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Northern MI (again)

TinyTucky

Active Member
1,016
76
The Flatlands
Well, it’s been since 2021 that I came up north to deer camp. Got the time off work, and with my OH buck tag filled I figured why not. Had some errands this morning, and had to make a pit stop at Jays on the way, putting me in the area around 5:30. That gave me 20 minutes to drive through a massive chunk of public with some SE Ohio type topography. Passed one truck that was cruising around, with no one out hunting. Wind was ripping and the rain was coming down sideways so I’m sure that played a part. I got a semi better lay of the land, and a reasonable idea of where I’d like to sit in the am. Plan is to bow hunt Tuesday through Thursday, then pick up the rifle Friday for the opener. My dad will be up sometime Wednesday evening, so as of now I have camp to myself. I’ll try to update as service allows. Out of state license and tags are unreasonably expensive for the quality of deer up here, so the likelihood of me shooting the first legal deer I see is very high 😂
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TinyTucky

Active Member
1,016
76
The Flatlands
Got a couple bars, figured I’d update while I stare at my milk weed floating every single direction. FML

Got up at 4am today, was on the road by 4:30. I arrived to the public I drove through yesterday, with a pin I dropped on a saddle in mind. I have never once set foot on this property in my life, but hey, deer like crossing saddles right? I hiked the .70 mile walk in and picked a tree based on the wind forecast and thermals. I was completely settled about 45 minutes before first shot. The climb was dead quiet, but the walk in was noisy AF due to rain all night and it being 27° this morning, sounded like walking on potato chips the whole way in. About 15 minutes before legal light, I could hear deer coming straight for me out of the bottom. I had a mature doe pop up on the saddle about 30 yards away, and start milling my direction. She must’ve seen me move a tiny bit and stopped at 20. She stomped a few times but never blew, and continued to feed around me, ultimately passing me at 5 yards. She eventually got downwind and bounded off into the adjacent bottom, and the deer that was behind her went straight north with no sighting. I did a few rattling sequences, and had a 2x2 pop up on the next ridge over. I sat until 9:30 and climbed down, packed my gear and headed towards my truck down a different trail. I saw 0 buck sign, but plenty of fresh tracks and acorn caps. Once I got to my truck, I ditched my coat, bibs, climbing sticks, etc there and planned to hike another 3/4 mile to another pin I dropped to scout. I made it maybe a 1/4 mile and found a scrape. Then another. Then another. 8 scrapes in a 50 yard stretch along this trail, and a fuck ton of rubs running 90° away from them down another trail. I figured I might as well keep going and check out the pinch I had marked, when all of a sudden a doe comes barreling down the trail straight at me. I quickly knelt down and nocked an arrow. She stopped at 15 yards facing straight at me. She immediately saw me, but was more curious than anything. After a 2 minute stare off, she bounded out to 40 and stopped. She started angling towards me again to investigate further. She stopped at 33 yards and turned broadside. Wide open. I drew, anchored and put my 35 on her, right where the brown meets the white. I shoot, arrow looks great, then she ducked. Like entire belly touching the ground ducked. She took another bound or two and started to come back towards me, but ultimately wandered off with no blowing. I spent 20 minutes looking for that stupid arrow, but shooting slightly uphill with the crest right behind her, I’d imagine it landed 300 yards away. After that I hiked back to the truck, grabbed lunch and am back down in this bottom with all the fresh sign. Wind is not really doing what I wanted it to do, but I don’t know where the deer come from here so it may work. I’m happy to have seen as many deer as I have already.
 

