2014 Pushmataha County Thread

[rhendrix]

Morning gents, it's a beautiful day to kill a deer!

[Vantage Point]

80% chance of rain in the area for Saturday. Looks like I'll be getting some use out of the pop-up..

[rhendrix]

2014 Pushmataha County Thread







SLUMP OVER! 36 yard shot. Slightly quartering to. Momma busted me and she hesitated just a little to long.

[wes122984]

Congrats!

[rhendrix]

Wes, couldn't have made it happen without your help buddy, you made the learning curve out here very shallow. Without you and your buddies help I'd have likely struck out.

[homegrown]

Congrats on the doe rhendrix! And good shot.

[Booner Sooner]

Yessir! Luke the immortal Babe Ruth you called your shot! Great work, gettin it done in public ground. Respect to you Ron!

When you have time I'd like to hear about your set up and the play by play.

[rhendrix]

2014 Pushmataha County Thread

Booner, gonna stop at the in-n-out in Allen in a minute, I'll give you the play by play then.

[rhendrix]

2014 Pushmataha County Thread

There's a couple food plots that the deer were hitting regularly when I got there on Thursday. Wes hunted one a couple of days ago and told me that he saw a buck and one or two does on it that evening and gave me an idea of where they came out at.

I sat inside of the tree line a fair ways away from the food plot previously mentioned on Sunday hoping that a buck would cruise by in the afternoon but never saw anything.

Yesterday I hung a stand about a mile and a half maybe from any real road where there where there were a ton of scrapes and rubs. But getting back there was no small task and I probably bumped 10-12 deer going back and forth every time. After sitting for an afternoon and morning hunt and not seeing anything, I was feeling down on my luck and not very confident that I'd have the chance to shoot anything. I even thought about packing up and heading home early, but the mantra "it only takes one" kept playing in my head so I decided to climb down and move stands. As I was getting ready to pack up and move, Wes texted me and told me to do some driving around and check to see if any of the food plots were being hit before setting up, so that's exactly what I did. On the way to check the plot I hunted on Sunday I noticed every other plot had deer that were running off of it as I was driving by. Things were looking up!

Upon arriving near the food plot I parked the car, gathered up my stand and bow and started walking, it's probably a 500-1000 yard walk, as soon as I got to the plot I noticed that the wind was blowing straight across it, which meant that I could set up closer to where Wes saw the does and buck come out at. Walked around some and hung a stand right near the corner of the plot, checked my shooting lanes and I had one to my right that would be a 20-25 yard shot, and another to my left that would be a 30-40 yard shot.

Settled in around 3:30 and waited, was texting my sister when I caught some movement, one lone doe hopped out into the plot and past my first shooting lane. I never once heard her come in. She wasn't the biggest doe in the world, but certainly not a yearling, and I was in no position to be picky seeing as how she was only the second deer in 5 days that I had in bow range, and the first that I could possibly make a play on (the first doe ran through my set so fast I didn't have time to react). I slowly stood up and grabbed my binos, no nubs on her head that I could see, so in my mind I had the green light. If she presented a shot I was going to take it.

She slowly made her way through past some brush, that was in my way and would periodically look back at the trail she came down, but try as I might, I could never see anything. I ranged her several times while she was walking, at first it looked like she was gonna feed away from me. She went from 35 to 38 to 40 yards and my heart began to sink a little. It's been two years since I had a bow kill and I was watching my chance disappear right before my eyes when suddenly she started walking back towards me, and towards my shooting lane. She hung around for what seemed like forever right outside of it.





I ranged her several more times and adjusted my sight to 36 yards on the nose, I just needed her to take two steps. One step, then another, this is it. I raised my bow arm, then suddenly I heard that all to familiar sound of a doe blowing her head off and I got the worst feeling in the world, the jig is up, I've been busted, but it didn't come from her, it was coming from my left. I turned my head just in time to see a big white rump busting through the brush. I looked back over at my doe and although alert, she hadn't moved.

Thinking it was either now or never I drew, anchored and settled the pin like I've done thousands of times over the last year. She was slightly quartered to me. Before I could think about it I pulled through the shot.

THWACK, I heard and watched the arrow hit her right where I put my pin. A rush of relief flooded over me as I watched her run away, I heard her fall and take her last breath. Then complete and utter silence. I texted Wes and told him what happened.

The plan was to sit and wait for 10 minutes, but after two minutes I just couldn't take it anymore. I haphazardly looked for my arrow and when I couldn't find it after 30 seconds I just started blood trailing. There wasn't much blood at all, but I knew she wouldn't go far. 70 yards from where I shot her I found her lying conveniently on the road I had to walk out on. I'm absolutely thrilled taking this doe, it means as much to me as taking my first buck with my bow.



And I'd like to thank Wes and his crew immensely, if it hadn't been for them I don't know if I ever would've pulled this off. Thanks again you guys!

[Booner Sooner]

Great write up and pics! Congrats on the kill!

[Archer4Life]

Congrats rhendrix!! Great write up and way to stick with it. Glad it payed off for you.

[rhendrix]

Thanks guys!

[Peepstaxidermy]

Congrats in the doe. Well I'm still headed north Friday and yet I get the kiddos from school but that 100% chance of rain doesn't have my hopes very high. Oh well hoping for the best.

[homegrown]

WFAA only calling for 60% chance on Saturday with 40% both Friday & Sunday. I'm still packing/planning and hoping for the best. May just have to go sit all day in my pop-up on Saturday and see what unfolds.

[homegrown]

60% went to 90% overnight. Tent camping in heavy rain isn't any fun. Need a place here closer to home to do some truck hunting.