globemaster3
New member
The USAF has done a wonder on my previous hunting seasons. They killed my 2012-2013 season by sending me to AFG. They killed the 2013-2014 season by sending me to NM for training the entire winter and part of spring. Although this sounds good (who wouldn't want to take an oryx, elk, or deer in NM?), it doesn't help if they notify you months after tag applications are due.
So, new base, new area, new outlook for 2014-2015, right? 6 weeks before the seasons begin, I get asked if I want to volunteer for a deployment... Uh, no. A few days later, on a Sunday, the commander tells me I am deploying. By Thursday, I am gone... 3 seasons in a row!
In an unfortunate turn of circumstances, after about 30 days of boots-on-ground time, my oldest daughter was diagnosed with some serious medical issues, serious enough for my leadership to recall me. I landed at the local airport 3 days from leaving my deployed location (almost unheard of short transit time), arriving home just in time for a follow-up appointment with a specialist (still wearing my multicams).
When I make it back to the squadron the next day, my hunting compatriots gathered around to hear the tales of the deployment and discover why I returned early. Then they ask what I am doing for the upcoming gun opener in a couple days. When I explain I had not been here long enough to scout or even talk to anyone about permissions on private land, one of my squadron mates declares that I am hitting the woods with him on opening day, and I am to bring my daughter with me.
So, Saturday, we hit the woods in a miraculous comeback, all 3 of us in a large platform blind that might make Warbird Lover's previous attempts look tame in comparison. Being in the woods with my “little” girl, whose outlook is still uncertain, was good enough for me. It was with great delight that we saw deer moving in the pre-dawn light.
Shortly after shooting light, a young yearling doe shows up at 40 yards. Not certain how she snuck up on us like that, we are focused on figuring that out when, in the distance, a larger deer appears from the woods. I can see headgear, and slowly bring the binoculars up for a peek, as the yearling is still in front of us balancing her focus between the blind and the buck behind her. A buck needs 4 points on a side to be legal, so I am counting and recounting. I see distinctly a brow tine and 4 more tines on 1 side… a legal buck! (in the pic, you cannot see 1 tine on the buck's left) And when he turns broadside, and shows a full stomach, and thicker neck, I estimate we are looking at a 3-4 year old.
The doe eventually walks off in advance of the buck, who comes in, head down, sniffing where the doe was standing. My daughter slowly brings up her AR and gets the crosshairs on target. I give her the green light to shoot when she gets a good shot. At 46 yards, the buck turns broadside and she squeezes the trigger.
At the shot, the buck kicks his rear legs high, and takes off, slowing quickly. She inquires about a follow up shot. I tell her to hold off.
The deer runs behind a tree. It’s open on the 270 degrees around the tree, the only wedge of overgrown vegetation is in the quarter connected to the stand. He does not emerge from the other side of the tree in the field. I'm confident he's down.
We wait in the stand and 20 minutes later, another larger buck emerges from the same area. This buck’s coat is chocolate brown, and the neck is swollen beyond belief. We watch him come in almost the same path, crossing the 100 yard line and turning broadside. This time, I sit and watch my squadron mate hit him with his .270. The deer shows no sign of being hit and runs to a gap in the trees and stops. I'm now covering the vitals with my .243 and ask if he wants me to follow up, since the deer is now 45 degrees off the stand on my side. He says he has it, and fires again. I watch the buck flinch, stumble momentarily, and walk off into the woods. We need to let that one sit a bit.
So, 2 bucks down, trigger pulls 30 minutes apart, we are only ~40 minutes into shooting light, and my only shot is a doe that steps out at 60 yards and walks away, presenting a tail shot. She presents a head shot at 130 yards. I pass. Too big a margin for error, with not enough time behind the trigger on this rifle lately to make me comfortable. I watch her disappear over a rise at 150 yards.
After a bit, we need to get going. I get down and run a cursory scan along the treeline where the deer have emerged, seeing if I can sneak another up. No luck.
