My buck

[Kt29]

First I need to apologize for the crappy pics.  My flash quit on my camera after one shot, so I didn't get a decent field shot.  After a busy Thanksgiving, with a house full of people, I didn't get out to hunt.  So Saturday, after everyone had left, I took off and got to my hunting spot about 2:00 in the afternoon.  Now it's the second to the last day of our season, and I'm getting nervous about not finding a deer.  I slowly hunted the trail I was on till about 3:00.  Then I decided to hunt back to the truck, as it gets dark really fast in these mountains.  I got back down to the game trail where I had shot my deer last year.  I stayed about 15 minutes watching the trail.  Didn't see anything.  Got up to leave, and wouldn't ya know it.  There was one there and it started blowing at me.  Well the jig was up with that deal.   Was pretty disappointed that a blew that chance.  So continued back down the trail to my truck.  Stopped at one last game trail to watch before it was to dark.  After no more than a minute, here comes this buck, and he was on the move, coming up the ridge right to me.  I took off the safety on my rifle, and with that little click, that buck stopped dead in his tracks.  He was no more than twenty yards away.  All I could see of him was from his shoulders back.  His head was behind a small fir tree.  I put by scope on him, but he was so close I had a hard time telling if it was the deer I had the cross hairs or a tree.  After a couple of redo's, I had the cross hairs behind his shoulder and pulled the trigger.  Down he went.  Was a pretty hurried job to get him field dressed as now it was getting pretty dark on this side of the mountain.  Time I got done, it was pitch black out.  I got my flashlight out and hiked back down to my truck to get my sled, than hiked back up the trail to the deer.  I loaded him into the sled and back down the trail we went.  This is a really steep trail, so it was a breeze getting him back down.
Was a good feeling, once I had him loaded into the truck.  Luck was on my side on this hunt.  Arriving a minute later and I would probably have missed seeing him.   Looking forward now to converting him into steaks and sausage. 






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[grizz1]

Great pics and story Terry. That is a very good looking buck, beautiful 8pt. I have to rely on luck most of the time anymore and it has served me well on many hunts, there is nothing like tagging a good buck when you are down to the wire on time either.Thanks for sharing with us and congratulations on taking one in the mountains. And I can just imagine what some of the sausage will be tasting like. So far my sausage making is on hold, no filled tags, may be a long winter.

[JerseyHunter]

Sweet looking buck my friend and great storey glad luck was on your side .And a big congrats.

[4Pointer]

Congrats ,, Great Buck ya got there Terry  ,, and the pic's are good .. Great story to go with it ,,