Bowsite.com

My wife retires on October 4th and we are excited to live our dream of traveling south and then west as the weather dictates. We have lots of family and friends to visit as well as checking some items off of our bucket list...... such as Mardi Gras, visiting Graceland and Nashville.

I will be adding video as well. I recently put up trail cameras and I'm anxious to see what shooters might show up. My standards may get reduced a little bit this year but then again..... it's never been about the kill for me.

So if you need some entertainment..... A good laugh or two..... follow along on my final chapter from a treestand.

Check out the video attached.

I checked my trail cams this morning...... made another mock scrape and moved one camera.

The bucks were already hitting the licking branch. I even got a surprise buck on camera. I applied my Code Blue Rack Rub so I expect to see more bucks on camera.

I didn't see any rubs but I walked within 20 yards of a six point as he was thrashing a small tree. He didn't know I was there until the wind shifted.

Watch the video for more details.

I pulled the camera that was in the thick stuff by the north field and created another mock scrape in the oaks. The bucks now have three in a row about 30 to 50 yards apart. I'm hoping this intices more travel through the area I'm hunting.

I'm officially not going back until October 1st.... I promise.

The weather forecast for Tuesday says warm, 84 degrees, and chance of morning shower. I'll hunt the afternoon after I get done golfing.

And........ my bride retires on Friday and we will be getting ready to head south in early November.

But for now....... I get to climb into my stand for another hunt. Thank you Lord for allowing me one more season.

Stay tuned.......

After we finished, I went home and had a quick lunch, shower and headed to the farm. The rye has grown to about six to seven inches in a short amount of time.

I headed down behind the barn and then down the north side of the field towards my ladder stand set up by the white oak. It was 89 degrees..... the warmest weather Ive ever hunted in but I wore a long sleeve t-shirt and hunting pants and it wasn't too bad. The breeze was helpful too.

I climbed up my ladder stand just about 3:30. And at 4:00pm I had a small buck come into the field from the south and he walked to the north side and out of sight. He was either a spike or a four point.

I sat until about 5:45 without seeing another deer. Then it started to rain. The wind picked up and I started to hear thunder off in the distance. I'll sit through rain but not thunder and lightning. I made my way back to the truck arriving just before the rain came down in buckets.

I'm not sure when my next hunt will be but I hope the weather settles down soon.

But....... it is also my wifes retirement day. How do I tell her I'm getting up at 5:00am on her last day to work? I'd wake her up an hour before she has too get up.

I think I'll wait to hunt that stand another day. Maybe on Saturday.

Last night during dinner my wife asked what time I was going to get up in the morning to hunt. When I told her that I had decided to not hunt and wake her up an hour earlier than she would have to get up and she scolded me. She said it didn't matter...... and that I was already giving up too much hunting time to leave in early November. So..... I set the alarm on my phone for 5:00am.

I was awake about ten minutes before so I got up, jumped in the shower, dressed and headed down to the farm. We had a little misty light sprinkles as I drove down and walked into the oaks. I decided to not set up my video camera because of the wet conditions. I was settled in before it started getting light.

About twenty minutes after I could see my pins two little bucks (4 point and spike) came out of the rye field and came down the trail that I had made three mock scrapes on. They both hit the licking branch and pee'd in each scrape before walking to the bedding area to the south.

At about 8:30........ I saw movement coming down the west side of the oaks. It was a single deer walking extremely slowly. I knew it was a buck before I had a good look at it. It was the nine pointer that I have on trail cams. He was passing me by about 50 yards. I grunted at him and he stopped and looked in my direction. He stood still for what seemed like five minutes.... probably less than a minute...... before walking towards the brush lot bedding area to the south and disappearing. He's a really good looking buck.

I sat until around 10:30 before climbing out and heading home. But I enjoyed my coffee and cookies while sitting in my stand before climbing down. God had blessed me with another successful hunt.

Tomorrow morning I will have to hunt the north field edge ladder stand because of the wind direction. I'm thinking of setting up my buck decoy but it might be a little early in the season for that but...... we will see.

What do you guys think? Is it too early for my buck decoy?

I arrived at the farm and made my way down the trail and actually had to use my small flashlite to find my way past the barn. When I hit the gateway, I turned right and headed towards the north border hedgerow. I don't think any deer were feeding on the rye.