I walk to where my squadron mate’s buck took the second shot. Initially, I am disappointed, as I only find 1 drop of blood where he was standing. I offset from the trail a couple feet and begin tracking. Only a couple paces into the treeline, I find enormous blood splatter, and a solid blood trail. I motion for them to join me from the stand. As my buddy approaches, we begin walking the trail. Solid blood trail is marked by spray on the ground. Nice frothy blood. Only 20 yards into the woods, there he is, on his side, facing up the trail. The first shot went too far back, hitting the deer in the intestines. The second shot is textbook, cutting a diagonal line from behind the left shoulder, cutting both lungs, and impacting the right shoulder before exiting, destroying the joint. The right front leg hangs loosely from the body.
We drag the buck out to the field and begin walking to where my daughter’s buck went down. Sure enough, he is on the blind side of the tree, on his side, a nice entry on the left side, behind the shoulder, but a little higher than I’d like. A single exit would is on the off side.
So, here's the particulars for my daughter’s shot.
Franken AR - Del Ton lower with DPMS LPK, RRA 2-stage match trigger, Hogue grip, 6-position collapsible stock from Olympic Arms. Upper is an Olympic Arms K68, modified at the factory with a railed gas block and free-float tube topped with a Nikon Prostaff 3-9X40 BDC.
Magazine: A 5-round mag bought from Midway, USA. C-Products, IIRC.
Caldwell Bipod
Ammo: Hornady 120gr SST factory load. I wish Nikon’s Spot-On app had this factory loading. It’s only been out for a couple years… Based upon the Spot-On app and my entering the velocity for the bullet (which is listed on the app in component form), it should have hit at ~2462 fps with about 1615 ft lbs of energy.
This is her 5th deer, and first “big” buck. Of course, it’s at the taxidermist now. We have a lot more testing to go before treatment can begin on her condition, but I am hopeful my #1 hunting partner will return to the stand with me next year.
Enjoy that time hunting with the kids, Dad’s and Mom’s. Soak up every moment. You never know when the situation is going to change, not to mention they grow up so fast. It might not seem like it when they are 2-3-4-5-6, amongst the diapers, spit up, battles over eating peas and carrots, and challenges of growing up. But let me tell you, those days with her seem like yesterday! Literally!
So, new base, new area, new outlook for 2014-2015, right? 6 weeks before the seasons begin, I get asked if I want to volunteer for a deployment... Uh, no. A few days later, on a Sunday, the commander tells me I am deploying. By Thursday, I am gone... 3 seasons in a row!
In an unfortunate turn of circumstances, after about 30 days of boots-on-ground time, my oldest daughter was diagnosed with some serious medical issues, serious enough for my leadership to recall me. I landed at the local airport 3 days from leaving my deployed location (almost unheard of short transit time), arriving home just in time for a follow-up appointment with a specialist (still wearing my multicams).
When I make it back to the squadron the next day, my hunting compatriots gathered around to hear the tales of the deployment and discover why I returned early. Then they ask what I am doing for the upcoming gun opener in a couple days. When I explain I had not been here long enough to scout or even talk to anyone about permissions on private land, one of my squadron mates declares that I am hitting the woods with him on opening day, and I am to bring my daughter with me.
So, Saturday, we hit the woods in a miraculous comeback, all 3 of us in a large platform blind that might make Warbird Lover's previous attempts look tame in comparison. Being in the woods with my “little” girl, whose outlook is still uncertain, was good enough for me. It was with great delight that we saw deer moving in the pre-dawn light.
Shortly after shooting light, a young yearling doe shows up at 40 yards. Not certain how she snuck up on us like that, we are focused on figuring that out when, in the distance, a larger deer appears from the woods. I can see headgear, and slowly bring the binoculars up for a peek, as the yearling is still in front of us balancing her focus between the blind and the buck behind her. A buck needs 4 points on a side to be legal, so I am counting and recounting. I see distinctly a brow tine and 4 more tines on 1 side… a legal buck! (in the pic, you cannot see 1 tine on the buck's left) And when he turns broadside, and shows a full stomach, and thicker neck, I estimate we are looking at a 3-4 year old.
