3rd year's the charm.

[hippietrekker]

This has been my third year hunting whitetail; the previous two years I was unsuccessful in harvesting anything other than knowledge (both in the field, and vicariously through a lot of reading). I saw a number of animals both years however, never had an opportunity for a shot.

Due to work and family life my ability to do much preseason scouting was extremely limited, but I went into the season with eager anticipation. I have always told myself that, for my first dee, I was not going to be picky - I would take the first animal that was within comfortable range for a shot and in an ethical position (for myself this means a clear line to the chest cavity).

My first day out I did not see any deer and very limited fresh sign, I have hunted the same area every year and the lack of sign was concerning and out of character for the area. I did see moose (as I always seem to find), and plenty of coyote tracks plus two live animals. Wanting to check the same area again my next time out, I was relieved to find ample fresh sign.

I started the day well before legal light so I could be in position at that magical hour. I saw nothing on my morning sit. I spent several hours still hunting and looking for more sign. I did another sit mid-day with nothing showing it's face. I had a couple of spots picked for an evening sit but was rather uncertain about where to go. After I made my decision I made my way in, as I got closer I spooked a deer out - knowing that there was movement in the area I quietly got settled and began the slow, cold waiting game.

Birds flew, raven's kraaed, the sun shifted, the moose came out of the trees, and I got cold. Then I saw movement. Straining my eyes I could see, through the thickness of the undergrowth, a deer slowly moving towards my open window. I got ready and waited. When the deer stepped out I could tell it was a small whitetail doe. I bent my head down only to discover my scope had been fogged over by my breath. Taking a moment I cleaned it off, the deer had shifted but was still in my window. I leaned in, put the crosshairs on her shoulder, slowed my breathing, and squeezed the trigger.

The deer dropped instantly. I chambered another round and stood in case she got up - kicking a few times she stopped moving. I gathered my things and walked the 50 yards to where she lay. The small, lifeless body was motionless.

I got back to my vehicle 1.5 hours later - dragging the carcass over dead timber and then 5 km of trial was a challenge indeed. I gutted and skinned the animal, butchering it the next day. We had the first meal last night, delicious.

Three years have lead to this point and I couldn't have been happier. A young animal, yes. A small animal, yes. But for me, rewarding all the same.