When i got down by my ladder stand I left my bow and pack ar the base and preceded to get my decoy ready. I had previously left a chunk of wood on the ground at twenty yards from my stand which I had ranged during the last hunt.

I climbed up into my stand, pulled my bow and pack up and settled in. I really enjoyed the sunrise and waited to see if any deer came out and what their reaction would be to my decoy.

About ten minutes after I could see my pins, a lone deer came out of the woods on the south side of the field. It was a small buck. As soon as he seen my decoy, he stopped, stomped his feet and became extremely nervous. He was convinced that the eight point (decoy) was too intimidating. He turned and walked back into the woods, the same trail he came out on.

It was about an hour later when a small doe came out of the woods about forty yards from me walking from the north to the south. She glanced at my decoy but continued towards tge south and disappeared into the woods.

About a half hour later, another doe (bigger) came out of the woods from the south and walked towards my decoy. She was definitely interested in the buck. She got within 22 yards of my stand, standing broadside before finally trotting off to the south.

I climbed down at around 9:00am, packed up my decoy and walked towards the barn. I dropped the decoy off in the hedgerow and headed to the oaks to check on my trail cameras. I pulled the cards and headed back towards the farm, gathered my decoy and walked to my truck. Another morning hunt was over. I didn't harvest anything but I sure had a great time.

My next hunt will be Tuesday morning. The forecast is for a perfect west wind for my favorite stand in the oaks overlooking the mock scrapes.

I arrived at the farm a little before 6:00am and made the long walk into the oaks. It was a little cooler than I anticipated but very comfortable with the amount of clothes I had on. It felt good to climb up into my favorite stand again.

At first light, I heard a deer blowing on my upwind side about fifty to seventy yards away but couldn't quite see it because of the darkness. I knew it couldn't be blowing at me. I continued to search for it and finally made out the form of a deer. Like I said...... it was upwind from me. He stood there for the longest time and every few minutes he blew. Then I made out another deer walking from north to south towards the deer. It turned out to be two bucks.

As he got closer I made out a nice rack on him. Long tines and plenty of them but he was walking behind my stand about forty five yards away. As he got closer to the deer that was blowing, the other buck backed off and trotted towards the south brush lot bedding area. The big boy just started feeding.

I pulled out my grunt call and hit him with two short grunts. He snapped his head up and looked in my direction. Then to my surprise, he turned and started walking in my direction. At thirty five yards he stopped behind a tree. When I saw his tail twitch I came to full draw. He continued towards a shooting lane but stopped just short of it. I held for what seemed like eternity. One more step is all that I needed. He stood and kept looking for the buck that had grunted. He finally turned towards the south brush lot bedding area and walked out of my life. I let my draw down and smiled. He was pretty much the biggest buck I've ever drawn on..... one I've never seen before, and not on any of my trail cams.

As I hung my bow up and sat down I realized there were deer all around me feeding. A six point was but ten yards away. Then a couple of does....... a spike walked by..... then more does. It appeared every deer in the woods was in the oaks feeding. I had three different bucks within twenty yards of my stand. I was in complete amazement.

Time passed and they all disappeared towards the south brush lot bedding area. I poured a cup of coffee and cookies while trying to make sense of all of this activity. Then I saw another deer coming off the rye field with its head down. It was going to pass about fifty yards to the west. I rattled the horns lightly. No response. I hit them a little harder and he stopped and looked in my direction.

Through my binoculars I could tell it was a racked buck. He started to trot towards me. I didn't have much time. I reached for my bow, and hooked up my release and came to full draw. He walked out to my right at fifteen yards and stood broadside. My pin was locked on his ribcage before I looked at his headgear. He was a basket racked eight point. I let him walk. I probably shouldn't have...... but I did. So much for lowering my standards.

I climbed out at around 10:30am and drove home with the biggest smile on my face. This is the first time I've ever drawn on two different bucks on the same day. To me....... this was a great day.

The wind direction is going to be out of the east for the next couple of days so I will be using my climbing stand over on the west side of the oaks. I haven't used this stand for a couple of years but I will just take my time going up and down.

I'm still grinning from ear to ear as I write this. Thank you Lord for another day up a tree.

