Two More Big Florida Bucks for 2011!

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My Friend Rick Edwards harvested these two bucks during bow season here in Flagler County, Florida.
Being a coastal county and hard hunted, you don't get to see to many bucks this size.

Rick had already captured pictures of both bucks on his trail cameras and knew they were using the are.

Both bucks are in the 100" range.

The second and larger of the two bucks was liver shot and took some effort to recover.

Here's some pictures of a couple great bucks;

This was an interesting photo. This is just how Rick found the Buck, crashed into the saplings and

still up-right. Pretty unusual.

Buck #2

Obviously, this is an older deer. You don't get this kind of mass without

age!

Good Luck,
Larry S.

Florida Bow Hunting Report #9- 2011 The Last Hunt!

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Florida Bow Hunting Report #9- 2011
The Last Day!
Saturday, Oct. 16, 2011

For the last morning of bow season I decided to put my money on the Kill Zone stand again. There has just been to many bucks using here and I want to put my hands on one of them.

I was in the stand early and eagerly awaiting daylight. However, no deer made an appearance and it was pretty slow going this morning.

Then came the last hunt of the last day of the 2011 Florida Bow season. Do I really need to tell you where I hunted? Yes, I went back to the Kill Zone. I know what everybody’s thinking…..I’m over huntin’ that spot. Well, some stands can take more pressure than others and this is one of them. Besides that, this particular spot is just a natural area that bucks like to pass thru. I get a lot of bucks I’ve never seen before on the trail cam here. I think it is partially due to the lay of the land but also due to the way 4-5 different edges conditions all come together right at the stand. There is a fire break, planted pine plantation, old cut over bay, mature volunteer timber stand and a mowed area all converging at one spot. I have killed at least a couple bucks here every year.

I climbed to my hide up in the little pine about 6:00 PM for my last opportunity to take a buck here with my bow.

Time ticked by slowly and it was getting pretty late. I was really getting worried that a buck was not going to show. Actually, I think I had already surcomed to the reality that I was not going to take a buck this year. To tell you the truth I was just thankful that I had at least finally taken a deer at this point.

The sticker 7 Buck Makes A Fatal Mistake!

I was standing there with bow in hand listening for any sound of an approaching deer. There was maybe 15 minutes left in the 2011 season when I heard a noise that got my attention back in the palmetto flat behind me. I went ahead and eased into position just in case. Then I heard it again……That’s a deer!

The next thing I saw was a deer step from the palmettos and I could see it was a racked buck. He moved slow and cautious down the mow. When he came into the shooting lane I bleated at him softly but he didn’t hear it. I bleated a little louder and it got his attention, stopping with his head behind some bay saplings. I put the pin at the back edge of the shoulder and launched. The shot was 39yds and the shaft caught him just a few inches behind the near shoulder, passed thru the center of the heart and out the opposite shoulder. He charged off into the chest high palmettos like he was on fire. There was a constant clattering, crashing sound of bushes until he reached the back of the old chop where the timber started. There was a slight pause then a final crash and thrashing. I have seen this play out many times in the past and it has always meant a dead deer.

I could hardly believe I had just killed the 7pt with the sticker off the bottom tip of his beam. He was the first racked buck to show up on the trail camera there and I had actually seen him once but he did not get close enough for a shot. As much as he was showing up on the camera I was confident I would eventually get a shot at him.

In 2 days I had completely turned around a season that was looking like a total wash. Funny how things work out. Just goes to show you need to stick with it right to the last minute.

This deer was shot with a Muzzy 4 blade, 100 gr. Broadhead and left as good a blood trail as you will ever see. Have a look at some of the pictures I took of the trail.

There's my broadhead and 4" of shaft near the center of the picture!

Now that's a heart shot!

Here are some trail camera pictures of him.

Looks I finally got things going my way.

Larry S.

Florida Bow Hunting Report #8- 2011

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Florida Bow Hunting Report #8- 2011
The Last Weekend

Saturday, Oct. 15, 2011

I can’t believe it took this long to put a deer on the ground but I finally got it done! The next to the last day of the season and I took a doe at about 15yds this morning.

Were just coming off a full moon and the feed times are a little off. I expected the morning hunt would be my best chance to put some brown on the ground.

