A couple pics of the Core beast buck 'Father Bob' I just got from the neighbor this week, as well as the hunt I harvested him on. As well as the parting shot from camp with Mooch and his Core buck 'Herdstorm'.
As laid out in the above posts I was targeting a Core 8pt, 'Niles' but weather, foul-ups and just plain great luck on his part kept him almost out of my sight the entire season. I saw him and almost had a shot from the same stand two weeks earlier. That hunt is here:->
[https://theohiooutdoors.com/threads/stressless-2020-compendium.26809/page-2#post-772415 ] That is the only time I have ever laid eyes on him through two seasons, hundreds of trailcam pics and videos. The guess on him is 3.5 y/o 145ish 8pt. So while I would like to have harpooned him I was/am completely open to ventilating a mature buck and letting him have a chance to grow another year.
If you remember the gale, 30+ mph winds, came in late Sat and thru Sun (Oct 31 and Nov 1) with a slight cold front moving in behind it, then a week of unseasonable heat in the forecast.. starting about Wed the 4th. With that in mind I knew the opportunity to get in front of a core shooter was closing and the big movement/breeding rut with the heat would be taking place at night. I knew I needed to stay out all day and to meet to the goal of harvesting a mature Doe and Buck, before my kitchen pass window would snap closed about 9-10 Nov, I had to start shooting. I've been "hunting" on my extended kitchen pass for about three weeks up to that point, while taking care of my mom and letting the woods rest while doing light farm chores.
One of those chores is filling up the feeders around the property, I had filled them from empty on the 10th of Oct, three Boss Buck 350's, on the 26th of Oct each took about about half a load ~175#-200# from the fill on the 10th of Oct. So with Mooch coming in the 5th and not wanting to touch them or be "chor'ing" during the rut when deer will move all day if the WX is decent I refilled them the 1st of Nov at noon in the 30+ wind. When I do this I leave the bike running the entire time and think that helps reduce the impact. Also I repeat the paths, running quad, time of day so as to let the deer pattern me.... or think they do.
Got up on the 2nd, checked WX and my cell cams for movement, selected 2" plot and Poplar stand for that day - plan was to sit all day in that stand and shoot the first unpushed, in that a doe isn't watching her back trail or other signs of a trailing buck, and then watch let her lie for 90mins or so incase a buck is cruising her scent. If a mature buck walked out I'd harpoon him ... this is 3 weeks into it!
Sitting in 2" all good, fawns and some little 1.5 does came in early - I knew that I only had another day or two and it would be hot and daylight movement of doe's would dwindle with the heat and bucks becoming very aggressive. In walks momma, a does a foreleg stretch at 20 yards and she got harpooned about 0945, didn't see her fall but by the shot placement I knew she was dead on her feet. at 1115 I got down tracked her 60 yards and walked back to get the quad. Recovery was hampered by a large beech that fell across my access road and so I had to break some brush to get into where she lay. spoiling the area for the rest of daylight.
From getting down out of Poplar stand to getting back into a stand on 2" plot, Find, Gut, Recover, and Hang her was just about 90mins. Also with storng Westerly wind all the sound/scent was 1/2 mile downwind of 2".
I was at Pine plot and sitting Maple stand the South stand on that kill plot. From the pic below you can see it's a broadway (powerline) between two large areas of woods, the destination of many of these deer is the large hay fields to the S SE. With a W wind it makes a almost bulletproof setup. Winds were 10-15 MPH with gusts of 25 mph but they were 30MPH with higher gusts 1 Nov.
You can see the mature pines on either side of the plot/broadway this view is looking South just after the mid Sep brushhog of Pine. After 4 years of brushhogging twice a year the grass is an excellant draw without any need to plant a better crop at this location.
About 1530 the first deer show up, momma and twins, the twins hit hte feeder and momma watches and is spooky - they get bumped by a fork and spike at different times, about 1600 another doe shows up, she's bigger than momma but no fawns, momma kicks her ass a couple times while twins keep returning to the feeder, so two doe's, a spike and fork are all within 50 yards of me for 90 mins or better. A basket 8 walks in postures and bumps the lone doe all over hell's half acre - it was great watching them and hearing the doe's grunting at teh fawns, the bucks grunting at each other and the does, the fawns just trying to stay the hell out of the adult deer's way etc... so far I hadn't reached for my bow since I got in the Maple stand three hours prior.
I'm sitting there, at any given time there are two adult doe's, two fawns, a Basket 8 Fork and spike all dick dancing, chasing each other around the plot, up in the woods, sneaking back in, and it's into witching hour. I've had pics of Niles in this plot, saw him on the 28th just South of the plot, (see the link above for that hunt) and thought it felt very very 'deerie' and it might just happen.
About 1745 getting last light, I had turned on my sights light, all the deer stopped fooling around and looked West, so naturally I went to high alert and did the same, qiuick glance off to the West, a solid, big fellow, neck sholder to brisket, big front and hind quarters and rack well past his ears... i.e., Shooter in about 1/2 second of looking, is about 30 yards away and walking right up the Boulevard.
A view from Maple stand at the Pine Boulevard.
As you can see he was on the left side the blocking pine limb, and that makes a perfect fuzz to try and get the bow off the hanger, attach the release and get to full draw... except when there are 7 other deer within 50 yards of the stand! I had no option I had to risk it and so did all that and was at full draw when he came out to the right of the pine bough. I had marks for 20, 25 and 30 yards but it was getting too dark to see them clearly and I was looking thru the peep I estimated at 30 took aim and went thru my shot routine - which only takes like a half second, but it helps fight the target panic that can happen when a mature brute pops up in your wheelhouse...
Thankfully two things happened - when he walked in, as happenes when a mature buck enters the fray, everyone else pays attention to them, not one deer that I know if blew or spooked when I got my bow or came to full draw. When he was walking thru, he was watching the does, every other deer parted and gave way to the path he was walking like he had a forcefield pushing them 5-10 yards away from him. Never will I forget that.
Release and THWACK! Sound was kinda sharp and sure enough he dropped - Spine shot, the other deer bolted - he lay there while I got #2 out of the quiver and stared to hookup and he coughed, struggled a bit, not sure of the shot he was laying broadside so I sent #2 up into his lungs under his left side, first arrow was in his right. That magnificent bastard then lay his head down and in a min or two left this earth. In gutting and follow up the first arrow, with a Spitfire Maxx 125gr, entered his ribs and two blades nicked the bottom of his spine, severing the aortic artery - stopping in the far side ribs double lung and cut his aortic. That's the third deer I've spine shot and while it's a cross between interesting, morbid and sad to see and watch them expire, it is a hellofalot easier tracking job!
Father Bob:
Be Well and best of Luck on the hunt TOO'ers,
Stressless
