Rhino

BTW...consider this about shoot through netting (why I hate it). Before you draw your bow you're going to want to be aiming toward the deer through the window, especially if your wife is in the blind with you. Now at the moment of truth you have to make sure your broadhead never touches the shoot through mesh before and when your draw your bow. It's highly likely the end of your arrow will need to stick outside the shooting window to draw your bow so the elbow of the arm you draw with (right or left handed) doesn't hit the back of the blind and make noise. I've hunted from a number of different size and styles of commercial ground blinds and I've never been able to draw my bow without at least sticking the end of the arrow out the window.

First...welcome aboard! My ground blind hunting days go back to the old days before popup blinds. I used to make them out of full foliage limbs, etc. cutting out shooting holes to bowhunt. I used electrical tap to tie everything together including the edges of my shooting holes. Zip ties would work for that too. I'd add camo netting to the back of the inside of the blind to make my camo clothing blend in. I still have brush/limbs on the back side of the blind but not as thick as the front. I've had deer within several feet of those natural blinds before. On average, it would take me about 2 1/2 hours to make a natural foliage blind that way. They did fine in a wind too. Certain trees hold their leaves better than others when they dry out. Here Water Oak limbs work best for natural. Their leaves turn brown but wouldn't fall off the limbs like others. If you have the time and have a particular spot in mind this is also an option. Obviously pop-up blinds are mobile and provide more protection from the elements than natural blinds. There are a lot of different commercial ground blinds available now. If you are planning to hunt with your wife, opt for a larger one designed for 2 hunters. 5' to 5 1/2' square is too small in my opinion for 2 adults. Sometimes they'll advertise saying it's a 2 person blind it actually doesn't have enough room for 2 adults so check out the dimensions. You have choices for window design options too. Just make sure they are to your liking and your arrow has clearance. Shoot through netting...I have to admit, I've never trusted it. I won't either. Why? At the moment of truth you obviously are going to be excited so I'd rather not add another variable to be concerned about with a shot. Next you'll need 2 chairs that adjust for uneven ground. I prefer a 3 leg ground blind swivel chair where each leg will adjust to level the seat for uneven ground. A lot of the old fold out cloth type seats will work too but I found they are not as quiet.

Sorry to hear you lost him. From the details it sounds like you may have hit the shoulder/leg joint area right in front of a heart shot. Unfortunately, I've been there once before. I saw the arrow hit a buck there thinking it was a good hit too but saw I had very little penetration as the buck trotted off. Never found him. A few days later I was talking to my buddy Gene about it. His said his son had recently had the same thing happen to him. Gene went into detail explaining how what looks like a great shot can hit that one spot and a broadhead won't go through it. In 2018 the same thing happened to one of our guest in Missouri. He hit one of our best target bucks that year in that shoulder/leg joint area and ran out of blood trail. Looked the next day...never found it. A couple of weeks later the same buck was killed by another guest about ~400 yards away from the stand where he was winged. The broadhead was still in the should/leg joint area. My buddy skinned the hid back and took a picture of it with the broadhead in it along with a picture of the buck. Then he sent the pictures to his guest that had previously hit the buck.

Looks great! Nothing wrong with being as comfortable as possible while enjoying doing nothing. Looks like a great peaceful setting to let your mind rest...until some venison interrupts your rest. Looks like most of your deer drags will be pretty easy too...another bonus. ?

Same here...I used to Gary but quit about 10 years ago or so. My computer crashed and I lost it...9 years of organized entries...bummer. I still have my hand written note books for each of those years though. I don't hunt any of the properties anymore where I used took those notes. When I kept a journal data included all weather conditions, moon phases, along with details for each deer I saw (ID, time seen, direction came from, direction went, etc.). BTW...from reviewing that data annually, at least for Mississippi deer, it was obvious moon phase wasn't really a factor for deer movement. These days, data from trail cams has really helped do a lot of the same thing. Hunters just need to use all the data and pay attention to details in the pictures. Granted eyes on is better since you're covering a larger area than a cam. However, having several scent free sets of eyes out there 24/7 taking pics and storing data sure beats the old days of trying to figure deer out.

Yep...that's a toad of a buck. That one will make it easier to put time in on stand.

This has to be a new one. The other one I think you're referring to was this one. He was mature 2 years ago. I think this year's odd one is a 4 year old. It is the same side messed up on both though. This one from 2018 vanished before shedding velvet. If the wild looking 12 point is still around at the opening of the gun season, he'll be my target buck. Gun season doesn't open till Nov. 14th. In Missouri bowhunters can only kill one of their 2 bucks before the November gun season opens. I have my gun tag. Till then I'll chase Mississippi deer. I'll probably go back for the early November rut to be a scout plus I have 2 archery turkey tags and a doe tag too.

