I was hoping to fill a doe tag or maybe even two. That was the goal. Of course, when you make shooting a doe the goal it’s almost guaranteed to not happen. That was the case tonight as I saw nothing but bucks until the last minute of shooting light when seven antlerless deer walked down the hill and into the Gas Well Plot. None of them gave me a shot though and I returned home without filling my first tag for the season once again. It wasn’t all bad though.
Not long into my sit a flock of turkeys, most of them this year’s birds, fed into the plot and put on a show for me. That was until I went into a coughing spell though, and that sent them hustling back into the woods. While I have COVID behind me, there are lingering effects that are both annoying and detrimental to hunting. A little while later a young six-point came in and fed for a bit before eventually moving on. The highlight though was the two pretty nice bucks I saw.
The first was fully mature but I think he’s the one that lost half his rack likely due to sparring. He was working over a tree about 100 yards to my east and he’s a beast of a deer. I’m sure he’s at least four years-old, but with only half of what was a really good eight-point rack, he’s going to be off limits. A little later, a nice looking nine-point fed into the plot briefly before hightailing it up the hill to Buck Meadow. I have to be honest, if he would have come into range I may have taken the shot. Looking at the video though, I’m sure he’s a three year-old and he also has a broken brow tine. As nice as he looked, he’ll look far nicer next year if things go well for him.
I’m contemplating going again in the morning. I’ll need a different spot though so I don’t wear out my welcome at the Gas Well Plot. There’s a chance of rain so I’ll make a decision when I wake up in the morning. I’d really like to get my first tag filled.