The hunt is on for tomorrow morning. I'll be using my climber on the west side of the oaks to keep the wind in my face.

I was up my tree in my climber......... first time using it in four years...... and settled in before I could see my pins and I noticed the winds were out of the northwest not out of the east as my Scoutlook app had told me. But.... I expected the deer to come from the north around the edge of the rye field and into the oaks. Seventy percent of the deer that I've seen follow this same pattern.

I saw my first deer at almost 8:00am..... coming from the southeast side and on the trail doing the exact opposite. Go figure! It was a button buck and I was surprised that his little buttons looked like they were sharpened with little points. He walked slowly by at around twenty yards.

My next sighting wasn't until around 9:00am, a doe out in the rye about one hundred yards away. She walked from the west side to the east side and disappeared.

At around 9:30 there were a group of about six deer out in the rye. One of the deer was chasing one of the others so I figured it had to be a buck even though I couldn't see it too clearly. So I grabbed my black rack and played a little tune. I didn't get any reaction from them and they disappeared into the woods.

Less than two minutes later I saw a small buck (spike) heading towards me from the area of my ladder stand. He was seeking the maker of the rattling sounds. Then I saw another deer coming up behind him. It was a six pointer. They both stood looking for the deer that had butted heads. After a couple of minutes, they walked away towards my ladder stand.

I sat until 11:00am but didn't see another deer. I left feeling somewhat disappointed in todays action. I guess my last outing spoiled me.

My next hunt won't be until Monday. Tomorrow is my wifes birthday and I'm going to spoil her rotten. We also have plans for some family and friends time over the weekend. Monday should be good conditions to hunt the oaks ladder stand once again.

And yes...... I know I'm blessed to be able to hunt this property. It's pretty much like a game farm.

My walk in was easy...... some moon lite made it easier than normal and I was up in my stand before 6:30am. As I sat in the dark my mind went back to my last hunt from this stand. What could I have done differently..... what if this....... what if that..... etc.

At a few minutes before 7:00am..... and hard to see my pins...... two deer came by my stand about three minutes apart. The second one was bigger than the first but I could not tell if they were bucks or does. The came from the field in the north and headed to the bedding area to the south.

It was almost 8:00am before I saw another deer. It was coming from the bedding area to the south and heading north passing by at about thirty yards. There were two more following. As I stood up, I bumped my rattling horns causing them to click ever so lightly. The first deer stopped and looked in my direction. I was busted. It was a doe and she stomped and she let me know I was busted. She finally turned and ran with the other two in tow. I think it was a doe and fawns.

I did not see another deer...... but I was harassed by about ten turkeys. I have to admit..... I was being entertained by them. One hen was chasing another hen all over the woods. It was almost as if they were playing tag. It went on for about twenty minutes before they settled down.

I climbed out..... checked trail cameras and walked out to my truck. I was disappointed but grateful for another morning in a tree.

My next hunt should be Thursday. I hope I see more deer.

I walked along the north side of the field and noticed two scrapes that had been in the last couple of days.

I placed my decoy a little closer to me tonight..... about fifteen yards away..... quartering towards me slightly into the wind. I placed a scent wick on a stick I pushed into the ground a few inches behind the decoy and put some buck urine on it. I also sprayed the decoy thoroughly with scent killer.

I climbed up my ladder stand..... brought up my pack and bow, got comfy.... and was ready to hunt. The sun was extremely warm as it was shining right on me. The wind was light and steady and I was enjoying life when I was rudely startled by a loud thump. Old Jack tipped over in the wind. I climbed down..... stood him up with a little less of him catching the wind, sprayed him down again with scent killer and climbed back up. It's the first time he has ever blown over.

At 5:15 I traded texts with my wife. I told her there wasn't any deer bothering me and she was disappointed for me. About five minutes later..... out walks the first deer of the afternoon. It came out of the woods directly across from me and was fixated on my decoy. It was a big body but no horns. I made the decision to kill it if it came within range.

It circled down wind of my decoy and came within twenty yards standing broadside. But I got a real good look at it and recognized it as the button buck I had seen in the oaks. He has little sharp buttons no longer than an inch but a big body for his age. I bet he would dress out at around a hundred and forty pounds easily. I've nicknamed him "Sharpy".

