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Posted: 8/4/2007 9:35:25 AM EST
For me it was the first hunt I ever got a deer. It was muzzleloader season.  I had been hunting for 5 years and got nothing. Over hunted public land in Maryland.

My friend and I always talked about how great it would be if we both got deer the same day. Lofty goal for a pair of people with 8 years hunting and 1 deer.

After lots and lots of scouting we found what we were sure was the deer's escape route from the hoards of hunters infesting the woods.  We set up our tree stands about 30 yards apart, facing opposite directions.  It got to be 11am, we had been in the trees for 6 hours and saw nothing but other hunters.

We started goofing off. We both stood up and started making fart noises. He pulled out his deer call and started blowing it to the tune Metallica: For Whom The Bell Tolls. I threw an apple core at him. ect ect ect goofing off.

All of a sudden he went dead quiet and grabbed his gun. Two bucks were running. They stopped. BOOM and one dropped.  The other was standing right under my friend. I could not fire without aiming at my friend. The deer took off. Dead run away from me. I put fur in the scope and pulled the trigger. BOOM and I could see nothing but smoke.

I look at my friend and he yells, "Dude! We got two deer!!!" I replied, "I hit him?"

We climed down and I went over to my deer, which was about 75 yards away. I could find no bullet wound. Nothing. Nothing at all.  I grabbed an antler to turn it over and the antler moved. I had hit id dead square in the back of the head, through the skull and out just above the left eye. Amazing skill luck.

My friend.


My friend an his.


Me and mine.


Together


Two friends. One great hunt.

Share your best deer hunt.

Link Posted: 8/4/2007 10:19:16 AM EST
[#1]
Wow.  It is very hard to narrow it down and choose just one.  I would imagine some of the most memorable deer hunts I've ever had were from when I was younger and a doe was considered an absolute trophy in my eyes.

The most successful two days of hunting I've ever had was two years ago when I was able to take a big 7pt and also guide my cousin on a hunt in which he killed a nice 10 pt.  These two deer died within 24 hours of one another and I was there on both hunts

Here are some of the (mandatory ) pics.


Link Posted: 8/4/2007 3:09:41 PM EST
[#2]
Good Shot !

I just bought one of those tree climbing thing from a friend who is moving out of state. I will be shooting one day for the deer season as i settle down sometimes soon after football season since I am coaching the college ranks

good shot ! wooot !  
Link Posted: 8/5/2007 6:30:11 AM EST
[#3]
MY best hunt was with my wife!!!....  We had a great weekend at our deer lease last year,  matter of fact our story about that weekend is published in the newest issue of Texas Trophy Hunter magazine..

All three of these were from one weekend!!  Best weekend of my life!!






Link Posted: 8/5/2007 8:49:41 AM EST
[#4]
Link Posted: 8/5/2007 1:25:06 PM EST
[#5]
I love deer hunting so much its hard to say which one was the best. Every hunt even when I went home empty handed was a fantastic hunt. My best deer is a 15 pointer hanging on the wall but was taken with a 7mm Rem Mag. The ones I've taken with a bow have been a little more exciting.

I remember one hunt several years ago and the weekend before I had taken a 9 pointer with a 30-06. That particular 9 pointer buck was grunted in after I had killed a coyote the same morning on the same stand. Anyway I was now hunting for a doe as the buck tag was already filled. As I stillhunted along a trail I heard a deer moving toward me. I dropped to my knee and waited as the deer approached. Suprise! It was the largest racked deer I've ever seen and he kept walking along the trail towards me. He noticed me at about 10 yards away and stopped and stared waiting for me to move, I didn't. After 15 seconds of him staring me down he moved to a side trail and walked  away where he could get downwind of me to find out what I was.

I wanted sooo much to pull the trigger on him but I won't break the law when I hunt no matter what the temptation. By the way I never did get a doe that season,ha.
Link Posted: 8/5/2007 5:30:27 PM EST
[#6]


If I had to pick the very best, this Muley (218 B&C gross) was the best or most perfect day I have ever had afield.  Everything fell into place like absolute Divine guidance.  Who could be a better Guide than the Lord anyway!  

