still hadn't gone down...  Uh-oh...  I had visions of the buck of my dreams running off & never finding him as I reloaded as fast as I could.  

Once again I eased the gun out the window of the shooting house.  This time, all I had to aim for was his neck so I tried to steady the crosshairs on his throat patch at about 175 yards.  I touched off the shot.... nothing... he didn't even flinch...  MISSED!  I think I reloaded even faster this time.  Here we go again...  This time I took a couple of extra moments to steady the crosshairs of the center of his neck.  He disappeared from the scope as soon as I touched the trigger.  Quick check through the binocs verified that he was down - I GOT HIM!

He ended up being a 10 pt thanks to a couple of nice kickers.  Haven't scored him but he should go in the low 140s - my 2nd or 3rd best Tennessee deer.  But score or not, this will always be one of my favorite deer - there is nothing quite like killing a trophy on your own land!

About that shot - it turned out he had been quartering to me instead of broadside plus I obviously pulled my shot a little, hitting him too far back.  Thankfully, I was far enough away that none of the deer knew where the shot(s) were coming from.  The does actually went back to feeding & never spooked until I climbed down from the stand to go retrieve him.  Thankfully too I had a quality gun with quality optics in which I have the utmost confidence & was able to put the finisher in him.  

Elizabeth's First Deer!

It is no secret to those who know me best that I have long dreamed of being able to carry my own children deer hunting.  I have known since I killed my first deer at age 10, that nothing would compare to being able to share that thrill with my own kids.   Obviously, it is impossible to grow up in the Barnes house without being exposed to all-things hunting.  I can't tell you how happy it makes me to see them get so excited about my hunting successes.  I am always quick to answer their questions, I encourage them whenever they show interest, but have always been careful not to push them into hunting just because I want them to like it.

So after both girls killed turkeys this past Spring (Elizabeth, Molly), and both started asking "when can we go deer hunting?", I decide that they were ready.  Fast forward to a sunny, Sunday afternoon this past October - it was time to shoot the "deer gun".  Elizabeth went first & did great!  She was shooting my TC Contender Carbine in 6.8mm SPC.  For those of you not familiar with that caliber, it is basically a .223 on steroids.  It is a .30 Carbine casing necked down to hold a .270 bullet.  Developed jointly by Remington & our Military, it offers basically the same ballistics & felt recoil (almost none) as the .223, but with greater down range energy.  A PERFECT deer caliber for kids!  We were shooting at about 50 yards & Elizabeth was able to put 2 just above the bullseye!  When it got to be Molly's turn, she decided not to shoot.  For some reason, the thought of shooting a rifle scared her even though I assured her that it was not near as loud nor would kick near as hard as the shotgun that she was used to.  But that was ok - I gave her a hug & told her we would try again as soon as she got ready.

Tennessee offer s a early Juvenile (kids only) hunt every year. For 2010, the early Juvenile deer hunt weekend was scheduled to be Oct. 31st & Nov. 1st.  I knew we wouldn't get to hunt Saturday because of a soccer tournament during the day & trick-or-treating that night.  We had Church Sunday morning & I was unsure about Sunday afternoon.  So I didn't even mention Juvenile weekend to Elizabeth - I just told her that we had a long season ahead of us & would do our best to get her a deer.  Thankfully the planets aligned & by Saturday night it looked like I had everything worked out to be able to take her hunting the next afternoon.  I didn't tell her right away just in case something fell through.

Right after Church, I told her to go get dressed cause we were going hunting.  "We're going DEER hunting... TODAY?!!!' she asked very excited.  I had 2 different spots in mind - one where she would be pretty much guaranteed a close shot at a doe but chances of seeing a buck were pretty slim.  I felt like our chances of seeing a buck at the 2nd spot were just as good as seeing a doe, but anything we saw might be too far for her to shoot.  I explained the pros & cons of both stands to Elizabeth & let her make the decision.  She didn't hesitate - she wanted a buck!  So off we went to Rick's farm at Mimosa.

We had been in the shooting house for nearly 2 hours when the first doe stepped out.  I was surprised when Elizabeth barely even looked up from the book that she was reading to look at the doe.  I thought "wow she really does just want a buck - not even excited about a doe".  She later told me that she didn't want to look at the does because it made her too nervous since she was so excited :))  By about 30 minutes before dark, we had a field full of deer but no bucks.  Elizabeth surprised me again by saying "I really just want to kill a deer - I don't want to wait on a buck".  Well OK sounds good to me!  The closest does were about 50 yards behind us so we slowly stood up in the shooting house, got turned around, opened the window, and eased the gun out.  Poor little Elizabeth just fell to pieces!  She was so nervous she just couldn't get the gun on them before they fed out of our sight.  That ok - let's try another one.  We still had plenty of deer out front so we turned around again & slipped the gun out the front window.  

The deer weren't nervous at all - just slowly moving around the field as they fed.  We finally got settled down & were trying to get the crosshairs steady on a big doe when she threw her head up & looked into the woods behind her.  I knew what that probably meant so I told Elizabeth to wait just a minute to see what else was coming.  Sure enough about a minute later another deer stepped out & this time it was a BUCK!  I helped Elizabeth get the gun steady again & told her to squeeze the trigger when she got ready.  I was expecting to hear the gun go off any second when she looked up & said "I can't do it - I'm too nervous!"  I told her "yes you can baby, just like we practiced... are you on him?"  She said she was.  "Then SHOOT HIM - NOW!"  BOOM!  He dropped in his tracks!  I couldn't believe it!  The rest is kind of a blur - I just remember grabbing & hugging her saying "you GOT him baby girl - I'm so proud of you!"

Yep, it was just as good as I had dreamed!  Absolutely, without a doubt THE best deer hunt I had ever been a part of!  Little did I know that history would repeat itself just a couple of short months later.  Stay tuned... ;)

The BEST 2 days in the History of Deer Hunting!!!

Elizabeth's first deer!

Molly's first deer!

Details to follow...  :))