All of a sudden he spun around and ran to the far side of the field before stopping. He turned and was staring to my right. Then another deer walked out of the woods to my right and came towards my decoy. It was a young doe.... yearling..... and she was having dirty thoughts of my decoy standing there in his glory. She nevr really offered me a shot but then again I hadn't reached for my bow either.

She started to feed walking towards Sharpy which made him nervous...... he kept his distance from her for sure. Two more deer entered the field from the west side..... a doe and fawn. They kept there distance from the decoy but watched it intently from down wind.

Another small doe came into the field from the south and also circled down wind of my decoy before starting to feed. Then a small buck entered the field from the same trail and also circled down wind of my decoy. Do you see a pattern here?

It started to get dark and I was covered in deer and knew I couldn't climb out. All of the deer had moved to the south edge of the field to feed. I remembered something I had done before so i tried it again. I barked like a dog as loud as I could and all of the deer ran into the woods allowing me to climb down, pack up my decoy and head out.

But...... there was a deer in the middle of the field a couple of hundred yards away. I walked slowly with the wind in my face and the deer just watched me. I angled towards it to see how close I could get to it. I bleated to it every now and then. I actually got within thirty yards before the deer turned and ran.

I laughed and continued to walk towards my truck. I quickly packed away my decoy..... put my pack and safety vest in my locker in the back of my truck. I took my boots off and put them in the garbage bag I keep them in and made the drive home. Another successful hunt was in the books.

My next hunt will be Wednesday morning and I am hoping the wind will be good for the oaks.

As I walked along the edge of the first corn field I couldn't help but wonder if I would stumble into some deer along the way and sure enough....... I busted one out on the second field. I was almost completely across it when all hell broke lose about twenty yards to my left. It was definitely a deer crashing through the corn. Kinda made me check my shorts before I sat down in my stand...... if you know what I mean.

Once out of the corn fields I was able to walk an old roadway towards the oaks. I was about one hundred yards from the oaks when another deer started to blow to my right..... in the brush lot next to the farm trail.

I entered the oaks and easily found my stand..... climbed up..... hauled up my bow and pack and got comfortable. I checked the time and it was only 6:34am. It only took me a couple of extra minutes going the long way around. Sunrise was at 7:37 this morning so I might adjust my wake-up time to 5:30am and get an extra half hour of sleep.

The world beginning to wake is a special place. I love hearing the song birds...... the geese...... the crows and for the first time in my life...... I had two barred owls talking from the trees right above me. I've hunted most of my life and this was indeed the first time I've ever seen a owl above me. I was amazed. I tried to get a little video with my phone but my movements spooked them.

At around 7:30 two deer entered the oaks from the east side and began looking for acorns. I could easily tell it was a doe and fawn. They fed their way towards the brush lot to the south and were gone.

By 9:00am I hadn't seen another deer so I poured some coffee and enjoyed a couple of the treestand cookies I love. And..... I'm sorry to say...... no deer bothered me during my coffee break. I thought about past hunts..... and texted my son to let him know I was thinking of him. I really miss our hunts together. Oh well....... you don't want to see an old man get teary eyed so lets change the subject.

I decided to sit a little longer this morning because I was enjoying the morning.... the memories...... and the smells of the woods. Besides..... I still had coffee and cookies left.

At almost 10:00am I saw movement on the west side of the oaks and I knew right away it was a buck. He was headed northeast and would pass me by at about sixty yards. I blew my grunt call and he stopped and looked in my direction. I couldn't see his horns but I knew he wasn't a shooter because of his body size. He turned and walked in my direction looking for the grunter. I did manage to get some video of him which I might include in my final video.

After he got tired of looking for the other deer he headed towards the bedding area to the northeast and was gone. At 11:00am I had decided it was time to climb down. I lowered my pack and bow and slowly climbed down the ladder.

I checked my trail cams and refreshed the mock scrapes with buck urine and a little Code Blue Rack Rub on the licking branches. I walked around the oaks and I was easily disappointed in the lack of rubs or scrapes. But I also know there are about three different shooters that use the oaks and I am seeing more does than I have in the past. The rut is starting to heat up so I'm still high on the oaks.

As I walked out I walked the field edges and noticed the increase in scrapes almost every one hundred yards or so. I think we are about one week from the chase stage in our area. I hope it's going to be fun as usual. The big bucks should be on their feet more during daylight very soon even though I am getting more photos of them during the middle of the night.

