Omg... I should have shot it? Maybe?

[caddisguy]

Just got home. Pretty awesome trip, checking out some new places and giving the birdies heck... well, minus all the ones that got away or I missed LOL but that made for some good blooper videos. Still enough for a pretty big Thanksgiving dinner for. Saw a nice muley doe this morning that hung around long enough for some close up video.

Anyway, for the sake of this topic, this is from the regs:

30. To hunt game, except migratory gamebirds (see #31), from one hour after sunset to one hour before sunrise. To find out the time of sunrise and sunset,consult a local newspaper or the following website: www.nrc-cnrc.gc.ca/eng/services/sunrise/index.html. The responsibility remains with the hunter to make the determination of sunrise and sunset in the field based on existing terrain and circumstances.

If I look at the sunset for the nearest town, I had about 10-15 mins of legal light. I suspect it "probably" would have been legal if I switched off the car (daytime running lights LOL) and could have got a responsible shot on it if I was lucky enough to walk up to where it went into the trees and saw it there starring back at me. At the end of the day, nothing about it felt right (other than the questioning myself for about an hour after) I'm not opposed to road hunting (I love driving around and shooting road birds with a scatter gun) but jumping out of the car to pursue a buck in questionable light isn't my cup of tea. If I was still-hunting in the timber or in a blind, that might have went down differently. I think I learned/confirmed something about myself in that situation and that is I am going to go with my gut, every single time. No internal dilemma where reluctance exists is going to be won by temptation in a split second forced situation. It's worked out well for me hunting and life in general. My gut told me not to shoot a bear while watching it for a couple hours between consecutive nights. Cubs 15-20 yards back in the treeline... who woulda known... gotta use those spidey senses

[Salty]

Psst it's that place you checked out last year... right around the 2km mark where it goes from a steep drop off to a nice timber bench on your left. I was tempted to go set up in there tonight lol

It could be dude but I've got a serious case of half knowing that neck of the woods I keep getting two or three fsr's all jumbled up in my head. Earlier this summer I turn up road A to go to a spot I wanted to walk the dog and check on things and find out half way up.... duh! wrong road, that's the other side of the river. LOL Three years in here and I've branched out (too many) directions. Still got lots and lots to learn in detail. Congrats on the chickens I might have to venture out that way one of these weeks and see if the ones you spooked have landed yet. haha

[Wild one]

Keep listening to your gut sounds like it steers you in the right direction

wish you the best this season maybe you will even get a crack at a BT

[caddisguy]

It could be dude but I've got a serious case of half knowing that neck of the woods I keep getting two or three fsr's all jumbled up in my head. Earlier this summer I turn up road A to go to a spot I wanted to walk the dog and check on things and find out half way up.... duh! wrong road, that's the other side of the river. LOL Three years in here and I've branched out (too many) directions. Still got lots and lots to learn in detail. Congrats on the chickens I might have to venture out that way one of these weeks and see if the ones you spooked have landed yet. haha

LOL they don't always spoke / learn easy. One of them gave me 4 cracks with the scatter gun before I got him... I had to run back to the jeep to grab more shells... my crappy performance aside, I think he was actually excited to run after and eat the #6 that was bouncing all around him and gobble them up. I have it on video but not sure I'd ever post the first 3 shots... maybe in a blooper vid. Another led me on an entertaining foot chase which was also captured on video. I picked up the tackle for first "down". Craziest one took me an hour to recover. He managed to take off and burrow down into a 3 foot hole. I don't give up. I knew I could smell him. I searched everywhere else, so I reluctantly stuck my arm down the hole and sure enough pulled out a grouse. Second time in two weeks I had to spent significant time looking for one. Last week I spent half an hour in the usual valley (not many grouse this year) searching for one that made it a distance and hunkered down. Don't worry I left you a lot of birds that are "used" to getting shot at with no negative consequence and will hang around longer for the next guy.

Seriously though others are a bit flighty in there. I find it different than last year. Last year it was a 4-6pm show on that one road. This time it was the first couple hours of the day that were most productive, then a little in the early afternoon. No idea about the variables that dictate this. Weather and temps were similar... maybe moon cycle, who knows. Evening was productive on another road lower down. I'll send you a PM about the chicken report and the location of the buck in case you decide to head out that way.

[caddisguy]

Keep listening to your gut sounds like it steers you in the right direction

wish you the best this season maybe you will even get a crack at a BT

Thank you sir! Annual thanksgiving road bird hunt done, I'll be getting back to the regular routine for the blacktails pre-rut & rut. I will do everything I can to make it happen this year. That is what I have always been after as a hunter. Muley off a road wouldn't give me much satisfaction other than meat in the freezer. You know my mission / obsession.