I hunted the Kill Zone stand this morning and the hunt was going pretty slow until about 7:15. I was standing with my shoulder against the tree and my back to my entry trail. Deer never use that trail. Finally, one did!

I never heard the approaching doe or knew she was there until she was 6 yds from my tree. I just happened to turn my head to the left (south) and noticed a movement . It almost looked like a spider on my shoulder. I ever so slowly looked down to see a big doe standing there looking for me. She put her nose to the ground and snapped back to attention. She had tracked me down the trail and was looking for me. I stood still waiting for her to move. She was not there for corn and when she broke I knew I had a matter of seconds to get a shot off before the opportunity would be lost.

The doe was quartering away at 15 yds when the pin settled on her and the shaft was away. The shot was true and the doe charged off at high speed, tail dish ragging. She made it about 45yds. and I got to watch her pile up insight….F I N A L L Y ! Man was that a relief. I had to sit down and take a break. I have really been hunting hard for that deer. I had come so close to the season being a bust it was unconceivable. Boy, did I pull that one out of the fire.

The afternoon’s hunt was a bust and there were no deer sightings by anyone I talked to at camp.

My ole’ buddy SteveO just so happened to have a fifth of Jack at the camp and it was time to celebrate the big kill. We were up until nearly midnight telling old huntin’ stories and reliving past adventures. It was tough getting up the next morning. We were both a little punchy but we made it to the stand for the mornings hunt.

Here are some trail camera pic.'s from the last couple days:

Larry S.

Florida Bow Hunting Report #7- 2011

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Florida Bow Hunting Report #7- 2011

Friday, Oct. 14, 2011

Well boys, it’s been a rough week! At one point Wednesday morning the thought came to me to climb out of the stand, pull my dull arrow out of the dirt, impale myself with it to put me out of my misery and save any further embarrassment.

I’ll get back to this one in a minute, lets start at the beginning.

Monday morning, the 10th, I got up early for the hour drive to the hunt club. I got in the stand a full half hour before shooting light to be ready in case a buck came by at cracking light.

Well, as usual, nothing showed and needing to get to work, I climbed down at 8:45.….That was a mistake! 15 minutes after I climbed down here comes a nice little 4pt. Damn the luck.

That afternoon I was back in the same stand at the kill zone. It was overcast and dark had come early as a result. It was going pretty slow and the darkness was about to force me out of the stand when I heard a deer approaching through the palmettos to the North. I trained my glasses on the head of the mow where the deer have been coming out. Just then legs appeared in glasses and I shifted them up as the deer’s head came into view……there were horns everywhere! Unfortunately, at 40 yds. It was just to dark for a shot at that distance, Trust me, I tried!

I cold camped that night without power, ate a sandwich by the light of a flashlight and hit the rack.


Tuesday Oct. 11,

I hunted the kill zone stand this morning and saw zero! I pulled the camera card and it did not have to much for pictures but given the terrible storms we had over the weekend I guess it was understandable. I had to corn the other stands and pull cards. Both the other camera’s only had 50 some pics each. The batteries had quit in one but it had some great bear pictures. Here are a few but I’ll make a separate post with the others.

I went back to the same stand for the afternoon’s hunt. It was looking like it was going to be another bust and I was just about ready to climb down when I caught a movement at the head of the mow…..I immediately got the glasses on it and bleated at it to stop it…..Horns everywhere! It was probably the same buck from the evening before. No way to know for sure but a good bet. He was on the same trail, at the same time, just going the opposite direction. I probably shouldn’t have but I had to take a shot. I dropped the binos and bleated again to be sure he didn’t move before I could get a shot off. I loosed a shaft, the deer made one crash and…..silence. To make a sad story short, I hit nothing but dirt, buried to the fletch. He was probably gone before the shaft ever got there since I had to bleat him twice.

It was back to the camp for a shower, grub and bed.


Wednesday Oct. 12,

Now were back to where this post started. I went right back to the same stand again knowing I’m really over hunting it but the buck activity has been so good I just can’t help myself and they just keep coming.

