He Who Hunts By The Gun... Eats.
I had my gun sighted in as well as my means allowed on short notice. My clothes were warm, my boots waterproofed as best I could, my knife sharp, and everything looked good. My highschool friend came by this morning and he had a hunch. We drove, from my mother's house, just a few miles south and then a few miles west. There it was, laying down near a fence line. A buck was watching us as we looked him over. We drove in closer, Chad offered an idea or two about what I might do next, and added in a few aspects of the hunting law here in Iowa.
My first hunt started at that point. With 250 to 300 yards between me and the deer, I began my approach. The deer wasn't interested at first. The wind was taking my scent and sound away from the deer, and though there was no cover the deer just wasn't interested in moving until I was 75 to 85 yards away. I had been slowing as I approached, but this didn't seem to matter. The deer started moving off quickly. The first shot was a bit long for me but I took it hoping to prevent a complete flight. I tagged it a bit high and forward along it's back, too high to cripple the deer. Another shot and then I put on the gun's safety and began a much quicker approach. Though I can walk for many miles on flat surfaces, this area was hilly with 6" to 8" deep crunchy snow making the going exhausting. At 320 pounds, surface walking just doesn't happen almost no matter how hard the surface gets.
I noticed the deer was moving using only three legs. I didn't think I had hit the leg, but couldn't be sure unless I took him down. He made it to a draw and kept me from being able to get a good shot. I then ducked, got closer to the ridge line so I could at least track the deer and move forward with it until I felt the distance was good enough to rise and shoot. The wind was inconstant but solid and high when it gusted, no help there. I trudged on, and finally got a chance for another shot. The deer was nearing a farm house. No one seemed to be there, still, I had to stop and just escort the deer out the other side of the little homestead. Just past the home, fenced yard, sheds, and anything man made, the deer went down. He still wasn't done, but he was in rough shape. I finally eased up on him, and at about 60 yards and the best shot I would get, I targeted him well, and squeezed off the final round. He dropped instantly.
Chad brought the truck up, and in his dry manner, asked me how my I was doing while raising an eyebrow. I was wheezing like a 2 pack a day 20+ year smoker. Out of shape, but not out of luck, I just grinned... and wheezed some more. We finally got up close to the buck, after a bit more air had filled my lungs. It's right hind leg had been damaged before my hunt. The leg itself was in very bad shape though fresh enough it wasn't festering, the deer couldn't have been using it. The animal would have had a sorry, painful, and slow death had I not taken it in spite of the fact that it was moving quite fast. I was kind of glad to have taken it down, in spite of my newly found fear that it's meat might not be so good.
The only way to know if the meat was good was to gut it and have a look. Gutting it so close to this neighbors house would have been a truly rude thing, but moving it elsewhere to gut it would require tagging it, which would cost the tag and make the deer claimed regardless of the meat quality. I chose to tag it. It was my first big game kill, and I just decided to own it, good or bad. So, we put on the tag, Chad adds a few more points about law and hunting ethics. Telling me to make sure to look at what is near my shoot. Though I was through heavily wheezing, I was still a bit exhausted, but he helped a lot. We drove with the tagged deer to a nearby field, and he continued the lessons. He uses my hunting knife to show me how he guts and pre-works a deer. Though he does things a bit different from my pre-conceived study about cleaning, I just watch and listen. I learn by seeing the primary things that need to be done, how to do them, and in what order. Though I may do a thing or two differently, I do now know what I will be looking at, I now have an order of operation roughly worked out, and I had a great first hunting day.
As is my first deer, a 6 point buck, is cleaned, stretched, and hung on a tree in my Mom's front yard. In a week to 10 days I will begin to process the buck. A few steaks, maybe a roast or two, and the rest of the meat will go into summer sausage and deer sticks, perhaps some jerky. The deer I took was a little one, but his meat is good and he needed to be taken. As a hunter and as a man I feel happy with this new avenue I have chosen. I hope you enjoyed an inside look at a beginners deer hunt in winter hinterland Iowa.
My first hunt started at that point. With 250 to 300 yards between me and the deer, I began my approach. The deer wasn't interested at first. The wind was taking my scent and sound away from the deer, and though there was no cover the deer just wasn't interested in moving until I was 75 to 85 yards away. I had been slowing as I approached, but this didn't seem to matter. The deer started moving off quickly. The first shot was a bit long for me but I took it hoping to prevent a complete flight. I tagged it a bit high and forward along it's back, too high to cripple the deer. Another shot and then I put on the gun's safety and began a much quicker approach. Though I can walk for many miles on flat surfaces, this area was hilly with 6" to 8" deep crunchy snow making the going exhausting. At 320 pounds, surface walking just doesn't happen almost no matter how hard the surface gets.
I noticed the deer was moving using only three legs. I didn't think I had hit the leg, but couldn't be sure unless I took him down. He made it to a draw and kept me from being able to get a good shot. I then ducked, got closer to the ridge line so I could at least track the deer and move forward with it until I felt the distance was good enough to rise and shoot. The wind was inconstant but solid and high when it gusted, no help there. I trudged on, and finally got a chance for another shot. The deer was nearing a farm house. No one seemed to be there, still, I had to stop and just escort the deer out the other side of the little homestead. Just past the home, fenced yard, sheds, and anything man made, the deer went down. He still wasn't done, but he was in rough shape. I finally eased up on him, and at about 60 yards and the best shot I would get, I targeted him well, and squeezed off the final round. He dropped instantly.
Chad brought the truck up, and in his dry manner, asked me how my I was doing while raising an eyebrow. I was wheezing like a 2 pack a day 20+ year smoker. Out of shape, but not out of luck, I just grinned... and wheezed some more. We finally got up close to the buck, after a bit more air had filled my lungs. It's right hind leg had been damaged before my hunt. The leg itself was in very bad shape though fresh enough it wasn't festering, the deer couldn't have been using it. The animal would have had a sorry, painful, and slow death had I not taken it in spite of the fact that it was moving quite fast. I was kind of glad to have taken it down, in spite of my newly found fear that it's meat might not be so good.
The only way to know if the meat was good was to gut it and have a look. Gutting it so close to this neighbors house would have been a truly rude thing, but moving it elsewhere to gut it would require tagging it, which would cost the tag and make the deer claimed regardless of the meat quality. I chose to tag it. It was my first big game kill, and I just decided to own it, good or bad. So, we put on the tag, Chad adds a few more points about law and hunting ethics. Telling me to make sure to look at what is near my shoot. Though I was through heavily wheezing, I was still a bit exhausted, but he helped a lot. We drove with the tagged deer to a nearby field, and he continued the lessons. He uses my hunting knife to show me how he guts and pre-works a deer. Though he does things a bit different from my pre-conceived study about cleaning, I just watch and listen. I learn by seeing the primary things that need to be done, how to do them, and in what order. Though I may do a thing or two differently, I do now know what I will be looking at, I now have an order of operation roughly worked out, and I had a great first hunting day.
As is my first deer, a 6 point buck, is cleaned, stretched, and hung on a tree in my Mom's front yard. In a week to 10 days I will begin to process the buck. A few steaks, maybe a roast or two, and the rest of the meat will go into summer sausage and deer sticks, perhaps some jerky. The deer I took was a little one, but his meat is good and he needed to be taken. As a hunter and as a man I feel happy with this new avenue I have chosen. I hope you enjoyed an inside look at a beginners deer hunt in winter hinterland Iowa.
posted by Doom at 4:51 PM
1 Comments:
320 lbs??? If that's not muscle, you need to do a lot more of that kind of hunting. Everybody I've talked to seems to sit and wait for the deer, instead of chasing them.
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