My last deer hunt of the season was unsuccessful. Though there are a few weeks of deer season left, I’ll be heading out of town soon to visit family and celebrate Christmas. The conclusion of my season has put me into a reflective mood as I consider the highs and lows, as well as my hopes for the future. But first, here’s a quick summary of my hunt on Saturday.
Considering it was my last opportunity to hunt deer, I went all in. I checked the forecast, considered my options, planned my access route, and got up way too early. I decided to hunt all day. It was moderately cold, and I sat overlooking a valley that I thought would funnel deer as they moved to bedding. I didn’t bump any deer on my way in (as far I could tell), and I was a mile deep in public land and sitting quietly as the sun came up.
I glimpsed a buck over 200 yards away at 7:40am. Due to the roll of the hill I only saw his head and the top of his back. I hardly got my scope on him before he disappeared into the smothering grasses of a CRP field. It was energizing to see a buck and gratifying to know I was in the right place. Unfortunately, that was the only deer I would see all day.
Hunting all day was a mistake, and I should know better by now. The rut has passed, and there was no indication that deer would be moving mid-day. I always think I might get lucky, and while that’s true, it’s just not a good strategy. Even the best whitetail hunters tend to reserve all-day sits for the rut. By the end of the day, my body hurt from sitting and inactivity. The irony of getting outside to escape my predominantly sedentary lifestyle, only to then sit uncomfortably for hours on end was not lost on me. Sitting is brutal. I would hands-down prefer to hike 12 miles than attempt another dark-to-dark sit in December.
Though my final hunt was uneventful, I regard the season as a smashing success. I killed and recovered two deer, and had multiple opportunities to kill more. I was blessed with a many days and weekends to hunt. By hunting often, I learned many valuable lessons and gained priceless field experience. I processed a whole deer by myself for the first time. And throughout the season, I grew my ability to think positively, believe in the next opportunity, and to be persistent.
The season was not without its low moments. The most heartbreaking example was making a bad shot and failing to recover a wounded buck. Then there were the missed or botched opportunities, ranging from poor situational awareness to actually pulling the trigger while my gun was on safe. And, though I hunted often, I missed the week of the peak rut and most of the major cold fronts due to other obligations. Finally, I was fervently hoping to kill a deer with my new rifle, which made the missed opportunities all the more frustrating.
In the future, I’d like to mix it up and pursue some other species. Whitetails are the predominant big-game animal where I live right now, so it makes sense for me to focus on them. But I can’t stop thinking about the elk I used to hunt in Washington and the bears over in Eastern Tennessee. There are so many animals and so much land out there that I can’t wait to discover. Like sitting in wait for an elusive whitetail buck, something tells me I will just have to be patient.
Persistence Outdoors 