I'm not sure when the next hunt is..... maybe tomorrow morning or evening...... we will see.

We will be pulling out of New York in two weeks from today so my hunting time is limited. Realistically...... i might only have four or five hunts left depending on the weather. But each day that passes increases the possibility of success. Yes..... I know I'm an optimist. My wife tells me that all the time.

I think my next hunt will be Saturday morning and if so..... it will probably be in the north field stand according to the wind direction forecasted on my weather app.

About 8:30....... another small buck came from behind me and walked almost the same trail into the brush lot to the south.

I didn't see another deer until around 10:00am when two deer ran from the swamp bedding area to the west and ran into the brush lot to the south.

I sat until about 11:00am, climbed out, checked my trail cams before walking out. I did notice that there was a few more scrapes started on the field edges. I think the rut will kick in this week here on the farm. Every picture of a decent buck on my trail cameras were taken in the middle of the night at between 2:00am and 5:00am.

My next hunt will be Monday morning. The weather forecast looks good for hunting the oaks once again.

After some breakfast I went out and mowed the lawn..... aka..... mulching leaves and finished putting summer stuff away for the winter. We are now officially ready to finish packing the motorhome for departure on November 7th.

My wife wanted to go for our daily walk so we put on our sneakers and took off on our usual two mile walk. We walk at an extremely brisk pace. We returned.... cooled down and had some lunch before I jumped in the shower and got dressed for an evening hunt.

I got down to the farm at 3:30pm and made the walk into the north field and got to my stand without a problem. I set up my decoy a little closer to my stand and sprayed him down good with scent killerclimbed up..... pulled my bow and pack up and sat in the brite sun. It felt good.

I didn't see my first deer untill 5:00pm. A lone doe came out of the woods to the north abouut 100 yards to my left. I didn't see her until she was about fifty yards away. I was hopeful that she might have a buck in tow but she didn't. She casually fed towards my decoy. She stopped several times staring at Old Jack. But she kept coming closer. She got within about twenty yards. A weird looking four pointer came out of the woods on the far side of the field. He was looking at my decoy too. He also came within twenty yards before trying to harass the doe but she wasn't having any of his nonsense. He left the field feeling rejection.

At 5:45pm another doe trotted out onto the field closely followed by a spike horn. They ran all over the place...... back and forth...... around and around. They finally headed back towards the thick woods to the south.

Another buck came out from the same trail the doe and spike ran into the woods on. It was an eight point and he was intent on making a scrape in the southwest corner of the field. I blew my grunt call at him and he stopped..... looked at my decoy...... and then went back to making the scrape. He finally walked into the woods and was gone. Why didn't he come and challenge my decoy? I may never know.

It was getting dark and hard to see my pins so I lowered my pack. A deer blew behind me as the pack hit the ground. I lowered my bow and climbed down and the deer blew again. It was only about thirty yards behind me.

I packed up my decoy and after strapping on everything I began the walk to my truck. I didn't shoot anything today but I really enjoyed the hunt.

I hope to be back in the oaks on Wednesday morning. The weather and wind forecast looks favorable. Tomorrow morning will be a good time for golf.

We have just ten more days before departure. I figure I have maybe five more hunts. I might be eating tags.

Last night was my wife's retirement party given by the surgical practice that she has worked for, for about 35 years. She worked as a secretary, medical assistant, medical biller and financial manager throughout her employment.

When the Doctors announced that they were giving her a retirement party, she requested a relaxed and low key atmosphere and the Doctors picked the perfect location for her.

It was a great time with lots of love shown to her. She was presented with a National Parks lifetime pass...... beautiful diamond earrings and a substantial check for all she has done for the practice and the Doctors. It was a very proud moment for her and I.....and she handled the emotions of her special evening with grace. I drank water during the evening so she could enjoy herself without worry. Lots of love was shared with everyone in attendance.

So between the late night and the crappy weather...... I slept in and did not hunt. We didn't get up until after 8:00am which is rare for us.

Tomorrow will bring high wind and we will be traveling to Syracuse for the football game on Saturday so it leaves me with Sunday, Monday and possibly Tuesday to hunt. We pull out Thursday morning with our motorhome. Only seven more days before we roll.

