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1023's 2021 Season Journal

bowhunter1023

Owner/Operator
Staff member
49,388
288
Appalachia
Good luck, Jesse. I hope your will is stronger than mine when it comes to 120s &130s. 😂
I'd like to say you can only kill so many, but I know better than that! I've been fortunate to kill 5 bucks that were 5+ years old and still haven't cracked the 140 mark, so that may be my "legacy". Killing old bucks is great and all, but damnit, I'd like to kill a big one for once! I'm about to have my 2012 buck re-measured just in case I messed up and he's a touch bigger than the 139" that I came up with 😂 I'm on season #21 as a bowhunter and have killed 7 mature bucks, so I'm on a 1 every 3 years pace, which is pretty respectable for these parts IMO. So I probably won't shy away from anything 4 or older this season, even if it means punting on the real goal of finally cracking 140. As we all know, you can't kill them if they aren't there and that's the struggle I've had for several years now.
 

bowhunter1023

Owner/Operator
Staff member
49,388
288
Appalachia
My dad took this drone shot of the Corner Pocket for me. I absolutely love this spot and this pic really shows it off well!

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bowhunter1023

Owner/Operator
Staff member
49,388
288
Appalachia
It's the one spot that's nearly flawless and I'd be comfortable showing it to a Winke, Sturgis, or Drury with confidence that they'd approve of my work. The only issue is that it's been a better evening stand than a morning stand, but the thermals will get you winded more often than not. That's why the blind is there, but I need to get it elevated. That's my goal in the off-season. I'm still not sure how I'm going to do that, but I'll eventually have an elevated blind in the strip of brush between the food plot and the ag field. My dad is really close to telling the farmer to pound salt, meaning I gain control over that 3 acres and if that happens, you're gonna see some sweet "food plot architecture"!
 

bowhunter1023

Owner/Operator
Staff member
49,388
288
Appalachia
Nothing special with our tactics on this hunt, but it's one for the memory bank since it was Kaydence's first deer off our farm. The week after I killed my buck, I started dumping corn at the Corner Pocket in hopes we could do just what we did this morning. We got close last weekend and dang near didn't get it done thanks to him taking forever to give us a shot. She's had tension on the trigger more than 8-10 times this year and I've had to call her off. It happened twice this morning before she touched one off. She made me extra proud because he took several steps while she was on target and each time, she adjusted the crossbow and when I finally stopped him before he walked off, she took her time and settled in on her spot. The video is rough, but it was enough to confirm my "smoke city" comment was true!


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This is her 4th deer overall and her 3rd straight season killing one, so she's got her own "streak" going! Momma is stuck on 17 straight as she's on a "medical redshirt" this year being pregnant 😂 Tracie says she'll retire at 20 deer in 20 seasons hunted, so Kaydence has a way to go to catch up, but now we have a goal to chase every year! She wants to fill her last tag on the big doe here at the house that's ruined a few hunts this year. She named her Carol Baskins 😂 Kenna says she's next and that turnips taste disgusting 😂

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