opening day luck

[jeff127]

I got my first one of the year---a 2 1/2 year old doe. It came in with a fawn at 8:00 and gave me a perfect 15 yard shot. I also saw 4 small bucks(one in velvet yet ???) within 10 minutes after I shot the doe---one of them had to have walked over the doe as it came down the trail(it died on the trail just 50 yards from me). Anybody else have any luck?.

jeff

[harvey lee]

Congrats on your doe.

[Nate McVey]

Congrats! I saw 4, but didn't get a shot off (only hunted a little over an hour), but I will be back at it tomorrow.

[UGUIDE]

Way to go Jeff! I hope to be in stand on Monday evening.

[USPENAMC]

this is how my day went. we drove all the way to preston minnesota just to NOT be able to find the state forest down there. seems like there is nothing posted. so we turned around and went to carlos avery. We arrived at 9:20 i saw two fawns (yearlings) they went over the hill. i made my way over the hill and they both turned and looked perfect shot at 40 yards. Not bad for my FIRST bowhunt EVER. perfect shot she went 50 yards and expired. found out it was a button buck he was still small. I found them in the same place i had found them earlier in the year when they still had SPOTS. I guess it was beginners luck. We had its sister come back to 10 yards but only gave us a frontal opportunity for like 10 minutes never gave us the shot so we passed on it.

[delmuts]

congrats on the first one! there may not be as much meat , but it will be tender and tasty! de;

[DRH1175]

Wish I would have gotten out. I saw a lot of deer this morning on the way to the in laws. I got roped into helping on a project wanted to get out in the morning but he wanted to start the project at 7am. I have to go to San Diego for a week on Tuesday not sure I will get out untill the following week. Not that Spending a week in San Diego is that bad but really iching to get out!! Good luck to all who will get out this weekend!!! I will be thinking about you all!

[Mike Steckelberg]

overall i had a great day..saw plenty of deer, but didn't take a shot due to them not wanting to come in very close or they decided to stand behind bushes..watched one doe for about 45 mins tonight and she was jumping around in circles in a bean field and standing on her rear legs and she just looked like she was having the time of her life ..i had a lot of fun today watching the deer and the pesky squirrels and chipmunks that decided i shouldn't have been in their tree i'll be back out early tomorrow so will post how it goes..good luck to all

[Slow Jigger]

Got up this morning ready to hunt but I decided to lay back next to the wife for a few minutes ended up to be a few hours woke up as the light was coming in....

Got out in the evening and here comes a doe and fawn in tow. The light wasn't good enough for a shot for me so I watched... Glanced on top of a little hill to my right about 20 yards away and I saw a big buck. Actually only saw his antlers silowetted across the sky above the trees, had a nice spread. He was looking at my ground blind as if he knew... Yes he probably did. He slowly walked away and I turned my attention to the doe and it sounded as if there were a couple deer ready to walk into my blind (was this what the buck was looking at? Who knows)... The dry grass was rustling from the feet, not sure what was making the noise but defenatley a successful start....

[sodajerk]

Had a smaller 6- or 8-pointer and a doe come in just after legal light. The doe didn't come quite close enough for a good shot in the dim light and the buck was too small to take, so I let them walk. Saw another deer just as a ghostly shape through the brush an hour later about 80 yards out.

Stayed on stand until 10:00 and went for a little walk to scout the deer sign around the area of my stand and jumped 3 more does about 100 yards down into a brushy swale. Overslept on my afternoon nap so didn't get back out for the afternoon hunt.

Overall a great morning for opening day; 30 degrees, dead calm air and 6 deer seen. Having some coffee now and will head out again in a half-hour or so to see what happens this morning.

Good luck to all and have fun!

UPDATE - Sun. afternoon: Saw a big fat 0 (zero) deer this morning, but I did have a herd of 30 goats pay me a visit. The landowner where I hunt fenced his land in 4 ft high boxwire fence and pastured it to goats this year. Nice of him wasn't it? Oh well, can't look a gift horse in the mouth. He lets me hunt there for free, and I give him a nice heavy sack of venison when I get a deer to show my appreciation. He hunts it himself with a couple of his buddies, but only during gun season.

I just hope it doesn't screw up my hunting too badly. The goats strip the vegetation thoroughly; every leaf, and I mean EVERY leaf, from head-high to the ground is gone, and they even eat the bark off lots of the saplings and small trees, killing them. Have to see what the long term effect is, but not seeing any deer this morning is a bad sign already. In the 50 or so times I've sat there and hunted the last 2 years I've only seen zero deer three times, with the third being this morning.

[Phill Aldahl]

Not so good news to report. My first bowhunnt and I didn't see anything, went in the morning 3AM and then went back out at 2. Although a buddy shot a nice 8 pointer that we weren't able to find. He was pretty [PoorWordUsage]ed after looking for 2.5 hours, the biggest deer he has ever shot (shot at). We will be back in the morning to look more. Hard finding a blood trail in chest high grass.

[fisherking01]

A quick heads up for the reporters. I know wounding and not recovering deer happens. In a perfect world it wouldn't. Knock on wood I've not lost one, and hate to hear of the tough luck of those who do. I would hate to see these reports read by non hunters and sway them to an anti hunting stance. Thank you for the consideration, Brent

[deadminnowcatcher]

If you hunt deer you will eventually wound one or know someonr that does- good luck finding the deer

[frogtosser]

Watched a few does moving in the evening and I ended up takin one with a 15yd shot she ran 30yds and that was it. my first opening day deer. Fun day

[96trigger]

Phil, I'm sure you guys looked everywhere but, I had a similar situation last year, the deer was actually only 100 yards from my stand. He ran down the hill out of sight, and then right back up, I spent all morning looking where he should have gone, and not enough time on my hands and knees really making sure that I followed his every move. I thought for sure that he'd be at the bottom of the hill, once I found that he turned around, he was easy to find, even without blood. He didn't show anyblood until he died. Which was odd because it was good quartering away shot. Good luck.

