Hunting with the Hedge 2021

[JB G]

"To put my hunting season into perspective if I get 4 decent shots at close range through an approximately 60-70 day bow hunting season with 1/3 of those days a no go because of weather or something else and multiple sittings in the stands I'm doing good.Those are the odds.In more detail that's around 1 shot every 12 to 15 sittings in a tree stand or blind.Hundreds of hours,but as hunting can go sometimes the stars can align and success can come sooner without exactly knowing when.That's why they call it hunting.
If it was easy I guess everyone would be doing it."BowEd~

Hedge told me about the same other day when i get impatient on the stand. Said " I shot 10 whitetails with selfbow a few years back, killed 70 since Oct 1st 2015. You think that happens by going out once a week for three hour sit? I hunt in rain, snow, wind, and during rut will sit 12hrs at a time. So, yeah I had a good year back a few, killed ten but I hunted a 100 day season, killed a whitetail once out of ten times. Lots of stuff has to be right to kill one with a selfbow but your not under bowed by any means. That said, your only prolly going get one or two really high grade chances on a mature buck and you better do what you can to prepare. When it happens, you have to make it all come together in a very short time".

HH~

[Deerhunter21]

Gosh darn it Shawn! That’s gotta be one of the coolest things I’ve ever seen! A headshot from a deflection that slid right in between the cranial bones!!! Seeing how this deer went to help a friend id be crazy to call that just luck!

Nice hunting!

[JB G]

30 Oct 21

Sometimes, when in right place, right time, with right equipment lady luck shines on you Deer21. Most times she laughs at you, kicks dirt in your face and spits in your eye.

Got Youth Hunt weekend going on today and tomorrow. Usually go and hunt on Post this weekend but we mixed 50lbs of sausage yesterday and it must get cased and packaged today. We tried some in fry pan yesterday and the mix was pretty good, no complaints out of the the 3 testers anyway.

I get some pics of the operation this afternoon.  Then, I prolly get back on em. Dont want that Selfbow Rust creeping in.


HH~

[PaSteve]

Interesting conversation piece Hedge. Guess there's a first time for everything. I have to agree with your assessment of a 48# selfbow with a heavy cedar arrow. Never doubt the killing power of a properly tuned arrow and sharp broadhead from a well made selfbow. Congrats on your season so far. Those bucks should be out trolling for does any day now. Good luck. Shoot a big-un.

[JB G]

31 Oct 21

Cooling down nice. Today is last day of early youth hunt. We made 170 Brat's last evening and the kids came in at last light with two deer. Was a good time and Arvin was there. Nice night. Got plenty of sausages for the rest of this year anyway.

Looking forward to getting back out Monday morning with this first good cool weather pushing in from NW. Bucks are moving very well now and working Doe's at every turn. This coming week will be very good if not best week for bow hunting as the following week the ML season comes in and lots of mature bucks go nite nite after the countryside erupts in flash, smoke and BOOOOooooM's. That's OK becuase there's no gun hunting on one farm I hunt and it fills up purty well after first weekend of MuzzleLoader with deer.

BowEd that bow is taking out those pesky bean-eaters with authority!

HH~

[BowEd]

There's still plenty of them out there.They're not all bred by any means yet.Congrats on your head shot there.
It's a good stick.Holding up very well.Target practicing with it while shooting it in I told Robin that I pitied any deer getting within range of me.
I usually can rely on others across the fence to spook the deer to me too.This year that won't happen supposedly till late december with late season muzzle loader season,but I can never tell for sure what and when things go on over the fence.I'll have a tag for that then too but an antlerless tag.It'll feel like shooting fish in a barrel like in the past.
Trying to put together at least 200 pounds of deer meat for us.We love it.The price of good beef is just outrageous.Pork chops are ok too but good back straps are the best.

[JB G]

01 Nov 21

32 degrees, N wind 1-3MPH 0530hrs


Got in on creek bottom along an old osage grove in a big hackberry tree. Got up hung my bow and pack. Sat until about 0645 no deer movement thru the thicket in dark. The wheat fild behind was covered in low spots with frost. Very still morning. I stood up just before 0700 and rechecked my harness and sling leg, all good. Was looking around tree to my left and checked the 65yds to creek. Was running pretty good could here it rushing around a blow down in water. I slowly turned my head to left and caught movement hard right coming up my back trail into my stand. Turned some more and saw a large bodied deer with head down coming hard from right to my left. I looked away to my bow hanging a quickly grabbed it turning back to right. Im up about 18-19 feet and buck had already past thru my first window. My right hand found this string as i turned and presented and bent over toward the buck. I have a soft “baaaa” as he stepped into my primary widow on his path. He stopped as i tightened up string tension. As I got just short of anchor he dropped his head to ground and started to continue on his way. I hit full draw and have him a louder “baaaa” and stopped picked up head. Put the shaft just under his belly behind left shoulder and pulled thru. Could tell instantly i did not get all the string i could have.