Thanks Don...posted the hunt story...lots of pics to go with the hunt.

Posted the story...lots of pics in it. I was extremely lucky to have everything come together with trail cam pics of the 2 encounters I had with this buck. I sure hope my luck rubs off on the rest of the team.

I left for my 1st Missouri bowhunt for the season last Wednesday (9/30). I set my 5 cams out the end of July but haven't had the chance to return and check them. Arriving late that afternoon I went to glass a field where I have several stands before I lost daylight. This is the southern part of the field I was glassing. We have a clover plot on the southern end (bright green area). The rest of the tillable ground is in beans this year. I was glassing from cover ~500 yards N of the clover plot. The tan pin on the north end of of the plot is my ladder stand. The red pins are hang-on stands. The white dot NE of the northern most hang-on stand is a mineral lick. With maybe 10 minutes of light left to ID bucks a 10 point steps out into the middle of the south end of the larger part of the clover plot. He walks by the ladder to feed in the beans. Near dark, a wide rick buck appears west of the ladder. Too dark to see detail...I could only see his rack had a big frame. Next morning around 10 I set out to run my 5 trail cams and switch them over to scrapes. We don't typically hunt mornings there until late October. Lots of pics to check on the cams before deciding an attack plan. From my 5 cams the best buck was this one I caught on the mineral lick on the map. Reasonable chance he was the big frame buck I saw the prior afternoon. For the next 2 days the wind was not good for any of those stands. Also, I ruled out the stand near the mineral lick since he hadn't returned since velvet shedding. That afternoon I hunted another area on the SW corner of a 100+ ac. bean field. Saw plenty of deer (29) but the biggest buck was 2 year old 8 point. The next afternoon I hunted a the stand where I killed my 11 point last year. Saw 2 bucks...best was a 3 year old 8 point and some does and fawns. Third afternoon was a rain out. Finally, on the 4th afternoon I have a wind where I can hunt the stand in the woods south of the clover plot. From the stand, I have a few holes through tree limbs where I can see bits and pieces of the clover plot. Around 6:00 I see movement in the clover plot. Through my binocs I can make out multiple deer, one being a mature buck. I can see his whole body but his head and rack are behind a limb. At times I see bits and pieces of his rack through the limb. Some of the does enter the woods toward me. He went to the beans. My trail cam caught him though with these pics and more. The next afternoon, and last hunt of the trip, the wind is perfect for my ladder stand there. The afternoon starts slow with the 1st deer seen at 5:55...a fawn west of the stand. About 20 minutes later I look over my shoulder to the NW and see 5 deer...one is the wildest looking cull buck I've ever seen. I have multiple cam pics but never a good close pic when he wasn't moving. Here's a montage of the better ones of his head. If you look close in the bottom right pic you can see the unicorn point coming out of his head above his left eye. He has 12 points on his left side (including that one) and 5 on his right. That wild looking beam that goes straight out away from his ear has 3 points on the end that look like a turkey foot. Anyway...I'm standing up glassing this deer at ~60 yards feeding in the beans amazed at what mother nature did to him. As I'm glassing him, I obviously am checking over my shoulder for deer to the E nd SE. Maybe 5 minutes goes by when I check over my shoulder and there's my target 10 point buck stepping out of the timber into the SE corner of the clover plot. My trail cam caught him this time too...he's ~60 yards from me in this pic quartering toward me in a slow steady walk. Now, I was facing the weird rack buck to the NW so I slowly turn around and grab my bow from my RT bow hanger. Due to the quartering toward me shot, I had to wait until he passed. When his head was at the edge of the beans I turned my arrow loose with him at about 27 yards. Perfect double lung hit...he runs north out into the beans then loops to the east hitting the woods on a trail toward the area of the mineral lick. He crashed about 30 yards inside the woods there. 18" inside spread, longest beam is 22 1/2"...gross score 143.

Rhino Team 1 10 point = 15 points

Thanks Strut...just got back from MO...and yep...luck was on my side. Bagged a wide, mature 10 point on the last afternoon of my hunt. Pics and story to come soon.

Just got home from Memphis. Good news is I had to delay my drive from Missouri to Memphis Tuesday morning because I had to make a trip to the taxidermist before I headed to Memphis. My last afternoon hunt in Missouri was a charm. Bagged an 18' spread, mature 10 point at 6:45 Monday afternoon. I'll post pics in the entry thread and the story of the hunt in the bowhunting room soon. Got to unpack, etc. right now. Just wanted to let y'all know we're on the board.

Thanks everyone...headed to Missouri Wednesday to hunt Thursday through next Monday or Tuesday. Then spend a night or so in Memphis, TN on my way back making more selections for the house.

