Just got a drunk call from my dad... looks like he got himself a really nice doe today. You all have no idea how happy this makes me. We've gone hunting every November for a week ever since I was 15. For the last 5-7 years his health has been fading really, really fast, to the point that I moved back in to help them deal with it a few years ago. Needless to say we haven't been able to hunt for a few years as a result. This year he finally felt up to going out, but he didn't want to go far (our hunt camp is a cabin in the woods in the middle of nowhere at the end of a 5 hour drive) and understandably didn't want to be away from medical attention. This year a handful of his Shriner buddies found a hunk of bush from a fellow Shriner about a 15 minute drive from Dad's place, and the group of them got their tags and pledged to go out for a few days this season. Today was their second try. Dad got the stand nearest the vehicles; shortest walk, most protected from the weather, etc. He took his stand, and the others walked off into the bush. 20 minutes later this doe starts following their tracks into the bush, and dad nails the fucker from 100 yards. He's been keeping sharp by plugging squirrels and chipmunks and other rodents from the lower windows in the house with that BB gun I was talking about a while ago. Needless to say it was a perfectly placed shot, everyone was impressed, and he was proud as hell. Not sure how many deer he's got left in him, but this year was a great year. Just wish I could have been there to be part of it. He forgot his iPhone at home, and he's still kicking himself for not getting a pic of it.
I could have cleaned up on squirrels last weekend but just didn't see any deer. I hunted all day Saturday and Sunday, sitting still for the first and last couple of hours and Fudd-ing it up during the rest of the day, just creeping through the woods as slow as possible. Thanks to some fresh snow falling overnight and staying in place I was able to track them all over the property on Sunday. They did a good job of avoiding the spot I picked and instead moving around my other areas to hunt. Crafty fuckers. I'm positive it is the same group of deer I've been watching and I also found some new rubs on trees in the area I selected for a stand. Temps are supposed to drop 20-30 degrees over the week and reach a low of 0 on Saturday morning, so it'll be a chilly hunt. One thing that made this past weekend particularly interesting was hearing turkeys go nuts on Saturday night and Sunday morning. Between the last and first hours of those days, I heard more turkeys calling than all my previous time spent there put together. I also heard a wolf howling in the area for the first time on Sunday night, just to the North. Overlooking my evening spot. There is a field beyond the trees and deer have multiple trails coming in and out of this open area, moving from bedding cover to feeding areas. This spot has been cleaned up and selectively logged in the past few years, which has been fantastic for game. Spoiler Now what sucks here is I found a deer stand ladder put up on one of the pine trees in the upper left corner of the pic, which is about 10 yards from the very clearly marked property boundary. No stand, but the ladder was not there a couple weeks ago. I was furious and called the landowner, who was on board with me taking it down and leaving a note. They may not have been able to take any deer (hopefully not) but I definitely took their ladder, so at least that's a plus. This squirrel doesn't know it, but it is very lucky I had my .270 here and not a .22. Spoiler Next time... Spoiler
I tagged a spike buck in the fading evening light on Saturday in Northern Minnesota. Decided to leave my seat in the woods a bit early because I was getting cold (single digit temps suck to sit in) and wanted to walk out without using my headlamp, and when I paused at the edge of a field three deer bounded out. I knelt down in some weeds and the third deer slowed down and stopped, and as it turned towards me I saw some horns. Good enough for me! I settled the crosshairs on its shoulder, pulled the trigger, and it was the third deer in a row that hasn't moved an inch after I shot it with my Winchester 70 .270. Less than ten seconds expired from when I saw the first deer to when this one was on the ground. Nice bodied young buck. Funny thing is, this spike rack is the biggest I've taken home after a decade of deer hunting now. Nah, what only I care about is the 50+ lbs. of venison I put in freezers with it and killing it swiftly. You can see the weedline I shot it from in the background. According to satellite maps the shot was 140 yards and easily the longest I've had to make on a deer yet, and offhand too. Practicing with my pellet gun in the basement all summer paid off there. I shot it at about 5 pm and we went to work right away, and at 1 am I was putting the last packages in the freezer. Here's my prize before cleaning, trimming, and packaging everything. Spoiler I fried up a couple of little loin steaks for my girlfriend and I last night and confirmed it is another tasty deer. Went back to the spot yesterday and kicked up a bunch of bald eagles and ravens as I drove past. They ate down to the dirt. Spoiler Eagles leave cool tracks in the snow too.
