View of the oak plateau I hunted on Friday
As Paul wrote the other week, deer season is now open in NC, with archery opening mid-September and the Eastern muzzleloader season opening this past Saturday and the Western one opening today. With it being the 1st of October, most other states have opened at least one of their seasons as well so I hope everyone is being safe while pursuing those whitetail that we love so much (or mulies, blacktails, pronghorn, elk, etc.). I know it's a little - ok, wayyyyyy - late getting this hunting recap up but hurried housework before I left for and work up here in Southwestern Indiana has kept me running around like a chicken with its head cut off. None-the-less, I wanted to let you guys know how my first hunts of the 2012 season went.
I hurried to Raleigh on the afternoon of the 20th in order to get set-up where I saw the lone deer I saw all season last year. A quick pull into the parking area at a section of Butner-Falls of Nuese gamelands, change into my hunting clothes and packing of my backpack and off I went down the damp road bed towards the lake. Easing my way along I heard the oaks dropping acorns throughout the woods and kept an eye out for fresh tracks in the soft ground. I found a fresh crossing and decided to do a little scouting in that general area to see what the deal was. Not seeing any fresh feeding sign I headed on towards my original spot and once there tried to find a suitable tree to climb, have cover and be able to film out of. After about 15 minutes of surveying the situation I put my stand on a sweet gum and proceeded to climb. And then get the stand stuck in the branches of the tree growing right beside it. And have my glasses fall off while getting the stand unstuck. And looking like a crazy guy on my hands and knees in the middle of the woods while "feeling" for my glasses. And sweating like crazy while climbing back up the tree.
After a good hour from the time I got to the lake shore to the time I got settled in, the sweat was pouring off me. Luckily I carry field wipes, so I wiped down with them and sprayed off with some scent spray to at least give me a little confidence my odor might at least not smell as bad (and to just cool off further - plus the wind was in my favor for where I expected them to come from). The evening was an eventful one with birds flying about, a chorus of frogs striking up, bass and carp feeding in the shallows of the high lake water and at 6:00 p.m. two does who decided to come running by behind me and not stopping to even let me get a good look at them as they ran through the bottom and across the creek 15 yards away. Then at 7:15 while having just stood up for the final 30 minutes of shooting time, I glassed the open pines to my left and lo and behold there was a doe browsing in them just 60 yards away. I watched her the next ten minutes slowly ease her way along, feeding on the grown up bushes that covered the hillside. I thought she was going to come in but it wasn't to be and as darkness settled in I climbed down and headed back to the truck, noticing a distinct rutting buck smell at one particular crossing of the road bed on the way out.
Friday morning saw me sleep-in and hunt at midday so I could get back to Charlotte to eat dinner with friends. Sneaking in at 9:00 a.m. at the same hunting area as the night before, when I got to the crossing mentioned above imagine my surprise (not!) to see a fresh rub on a cedar just off the road as well as a few other smaller rubs in the same spot. It just so happened they were at were I had planned on hunting anyway so I backed off the road around 75 yards staying against the small, thick pines when I set-up 15 feet up in a white oak overlooking an oak plateau. The birds were out yet again as a squirrel and I had a stare off for well over an hour. Throw in a praying mantis landing next to my leg and it was another interesting day out in the woods. I never saw a deer but while doing a little scouting after climbing down at 2:30 I ran across some scrapes a few days old. Needless to say I know where I am hunting next week when I head back out there with my CVA! All-in-all those two hunts were much needed to get away from life for a bit and just relax doing something I love. It also didn't hurt that I tripled my deer sightings from last year and reinforced that, yes, I actually do know what I am doing. Here's to hoping the deer keep showing up for me and I get a chance or two to fill the freezer, Lord knows I need it after the lackluster of a hunting season I had last year!
-C.B.
After a good hour from the time I got to the lake shore to the time I got settled in, the sweat was pouring off me. Luckily I carry field wipes, so I wiped down with them and sprayed off with some scent spray to at least give me a little confidence my odor might at least not smell as bad (and to just cool off further - plus the wind was in my favor for where I expected them to come from). The evening was an eventful one with birds flying about, a chorus of frogs striking up, bass and carp feeding in the shallows of the high lake water and at 6:00 p.m. two does who decided to come running by behind me and not stopping to even let me get a good look at them as they ran through the bottom and across the creek 15 yards away. Then at 7:15 while having just stood up for the final 30 minutes of shooting time, I glassed the open pines to my left and lo and behold there was a doe browsing in them just 60 yards away. I watched her the next ten minutes slowly ease her way along, feeding on the grown up bushes that covered the hillside. I thought she was going to come in but it wasn't to be and as darkness settled in I climbed down and headed back to the truck, noticing a distinct rutting buck smell at one particular crossing of the road bed on the way out.
Friday morning saw me sleep-in and hunt at midday so I could get back to Charlotte to eat dinner with friends. Sneaking in at 9:00 a.m. at the same hunting area as the night before, when I got to the crossing mentioned above imagine my surprise (not!) to see a fresh rub on a cedar just off the road as well as a few other smaller rubs in the same spot. It just so happened they were at were I had planned on hunting anyway so I backed off the road around 75 yards staying against the small, thick pines when I set-up 15 feet up in a white oak overlooking an oak plateau. The birds were out yet again as a squirrel and I had a stare off for well over an hour. Throw in a praying mantis landing next to my leg and it was another interesting day out in the woods. I never saw a deer but while doing a little scouting after climbing down at 2:30 I ran across some scrapes a few days old. Needless to say I know where I am hunting next week when I head back out there with my CVA! All-in-all those two hunts were much needed to get away from life for a bit and just relax doing something I love. It also didn't hurt that I tripled my deer sightings from last year and reinforced that, yes, I actually do know what I am doing. Here's to hoping the deer keep showing up for me and I get a chance or two to fill the freezer, Lord knows I need it after the lackluster of a hunting season I had last year!
-C.B.
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