Well, another one has come and gone....

[rhine16]

Have to say that it was quite a season for me. Made alot of memories that won't soon be forgotten. Just to name a few....

My first year hunting with recurve... Didn't ever release an arrow at a deer with it, but boy was it fun to learn how to shoot. I spent many a day in June, July, August, and September working on learning to shoot. Took it to the woods around 15 times this year just never could get everything to work for a shot, got close though.

By far my highlight was the hunts I shared with my little brother, Jon Reuben (8). During bow season, he accompanied me several times to watch me hunt. I finally released an arrow with him beside me in late October. Shot right over a spooked doe, but he sure loved being there. He's talked about being able to bowhunt for years, but that hooked him. Looks like he'll be getting a bow soon and getting ready for October.

The next hunt I feel compelled to mention with him was one in which I spent a rainy, cold morning in a shooting house with him during the first gun season. After passing on two young bucks, we had four does trot across the pasture in front of us. He got his gun up and I told him to pick out one as I hollered to stop em. They all froze in their tracks, and he let his 7mm-08 bark only to watch the doe run away unharmed. After shooting his gun, we found that it was shooting nearly 2 feet high.

Got the scope on and he had quite a season after that.

12/17 doe

12/28 8 pt

1/10 8 pt

I had a good season also...

Shot this ol doe at 25 yards on 10/6

Thwacked this cull buck on 11/7

Shot this ol boy on the run after spotting him and another buck from 300 yards, then sneaking in to where i could see the patch of woods in which they were tending a doe.

I did have one disappointment... Shot a big 8 with my rifle the day after Christmas. Watched him buckle down on impact but made it out of the field. Went back three hours later to not find blood until I'd made it 100 yards up his trail. Followed decent blood for 500 yards untill it just ran out. I put in a total of 18 hours of looking for that deer over the next 4 days. Made me absolutely sick to lose him....

This season was also the first year that my best friend decided to hunt. I've worked hard to get him to hunt over the years, and he finally did. I tried to get him a deer at my place but it never worked out. Was beginning to think he wasn't going to get one this year when I got a text from him a couple weeks ago saying he'd just dropped a doe at 150 yards... He's hooked now

Some of you may remember a buck called Smiley that I've posted trail cam pics of in the photography room quite a few times. Our last picture of him came on New Years Eve. No pics of him since, but there was a big bodied buck killed on the highway not a 1/4 of a mile from where we took all our pics of him. The head had been cut off when we found out. Will be interesting to see if it is him or not. Should be 6.5 years old next year if he made it through. Here's a few pics of him for those of you who didn't see em.

The one downside to the season is that neither my dad nor uncle connected on a good one. Maybe next year for them.

It sure was a fun season, and Lord willing, I'll be able to do it again in 8 months. For now, bring on March 13th

Edited February 1, 2010 by rhine16

[buckee]

Those big guys will just be bigger next year, along with a few new big buddies no doubt. You had a great season by the looks of things.

I'm looking forward to next year already too.

[Diamond Archer 01]

Looks like you had an awesome season. I am also looking forward to next year.

[redkneck]

Rhine I'm glad it's over. I hunted all weekend trying to find that buck I failed to connect with the week before. I did not see a deer this weekend. The creek kept backing up and backing up until I realized that I was hunting an island basically and a deer would have had to be nuts to swim to where I was without a real good reason. I did swack a possum both Sat and Sunday afternoons though at last light, lol.

Was the worst year for hunting I've had in many years. Fewer sightings, more rain, grass looked really bad. I saw more deer during early bow season than I would the rest of the year.

I took the money for the biggest deer at the camp that I killed on opening morning, and that was a shame that this would be the biggest out of only 3 bucks taken on our lease.

Ended the season taking one with my truck to the tune of $4,200. Took 2 does and a cull buck that looks a lot like that broken horn thing you got with my bow, and one other buck from some private land that was above the new A/R's but surely wasnt worth posting pics of. All in all a crappy year that really got interesting when a wall hanger was less than 20 yards from my ladder stand last week and spooked just before I could get a draw on him. I'm ready to wash my truck, clean out all the stuff in it and get it to the body shop and call it a year. I'm already thinking about next fall though and what I'd like to get accomplished this summer.

[wtnhunt]

Congratulations Rhine to you and Jon Reuben, looks like it was a great season for you two. Hope that big boy is still around and you see him this coming fall.

Season here was really quite poor, saw less deer than I can remember seeing in many years, however I did kill a good 8 point for the backyard in our second rifle season, widest buck I have killed to date.

[Tominator]

So-so season for me. We have a week left, and I have one antlerless tag left, but I'm not seeing deer in the one antlerless spot I have.

1 deer with the bow, (puny fawn, anti-climatic for sure), 2 with the muzzleloader, (puny buck, decent doe).

Highlight for me was probably watching my son smoke his second deer ever at 25 yards with my Encore (poor deer didn't have a chance )

Saw one shooter buck all season (140 class 10pt bedded with 2 does in a treeline)

Dealt with the stress of finishing our new house and wasn't able to hunt much until November. I did get to hunt almost 2 or 3 weeks straight though, so can't complain there. Had a good time almost everytime I went out. Hunted 1 new property pretty hard and if I get that spot next year, I'll have a better idea of deer movement. I hope that 140 class made it through the year.

Any year I get to hunt without the worry of cancer though, is a good year, so you won't hear me whining too much.

:eat:

[Ohiobucks]

Sent 5 arrows through 5 does this past fall, that was a personal best. 3 does in a span of 4 days....

Bitter sweet with my buck tag though, arrowed a big one on Nov 15, but hit him too high. A month later he showed back up on trail cameras, but we haven't seen him since. Hope he makes it through the winter.

Still one week of season left here, our archery goes out Feb 7. Been seeing a bunch of deer right behind the house, so there is still hope of filling that last tag. Saw 25 from the stand last Saturday.

Biggest thrill for me was being there with my son as he took his first buck ever. Not a big one, but a memory that will be with me forever. A few weeks before this buck came along, he passed on a button buck that was right under our stand even though I gave him the green light to shoot, and also passed on a yearling doe the same day. He wanted a buck, or a big doe......ask Jake what QDMA stands for and he would have no clue.

Edited February 1, 2010 by Ohiobucks

[Rhino]

I sure can't complain. It was my best season ever for killing mature bucks in MS. I've killed higher scoring bucks here but never killed a limit of mature bucks here before like I did this season. Killed my bag limit of three 5 1/2 year old bucks. 2 are at the taxidermist. Should get the velvet buck I killed on 10/3 back soon. Oh yea...smacked a couple of does too. I saw more mature bucks (4.5 or older) while hunting in MS than I ever have and spent less time hunting. Limiting out with a month left to go in the season cut into my time in the woods.

Really made my season to help one young man kill a nice mature buck. He never had until he killed that one out of one of my stands this year. I've known him since he was 9, he's 23 now. Helped my best friend's son bag a niceun too. The only disappointment here in MS was another young man I was helping didn't kill a mature buck. He had another chance this past Saturday morning hunting one of my stands but couldn't get on him. Oh well...there's always next year.

The only disapointment was my KS bowhunt. I choked! Nuff said. Oh well...there's always next year there too provided I draw a KS tag. The bucks I passed there and the one I missed will only be bigger next year.

[hunter109]

well nice deer guys i shot three here in sw ohio a 7point and two does you might have seen him on here with me a while back it was a big arument well nice deer and looks like you all had fun hunting agin this year

[BigDog]

I have killed 5 deer this season all with my bow, this has been my beast season since I started hunting 7 years ago. Glad you had a good season, and had fun doing it.