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The new guy's hunt of a deer named Ghost

JOHNROHIO

Participation Trophy Winner
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I have been checking out TOO for a while and reading your story's and steped up the other day and introdused myself in the new users thread. Anyhow the weather sucks and i have nothing to do so i thought i would share my hunt this year. After still coming off of a high from last years hunt, It was june and time to get started with getting camera's out and start the relentless moving of them around differant property that i have. To find the ONE, I had some high hope's for some up and coming from the 2010/11 season but was unable to produce any of there sheds and had lost them on camera in the late season food change.
After a week of the camera's running it was time to check to see if they were on the money, not looking for much in results as it always seems that there paths have shifted somewhat from year to year. This was holding true as i went camera to camera, untill i reached the last one and this guy shows.. Now i don't know who it is or if he is a transplant, but he has my attention. So with leaving a few camera's out at other propertys and moving the rest to this one in hope of watching him grow and looking for one that was there last year, that i was going to look for this season because he was prime for the picking.
Fast forward into july with many pictures of this deer and, none of the others showed, I get a good photo of this deer posing for the picture, all of the others were him walking away or to close to get a good look.... It's Ghost! As i only saw him once last year on the hoof but had many pictures of him at night. I was able to video him last year and take pictures from the stand the one time that he showed, when i was on stand and decided to pass on him. ( pic is to large to post and dont know how to change.)
Game on! Time to set the stands and work this deers patern to death. Its september first and i was placing one final stand on his route. The stand was one of those last ditch effort stands, In a place that Ghost did not travel much, but for if he was to get wise of the other's. It was on a property line to a east next to a property of a lady that loves HER animals.:smiley_chinrub: She has a horse run in the woods there, Low and behold who shows up.. her, now im 20 yrds of her property and she gave me the run around and BLA BLA. she did not know that we hunted just that we farmed this property. long story short we get to talking, i'm trying to play nice and after she calmed down i asked if i could shed hunt her place and she tells me no because she like's to do that, You know because there her own pets. we get to talking about deer and i play dumb and she's telling me about all these sheds that she has come to find out she has 3 years worth of sheds from my llast years deer:smiley_boos: but thats another story.
Sorry i will fast forward this is getting long. So as September is longing and we are getting close to the day we are all waiting for i stop getting Ghost on film, I don't know why this is but it always scare's me, had this happen last year also. I think the first day that i am able to get out was like the 1st of oct. do to work and other stuff. Day one 1decide that i was going to hunt the lesser of the stands ( the one buy crazy lady) just to observe and get a feel for movement, because i like to get a first hand veiw of this once season startes, first hunt always seems for me to be just another scouting trip with a bow. Lets see it all went south as it seems to the first outing, starts to fuggin ( did i get that right...lol) pour down rain about 4:30 so its going to be a long hunt Ohwell i can handle that but just about the time deer start to make there move to the field i hear talking, seem's that the guy that owns the property thinks a good time to show off the property to friends is in the rain. so next thing i know is all the deer come screeming by me in the woods from the field. thats it over for the nite, but as i am leaving in the dark there are deer all over the field, that gave me the answer i was looking for on they are sneaking all the way around to get in.
Meanwile my time is getting less and less that i have due to my family obligation's and, taking other children hunting and working propertys for them. But during this time i had my little girl (not so little 12) take her first deer ever with a xbow, a buck at that, little shit gets a droptine on her first:smiley_depressive: Any how that was the best hunt that i have ever exsperenced thats a whole story in its self. ANd after that anything was just going to be iceing on the cake.