The doe eventually walks off in advance of the buck, who comes in, head down, sniffing where the doe was standing. My daughter slowly brings up her AR and gets the crosshairs on target. I give her the green light to shoot when she gets a good shot. At 46 yards, the buck turns broadside and she squeezes the trigger.
At the shot, the buck kicks his rear legs high, and takes off, slowing quickly. She inquires about a follow up shot. I tell her to hold off.
The deer runs behind a tree. It’s open on the 270 degrees around the tree, the only wedge of overgrown vegetation is in the quarter connected to the stand. He does not emerge from the other side of the tree in the field. I'm confident he's down.
We wait in the stand and 20 minutes later, another larger buck emerges from the same area. This buck’s coat is chocolate brown, and the neck is swollen beyond belief. We watch him come in almost the same path, crossing the 100 yard line and turning broadside. This time, I sit and watch my squadron mate hit him with his .270. The deer shows no sign of being hit and runs to a gap in the trees and stops. I'm now covering the vitals with my .243 and ask if he wants me to follow up, since the deer is now 45 degrees off the stand on my side. He says he has it, and fires again. I watch the buck flinch, stumble momentarily, and walk off into the woods. We need to let that one sit a bit.
So, 2 bucks down, trigger pulls 30 minutes apart, we are only ~40 minutes into shooting light, and my only shot is a doe that steps out at 60 yards and walks away, presenting a tail shot. She presents a head shot at 130 yards. I pass. Too big a margin for error, with not enough time behind the trigger on this rifle lately to make me comfortable. I watch her disappear over a rise at 150 yards.
After a bit, we need to get going. I get down and run a cursory scan along the treeline where the deer have emerged, seeing if I can sneak another up. No luck.
I walk to where my squadron mate’s buck took the second shot. Initially, I am disappointed, as I only find 1 drop of blood where he was standing. I offset from the trail a couple feet and begin tracking. Only a couple paces into the treeline, I find enormous blood splatter, and a solid blood trail. I motion for them to join me from the stand. As my buddy approaches, we begin walking the trail. Solid blood trail is marked by spray on the ground. Nice frothy blood. Only 20 yards into the woods, there he is, on his side, facing up the trail. The first shot went too far back, hitting the deer in the intestines. The second shot is textbook, cutting a diagonal line from behind the left shoulder, cutting both lungs, and impacting the right shoulder before exiting, destroying the joint. The right front leg hangs loosely from the body.
We drag the buck out to the field and begin walking to where my daughter’s buck went down. Sure enough, he is on the blind side of the tree, on his side, a nice entry on the left side, behind the shoulder, but a little higher than I’d like. A single exit would is on the off side.
So, here's the particulars for my daughter’s shot.
Franken AR - Del Ton lower with DPMS LPK, RRA 2-stage match trigger, Hogue grip, 6-position collapsible stock from Olympic Arms. Upper is an Olympic Arms K68, modified at the factory with a railed gas block and free-float tube topped with a Nikon Prostaff 3-9X40 BDC.
Magazine: A 5-round mag bought from Midway, USA. C-Products, IIRC.
Caldwell Bipod
Ammo: Hornady 120gr SST factory load. I wish Nikon’s Spot-On app had this factory loading. It’s only been out for a couple years… Based upon the Spot-On app and my entering the velocity for the bullet (which is listed on the app in component form), it should have hit at ~2462 fps with about 1615 ft lbs of energy.
This is her 5th deer, and first “big” buck. Of course, it’s at the taxidermist now. We have a lot more testing to go before treatment can begin on her condition, but I am hopeful my #1 hunting partner will return to the stand with me next year.
Enjoy that time hunting with the kids, Dad’s and Mom’s. Soak up every moment. You never know when the situation is going to change, not to mention they grow up so fast. It might not seem like it when they are 2-3-4-5-6, amongst the diapers, spit up, battles over eating peas and carrots, and challenges of growing up. But let me tell you, those days with her seem like yesterday! Literally!
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