The arrow flew the 12-13yds very well and hit him high above spine on steep dow angle. Upon impact he spun a 180 with 20 of the 30” sticking almost straight up. After spinning i could see his from legs buckle slightly and he sped out the direction he came. He scrambled to edge of wheat field as he did i saw the arrow snap and the nock fly off. He ran straight into middle of wheat and out of sight. I reached for a new arrow and knocked it and hung bow back up.

I took a seat and thought about the 19-20” of arrow i saw break off and the angle of it. It was in correct area (forward of diaphragm) but did it reach deep enough on this big bodied deer? I thought on in a few minutes and decided to go get the broken shaft and just how far in did penetrate. I sized it with a good arrow. Confirmed what i saw 10-11” of penetration. I

I then went back to the tree 30yds away and got my gear. I was resigned to fact right away there would be no blood to follow. I found his tracks where he was bounding in wheat but could not see where he knocked frost off the 6” tall wheat. I said “ok, i will check the field but would beat brush if i could not find him this soon after shot. Walked his general azimuth he was on up the rise in field. Reached the top and scanned the 200yds to far side and saw a large brown gray blob on far side. As i continued i could it was indeed the buck and he was down.

Was relieved he ran this direction the 250-300 yds from the shot location. Not a drop of blood except on the arrow shaft. If he had jumped into the creek bottom it would have been a long day. Upon looking him over it was clear i had got one lung at a minimum.

He is a 4.5 or 5.5 year old deer. Will know more when i take his lower jaw off. Wind was correct for that stand and few things must go right to fool a mature buck into selfbow range. Then, it does not hurt to have a few breaks fall your way. Him running into open and the broad head missing spine and deflecting off rib straight down thru lung and into off side flank.

Sweet indeed November is chasing whitetails.

Good Hunting

HH~

[PaSteve]

Congratulations Hedge. How about some pics?

[BowEd]

Short morning for you.Congratulations.Things happen fast.Hackberrys' are great trees to use for stands.Your shooting combo did it's job.Enough of the shaft got deep enough.Should be plenty of meat on that old boy.It's a lot easier for me to age these bucks by sight than these doe's.Size does'nt always mean everything with them.
I had practically the same thing happen last year only the big doe stopped running after 50 yds or so.Stood there with me just being able to see her head over the brush on the far downside crest of a hill.I watched her disappear after a few minutes thinking the deer walked on.I knew there would be no bloodtrail or very little on this one.Turned out she had dropped on that spot with about half of the arrow still sticking almost straight up in the air out of her yet good enough to use again.

[JB G]

02 Nov 21

Well, my back is toast. Pulling that buck up and over tailgate has wasted the middle of my back. Sat on heat pad last nite and sukd my thumb. Had my wife rub the area with some good fish oil. Little better this morning. JBG was at work and they were swamped, couple other guys I tracked for this year could not give up any work time so it was the Hedge to get this large deer into truck. Finally got him in any I had to leave the tailgate down.

I caped him out yesterday as well. I won't mount him but a I have a large one at Taxidermist and he is always looking for big capes because lots he gets have hair slip. So, if they are down correctly they worth $100 trade material. He does have a purty good mule head of him as his eye/nose measurement was right at 7". Not the biggest I have seen here but very respectable. The big one my good hunt buddy Mark who past shot a super mulehead last year and I took it to get him done, he was 7 3/4".

Still looking for the big bully 3x3 to take out off this farm. He a 250lb buck and I will enlist help to get him gone. He's 6.5-8.5yrs old. Still have some doe thinning to do and have a two buck tags left. So, see how the rest of the season plays out.

HH~

[JB G]

02 Nov 21

Follow up on yesterdays hunt. Think these are what your looking for. JBG is ready to kick my butt for sending all these pics.

We weighed him (on the hoof weight) he was 204lbs. Its kind of subjective on field dressed weight as some bucks in rut have an empty gut bag, if you leave deer opened up they dehydrate at rate of LBS/day depending on temp, etc. This buck was just beginning to get rutted up. Getty ready to start bullying and scrappin with other mature bucks.

HH~

[JB G]

As the sun poked over hill.

[Selfbowman]

Well done. It should eat gooood! Congratulations

[StickMark]

I was stationed at Ft. Campbell, Ky, back in the day when they issued the last jungle fatigues and steel pots.
The terrain in your photos brings backs memories of hiking Land Between the Lakes, and fishing the rivers.
You definitely have your system down. And I know you put in the time.

[Eric Krewson]

Buy yourself one of these Shawn, I have an F250 and strained my back every time I had to pull a deer into the bed. I finally wised up (plus I got too old and had back fusion).

I keep it in the bed of my truck during deer season, I was able to pick up two fresh road kills easily with it as well, one was still alive but I dispatched it.