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2005 1st Weekend Deer Season Results


Captain B.R.K

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9 for 13 guys, nothing big. three nice does, two 6's, two 7's, & a couple of small button bucks. I passed on a couple of small bucks, several deer were missed including a few longer shots at what looked like a very respectable 8 pointer.

Got another doe with my bow Thursday night, also shot the buck that was trailing it, but got a deflection on the tiniest little piece of brush & wound up with a leg wound, very frustrating. Hoping a gun hunter put a slug or two in him.

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I hunted 225 by almelund. Saw 6 does first thing saturday another at 3pm. Shot 2. Coyotes got one. Dead otherwise. Not a single buck and rubs everywhere. 1 more weekend and rest of bow season to cash in. Pretty slow I thought so far. Rut seems to be a ways away I think.

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http://www.fergusfallsjournal.com/articles/2005/11/08/sports/sports03.txt

Wayne Roberts, my "Uncle-in-law" or whatever he'd be now that I am married, made the paper with his 21 pointer. I will have to post the pictures once I get it. Looking back on that thing....why did I chose to walk around the swamp on the right side instead of the left side!!!! He has put me on the walleyes...I should have known he'd have put me on the big bucks too. That was my luck....never "quite" in the right spot. None the less...a better guy couldn't have shot that buck!

Steve

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Got an 8 on Saturday morning, no real size, but still nice.

Sunday, first time this has happened hunting in this area, I always sit in the same spot in the morning, and I heard a very little noise behind me, just thought it was the wind, but here a nice little buck was standing there in the trees about 15 yeards behind me, MAN those deer are sneaky. We sat and staired at each other for about a minute until he knew something wasn't right and took off, I couldn't get a shot, my heart was pounding and raceing so fast, I couldn't function, heh, heh. Little later I shot a spike,It ran up the hill I was on the side of, about 60-70 yeard away, I whistled at it, and it stopped to take a look. I could have sworn it was a doe, until I went to get it. My friend didn't mind tagging it (well, he HAD too anyway) he wasn't getting any shooting in. Little later sunday, missed an easy shot on a nice doe, it was cooken pretty quick, and when I finally found it in my scope, it dissapeared behind a small hill.

Its ok when they beat you too every once in awhile.

All in all, much better year than the last couple, alot of small bucks runnen around, only saw one big one, but too far away. grin.gif

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We only got 2 out of 11 hunters. It was pretty quiet where we were. I saw one doe with two fawns on Saturday and that's it. Some of the guys are hunting during the week and I have two more weekends so I'm not worried, yet.

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We went 5 for 16 in area 450 around Vesta. One big 8 and 4 nice does. Just another average year for us. Their were lots of distant deer seen saturday. Not much to be seen at all on sunday.

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I could puke. Saturday was both the most thrilling and most frustrating of my short hunting career, and now I feel like never hunting again.

Saturday morning, I was on private land in Lanesboro with my 17 year old son. I told him I wouldn't shoot anything I wasn't going to put on the wall, and that he could take care of getting the "meat".

Just after legal shooting hours, I had a decent 8 pt walk buy. I had a good 30 yard shot, but decided to pass and hope it would walk by my son. It didn't. I spent the next 3 hours wishin i took him down, but yet knew he wan't a trophy and waffled over wether i did the right thing.

About 10am I was getting bored with the stillness and decided to walk a 1/2 mile to our permanent stand. This stand is in a an oasis of trees in the middle of crop land. Surrounded by corn, it is unbothered by humans all summer and the deer have lots of scrapes and rubs throughout the acre and a half.

I haven't sat in that stand for a couple of years, as it tends to be unproductive when there's no crops. But this year, there was sign everywhere. The stand looked a little precarious, so I decided to climb up and check it out without my shotgun first. I had a feeling climbing up, that since I didn't have my gun with, that a monster buck would walk out immediately.

I got up there and she seemed steady enough. I just sat there for a few minutes, looking to my left, checking out a couple site lines and looking at two scrapes below. I probably sat there 15 minutes, when I thought, "this is kinda stupid, what if "the one" steps out right now, I'll be pissed". I turned to my right to climb down and get my gun, look down...

and there he is.

20 yards out, the biggest buck I have ever seen, including tv, magazines, sides of the road whatever. Had to be 250-275... very old, very grey face. Have you ever seen those progressive pictures of 12 year old dear, where their horns start to decrease in size and do weird things?

This once had a main beam on the left that was as thick as my wrist, with 5 tines that were probably 12 inches long, really beautiful 5 pts on that side,not counting brow tine. The other side was really goofy. sort of a flat 4inch by 1/2 inch main sticking straight up, with no curvature, and only one fork, sort of like sticking your elbow on the counter and sticking your forearm straight up and forking your 4 fingers. Weird.

NO GUN.

All I could do, is watch him stare at me, for what was probably 3 or 4 minutes. He busted me, and we both sat motionless.