Back to the task at hand, getting on Ghost. I had many hunts with no signs of Ghost, and hunting some other places so that i would not over hunt the magical place. Come the 3rd week of oct. i have made a move because of what i had seen of them entering the field, im now on a stand that is overtop a holler, ravine what ever you want to call it with a creek in it. I got in the tree about 4pm and had no longer straped in and i have a doe under me. The woods is alive before i know it i have 10 doe and a couple doinkers around me and in the field. Its now about 6pm and i have one last set of doe's comming though, It's the nanny doe i have seen her couple times before. She gets to the top of the field and stops keeps looking back, So i keep looking back i can see one coming its big, then i can see some tines through the trees, Oh shit thats real big as i get my bow of the tree. Is it him i can't tell but it got me going. And as he steps around the tree, i see that split 2 and lets start the freaking and geeking. He was at 40 yrds with a shot but was getting closer at 30 he stops behind a tree and i draw, He stops and wont come anymore all i can see is his head no shot. It was long enough that i had to let down. Waited a minute and drew again, that damn nanny blew but he did not move. Then very slowly he turned and walked away. That was it i was blown im thinking untill i realise that she did not leave and none of the other's left, she did not see me but somthing just enough to get him out. Frustrating but i will be there to hunt another day.
October 25, 2011 I had got the whole day to hunt, went to another place in the morning looking for a doe, but i had my mind set on a revisit to the stand from the last week that evening. Morning hunt was a suck busted by a doe that i did not see as i was trying to get a shot on another. Home for a nap and lunch, shower and back at it. I got in early because of the last outing i had deer at 4pm under my stand. So i climb back into the stand that i was in last time. As soon i i get in, there are deer out in the field, Im thinking shit it's 3pm and there here! Any how It's playing out the same as the time before But the deer are coming from the other side of the field this time and heading my way. i look behind me and i can see deer bedded about 60yrds from me, next to the creek. By now i am passing time playing a game on my phone with the deer in the field to far and the ones behind me still bedded. By 5pm im up with bow inhand as by now i have all the deer under my stand eating. i have a few doinkers getting friskie with the girls and a little light sparing. And i believe the same nanny reaches up to get a leaf and shit, she froze, I froze.. here we go again she cant make me but the game is on. She starts to bob and weave none of the others pay any mind to her, but she is all over my tree i have been stuck for 20 min. the rest of the deer are just doing there thing. But shes got me, im thinking to myself im going to have to write Ghost off for the night and shes got to go, thats twice that she has made me im just going to have to kill her. Just as i had made that decision, I heard somthing that i have never heard before....A bugle i know deer dont do it but thats what it was and i knew who did it. Man that got the heat of me, they all stoped what they were doing and looked to the west. There it was another bugle, i look back there he was crossing the creek 50 yrds behind me heading my way! couple of deep calming breaths, and he stops broadside to me at 10 yards. thats awsome if your on the ground but 20 feet up that can be a tricky shot. Now you got to play this out in my head on what to do, let him get out past me and hope for a better shot or go for it. Well i went for it i was not about to let that doe fugg it up for me one more time, I draw and instantly i can feel 24 sets of eyes on me and as he looked up i let it fly, the sound of the thwack was the best sound for the momment untill i realise he is taking off with an arrow still sticking out of him. I watched him brake it of as he rounded first on a tree. Then the momment of doubt sets in when i loose site of him in the woods as we all think gloom and doom. After telling myself that i was confident in the shot and placment it going to be good.
I text my wife that i had broke an arrow off in Ghost, and that its going to be a late getting home, I gave it a half hour before getting down, headed back to my truck to get a flashlite and meet my buddies to help. ended up having a great blood trail for a high entry and no exit, he droped just out of my site only going about 70 yards. Sorry for the long post guess i had more to tell than i thought.
I think that i posted the pics the rite way.
 

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finelyshedded

You know what!!!
Supporting Member
31,856
260
SW Ohio
Awesome story of a awesome hunt! Great read TOO! Thanks for sharing and a BIG congrats on bring down a Ghost!

Oh, Welcome to the site!
 
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xbowguy

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
29,632
234
Licking Co. Ohio
Very Well Done My Friend! Great Read and Fantastic Buck to be Proud of. Welcome TOO the Site....There's a lot of Great People on here.