Came home from work, let the dogs out, got a beer out of the fridge and when I was about to open it when I noticed through the window that my prey was stalking me. About a 75 yard shot with my .223 AR, standing in my yard with my shoulder bracing against a tree. Got 'em coach!!! Now, I realize a .223 is not the ideal caliber to shoot a deer with, but it shoots straight for very long distances, is very accurate in that it is consistent and has very little muzzle jump (hence why I was able to shoot from an awkward position), and I know I'm going to hit where I aim every single time. In this case, he was facing me, slight angle to my left. So I aimed for the boiler room, right between his neck and shoulder, about two inches up on his body from the lowest point. He was dead before he hit the ground. Bonus points for him being a 12 pointer instead of 10. I found that out later. Welcome to Texas, people.
This will be the only way I get to shoot one this year. With a 4 month old kid I don't have the time or energy to hunt. But I can handle a quick shot off the back porch.
How... how did the AR not blow it up? Nice buck! Bonus not having to leave your yard too. How many more tags do you get this year? .22lr and the .30/30 have to be in the running too.
Why would the AR blow it up? It's just a .223. Hell, even though I knew where I hit it, I still had to search a little for the actual entrance wound because it was so small. Hollow point .223 drops those deer like a rock. I have I three or four total buck or antlerless tags, 2 doe tags, and 2 mule deer buck or antlerless. Though this is the only tag I'll realistically use this year. If anything I might get another doe or two for meat.
Sarcasm. Remember all those dipshits spouting off about how evil those ARs are last year? The "can't hunt with an AR-15 because it will blow up anything you shoot" line seemed like a popular piece of ignorance that popped up. I think, given it has the power to penetrate the hide and flesh, where exactly you put that bullet in the critter matters more than anything else. Tag a couple of does for me.
No minimum caliber in Texas, but no rimfire. Specifically: Now, the question is SHOULD you hunt with a small-caliber bullet. It all comes down to how comfortable you feel with your rifle and ammunition. The margin for error decreases exponentially the less bang in your boomstick. A .243 is great, a 308 is better. But dead is dead, doesn't matter how you get there. If you can get there with a .223 round, fantastic.
Yeah I had to double check the handbook myself because unless I'm mistake, for the longest time Texas did indeed have a minimum caliber restriction. I've never been deer hunting so don't pay too close attention to the restrictions. Deer hunting costs too much around my neck of the woods if you don't have friends with land.
In Canada we have what is known as "Crown Land", because it's owned by The Crown, as in the Federal Government. It's considered "public property" and anyone is allowed to hunt on it (unless there are specific restrictions). Does anything like that exist in the US?
Public Land, in some states, is awfully close. I'd have to read up on it some more. I do know it sucks coming to public land to camp or hunt and there is just a ton of half-wild Angus cows eating, shitting and fucking up the place, from personal experience.
In Texas we have land that belongs to the state which we can hunt publicly however everyone I have talked to who has gone public hunting says it is HEAVILY pressured when it comes to deer. I typically hunt on public land only for squirrels and rabbit since there is no closed season state wide but will be expanding to hog hunting since a lake close by my house offers archery hog hunting year round with a valid permit.
Hunting is allowed on federal land such as National Forests or Wilderness areas but not National Parks. National Forest Hunting Regs/guidelines National Wilderness Area FAQs
That's only if you use a 30 round banana clip drum magazine and bump fire. I'm just glad we can use rifles this year pistol caliber only or not. Step in the right direction. Hell maybe one day we'll be allowed to use rifle rounds or silencers when hunting.