Opening Day

[Myk]

And I missed a fawn. Oh well. It was a little too small even for me. No way would I have been able to save my other tag for a buck if I would've taken it.

I couldn't aim low because it was in a creek and the weeds/bank was blocking a lower aim. It ducked. No blood or hair on the arrow or ground and I saw it walking after the doe a little later.

I actually drew on it and let down before deciding to shoot.

I can draw the new bow without a problem. Even twice in a row didn't give me any problems.

Not a great opening day. Heading out in the morning, the owners dog followed me into the woods. When I told it to go home a bunch of deer spooked from the neighbor's. I hope they weren't the bucks. I'd like to get the big 8pt with bow.
Opening day is usually when I get my chance at big bucks, I'm thinking the dog blew it for me this year.

[tcoop]

Myk,

I have had similar things happen to me in the past. Don't you just just want to shoot that dog?

I didn't get off work until late. So I only got to spend the last 1 1/2 hrs out on opening day. It was raining so I sat in the guys shed. Sat a pallet up in front of me to help hide me as the light came right in.

I didn't see a thing. Then at quitting time I looked all around. Didn't see a thing. Threw the pallet back up on the stack of pallets, and had to slam the shed door to get it to shut. After all that noise, I turned around and spooked a nice size doe that was only 20 yards away, right where I could have shot it. I have no idea how it got there so quick and so quietly. Let a lone why it came there as I was moving around and making noise.

I have very little hope in my bow season this year as I lost my best bow hunting spot to a lease this year.

tcoop

[Myk]

Tonight made me want to shoot the dog.
I come up 30 minutes early in case there are some in the field.
There is. I stalk about 75yds after a doe. I finally get 30yds away, I'm just waiting for her to step out from behind a tree.
That dog comes running up from the woods behind me. He was with the neighbor who was running an endloader.

I've been hunting there that dog's whole life and he's never screwed with me bowhunting. Not even when a neighbor was letting his dog out to screw with me.
Now in three days it messes with me twice.
They just got a puppy so I think it's having some behavior problems because of the less attention. He's also at the old age where it knows everything but notices nothing (or ignores what you tell him). Before, he would've known not to follow me and if he would've he would've started following early enough that we would've been by the house when I told him to stay home.

But at least he's still smart enough that after the crack on the nose he hasn't tried to follow me into the woods again.
Soon he will be at that even older age where he doesn't get off the porch :)

We've had deer sneak in on one guy hunting while I was on the other side of the barn sighting in a bow. Noise that they get used to doesn't seem to phase them.
I think the fact that we target shoot with guns out there is why gun fire during shotgun season doesn't really spook the deer.

[tcoop]

"I think the fact that we target shoot with guns out there is why gun fire during shotgun season doesn't really spook the deer."

Myk,

Where I shotgun hunt the deer hardly ever see people. I have been watching deer when someone shot about 100-150 yards away. The deer didn't even look.

tcoop