Most exciting to me...



One very cold Saskatchewan morning before I had time to organize myself for the day long vigil, out steps Old brushpile (168 groos B&C.)  Nothing I had ever seen in the woods had this much bone up to that time.  Guide comes by at the signal shot accompanied by my brother in law and his 12 pointer.  BiL says can you beat 12, I answer No Problem!  Guide takes a look at my buck and says you shot too soon...

So next year on the same stand...



I guess (182 B&C gross) is better, but the 168 rang every bell for me...  Different day, mindset and expectations.

Greatest Joy,



I am sure M4Madness will understand, as my wife also has Cancer and had just gotten her hair back when this 2006 buck tried his luck against her H&K 770.  Unfortunately her hair is gone once again as her Ovarian - CA 125 numbers began to rise.  Chemo is not for the timid.

Good hunting to all.
Link Posted: 8/6/2007 6:28:58 AM EST
[#7]
Wow, great stories guys.

Link Posted: 8/6/2007 1:35:45 PM EST
[#8]
Link Posted: 8/6/2007 3:41:41 PM EST
[#9]
I really think every one is better than the last.  I've been lucky enough to hunt in an area where I get to see a lot of deer, and I'm close to home.  I've been rained on, snowed on, blowing wind, and cold, but I'm always wanting to go out again as soon I get the chance.  
Sometimes just getting out and hearing the squirrels run around behind you(sounding just like the trophy deer you are waiting on) is enough to make my day.
Link Posted: 8/6/2007 5:42:07 PM EST
[#10]
Well... I'd say my best hunting was last year when my youngest went with me for the first time...









Yep...

I love it...
Link Posted: 8/6/2007 5:51:19 PM EST
[#11]
Mjohn, where can you hunt deer in NOVA?
Link Posted: 8/6/2007 5:58:35 PM EST
[#12]

Quoted:
Mjohn, where can you hunt deer in NOVA?


I grew up In Maryland and my parents house is still only 10 minutes from the Patuxant River State Park managed hunting area.  So I drive up to my parents and my hunting buddies(who still live in MD) and I use their house as a hunting lodge.
Link Posted: 8/6/2007 7:15:57 PM EST
[#13]
hell man, everyone of them I've been on have been the best,

but the most memorable with the best buck I ever got was in 89', I'd been laid up for a week at the house with drainage tubes sticking outta me after getting out of a  2 1/2 week stay for surgery to remove my appendix that exploded and I didn't immeadiately go to the hospital because I thought it was just the stomach flu/virus,

but I talked my then GF into driving out so we could visit with my folks, I hobbled in, said hi to mom and pop, picked up my rifle outta the rack and headed out the back door, didn't have any real intentions of shooting anything, just took it just in case,

told my GF I was just gonna step out for a smoke and some fresh air, I'd made it about 250/300 yards from the house and had to sit down, I was hurting bad,

so there I am kicked back agaist a tree resting when I hear "BAM RATTLE RATTLE BAM", I looked east toward the sound and a little blackjack tree was shaking like mad about 75 yards away,

took me a bit to realize it was a buck racking hell outta the tree, I took aim and shot at him when he stepped clear of the scrub, and damned if he didn't take off running,

I'd missed clean, I don't know if I was standing or sitting for my second shot, but he piled up in a stand of scrub oaks and I realised I was walking toward him and couldn't remember getting up,

so I get to him and reached down to pull his head around and get a better look at his horns and he starts thrashing around trying to get up,

I stepped/stumbled back and took aim at his head, (I don't know why I couldn't see anything but hair) and I pulled the trigger which made the buck thrash even more, I'd missed and hit the ground next to him with the third shot,

so with my last round chambered, I stepped up close with him looking at me and panting, put the barrel up next to his head and pulled the trigger to end it,

