I went into this season with high hopes on one property. There were 3-4 shooters in the late season last year. I found a matched set of a buck I felt I "might" get a shot at this year. The other property I consider one of my main properties wasn't showing a lot of promise but it tends to pull good bucks in during the rut. My third property is sort of a sleeper property. It rarely holds mature bucks. From late October thru mid November it tends to pull in some nice deer though. They generally only hang around a week or less, but we only need a moment to make our season great.
So on property number one I deployed two cameras. They weren't showing a lot. They also didn't seem to be working right. I kept fiddling with them. I had 2 stands hung and was ready. A week before the season I headed in with the land owner to swap cameras and check things out. I found my climbing sections, hang on stand, and camera at the rear of the property stolen. I won't get into it. Long story. Lots of Junior high schoolish type drama from a grown man and neighboring hunter. I suspect he took them but cannot prove it. I wrote it off. I don't need pictures. I have a climber I can use. Karma has it's way of working. We all answer our Maker one day. Property two I've had to myself for a number of years. I've become good friends with the guys who hunt the neighboring property. We share info and help each other out. Well. . .that land sold. They said they were asking permission to hunt the property I have hunted solo. They did and the LO put it on me. It was my decision whether they got permission or not. If I were to ever screw over my buddies this was my shot. I'm not that guy. Now I share it with these two. No biggie. Until the first hunt one of them had on this property. He told me how he was walking in. I mentioned the deer bed along that edge and his scent would blow them out walking the half mile in. His response was "oh well. We'll see what happens." Arrgh. Try to help a guy which in turn helps us all and he just didn't seem to care. Frustrating but what do you do? Kept telling myself I did the right thing. I'm trying to help my friends. It will be rewarded some day, some way. Property 3 is a crapshoot. In the past it has been like public land. Neighbors wander thru aimlessly whether hunting or just walking. Lots of people get permission but doesn't seem like many ever hunt it. If they do it is gun season. Night before bow season I had two guys walk into my driveway from the neighbor's drive. I knew what it meant. They just got permission. Yep. Not only did they secure permission, but they traipsed all over the property making notes on their phones of every tree stand, pile of rocks, ditch, and land mark on the property. Really? In three day work clothes the night before season? Oh my gosh! Yer killing me fellas. I DO appreciate them reaching out to me and trying to be respectful/work around each other. We don't all have the same goals. Well, I think these guys have similar goals, bit we don't all go about achieving them the same way. Part of me felt they were trying to blow deer to the South end of the woods where they already had permission. Truthfully, I just don't think they are real woods savvy. I tried to offer insight on stand placement for that woods. I expressed what I look for in easy entry/exits and minimal intrusion. Told them where I'd hang a stand there since I hunt the next 10acres to the west already. I wantes to say "Take it for what it's worth guys, but trust me on the stand placement." I didn't want to treat them like they were idiots though nor come across as some super star in the woods. I'm not that guy and I don't think they're idiots. I'd actually like to help them out. Again, sooner or later it'll come back around to me.
So here I am the night before opener with nothing real impressive on camera. Trying to talk myself into a couple of the 3yr old deer I had on camera. There were a couple big bodies with lots of burger on their bones. I didn't even buy a tag until 2-3weeks into the season. I started with moving around different properties to hunt, observe, and swap cards. I never deployed a camera to the third property until the first week in October. So I had hunted properties 1 and 2 twice each when I decided to hunt property 3 and swap the card. This is when I found a mid 130's 4yr old on the card. I opted to hunt there again 2 days later in a different stand. My cousin comes to hunt Nov 7 from NC and has never hunted Ohio. He is 56 and will likely only get one shot at it. This is a property I can get him permission. I really wanted to see where "Cousin Bubba's buck" was bedding. Long story short, a buck I thought had died of old age came out that night and I tagged him.
My point to all this? I've been selfish in the past. I've put chasing a ghost overwork and family. I've been angry over silly nothingness in the woods at times. I've created stress for myself over a deer! I am trying to get back to simply enjoying the hunt. I want to enjoy the success of others (one thing I've always been happy to do even when obsessed in my own world of deer.) I want to simply have fun without being caught up in killing the biggest deer out there. This year I overlooked all the frustrations. I brushed them off. Took the high road. Bit my tongue. However you want to put it. The good Lord blessed me for it. I won't take it for granted. I now have to repay him by helping others. I need to help the guys hunting my neighbors. I need to help my buddies hunting property 2. I need to help Cousin Bubba to get on some deer. Life isn't all about taking our prize and running with it. Life is about realizing the prize wasnt an old 8pt. The prize and reward is in helping others.
