My son Terin loves to hunt more than any other activity. He recently told me he would toss all of his games, toys, and whatever else if he could go on a deer hunt. So of course Santa delivered a new pair of binoculars, some other hunting gear, and his first ever deer permit. He was very excited to say the least. Our late doe season starts January 1st so we made plans to go opening afternoon. It turned out to be the coldest day so far this winter- wind chill readings were well below zero. Even with the cold, he was adamant that we take him out so off we went. We all had enough clothes on to stay warm while waiting but once the deer came out he struggled to hold steady for a shot. He was shaking pretty bad from the excitement and the cold. He eventually calmed down some but ended up missing his only shot of the evening. He was pretty upset but said he couldn't wait to go again.
The weather warmed up - too much. The area we hunt is at the end of a mile long minimum maintenance road that is impossible to drive on while wet. With my son's busy schedule there just aren't many opportunities to take him so My wife and I decided to treat the hunt like we would in Wyoming- pack in and pack out. We got all the gear ready Friday night so we could leave right after my son's basketball tournament Saturday morning.
We arrived at our spot about 1pm. The mud was deep and the walk in took over an hour to go the first mile- it was a tough walk but i was surprised there was zero complaining from my son or wife. They were both excited because we all knew we would see deer since nobody else was crazy enough to hike in there to hunt.
Fast forward to 4pm- the deer showed up right on schedule exactly where I planned. My son shot at the first doe to give him a broadside shot at 120 yards. The deer all ran but the one he shot at had her tail tucked as she ran into the trees. I knew she was hit but my wife and son both thought he had missed again. We waited a few minutes and went up to where the deer was- nothing. No blood, no hair. I followed the groups tracks through the snow into the trees and started to question it as there was zero sign the deer was hit. Once in the trees there were so many tracks there was no way to stay on his deer's tracks so we fanned out to look. 30 yards later she was there- perfect shot behind the shoulder. She had so much fat, it had plugged the bullet holes so no blood made it down to the snow.
Very excited little boy... He is hooked.
I was so thankful my wife decided to come along to help and share the experience. It was a long pack back to the truck through the mud but it was worth every bit of it. My son is already talking about his hunt for his first buck next fall and a trip to Wyoming in a couple of years.
The weather warmed up - too much. The area we hunt is at the end of a mile long minimum maintenance road that is impossible to drive on while wet. With my son's busy schedule there just aren't many opportunities to take him so My wife and I decided to treat the hunt like we would in Wyoming- pack in and pack out. We got all the gear ready Friday night so we could leave right after my son's basketball tournament Saturday morning.
We arrived at our spot about 1pm. The mud was deep and the walk in took over an hour to go the first mile- it was a tough walk but i was surprised there was zero complaining from my son or wife. They were both excited because we all knew we would see deer since nobody else was crazy enough to hike in there to hunt.
Fast forward to 4pm- the deer showed up right on schedule exactly where I planned. My son shot at the first doe to give him a broadside shot at 120 yards. The deer all ran but the one he shot at had her tail tucked as she ran into the trees. I knew she was hit but my wife and son both thought he had missed again. We waited a few minutes and went up to where the deer was- nothing. No blood, no hair. I followed the groups tracks through the snow into the trees and started to question it as there was zero sign the deer was hit. Once in the trees there were so many tracks there was no way to stay on his deer's tracks so we fanned out to look. 30 yards later she was there- perfect shot behind the shoulder. She had so much fat, it had plugged the bullet holes so no blood made it down to the snow.
Very excited little boy... He is hooked.
I was so thankful my wife decided to come along to help and share the experience. It was a long pack back to the truck through the mud but it was worth every bit of it. My son is already talking about his hunt for his first buck next fall and a trip to Wyoming in a couple of years.
