ChrisAU
WKR
Very thankful to have access to some private that has an amazing swamp in it that requires waders or boats to get around. This past weekend the wind was right and I couldn’t give up the chance to don the waders and my Exo K4 and go off to my favorite spot to sit on the ground, especially with some snow still on the ground from last week’s blizzard. It snowed more last week than it had cumulatively here in my life.
I only venture into this spot since finding it 4-5 times a year, I just sit on a little summit seat that straps to a tree and then cut off some palmetto fronds and stick them in the ground so that just my head is sticking out. It’s an extremely effective tactic, I’ve had dozens of deer less than 5 yards from me over the years in this spot.
Usually see 30+ deer here, but the 6th one that morning did not escape the 22CM. Dandy buck for here with great mass, good width, but just ok tine length.
After I shot him at about 8:40 AM I dragged him for the pics above, then went back to my seat to strip off some layers of clothes and get knives and game bags. About 9:10 I started to walk back to him to begin cleaning and I see this, this is a still photo from a video I took. He was maybe 60 yards from me at most.
I looked at him and actually said out loud “I’ll be back for you tomorrow.” I then gutted the deer and attempted to float him out which did NOT go well, we had talked about trying that the night before so I gave it a go. It would have been easy if not for all the deadfall over the creeks. At one point I gave up and went and got my sled I use to get my gear across the main river, and then sank it after getting him in it. Lesson learned, just debone and pack em out like I had every other deer I ever killed in there.
That evening I shot a doe (that didn’t require packing out) and while cleaning it at the barn I told my buddies “Guys this is weird, but I’m not hopeful I see that deer tomorrow morning, I KNOW I’m going to kill him.”
I told this story to my wife later that night and she said “well if you’re going back across the river to hunt we may go to my parents since you won’t be home for lunch.” I replied “Well even if I kill him at 7 AM it’ll take me 4-5 hours to get him out and I’m going to kill him around 9:30 so ya’ll might as well go see them if you want to.”
So, the next morning I pack back in and there isn’t much activity. There still some guts that I can see from my seat that the coyotes didn’t finish cleaning up the night before. Activity starts to pick up around 9, and at 9:35 a doe pop out immediately to my right out of some tall reeds. I see she is a mature doe and think to myself a buck has to be behind her. Sure enough here come antlers. He pops out of the reeds, grunts at her and she takes off. I pushed my shooting sticks forward and snapped the rifle to my right and that was it. 22CM got another, best I can figure at 9:37. Most excited I had been for a deer in a long long time.
Started cleaning him and a young buck kept circling me, to the point I had to throw sticks at him to get him to leave me alone. Was very odd! Took a bunch of videos of those encounters, he came within 5 yards of me a few times. Never acted aggressive, just curious. Anyhow, loaded the Exo up one last time for the 24-25 hunting season.
Lastly, my buddies were excited to see this buck so they came to my river crossing spot to rendezvous and help me get him to the truck from there. One of them took this pic and it made me wonder how long I’ll be this invested in little ol deer. I hope a long time, and it really is an awesome taste of wilderness western hunting, down here in a small pocket of snowy south Alabama swamp.
I only venture into this spot since finding it 4-5 times a year, I just sit on a little summit seat that straps to a tree and then cut off some palmetto fronds and stick them in the ground so that just my head is sticking out. It’s an extremely effective tactic, I’ve had dozens of deer less than 5 yards from me over the years in this spot.
Usually see 30+ deer here, but the 6th one that morning did not escape the 22CM. Dandy buck for here with great mass, good width, but just ok tine length.
After I shot him at about 8:40 AM I dragged him for the pics above, then went back to my seat to strip off some layers of clothes and get knives and game bags. About 9:10 I started to walk back to him to begin cleaning and I see this, this is a still photo from a video I took. He was maybe 60 yards from me at most.
I looked at him and actually said out loud “I’ll be back for you tomorrow.” I then gutted the deer and attempted to float him out which did NOT go well, we had talked about trying that the night before so I gave it a go. It would have been easy if not for all the deadfall over the creeks. At one point I gave up and went and got my sled I use to get my gear across the main river, and then sank it after getting him in it. Lesson learned, just debone and pack em out like I had every other deer I ever killed in there.
That evening I shot a doe (that didn’t require packing out) and while cleaning it at the barn I told my buddies “Guys this is weird, but I’m not hopeful I see that deer tomorrow morning, I KNOW I’m going to kill him.”
I told this story to my wife later that night and she said “well if you’re going back across the river to hunt we may go to my parents since you won’t be home for lunch.” I replied “Well even if I kill him at 7 AM it’ll take me 4-5 hours to get him out and I’m going to kill him around 9:30 so ya’ll might as well go see them if you want to.”
So, the next morning I pack back in and there isn’t much activity. There still some guts that I can see from my seat that the coyotes didn’t finish cleaning up the night before. Activity starts to pick up around 9, and at 9:35 a doe pop out immediately to my right out of some tall reeds. I see she is a mature doe and think to myself a buck has to be behind her. Sure enough here come antlers. He pops out of the reeds, grunts at her and she takes off. I pushed my shooting sticks forward and snapped the rifle to my right and that was it. 22CM got another, best I can figure at 9:37. Most excited I had been for a deer in a long long time.
Started cleaning him and a young buck kept circling me, to the point I had to throw sticks at him to get him to leave me alone. Was very odd! Took a bunch of videos of those encounters, he came within 5 yards of me a few times. Never acted aggressive, just curious. Anyhow, loaded the Exo up one last time for the 24-25 hunting season.
Lastly, my buddies were excited to see this buck so they came to my river crossing spot to rendezvous and help me get him to the truck from there. One of them took this pic and it made me wonder how long I’ll be this invested in little ol deer. I hope a long time, and it really is an awesome taste of wilderness western hunting, down here in a small pocket of snowy south Alabama swamp.