[camdu7]

Sat morning saw one spike who walked right under me and posed for the camera. Wife fell asleep in her ground blind and woke up to a fork about 15 feet in front of her. He walked off before she could grab her bow. She also saw a 6 point out of range. Sat eve I was late getting to the stand and had just pulled up my bow when I had a doe and a spike walking right at me at 25 yards. By the time I got my release on they were at 15 and the doe was acting kinda skiddish. She made the mistake of turning broad side. I made and a good shot and she only plowed about 30 yards. Another doe was behind the spike and it if it wouldn't have been for technical problem with my camcorder (I dropped it out of the tree). I might have had her as well. I sat in the GB with the wife this morning and we saw one fork at about 70 yards.

[Scott M]

No luck for me. It was cold! 25 degrees the car thermometer said. I heard some rustling in the corn field.....and about 5 different racoons ran out the first hour. The end rows of the field got taken out so my natural funnel dissappeared. I think they probably left the area for a while. I'll be back and hopefully they will too. G'luck to the rest.

[koonie]

I didn't get out until today at 4 pm. About 5pm I had an 8 pointer about twenty feet away from me. I was in a cornfield edge where the corn was kind of thin. I heard a crunch to my left and leaned forward to look down the row and I didn't see anything so I leaned back and looked down the row I was sitting in and all I saw was the chest. I couldn't move because I figured he was looking my way. He pulled his head back into my row and eyeballed me for about 45 seconds and trotted into some willows. About ten minutes later he came back into the edge of the field and stopped and sniffed the scent I had put out. I had the pin on him but apparently I should have put the scent two feet farther to my left. All I had was a neck shot from 14 yards so I passed. One step and he would have been clear. Would have been my first with a bow. That was the first time I've ever actually drawn on a deer and I have to admit I was more than a little shakey. What a rush! Maybe next time.

[Nate McVey]

Just got back from my stand, a little early you say? Yes, it doesn't help the deer hunting with 2 wolves troting around your stand. They came out about 6:45 and walked right under my stand. Talk about ruining a nice morning. Oh well, I'm going to eat and try to find some birds.

[papabear]

Wife went to work this morning and came back in to tell me a big buck was standing in the front yard just off the deck. I think I know where to place my "stand". I am just curious what she considers a big buck.

[Deitz Dittrich]

I saw a mother and 2 faws(one nubbin and one doe) They hung out in my area for about 30 mins. was fun to watch them... I let them live. Great weather to be in a tree(maybe a little less wind would have been nice).

Congrats to all who are cleaning deer already!

[bottomdweller]

Seen about 12 deer between sat and sunday. Could have taken a fork and a doe, deciding to pass and hold out. Last nite as I was watching a group of five, a pack of coyotes came and scattered them. Then something I have never seen they surrounded my stand and started howling, HOLY dump it scared the dickens out of me. Never have they been so close. I almost got one, as I pulled back he made it to the woods. So figuring my nite was done only ten minutes of lite left I get down and start waking out. As I am walking I see coyotes out in the field and they are walking with me. They followed me all the way out to my truck. It was kind of eerie, I wonder if they didnt know what I was. Wish I would have had a rifle. Ok Im done ranting. Hope everyone has a successful hunting season.

[fivebucks]

I get to finish my meat packing job tonight. Went out for Sat. evening and set up by 4:00. At 4:15 I had a very small doe (last years fawn I'm sure) and her own spotted fawn come out. Watched them for a while until they meandered away. 2 grouse hunters and dogs then came thru at 5 and then at 6 a big doe comes out of the woods right behind me. I couldn't draw and she would look up at me now and then and I would try to hide my eyes. She got downwind a little bit and then ran off 20 yards allowing me to get drawn. She turn broadside, quartering away and I took the 30 yard shot. She ran about 50 yards into the woods and piled up another 10 yards into the woods. I am glad the Vikes played a late game yesterday so I had some football to watch after the drive home from up north. The season is off to a good start!

[Meat-Run]

Quote:

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Not so good news to report. My first bowhunnt and I didn't see anything, went in the morning 3AM and then went back out at 2. Although a buddy shot a nice 8 pointer that we weren't able to find. He was pretty [PoorWordUsage]ed after looking for 2.5 hours, the biggest deer he has ever shot (shot at). We will be back in the morning to look more. Hard finding a blood trail in chest high grass.

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Hey Phill Aldahl,

My coworker swears that a wounded deer if wounded pretty good will search out water or any means of water when hurt badly. I would regroup and start at the nearest watering hole if you haven't yet. My coworker has found everyone of his wounded "not so good" shots in or at water.

Maybe some others can chime in that may have experienced with this but this is my 3rd year bow hunting and hadn't search to far for my deer fortunelty.

Good luck,

mr

[gr81]

Got to my stand on Sunday at 4:45pm and had 4 does run past me at 60yds around 5:10. About a half hour later I had a fork horn walk past my stand at 50yds. Saw a couple of coons just before dark. It was so great to be in the woods again. Could have been cooler though.