October, 2010
As is in most states, here in Texas there is a Youth only season where those under 16 get to have a weekend of deer hunting without the interference of boozed up adults. And every year I take a small group of hunters and dads up to my place for that weekend. Well, that was this past weekend.
But, this youth season also co-exists with Archery season, which I have been participating in for a couple of years now.
This year we took a doe and two hogs. Everyone was happy and everyone got to experience the thrill of the outdoors. Everyone was happy that is, except me...
Since my son is well into his twenties I was without offspring for this years hunt, again, simply hosting the group on my property and in my cabin. As it is, I am able to do a little archery hunting while the kids are hunting. And as does every hunter with 'misses' to his credit, I have a short story (excuse) to tell.
The morning was a crisp 38 degrees but the wind was thankfully not blowing hard. Wouldn't matter anyway because my archery stand is way down deep in the thicket where even the sun has to compete for admittance. I have an area about the size of a middle class suburban home carved out of the thicket about a half mile from the nearest of the kids. After I drop off the last father/son pair it takes me just a few minutes to get to my stand, but I was only there minutes before I could see the sun trying to shave off the tops of the trees.
All settled in I decided to take a little snooze, as I usually do. I could see the corn feeder had distributed it's morning portion of feed and that the hogs had already had their share. I figured any deer that happened by would awaken me with their chomping on the corn the hogs had left for them. And, I got a few more minutes than I usually do as a young yearling spike buck (a male with one single horn on each side, for those that do not know the lingo) sauntered out of the woods on the far side of the feeder. Being inexperienced in the ways of the world it did not notice me but a mere 30 feet from him as he began to delicately pick up the corn and chomp away.
As we normally do, we try to communicate with each other using text messaging and picture message to relay what each of the groups are seeing in the way of wildlife. I had already received one such report of a group of hogs feeding at a stand near a spring about a mile distance. So, I obliged by sending my report in the way of a picture message. I snapped a few with my cell camera and promptly decided on which to send based on the picture clarity. So, I dialed the number, still being as quite as possible so that I do not interrupt the buck feeding just below.
Pressing the send button I watch as the cell phone connects and attempts to send the picture. No luck. Timed out, and the cell phone asks, "Do you want to try again?" Well, yeah... So it goes through the connect sequence again and once again it times out without being sent. Ok, I check on the yearling buck still feeding below and not paying me any mind, and I decided to try one more time, but this time I raise my arm high in the air in the hopes that it aids in the cell phone service. As I watch hopeful that the picture will finally send I hear a commotion back over my shoulder where the young buck was last feeding. To my surprise out charges a very nice 8 point buck with it's ears laid back and it horns outstretched and making straight for the yearling buck. Of course the yearling flees instantly leaving the 8 point buck standing proudly in the middle of my clearing beaming as though he had won a major victory. (In reality he had, because instead of me being alert and at the ready, I am sitting with my arm outstretched towards the sky as though asking the Lord why I have my hand above my head while this 8 point buck is surveying his new found territory.) Well I can't move because the king of the clearing was looking around alertly to take in his new territory making sure everything was to his satisfaction. It sure was to him but I had a real problem with it.
It seemed like at least half an eternity before that buck finally decided to claim his newly acquired food which lay in wait all around him. He began picking up the kernels of corn seemingly one at a time and on each he would raise his head and look around as he chomped his candy kernels. At some point in all this I managed to get my arm lowered into what became a baby cradle position. I call it that because my arm had been up there now sufficiently long enough that not only had it progressed to a state where I no longer felt anything past my shoulder, the color had long left the fingers and was fast approaching the elbow, and my arm ended up being the 'baby' that was being cradled.
With that arm being all but useless the buck was free to roam about at his leisure feeding on the corn. Fortunately for me he had not spotted me. I don't know how as I am sure I made several grunts and groans during my ordeal.
Finally I managed to work myself into a position whereby I could raise my bow and prepare to draw back and take aim. At this point I was thinking how nice it would be if I had only listened to that salesman that claimed that a 70 pound draw bow would be more than sufficient and 75 just was not really necessary. Somehow at the time I just knew that I wanted that extra 5 pounds, but now in retrospect, I'm thinking 65 pounds would have been far better. No good. Just couldn't pull it. "Do you want to try again?" Well, yeah!
After 20 minutes or so I finally managed to draw the bow without my soon to be main course hearing me. But as it were, either the bum arm or the buck fever took over and I failed to do my part in the cycle of life. Oh well, there's always next year.
This was the last weekend of bow season and quite likely the last chance I will get to hunt at all this year. In January however, there is another week long youth hunting season. I am already making plans for that week. I just hope they pan out....
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