I felt very happy for killing such a nice big buck (10 pointer) and also very ashamed for making him suffer so much by not giving him a clean kill, I apologised to him and said a prayer,

then started walking back to the house, about half way there I met my GF, pop and sister on the trail, I could feel myself smiling,

my pop asked it I'd got one and I told him he'd find the buck laying up against some scrub brush up the trail in the clearing,

me and the GF walked back to the house, the pain in my side had returned and I was damn tired, when I got back I took my coat off and saw that my shirt and pants had plate sized spots of blood down my lower right side, all the moving around had made a bit of blood and pus to ooze outta the drainage tubes, enough that it soaked through the gauze they were covered with,

my pop and sis went up and found the buck where I said it was, and dragged it back to the house,

my sis came in when they got it back and asked why I had to shoot such a big deer for, it was heavy dragging it, (it weighed in at 150 something lbs dressed out at the weight/checkin station),

my pop gutted it out and loaded it into the truck so we could check it in, on the way he told me the bullet had blown a big hole through the diaphram and nicked the spine, I'd hit him pretty far back, but I guess it was just enough to knock him down and keep him there till I could finish him off,

my pop wanted to have the head mounted but the 165gr balistic tip at 2800fps blew the hell outta its head, it had a quarter sized hole where it entered and a fist sized exit hole on the off side, the taxidermist said he didn't think there was anything he could do to it to make it look ok,

but that was fine, I threw the horns up on their chicken pen with intentions of making a set of rattlers outta them, but I never did, for all I know they're still up there.
Link Posted: 8/10/2007 7:23:49 AM EST
[#14]
Well this wasnt the best but very interesting. On January 14th of this year I was hunting one of my deer stands that is the best to hunt once the dogs are let loose on my lease. The day before I had a deer come near my stand but the deer must have smelt me b/c she blowed and ran off so i decided to get some pine branches and rub them on me and put a few onlong the window screens, Well about 5:20pm I heard some deer start running behind my stand and at about 5:30pm 2 does came out in a clearing I had made and started to feed on a pile of corn. It looked like the pine branches had worked and I will use that trick from now on. Well I looked at both and decided to take the biggest one. I took aim with my Remington 710 30-06 and let loose a handload of mine consisting of a 150gr remmy core-lokt over 47grs of varget. She took the hit and ran off and I knew I had hit her good so I waited awhile and then climbed down and went to look for blood. I saw a nice trail of it leading to the woods in the direction she went so I went to get my dad and my neighbor tagged along with us. Well when we got there we started lokking in the woods and the blood trail only went about 2 feet into the woods then stopped. I knew I had hit her good so we looked more and then my neighbors son came and for some reason he drove his Toyota 4x4 down my hunting trail well we finally found her after about an hr of looking for the blood trail and after we did it was easy to find her and i had hit her just a bit to far back on the ribs. Well we dragged her out and my neighbors son got in his truck and started to drive to my stand so he could turn around in the clearing but he didnt know there was a mud hole there and I wasnt able to stop him in time so he got stuck well he called a friend of his who had a Ford F150 4x4 to come pull him out well that truck got stuck aswell. Well my neighbor went to get his tractor and yep you guessed it it got stuck aswell. The whole time im like who dont we just wait for tomarow to think it out but you know how it is. Later that night I finally got out of the woods and cleaned her up she was about 110lbs and tasted really good. the next day it was raining and it was cold and we got the tractor out and then we got the ford turned around and the cousin of the guy who owned it was there to help het it out and he rode it hard to fget it out and after we did we wur happy b/c only one truck left. my dad had left his ciggs on the dash of the ford so he went to get them and then we started to hear popping sounds then I heard my dad yell so i got on the 4wheeler to see what was up and then I saw black smoke and yelled back to the other guys that the truck was on fire and sure enough when I got there it was. Oil had spilled out on the manofold and the whole thing went up. The popping sound was coming from bullets and shotgun shells going off in it. We decided to call it quits that day and after the rain was over a few days later we got the last truck out. Who knew me killing a deer would cause so much stuff to happen.
Link Posted: 8/10/2007 7:32:04 AM EST
[#15]
It was two years ago with my hunting buddy, I picked my deer up the first day of the season when a deer walked up on me about 15 fee away I took it, and it dropped within 20 feet. My friend got his 2 days later after talking to another hunter out there who suggested using binoculars to see deer in the brush that normally would be overlooked. It woked head shot about 200 yards from truck, thats always nice, we had lots of meat that year. I don't have pics here I will try to post them sometime. !2 guage slug hunting.
Link Posted: 8/10/2007 6:12:24 PM EST
[#16]
I used to think narrowing to one hunt would be impossible, until last year.
My father is colored blind, as as a result he has never bow hunted b/c he cannot distinguish between green, brown and red.  He has always been a hunter however, but didn't feel it was fair to the animals to bow hunt alone after I left for the military.  He supported me when I was young and wanted to bow hunt.  He took me out, sat with me, and spent additional time in the outdoors during bow season simply b/c I wanted to bow hunt (not that additional time bothered him).
22 years later, I have the fortune of living withing 3 hours of him.  He's 65 now with osteoarthritis, but spends every spare moment in the woods.  Last year he asked me "so how much do you think you'll get up here for bow season"?  It was music to my ears. He bought a crossbow b/c of his arthritis and hunted with me during archery season.  It was it was incredibly special to me because he had additional time to hunt, and was my chance to pay him back for the years he invested in me.  
I will never forget the October evening when I called him on the walkie.  He sounded like a kid on Christmas.  I helped him track the deer that was literally spraying blood, yet he couldn't see it.  It circled back on itself, crossed over the blood trail and went another 50 yds.

