Finally got to hunt

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Ole Dave
Posts: 525
Joined: Mon Sep 19, 2016 5:22 am

Finally got to hunt

#1 Post by Ole Dave »

Finally, hunted …

Ok…let me think about this some as I type.

I had been taken to a WMA by a wildlife cop back late winter as I was just getting mobile after knee replacement…we just drove around and I’m a passenger trying to write down notes on how to get there.

Unfortunately, we had a super wet early, early spring, then it go stinkin HOT and I went to visit friends in PA last week of April, back first week in May…by then, all was lush and tick invested…. And it’s thick upthere.

So without knowing I could find it, lots of back roads to be navigated in the dark, I waited till mid AM to head out. I wanted full daylight. Nobody here would know where I was or if I got back anyway…

I missed an important turn off but when I hit another road, I knew I’d gone too far, so went back and found my turn…got there, saddled up and up this bluff I’d been told held deer… logged off and thick, thick, thick…On the bluff overlooking a steep creekside, I couldn’t have shot the ground from a tree…

I had the boomsticks and hand cannon. In those saplings, I unloaded the rifle, slipped it over my shoulders and pulled the 45 long colt out and snuck thru the saplings… wind was freaky…ne’r saw a thing…wet leaves from yesterdays’ downpour made quiet walking though…

I had no clue where boundaries are and it’s private around…that made me nervous. I find as I’ve aged, hunting is for enjoyment… and recreation, not for Adventure. I had adventures galore in my youth and now I’m seeking something else…

I hit a white blaze tree pained 360 around and that is usually a property marker… saw no more, but I chose to loop up to the bluff ridge top and sneak back… still nothing…creek was up, private agriculture on other side, all harvested now long gone.

Back to road, snack, took off downstream…hit barbed wire WT? but bush cop told me it went a long ways I thought? I sat down and texted him. He was doing Soft search and rescue down Pigeon Forge fire burned area but he replied…said I was ok, but man it was thick…I fought brush as long as I could take it and then returned back up thru the maze of briars and brush…

Plumb wore my aged butt out… long drive (26 miles each way) and didn’t see much… that wasnt too encouraging…Some ole boy was running beagles near by in that thick stuff...thought they may move deer, but no shots fired I heard.. Its to rain more this weekend, which would be nice. Buck stays open here for a good while, but doe closes Sat and I’m tied up Sat… not really anxious to kill anything as I’m not set up to process right yet, have to see it’s worth the effort first!

But it was nice to be out, slipping thru the tangles on deer trails… didn’t see any rubs or scrapes till WAY downstream… and the way dirt was thrown about, I wrote to the wildlife cop to see if turkey are up there… only one spindly rub in all that brush…Weird…Not what I'd consider to be bow country, but a tripod would be nice in there but I'd need 4 strong men and two boys to get it back there!
All we have and call our own, once belonged to someone else, and will again. Our purpose here is not to serve ourselves.

Bigfoot SAS LB (47# LB limbs 38# Semi Static RC limbs)

Couple of old Bear bows

Captainkirk
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Joined: Tue Aug 26, 2014 8:19 pm

Re: Finally got to hunt

#2 Post by Captainkirk »

Glad you got to "get out" at least once!
Aim small, miss small!

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Ole Dave
Posts: 525
Joined: Mon Sep 19, 2016 5:22 am

Re: Finally got to hunt

#3 Post by Ole Dave »

Thanks... I got out with Bozo the clown archery hunting a few times but it was a hoax.

Haven't heard from him in a month.

This was an exploration "hunt"... and will require more boot time to know if it's huntable for bow or not..

Might need to hit the Nat'l forest and see if I can see better sign... doubt it, but never know till pound boot leather!
All we have and call our own, once belonged to someone else, and will again. Our purpose here is not to serve ourselves.

Bigfoot SAS LB (47# LB limbs 38# Semi Static RC limbs)

Couple of old Bear bows

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Shadowhntr
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Joined: Wed Feb 10, 2016 4:47 pm

Re: Finally got to hunt

#4 Post by Shadowhntr »

Idk how different out there in Tennessee is then Northern Arkansas, so may not be the same. In N. Ark, where my family lives, hunting saddles connecting 2 thick areas in valleys are the best bet. Still, its tough hunting and rough terrain. I dont envy you in what you're dealing with.
The element of surprise can never be replaced by persistence.

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Ole Dave
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Joined: Mon Sep 19, 2016 5:22 am

Re: Finally got to hunt

#5 Post by Ole Dave »

Shadowhntr wrote:Idk how different out there in Tennessee is then Northern Arkansas, so may not be the same. In N. Ark, where my family lives, hunting saddles connecting 2 thick areas in valleys are the best bet. Still, its tough hunting and rough terrain. I dont envy you in what you're dealing with.
When I toured Ozarks in Ar, it was rugged... mostly Nat'l forest.... this is State owned but no maps to tell boundaries... flat country mostly... Lick Creek floods big time and the fields surrounding are fertile for it (when we get rain)...

That part of maps is a lie, but the state is going with some interactive computer maps...that doesn't help me much..I'm old school.
All we have and call our own, once belonged to someone else, and will again. Our purpose here is not to serve ourselves.

Bigfoot SAS LB (47# LB limbs 38# Semi Static RC limbs)

Couple of old Bear bows

Big Foot
Posts: 65
Joined: Fri Oct 28, 2016 8:26 am

Re: Finally got to hunt

#6 Post by Big Foot »

Well its good you are out there giving it a go brutha.... i'm going fishing for steelhead tomorrow for a few hours. The river levels are still a bit high, but the water color is good for running plugs in the top of the holes and along the edges....

I been itching to try this spot in my little boat, and next week its dropping into the 30's. So i'm going out tomorrow while it's still mid 40's.... we'll see how long i last out there. I'll have my heater blazing for sure.

Carpdaddy
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Re: Finally got to hunt

#7 Post by Carpdaddy »

Glad you got in the woods anyhow Dave. I went out and climbed a tree this evening myself. No movement until dark and then the woods came alive. I heard them coming but it was getting dark, when they finally passed by I could see nothing but a black outline, too far & dark for a shot. Then I could see them in the field but nothing I could do about it!

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Ole Dave
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Re: Finally got to hunt

#8 Post by Ole Dave »

Thanks, Guys for the well -wishes!

This AM and last night that fake knee was talkin to me and I got briar sticks and rips burning all over...my legs look like pin cushions! :) Ah, the joys of outdoor pursuits! :):)

Got colder'n a well digger's butt... moderate Sunday but does are off the menu. Have to settle for a buck...

That is if I ever even SEE a deer around here but on the drive into town standing on the yellow line defying me to hit it! and thumbing it's hoof at me! :( ;)
All we have and call our own, once belonged to someone else, and will again. Our purpose here is not to serve ourselves.

Bigfoot SAS LB (47# LB limbs 38# Semi Static RC limbs)

Couple of old Bear bows

Carpdaddy
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Posts: 9469
Joined: Tue Dec 31, 2013 7:36 pm

Re: Finally got to hunt

#9 Post by Carpdaddy »

I saw one today, or at least what was left of it, someone had left the carcass laying just across the fence next to my target. This happens to be in the city limits by the way.

Captainkirk
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Joined: Tue Aug 26, 2014 8:19 pm

Re: Finally got to hunt

#10 Post by Captainkirk »

Carpdaddy wrote:I saw one today, or at least what was left of it, someone had left the carcass laying just across the fence next to my target. This happens to be in the city limits by the way.
S'matter, Tony...you gettin' too uppity fer roadkill these days? :?
Aim small, miss small!

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