Heres how its going

[gman57]

Go gettum Snap

 

[brownisdown]

Found out yesterday my brother has covid 19 virus and the pnomoccoal pneumonia on top of that.He can not talk and barely breathe.So our hunting is done for the year.We promised not to go unless we both go,the buddy system at our age.

 

[muzzyhans]

Found out yesterday my brother has covid 19 virus and the pnomoccoal pneumonia on top of that.He can not talk and barely breathe.So our hunting is done for the year.We promised not to go unless we both go,the buddy system at our age.

Best wishes to your brother. That crap is going around again. My whole house had a couple of rough weeks. Almost put my youngest in the hospital. Influenza B is what we all had. I was blessed with a sinus infection after I got over the flu. Pharmacist said it was exactly a year to the day that we were all prescribed tamiflu.

 

[10acres]

@brownisdown prayers for your brother.

 

[10acres]

@snapbang I haven’t seen a deer since opening morning, but I have only hunted 5 days this year. I hunt on my buddies 42 acres but the area gets a ton of hunting pressure from September through January.

 

[10acres]

We have a lot of bucks on camera but they have been nocturnal for a long time. We have a front moving in tonight so I was hoping for some movement today. Still nada.

 

[snapbang]

I haven’t seen a deer since opening morning, but I have only hunted 5 days this year.

Sorry 10. am seeing deer for the most part just not the right ones. Im still laughing at having 6 bucks in front of me that one night.

Im hoping to close the deal Tomorrow 12/27 or Thursday 12/28. My wife has surgery Friday and any hunting after that could be out of the question.

Thinking next year I need to change my hygiene regiment or hold my mouth a little different. I am having fun though and I may look back on this year with a smile whether I get a deer or not. I am already prepping for squirrels and rabbits. Also going to do some winter trout fishing.

Sorry, this was supposed to post last night.

 

[michiganmuzzy]

I’d like to hear more about the winter trout fishing, sometime. Thru the ice, or fly fishing?

 

[10acres]

I always tell my kids hunting is not about killing, it’s about spending time in nature and together with family and friends. Shooting an animal is secondary in my mind. I enjoy spending the time in the woods with my kids, grandkids and friends. Memories that will last a lifetime.

It does help to shoot a deer every now and then. I shot a little 7pt yesterday just before dark. That was my first deer in about 7 years. I almost always hunt with one of my kids or grandkids and they always get first shot. Last night I was solo.

 

[snapbang]

12/27
2 fawns this morning and 2 fawns this afternoon. I am babysitting the grand kids tomorrow so that's out. Friday is wife's surgery, Saturday and Sunday Im thinking she may need my care. Monday may be my last day.

 

[10acres]

Good luck to the missus on Friday.

 

[snapbang]

Good luck to the missus on Friday.

Thank you very much.

Winter trout fishing is a stream that is open all year. There are many in Michigan. If you go to the inland trout stream map they are marked in blue. Years ago I fished the upper portions of the Rifle river. I remember the ice was formed along the edges so you could only walk down and fish the center of the stream. Whenever you needed to tend your line you could just lay your rod on the ice next to you. Try to fish on days above 32 degrees to the eyes on the pole do not freeze up. I remember on that day we caught a pile of 12-14 inch browns.

 

[10acres]

Have fun with the grandkids today. I always need a day of rest after having mine over.

Do you catch and release the trout or keep them? Love trout fishing, but ours are streams that are stocked from hatcheries.

 

[snapbang]

Have fun with the grandkids today. I always need a day of rest after having mine over.

LOL I get it. Wife and I get home and look at each other. The silence is golden. But man you got to love it while they are there.

Often we let the fish determine our take for the day. If we have fish that can be returned unharmed to the stream we do that. Some are caught and get injured trying to remove a deeply set hook. We keep those. (Im a hardware fisherman) They need to meet a size limit to keep them so that is determined by the DNR and the individual stream requirements. If you catch a trophy (all trout are beautiful and worth a picture) you can take a picture with your phone.

When we go to the upper peninsula in September we usually have a group of 10 or so. Many are younger beginner fisherman who aren't real successful. Us older more experienced fellows try to catch enough for everyone to have one fish for dinner. Usually like brookies 10 inches plus.

Back to winter fishing. If you decide to do that make sure you bring a change of cloths and even a second set of waders. Its been a while but occasionally a guy falls in the water. LOL years ago I was fishing with a fellow and I had already made my way across the stream and started fishing. There was a rather deep hole to get across the stream. He was wading the hole and slipped and went completely submerged. I can still see it. I laughed as he disappeared for a few moments and came up gasping for air. (freezing water does that to you). Without him saying a word I said go back to the truck and change your cloths, Ill wait here for you. He never said a word.

I still hope to kill a doe but I am looking forward to trout fishing/squirrel/rabbit hunting.

 

[MrTom]

Good luck to the missus on Friday.

Absolutely!

 

[snapbang]

Thank you

 

[snapbang]

I Missed.
Thank you all for prayers for my wife. She is home and I think things are better than expected. So thank you again. Now back to our story.

After a full day at the hospital on Friday (6:45am-7:30pm) plus an hour there and an hour back home I slept in until 8:00 am. I got up and she was watching TV and seemed good. The first thing out of her mouth was if you want to go hunting I feel fine. Well, at 1:00pm I went out and sat with nothing sighted.

This morning I was out 1 hour before legal shooting. It was seriously overcast but that seems to be the norm here lately. I checked in with my wife a few times to make sure she was good. I was starting to calculate a quitting time for the morning thinking if I see nothing by 10:00 Ill go home for a few hours. At 8:30 it began snowing. Pretty soon a thin layer was on the ground making deer and movement a little easier to see. At 9:20 I see movement back at the boundary fence. 100 yards. This is it. I pulled the window out and lay my gun on the shooting bag. Snowing very hard at the moment. I see a fawn and a larger doe standing behind it. More movement coming so I do a quick check and count 6. I swing back to the doe in front and she is about 1/2 body length in front of the fawn. Easy peasy. The crosshair is where I want it and I pull the trigger.

It was a complete whiteout. The cloud of smoke just hung and I couldn't see a thing. When it cleared there wasn't a deer to be seen. I didn't see where they ran. Time to go look. I checked my blood sugar as I have had a few issues with it being to low. Good enough. I pocket a container of orange juice and if needed my Ruger 44 and a knife.

In the few moments it took to get to the impact point the snow was really coming down. By the time I walked to where the deer were any sign was almost gone. I couldn't find hair or blood. I did a grid search for 2 hours and found no blood or tracks. I checked for twigs or branches but am positive none interfered.

Running it all through my mind I think I jerked the trigger. Sorry guys. I wish I could show you a picture of a nice big doe but after all the deer Ive killed in my life I still make mistakes. I still have tonight and tomorrow but I walked all over that place looking for a dead deer and I think most of the deer will stay away from the area. I think Ill call it quits for the year. Its been one of the best years ever. Looking forward to next year. Still want to use one of Bronkos 400 grain paper patches and an I bullet to kill a deer. Next year.

 

[10acres]

That’s why they call it hunting and not killing. You never know what deer will do. I say give tomorrow a go.

 

[10acres]

Glad your wife is doing well.

 

[phalanx]

Happy to hear your wife is doing well. We all miss now an then! Its been great reading about your hunting. Thank you and better luck next year!

John