So on property number one I deployed two cameras. They weren't showing a lot. They also didn't seem to be working right. I kept fiddling with them. I had 2 stands hung and was ready. A week before the season I headed in with the land owner to swap cameras and check things out. I found my climbing sections, hang on stand, and camera at the rear of the property stolen. I won't get into it. Long story. Lots of Junior high schoolish type drama from a grown man and neighboring hunter. I suspect he took them but cannot prove it. I wrote it off. I don't need pictures. I have a climber I can use. Karma has it's way of working. We all answer our Maker one day. Property two I've had to myself for a number of years. I've become good friends with the guys who hunt the neighboring property. We share info and help each other out. Well. . .that land sold. They said they were asking permission to hunt the property I have hunted solo. They did and the LO put it on me. It was my decision whether they got permission or not. If I were to ever screw over my buddies this was my shot. I'm not that guy. Now I share it with these two. No biggie. Until the first hunt one of them had on this property. He told me how he was walking in. I mentioned the deer bed along that edge and his scent would blow them out walking the half mile in. His response was "oh well. We'll see what happens." Arrgh. Try to help a guy which in turn helps us all and he just didn't seem to care. Frustrating but what do you do? Kept telling myself I did the right thing. I'm trying to help my friends. It will be rewarded some day, some way. Property 3 is a crapshoot. In the past it has been like public land. Neighbors wander thru aimlessly whether hunting or just walking. Lots of people get permission but doesn't seem like many ever hunt it. If they do it is gun season. Night before bow season I had two guys walk into my driveway from the neighbor's drive. I knew what it meant. They just got permission. Yep. Not only did they secure permission, but they traipsed all over the property making notes on their phones of every tree stand, pile of rocks, ditch, and land mark on the property. Really? In three day work clothes the night before season? Oh my gosh! Yer killing me fellas. I DO appreciate them reaching out to me and trying to be respectful/work around each other. We don't all have the same goals. Well, I think these guys have similar goals, bit we don't all go about achieving them the same way. Part of me felt they were trying to blow deer to the South end of the woods where they already had permission. Truthfully, I just don't think they are real woods savvy. I tried to offer insight on stand placement for that woods. I expressed what I look for in easy entry/exits and minimal intrusion. Told them where I'd hang a stand there since I hunt the next 10acres to the west already. I wantes to say "Take it for what it's worth guys, but trust me on the stand placement." I didn't want to treat them like they were idiots though nor come across as some super star in the woods. I'm not that guy and I don't think they're idiots. I'd actually like to help them out. Again, sooner or later it'll come back around to me.
So here I am the night before opener with nothing real impressive on camera. Trying to talk myself into a couple of the 3yr old deer I had on camera. There were a couple big bodies with lots of burger on their bones. I didn't even buy a tag until 2-3weeks into the season. I started with moving around different properties to hunt, observe, and swap cards. I never deployed a camera to the third property until the first week in October. So I had hunted properties 1 and 2 twice each when I decided to hunt property 3 and swap the card. This is when I found a mid 130's 4yr old on the card. I opted to hunt there again 2 days later in a different stand. My cousin comes to hunt Nov 7 from NC and has never hunted Ohio. He is 56 and will likely only get one shot at it. This is a property I can get him permission. I really wanted to see where "Cousin Bubba's buck" was bedding. Long story short, a buck I thought had died of old age came out that night and I tagged him.
My point to all this? I've been selfish in the past. I've put chasing a ghost overwork and family. I've been angry over silly nothingness in the woods at times. I've created stress for myself over a deer! I am trying to get back to simply enjoying the hunt. I want to enjoy the success of others (one thing I've always been happy to do even when obsessed in my own world of deer.) I want to simply have fun without being caught up in killing the biggest deer out there. This year I overlooked all the frustrations. I brushed them off. Took the high road. Bit my tongue. However you want to put it. The good Lord blessed me for it. I won't take it for granted. I now have to repay him by helping others. I need to help the guys hunting my neighbors. I need to help my buddies hunting property 2. I need to help Cousin Bubba to get on some deer. Life isn't all about taking our prize and running with it. Life is about realizing the prize wasnt an old 8pt. The prize and reward is in helping others.
