wtnhunt

Thanks for sharing Frank. Great pics. Don't know much about red stag, but that looks impressive to me. Congratulations.

That sounds about right, is that by cementum analysis?

Welcome back Joe. There were some forum issues back a few months back where no one could get in. I am not on Facebook, but I can message you my email in case you ever have problems again.

The mount looks great. Nice room too.

Good to see you check in Norm. Hope your surgery goes well.

Thanks for passing that along Frank, I will have to check it out.

That mount looks great Frank.

That is great that he is still around Frank. Amazing the will to survive that deer have. Between getting sick and the holidays, I have only been out a few times since Thanksgiving. Not getting any decent bucks on cameras, makes it tough to get motivated, but i still have a couple weeks left with being in a cwd zone.

Happy New Year to all.

Great looking mount and deer Don. Congratulations.

Everyone have a Merry Christmas.

Wishing everyone a Merry Christmas and safe and Happy New Year.

No, don't think so. I am sure he falls somewhere in the top 10 looking at score. I had a funeral to go to and I didn't weigh him, but I would guess he was probably in the top 3 body size for 8 points i have killed in the 30 years I have been hunting my property here.

Some great bucks there Jason. Congratulations. Do you still keep up with Dale(griz) and dogdoc?

Catrina took a week of vacation for hunting the week before Thanksgiving and she has hunted pretty hard. She had the week before scheduled, but state surveyors ended up in her nursing home so she had to push her vacation back a week. It was going to be down in the low 20's for our opener. She does not tolerate the cold well. Bought her thermacell rechargeable hand and foot warmers. Bought her good base layers and good cabelas bibs and parka and she still does not like to be out when it drops below freezing. I really wanted for her to go this morning, but she said it was going to be too cold. We did a little late trimming out of the stand I killed my deer from Wednesday, and while I was working my way to the trail, I noticed on the property behind us that they had put a pop up blind less than 10 yards from our property line, and right on the trail. Needless to say Catrina was more irritated by this than I was. She sat Friday afternoon and saw nothing. We had gotten pics of this big bodied 8. I thought we had gotten pics of the same 8 that I had passed earlier on but turns out it was 2 different bucks. Catrina told me on Friday night, if you see that deer tomorrow morning shoot him. With already having killed one, I really wanted her to get this deer. But she said shoot him if you see him, dilemma.... As i was putting on my outer layers I hear the people coming in up the road, their trailer was clanking. Legal shooting light at 6:04, my goal was to be in the stand before them, got in at 5:30. Never heard them ride in with side by side or 4 wheeler though. If anyone went to that blind, they got in very early. After I got in the stand I have a deer blowing not far from where their blind is at. Didn't think it was me, but I did make a good bit of noise, between the crunchy leaves and trying to get my boot blankets on. Just before legal light I hear a deer walking towards me, find it in the binoculars and see it is a doe, I lost her as she angled back away from me. A little later she walks though about 30 yards in front of me as it's getting lighter. Then her fawn comes by. They had been out in front of me here. She gets to a point to my right and blows and stomps and then continues on. Early on I had grunted, and crossed my mind she was looking for the deer that grunted. After a few minutes she comes back around in front of me. She stopped and starts blowing again. I hear steps back off to my left and see a good sized body. I pick up my binoculars and am pretty sure it is the 8 from the trail cam pics. Get my gun up and the doe looks straight at me and blows again. Buck is still coming and I pick a spot for my shot. Had my gun up and steadied and he steps in. No go, he is not exactly where I expected and some junk in the way. Doe still standing there and fully expecting her to blow out any second, I know she has me pegged. He is still moving towards the doe and her fawn just slow steady walking, so I pick another opening just past a tree and as his vitals clear I squeezed the trigger. He took off hard after kicking and crashed in the sand on his way before I lost sight of him in thick junk. He hadn't gone far, less than 10 yards from where I last saw him, no more than 30 yards total. Two bucks down from the same stand in less than 3 days. I have been very blessed this season.

Nice buck. Congratulations.

Hate hearng that. Flu has been really bad this year. Hope you get feeling better soon Frank. I have only been hunting once since killing that 8 a week and a half ago. We came down with the crud in our home the day before Thanksgiving, and still not over it. I can kill one more, but that is highly unlikely, unless I see the 11 point that disappeared a month ago. I think he is probably already dead. He went from semi regular daylight appearances by my cams to nothing since Oct 28.

Quite certain that this is long gone. The listing was from 15 years ago.

Because all the replies are you. Please read the classified posting rules.

Great buck and story Frank. Congratulations.

Good luck Martin. My hunt this morning was short and sweet.

Put a big bodied 8 point down this morning.

Nice buck Lewis. Congratulations.

With the forums down at the time, for me anyway, I posted the story on another site. To make it easier if I copied it for the most part here. On this little ridge, I have a homemade steel ladder stand that I have had by this old river channel for a long long time. Used to be i would hunt that stand every year on opening morning if the wind was right. The past few years, I haven't kept up with trimming and haven't set the stand much at all. This year Catrina helped me and we got it trimmed out fairly well. First time I have sat in that stand this year was Wednesday morning. I don't think I hunted it once last year. As it got light i saw that there was a fresh scrape practically under the stand. Middle right in the pic below. Beautiful morning and plenty of activity. Most the deer I saw early used a trail where we missed cleaning a few limbs on the trail. I could still see well enough though to see they were not anything I wanted to shoot. About 9:15 had a doe bed down in a briar tangle about 75 yards in front of me. I probably would not have stayed as long had she not been bedded where she could see me climb down. About 10:20 a spike comes chasing two does through on a trail a little closer off to my left. The doe in front of me stays put, but i watched her watching them as she stayed hid. I could hear them chasing around in the bottom straight in front of me, I let out a series of grunts. Not two minutes later this buck comes in quick from the bottom in front and to my right. Didn't get as good of a look at him a I would have liked, but could see he had 4 on his right side and was past his ears and looked to have decent mass. Got my gun up and found the tree I was expecting him to pass by next, and squeezed as his vitals cleared the tree. He went maybe 45 yards, 6.5 creedmoor handloads 143 grain eldx over 42 grains imr4350. He came straight at me and crashed down just to my left, less than 10 yards from me. Clipped his heart. No need for tracking, but followed blood back to where he was standing, left a great blood trail. Doe still hung tight after the shot. As he lay from the stand Seeing all the deer being killed this year, I guess I let it get the better of me and in split second timing instinct took over. My target buck had been mia since Oct 28th. Had I seen this one in my field I probably would have watched him and likely lethim walk. I think the 8 I saw earlier in the season was bigger, he hasn't been around either. Still respectable, 17 inch inside spread, 9 points over an inch.

Been hunting pretty hard and at this point doubting the big 11 is still around. Been some crap with bordering properties. Not the deer I was after, but I guess he will do. I will post the story in the deer room later.