My lot is about 3/4 ac. That's big enough for me at age 66 to maintain now. It's the largest lot on the 1 street subdivision because it's on the outside of a bend in the street at the back. Gives me a somewhat triangular shaped lot with a small front yard and a big back yard. The back 14'x20' patio will have a vaulted cover, screened in, and there will be an outdoor fireplace with a TV above the mantel. Inside, I'm going with an open floorplan. The great room (my trophy room) will have 20' vaulted ceilings. Plenty of room for trophies.

Congratulations guys! I'll be in the woods for the 1st time this year Thursday.

Great buck Ruth...Congratulations!!! Glad to see you back too.

Looks like abnormal growth to me. Young buck too. No telling how non-typical he'll be with age.

Thanks...hope to catch some new nice bucks on my cams when I arrive. Leaving early Wednesday morning and we'll hunt Thursday through next Monday or Tuesday. I'll have to spend a day or 2 in Memphis on my way back to make more selections for the new house.

Although I wasn't able to go to MO to check my cams, my buddy went and checked his. This is the best buck he got on his cams. Based on where he's been getting this buck on cams there's a real good chance he's shown up on 1 or 2 of mine not far from this spot. Cool looking buck.

Checking in guys. Looking forward to sharing deer tales with y'all. I've been pretty busy lately. I'm building a house in north Mississippi to move close to my son's family now that I have a grandson. Lots of decisions to make. Shouldn't cut much into my hunting time though since it won't be completed until the end of March. Season opens in MS Oct. 1st. Season opened in Missouri Sept. 15th but I haven't had a chance to hunt yet. Been running cams in Mississippi and so far I've gotten a few mature bucks but nothing really big yet. Saw a big 8 that hasn't stepped in front of a cam yet. As for Missouri...well I set 5 cams there during our late July/early August trip and haven't had an opportunity to check them yet. Fortunately, all my stands in MO are ready to hunt. I plan to drive to Missouri either Wednesday or Thursday and bowhunt for a week or so. Then on my way back I'll have to spend an extra day or so in the Memphis, TN area picking out flooring, etc.

I've had a lot going on lately. I've been house hunting in north Mississippi to move closer to my son, daughter-in-law, and grandson (born on May 6th). I finally found what I wanted in both location and design of house but it was sold. I decided to use the same floor plan of that house, with a few alterations and build. It's in a 1 street subdivision that's located fairly close to Memphis, TN (where my son lives) but out in the countryside. There's a crop field that borders my lot's north line. It's in beans this year. Been doing preparation work at the Mississppi hunting club too, when time permitted. Still trying to finish cleaning up some access roads there from a tornado. Been running a 3 cams there but nothing real big has shown up yet on those cams. As for the Missouri property...well so far I've made just 1 trip there this year. Set out my 5 cams during the 3rd week of June and got all my stands ready to hunt there. Haven't had a chance to go back to check those cams yet. Probably won't have a chance to go to MO to check those cams until close to the end of this month. Their archery season opened today. I don't think the house, etc. will cut into my hunting time too much, especially during the rut but we'll see.

Al Rihner Rhino 66 Mississippi: Oct. 1 - Jan. 31 Missouri: Sept. 15 - Jan. 15

Looking good there Dakota. I bet you'll discover more good ones too. I was up in Missouri for about a week the beginning of this month to prep most of our stands and set out our 10 trail cams for the 1st run. Those trail cams are all set on mineral licks right now. That's typically what we do with our cams in MO until bucks start scraping. Then we move to fall deer sign...mostly scrapes. Don't know if your state allows the use of mineral licks or not but from my experience, that's the most effective way to catch bucks on cams during the heat of the summer. Often bucks will stick around at the mineral lick long enough to give you multiple angle pics to better size up their growth growth. The only negative part of that is the number of pics on each cam gets pretty high. A group of does and fawns can run up several hundred pics sometimes when they hang around. However, we typically can catch between 8 and 15 mature bucks during the 1st month or so of running the cams on mineral licks in MO. Our Reconyx Hyperfire cams using 8 GB cards can hold ~24,000 pics. Some cam cards will be full by the time we return to MO the end of this month. Fingers crossed this year after the EHD die off we had last summer. BTW...I saw a nice wide rack buck in a small crop damaged area on a corn field during that trip. He was in a hurry to hit the tall corn so I couldn't count points but he was wide and tall. Also while climbing up the stick ladder to check/prep one of my hang-on stands a 10 point buck took off that was bedded ~20 yards from my tree. He was mature and looked to be in the 16" to 17" spread range. He hung tight until I was more than half way up my stick ladder.

It's still a tradition here in Mississippi and for the southern part of the country. Don't see that changing anytime soon either. Still seems feasible in Missouri too. I guess it depends on the state regulations and bag limits for the state where you deer hunt.