TinyTucky

Active Member
1,016
76
The Flatlands
So yesterday evening, I decided to setup in a deep bottom. That was where I found the highest concentration of buck sign, and knew with dropping thermals in the evening when the wind died off I had to be low. There is an old hiking trail that cut north to south, and all of the scrapes ran along that, with a rub line running due east off of it. The wind was initially blowing WSW (not forecasted) but it was swirling super super bad. With this wind direction in mind, I setup NE of the biggest scrape, and where the rub line popped out. I climbed up to 20’, was tied off when i realized the wind was now doing what the forecast said it would (after sitting at the base of a tree for 30 minutes throwing milkweed debating) and that was blowing from the SE. My milkweed was consistently drifting straight up the trail, and across all off the scrapes. Pissed off and now working up a sweat, I climbed back down, and drug 4 sticks, a platform, back pack, bow and 25’ bow rope 40 yards across the trail to setup with what I thought would be the wind in my favor (it was). I got up into the tree with the best cover, but still offered a shot to the trail. I’m tellin ya, every fuggin tree is a telephone pole, and none have any cover. I was settled in by 3:30, which is crazy considering I was walking in by 1:30, and I’m setup less than 300 yards from my truck 😂 It’s crazy that I hiked over 4 miles in the am, just to find the best sign within rifle range of the parking lot. So around 4 I did a grunting and rattling sequence, and again around 5. My wind seemed to be miserably consistent out of the SE but would occasionally rip from the NE, but I figured as long as the deer came from the Easterly direction, or came up or down the trail I’d be fine. It’s about 5:20, and I hear a single twig snap behind me. Typically I wouldn’t look right away, but with the lack of squirrels, and how wet the leaves were I had to. Low and behold, here comes antlers and holy shit, he’s a decent buck and he’s coming right for me. I spotted him at 50ish yards. I had no time to get my video camera turned on, but I don’t really give a shit about that lol. He was on a bee like straight for the trail, and his course was bringing him passed me at 22 yards. When his head went behind a tree at 30 yards I had to swing my bow over top of my tether for a “weak-side” shot. Then at 25 his head went behind another tree and I got to full draw. I swung my pin in front of him in a wide open slot. As soon as he stepped into it, I hit him with a MEH and he about jumped out of his skin, he flinched so bad which was so surprising given he was completely relaxed and had no idea I was there. I settled my pin, held a little low due to his response to me stopping him and let her fly. My lighted nock disappeared right where I wanted it to, and I heard that distinct sound of a diaphragm pop. I watched him run about 80 yards uphill when I lost sight, but my view returned when he rolled down the hill onto a bench below. I gave my dad, wife, Nate and Eli a call, and they all said to get climbed down before it got too dark and get some pics. I obliged, and was on a very heavy blood trail from point of impact to where he lie dead. I tagged the buck, took a few pics, then went back to my tree to pack my shit. I went to my truck to drop all my shit off besides my kill kit and dragging strap. He ran towards my truck, making my drag 164 yards which was fuggin awesome despite it all being uphill the whole way. My dad will be up this evening, and we’ll get him hung on the buck pole once we put one up. I think he may be more excited than I am. Sorry the pics suck, it’s tough to get decent ones alone in the dark lol.
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I slept in this am, and have plans to go scout a known section for my dad, and verify his stands are still there and that there’s good deer sign in the area. After that, I plan to go back to the chunk I shot my buck on, and hopefully run into some more deer. Tomorrow looks like a washout with the rain, so we will see. No matter what happens from this point, I am far more than satisfied and gotta thank God for the opportunities I’ve been given. I am looking forward to my dad’s arrival and rifle opener in a couple days.
 

TinyTucky

Active Member
1,016
76
The Flatlands
This morning I went to an old clear cut to scout the section and verify my dad’s stands were still there. Both stands were there, and there was reasonable deer sign. I saw 1 legal buck 50 yards out, but naturally my wind swirled right to him. Also bumped 5 or 6 other deer that were bedded under some oaks. I backed out and drove to a pin that’s somewhat close and walked a mile and a half, bumped what looked like another legal buck, and a pair of does bedded in a stand of immature pines. It’s moderately hilly terrain with mostly mature oaks and the occasional white pine, perfect for gun hunting on Friday. I wanna walk one more spot before I decide where I’m going to sit this evening. I’d love to hunt where those does were bedded, especially with the amount of buck sign I found, but a SE-NE wind is dog shit for it, so tonight may end up being an “observation sit” to get an idea of how these deer are moving through these hills. We’ll see, still on cloud 9 from last night. I appreciate all the congratulations.
 

TinyTucky

Active Member
1,016
76
The Flatlands
Opted for the observation sit, despite setting up a little lower to be closer to the highest concentration of acorns I’ve seen in this area. I’m within 50 yards of where I bumped a buck earlier, so hopefully he wanders back through. I can comfortably see 200-250 yards 360° around me with a very thick grove of immature maples 200 yards straight up wind, assuming deer bed there but who knows with these guys lol. Based on the number of deer I saw today while wandering around, rifle opener should be a good time as long as this doesn’t receive a crazy amount of pressure. Gonna bang the antlers together and see what happens.