Time is running out on my last year to hunt...... but I feel so excited for our trip and know I've been abundantly blessed during my life. So if I don't tag a buck, I will STILL smile and say thank you Lord for my life so far.

I sat until 9:30 and came home to get some more of my prep work down. I pulled my last two trail cams and every picture captured was in the dark. Not one picture of daylight movement.

Tomorrow morning will be my last hunt. I think I'm going to try the north field stand once again and set up my decoy. Time flies when your having fun...... and I'm almost out of time.

in the stand on the north field by 5:45 and waiting for some action.

My morning was fun....... with a great sunrise but not a lot of action where I was. I only seen three deer from the stand but saw a smasher buck just before parking my truck.

I was about one hundred yards from where I park at the farm and a very nice buck...... high and wide...... crossed the road in front of me. He was leaving the farm and heading east towards a corn field. I have not seen this buck before ir captured him on trail cam. That's the beauty of hunting the rut...... but he was going tge WRONG way!

I parked and got ready for my walk. I must look like a pack mule walking down that trail. Back pack and decoy on my back and my bow in a sling on my right side. My walk into the north field was peaceful........ and serene. I was excited and sad at the same time. I knew today was a day I wasn't looking forward too but it was happening.

I reached my stand without moving any deer off of the field, to my knowledge. I assembled my decoy and placed him at arould fifteen yards quartering towards me. I placed a scent wick with buck urine on a stick in the ground about a foot behind him and climbed up and got comfortable. The sunrise is etched in my memory forever.

First deer sighting was a six pointer that came out of the woods to the south following a doe. He was in the mood..... her.... not so much. She tried to feed on tbe rye grass but he kept dogging her. They finally left in the direction they came from. I sat for another half hour before using the rattling horns.

I didn't get a response from the deer but Ed...... the guy that shot the ten pointer sent me a text saying I was scaring the deer. He was in his favorite stand about 500 to 600 yards to the south. I didn't know the sound of the horns would really carry that far. I texted him back to mind his own business. I was happy to know someone else was in a stand.

I had another doe enter the field about one hundred yards to the east and she kept walking across and disappeared to my north. I hit the rattle horns again and a spike horn ran...... yes..... ran into the field but stopped suddenly when he saw my decoy. He turned and walked back into the woods. He didn't want to fight the decoy.

I received another text from Ed asking how it was going. I replied....... s.l.o.w. He texted back about a half hour later that he had just shot a small ten pointer. I was about done with this sit so I asked if he recovered it yet and he said he saw it fall about forty yards away. I told him I would come help. My season was over but I was able to put my hands on a dead buck. Consolation? Not really but I was happy for him.

I packed out and headed towards Ed but he texted that he had loaded the buck on his Bad Boy Buggy and we met at the end of the north field. This morning..... I rode out instead of walking. It was only the second time I've done that since I've hunted there. I helped him load it onto his truck and drove home to get some more work done towards our trip.

I've been blessed with a good life...... great friends and so many great sunrises. I will share a video of some of my time in the stand when I get time to edit it.

This farm has been a God send to me and my dear friends Mark and Linda have been gracious hosts. I love them dearly and enjoy spending time with them.

Thank you for following along with my hunts over the years. I've hunted this farm for the last eight years....... only harvesting three bucks by choice...... but I've had at least three or four bucks broadside in range every season I've hunted it.

In my opinion........ a successful hunt doesn't mean a kill. A successful hunt is spending time in the stand...... making memories as you everything God has put before you. My 2019 deer season was a huge success. Thanks for following along.

Thank for sharing over the years...your stories were always a joy to read! Your respect and passion for the natural world is evident.

I wish you the best moving on, wherever life may lead you!

Thank you for taking the time to share everything with us.

After our visit we are headed to Florida for the winter. We are also going to check some things off our bucket lists. Mardi Gras, Fredericksburg and Lubbock Texas before spending 6 weeks with our grandkids in Albuquerque.

On the way home we are going to visit Graceland and Nashville to visit some old friends.

I will try to get my closing video put together soon.

Good luck to everyone still hunting. I love seeing pictures.

Here's a little video of some of my deer season. I put it together from a few video clips I had.

Thanks for following along with my last deer season. Good luck to you all and hunt safe!