It was the single most special hunt of my life, knowing that roles had reversed, the student became the teacher,  but the father reminded the icon.  I'll never forget the night I helped dad recover his first deer with a bow as long as I live.
Link Posted: 8/13/2007 8:24:17 AM EST
[#17]
I figured I would put my own story in here, tried last night but photobucket messed up on me.

PS-This is going to be long.

I will preface this by saying that I think every hunt is the best, but there are certain ones that really stand out in my mind, such as this one that I am about to tell.

I didn't start deer hunting until I was 13 or 14.  My father didn't deer hunt, he loved duck hunting.  When he was younger he said he killed enough deer to last a lifetime, so the drive for it just wasn't there.

A year or 2 after my father passed away, my stepfather and my mom moved in together.  He has a nice farm, with lots of deer on it.  There was a guy that worked at the duck hunting club behind our house who was allowed permission to hunt the land.  This man didn't have a son, and his daughter never cared for deer hunting.  I asked him to take me hunting, and teach me.  This man's name was Mr. James, for clarification in the story.

That summer before deer season started that year he helped my stepdad and I build 2 ladder stands.  The stands were made out of salt treated wood, 4x4s for the legs, 1x4s for the steps(we inlayed them, and used glue and screws to hold them, and after 8 years now they have not broke), and other various wood for the seat/foot platform.  These things are built like tanks, and took all 3 of us to put them up.

We put both of them in a tree that was split, a sweet gum tree.  It wasn't the best spot, but it looked good at the time.  Mr. James told me that he wanted to hunt together for a year, and then I could start hunting on my own.  We never even saw the first deer that year, although the tall milo could have had something to do with it.  We routinely heard does bleating for their young ones, but never saw them.  The first evening we hunted, we did see a gray fox, but that was it for the whole season.

The next year, we moved both of the stands.  We put one where Mr. James used to hunt, in a nice intersection of trails.  I still use this one today, most every time I get to hunt, as it has been a great place to see deer.  The other one we put back into the swamp, but me and a friend pulled it out this year, as it turned out not to be such a great spot when the swamp was filled with water.

That first year of hunting on my own, my second year of really deer hunting, I killed a spike, and Mr. James helped me track it, and taught me how to clean it(although I had helped him with his, it was time for me to do my own).

The next few years go by while I'm still in high school, and I kill a couple of deer, some does and a couple of button bucks, but no real bucks.  That is OK, I was still learning about the deer and their habits.

When I was about 16 or 17, Mr. James was diagnosed with leukemia.  He was not able to hunt, due to chemo and the medicine he was on.  I went a few times, and killed a couple of deer, and even got permission from him to hunt where he hunted now on our property(it was split up, so he would hunt one side, I would hunt the other).  I killed a doe that evening, sitting there where he used to hunt.

