So I told you I was not in a discriminating state of mind with respect to my 2009 Missouri rifle tag. Regular readers will remember that I ate this tag last year after hunting more than half the days. It wasn’t a lack of opportunities; it was the two studs I saw early in the season. I held out hoping to get a shot at one of them, and it wasn’t to be.
So this year I knew it would be difficult for me to pass a decent buck. It might have been my saving grace that the first thing I saw as it became light enough to shoot was a decent buck. It would be too easy to shoot a 130 class 8 point in the first 5 minutes of the season. After all, I’d packed a lunch and thermos of coffee. I was prepared to sit all day and had cleared the first three days of the season off my calendar. Over the course of the morning I passed a slightly better 8 than the first, and a heavy 6 twice. Every buck I saw was either chasing a doe or looking for one to chase. From 10:30-12:00 I was preoccupied with the poachers. Around 12:30 I saw the heavy 6 yet again. As the afternoon started to heat up this deer came by:
Around the same time I saw a heavy 10 with a doe at the far end of the field I was watching. He was 600 yards away and appeared to be afraid of the half buck above. For the next couple of hours he would appear from the grass slightly closer, and then disappear again. Finally he gave me a chance at 320 yards. I hesitated, not sure of the shot, and he was gone again. With the fading light I figured my chance was gone. I watched the half buck, a spike, and various furry things fiddle around in front of me until it was almost time to pick up… then he was back. He was looking right at me at 125 yards. I didn’t hesitate this time:
Great mass, good length, character… I’m pleased… But now it’s back to work on the Kansas tag…
Saturday The Old Man and I hung tree stands and did various other chores to get ready for the season. I was headed home after dark when I caught a flash of whitetail-brown in the headlights off in a ditch along a fence. I turned around thinking it might be a poached or traffic injured deer. What I found was this:
A 60 pound fawn had somehow managed to get her back foot stuck in a fence. She wasn’t worn out and the leg wasn’t broken so I went back and grabbed a pair of wire cutters (and my camera). A simple snip and she was on her way, unfortunately at a speed I couldn’t get my camera to catch up with.
Honestly, it didn’t really make much sense. This deer was in an area that has too many deer, but I just couldn’t handle the idea of leaving her to suffer.
Unfortunately this story is about all the average American will know about coyotes.
Simpson’s dog, Daisy a maltese-poodle mix, was taken by a coyote yesterday, reports MSNBC.com. The 29-year-old singer tweeted about the incident last night. “My heart is broken because a coyote took my precious Daisy right in front of our eyes. HORROR! We are searching. Hoping. Please help!” she wrote on her Twitter page.
Wouldn’t it be wonderful if this motivated people to take a closer look to predator control and wildlife management in general? We can dream…
So I’m toeing the line yesterday at the local law library when I get an email from a guy who says he likes my pictures. I thank him for the compliment and a discussion ensues. He says:
Unfortunately I’m gonna have to do my hunting vicariously through guys like you this season. I’m stuck in Iraq with my National Guard Unit. This is the 3rd Hunting Season I’ve missed due to deployments now.
As best I can tell he mostly runs pointers on pheasants. He’s from Pennsylvania but travels to South Dakota to chase wild birds each year. I was inspired by both his sacrifice for our country and the quality of some of his upland pictures so I asked if he would allow me to bring them to you. He was generous enough to say yes:
Fellow Skinny Moose blogger Chesson brought back some great pictures from his trip to New Zealand. Take a look at scenery here and the hunt pictures here. Go check them out.