It was a great morning, the birds were really feeding hard and active, all kinds and types. I was feeling pretty good about my prospects but it was approaching 8:30 and I had yet to see a deer. This is where it got interesting. I see this deer go shuffling across the mow. A minute goes by and I see him pop out on the fire break at 65yds. I just got the glasses on him as he passed into the pine plantation…..a buck, not a big one but a buck none the less. The bad part was he was leaving me.

I was feeling pretty low when he popped back out on the fire break, nose down and headed my way! It was the 4pt from Monday, sweet revenge!

Well, he came up to the corn, 16yds, nose on the ground trailing. He circled to the right and stopped, quartering away. I decided I better take him where he stood. I drew and put the pin on him and pulled the trigger. I have no explanation for what happened. All I can say is, I missed! Went right over his shoulders at 16yds! It is hard to believe that is even possible. I have killed every deer I have ever shot at that came in front of the stand at that spot. I guess there is a first time for everything.

I almost got a second shot but he loped off a ways and went back to trailing, eventually leaving off to the west.

That was quite a low point I’m here to tell you.

The trail camera captured the bucks picture just before the shot and a picture of me walking up to my shaft buried in the dirt from the miss.

When I watched the partial video footage from the hunt I was able to tell the shaft had clipped something at the stand just after the release. The stand is pretty well brushed in and when I shot there was some debris the fell. I was so focused on the  deer I did not pick up on it.  If I get a chance I'll add the clip to the post but it's not I zoomed the camera where I thought I was going to shoot the deer and he turned the other direction and it was to late to adjust so he was not in the frame at the shot.

That afternoon I went back to give it another try and I did have a deer show up but it was a nubbin buck I was not going to stoop to shooting him even though I was desperate.


Thursday Oct. 13,

Needing to get some work done today so I decided I better hunt close to home and hunted the pond stand. I hunted until just after 9 and headed for work. I did not see anything. I should have stayed another few minutes. When I checked the camera the next day I saw a spike had come in there to pick up corn shortly after I left. Can my luck get any worse?

 

I spent most of the day working on the Switchback, trying to figure out why it seems to want to tune out of spec. Can’t figure it out. I set it back as it was and rechecked the sights.

That evening I went back to that stand. I was real late and did not get in the stand until 7:00PM. about 10 minutes later I need to shift my weight and when I moved a movement at the corn pile caught my attention. A deer had snuck up from behind me where they never come from and I never saw it until it spotted me to run. It stopped out at 28yds with it’s head behind a big pine. I eased the glasses up and leaned out r e a l s l o w until I saw a horn sticking up! About then he wheeled and trotted off.
Damn…..it does get worse!
Look at what showed up in front of the stand later at midday while I was gone. All I could do was shake my head when I reviewed the pictures. Looks like a 2.5yr old 6 pt.

Friday Oct. 14,

It was back to the pond stand this morning so I could get to work at a reasonable time. Besides that there had been 6 different bucks at that stand over as many days. Also, there had been a flock of 10 turkeys and the hog made an appearance. Surprisingly, not one doe has been there for some corn.

The hunt this morning was ruined by a pack of coyotes howling just a little over a hundred yds to the east. I saw zero game.

I worked on the bow today and determined the cable is failing. When I set the cam lean and shoot a couple shots, the cable stretches and I loose the cam lean I just twisted in! I am afraid it might go any time. I ordered a new cable with expedited shipping. I sighted the bow back in and even though it is way out of spec. it shot real good. I won’t shoot it again unless necessary until I can get the new cable on it.

One of my buddies stopped by this afternoon while I was working on the bow. He poked his head in the door and said “ I’ll come in but only if you promise not to touch me….I don’t want what you have rubbing off on me! Real funny! You know I had to touch him!

I could not make it to the club this afternoon to hunt so I had to go back to the pond stand. The coyotes were there again, this time just 75 yds off to the west. They were howling and tearing it up. Pretty neat but not good for deer hunting. I saw no deer but a black coyote came trotting in through the pine barren in the dark.

I pulled the trail cam card and one of the spikes came by for some corn at 9:39AM….just after I left! Should I expect anything Different?

It will be back to the hunt club in the morning but I have hay to cut in the morning so it needs to be a quick one. Hopefully, my luck will turn.

Larry S.