My freshman year of college, Mr. James passed away unexpectantly.  I was torn, I had lost the only person who I knew that knew the stuff he did about deer.  He was also the only person who had hunted our property(legally anyhow, but that is a different story) for about 30 years or so.

Anyhow, since he has passed away, I have stopped shooting does and button bucks, except if it gets down to the last of the season and I haven't killed a deer yet.  Mr. James killed a lot of nice bucks on our property, and I wanted to wait it out until I could kill something nice.

The year after he passed away, 2 years ago, I was home for Thanksgiving, and went hunting.  It was a beautiful day, and I had a feeling that I would see a deer, and maybe even get a shot off.  I started out around 3:30pm to my stand, and sure enough, as I rounded a corner in the field, there were 2 deer that slipped into the woods.  I walked to my stand, and could have taken one of the does, as it was only about 25 yards away, looking at me.  It finally ambled off.

About 3:45 I started getting restless, since I had already seen a deer.  I have never had much luck with a grunt call, but since I had mine with me, I decided I would grunt a couple of times.  I did, and all of a sudden I heard water splashing, and something that sounded like something was running from the swamp to me.

I got ready my gun up and ready, and decided if it had a decent looking rack on it, I would take it.  I saw the body of the deer a little ways from my stand, and it locked up behind a fallen tree.  I grunted kinda low 2 times, and I saw the body start moving.  I knew the direction it was coming from and where it was likely to go, and I conveniently had a shooting lane there, so I concentrated my rifle there.  

Out came the buck that is in the picture below, head down, working it's way through the shooting lane.  I whistled, it stopped, and I put a 150 grain Power Point bullet through it's front shoulder.  It took off, crashing the whole way, until it came to a stop on the other side of a small ditch that runs through the woods.  I listened, and couldn't hear anything else, so I decided to make a phone call to my buddy who was hunting on the next property, and my mom, to tell them both I had shot my first buck.  Climbing down the stand I nearly fell off, the adrenaline was pumping mighty hard, and my whole body was shaking.  I went and found the deer, counted the points, then went to get help to pull it out.

Since this all happened around 3:45pm, and my stepdad was out with a duck hunting party, which ends at 4:20pm in our county, he wasn't long in coming to the boat dock.  They thought something was wrong with me standing there at the boat dock not long after 4:20, when I should have been in the woods.  I told them, but they said they could tell from the look on my face.  I got one of our guides to help me drag him out of the woods, went back home for pictures, then got my friend who was on the next property over to come and help me skin it to get mounted.  My buddy did almost all of the work, he told me that the person's first big deer gets cleaned by someone else, I told him I would hold that to him.

Needless to say, that night I prayed long and hard, thanking the Lord for the great deer he had given me, and also the time I had spent with Mr. James.

The deer is an eight pointer, 14 inches wide, which is actually considered good size in our area of the state.  This, of course, is not as big as those that have been posted here, but the experience was worth it.

This picture makes the deer's antler's look pretty good sized:


And here is me with the deer:


Sorry for the long post, but to me, it was an incredible day, and I am very grateful to have had a mentor like Mr. James to teach me everything he has learned about deer hunting.
Link Posted: 8/13/2007 8:31:16 AM EST
[#18]
Oh yeah, I forgot to mention, the deer that I killed antler's come up a long way from it's head, then spreads out.  The second year I deer hunted, Mr. James killed an 8 pointer during muzzle loading season, and I helped him track it and drag it back in.  I compared the pictures of my deer and his, and they are almost exactly alike, same spread and everything, antlers come up the same way, etc.  The only thing that was different was that his deer's antlers were flattened out some, but the same general shape, brow tines, and everything is the same.  I thought that was pretty cool.

ETA:  On that second picture, you can see where the deer was rubbing a tree right before I killed it.  The taxidermist left some of it on there, which to me adds some character to the mount.  I also got it mounted the same way it came out, in a sneak position.
Link Posted: 8/13/2007 9:05:23 AM EST
[#19]
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