lovemywinchester
09-12-2011, 11:55 AM
Day two of the season and managed to harvest a nice little whitey. My goal was to try and bag a whitey to get some meat for the freezer and then hopefully get a big mulie later on in the season. I had a good idea where some wt were hanging out so I set up on a small ridge overlooking a stand of timber and waited for dusk. I had a great vantage point and was lying down behind a small rock which was a perfect support for my Ruger. The tough part was I was in the middle of a meadow and was facing right at the sun as it slowly went down. Hot and bright but I tried to not squirm around or fall asleep. I fell asleep a few times last fall while hunting and was woken up by a cougar who was about 50 ft away looking for me. I am determined not to get eaten this year so no napping in the bush.
I had about a half hour of light left when I saw a doe slowly moving down the tree line towards where I was hoping to get a shot. I was 300yds out but had the rifle resting perfectly so no worries about the distance. I knew there was a buck and doe hanging together so as the doe walked along I kept scanning with the binos looking for a buck. My heart was starting to race in anticipation and I tried to take some deep slow breaths to keep calm. All of a sudden I could see another deer beside the doe but hiding in the tree line. I could see bone and was just stoked that my plan was working out. It wasn't that big but was a buck. All the plans I had to practise some self control this season and wait for a bigger buck went right out the window. He slowly came out and turned broadside and started feeding. Light was running out so I decided to do it. I am shooting a .280 and it drops about 11 inches at 300 yds so I put the crosshairs on top of his shoulder and took a few deep breaths and squeezed the trigger.
BOOM! All of a sudden there was white tails bouncing around. I didn't even see the other does. They are sure hard to see when they move slowly. Makes you wonder how many deer you miss but are looking right at. I looked through the scope and could see my deer bent over in distress as the other does tried to figure out what was happening. The shot went through his leg and deflected through the lungs and out the other side. He took a few steps and went down. Awesome. First deer of the season and a plan that worked just like I thought it would.
Had some good buddies help me gut it and drag it to the truck. Sitting in the back of the pick up with my buddy and my buck and sipping a cold beer on the drive back, what a great feeling. He was 95 lbs on the hook fully dressed. Not a giant but a nice fat boy and will be great on the bbq.
I can't wait to start looking for a big mulie. Thanks to the boys for the help and good luck to everyone else this season.
http://i1124.photobucket.com/albums/l573/zippogold/whitey2.jpg
I had about a half hour of light left when I saw a doe slowly moving down the tree line towards where I was hoping to get a shot. I was 300yds out but had the rifle resting perfectly so no worries about the distance. I knew there was a buck and doe hanging together so as the doe walked along I kept scanning with the binos looking for a buck. My heart was starting to race in anticipation and I tried to take some deep slow breaths to keep calm. All of a sudden I could see another deer beside the doe but hiding in the tree line. I could see bone and was just stoked that my plan was working out. It wasn't that big but was a buck. All the plans I had to practise some self control this season and wait for a bigger buck went right out the window. He slowly came out and turned broadside and started feeding. Light was running out so I decided to do it. I am shooting a .280 and it drops about 11 inches at 300 yds so I put the crosshairs on top of his shoulder and took a few deep breaths and squeezed the trigger.
BOOM! All of a sudden there was white tails bouncing around. I didn't even see the other does. They are sure hard to see when they move slowly. Makes you wonder how many deer you miss but are looking right at. I looked through the scope and could see my deer bent over in distress as the other does tried to figure out what was happening. The shot went through his leg and deflected through the lungs and out the other side. He took a few steps and went down. Awesome. First deer of the season and a plan that worked just like I thought it would.
Had some good buddies help me gut it and drag it to the truck. Sitting in the back of the pick up with my buddy and my buck and sipping a cold beer on the drive back, what a great feeling. He was 95 lbs on the hook fully dressed. Not a giant but a nice fat boy and will be great on the bbq.
I can't wait to start looking for a big mulie. Thanks to the boys for the help and good luck to everyone else this season.
http://i1124.photobucket.com/albums/l573/zippogold/whitey2.jpg