Eventually he slowly turned around, and walked away. I made a little "baaa" sound and he turned sideways and looked at me, then slowly walked away.

Unbelievable.

He was on private land, so I couldn't try to trail him or anything, or cut him off somewhere. I did head 400 yards up my side of the fence and sat in some bushes hoping he'd come across the fence at the far end. He was so big, fat and old, I'm not real sure he could jump anymore... man what a buck.

I spent Saturday afternoon, lamenting to the farmer who owns the property, that I'll never, ever see one like that again.

He laughed and said, "til tomorrow morning".

That was ironic, because that evening, I went back to the same standing, hoping desperately that that deer would have a short memory, and come back and say High.

Well, he didn't, but a very nice 10 pt buck that was very symetrical and nice 6 inch tines, which would've looked good on the wall, stood broadside for me at 45 yds...

Here's the part where i puke. When I shot, he took off like he wasn't hit, ran 200 yds away. It was raining and I was worried his blood would get washed away if I did hit him. I got down and looked at the site and there was white fur on the ground. Probably not a good sign. Normally I would've come back in the morning, but it was raining, so off I went.

I picked up a blood trail at 75 yds and when I rounded the bend, to my suprise he was standing up on the top of the ridge, looking at me. I got off a very hurried shot, and apparently missed. He ducked into the corn. I looked where he was standing and there seemed to be plenty of blood. No green or yellow stuff, which might indicate an abdomin shot, but he had already gone further than the typical 30 to 150 range of a lung shot.

I decided to trail him in the corn. It was easy when he went perpendicular to the corn, as stalks were knocked down, but when he ran down the rows, it was a little tougher. There was no blood on the ground, but rather spatters and smears on the stalks on the left side of the rows.

I tracked him for an hour and a half, through 400 yards of corn, but it was getting dark and I didn't have a flash light. I decided to break off and check in the morning

Sunday morning, I picked up the trail, no it wasn't washed away, (Contact US Regarding This Word), and followed it for another 100 yards. I came to the edge of the corn, where it meets another corn field that was cut, and the trail vanished. No blood anywhere. I spent all morning on my hands and knees trying to determine his direction of travel. Nothing.

There aren't many hunters in the immediate area, and with 100's of acres of corn still up, the task seemed impossible.

What am I suppose to do?

I feel sick to my stomach. I can't sleep. That poor thing is probably dying a very slow painful death.

There's not much in the way of woods around. There is some about half - 3/4 of a mile away, but I tht they'd lay down closer than that.

Anyone have any ideas for me. How do You forgive yourself.

And how do I see two trophy bucks in the same day, and have nothing to show for it.

I checked my gun on a target from that same stand, and found i was shooting 8 inches low, and 4 inches left, fairly consistently. I guess I'm just a horrible shot.

Please forgive me.

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I'll try to post my pic here, hope they come through. This deer came in the rain, three hours after sunup opening morning. After seeing a smaller buck chasing, I knew the rut was on. He came in behind me hot after a couple of does about 30 yds off. Couldn't get him to stop when I grunted, he was focused. He bred the doe, then ran into a thicket without offereing me a shot. Waited for about 15-20 minutes before the does came back out and he offered me a shot. Didn't look like a big rack from the side, but as he ran away post shot I saw he had a pretty nice spread. Antlers where covered in pulp from rubbing. Shot was about 70 yds broadside, solid through both lungs. He didn't react much, and I took a second shot that hit him in the neck. Made it about 100 yds. 9 pointer, my best deer to date. Quite a thrill.

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It was great hunting as usualy on our land up north 14 deer for 9 guys with 4 big bucks. Cant wait till next week end the big boys were just getting going and we will really nail them. I love to kill deer laugh.gif

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Great pics and stories. After hunting opening weekend for the last 35 years, I had to forego this year's opener to do family things. BUT, I get to go out today. Can you say fired-up? Thanks to all for the peptalk/pics. I am a driven man...

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6 guys went 2 for 6. One 5 pointer and a button that looked like a big doe walking all by itself. Had other opportunities, but thats why they call it hunting and not killing.

DL

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Got a nice doe opening morning in 154. What a great morning to sit in the woods. One of the best in recent memory for me. Might head back for the final weekend.

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Hunted neer Longville. Saw a decent buck. My buddy shot a nice 7 pointer that was right on a doe. My Dad was hunting near Hibbing and shot a bruiser. Big wide 9 pointer with a 21" spread. The buck easily weighed 220lbs field dressed.

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I was hunting up in Lake of the Woods and i shot a decent 8 pointer and together are party shot 2 big 8 pointers and 1 big 9 pointer in 2 days so you could say we did ok that for a total of 6 people

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Hunted by Pillager Saturdy and Sunday with my dad, neither of us seen a deer. I've been going out after work during the week around Fort Ripley, havn't seen any there either. confused.gif I was seeing them bow hunting but now they disappeared.

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Hunted near Staples and as could be expected the warm weather lead to less deer movement where we stand hunt. Saturday only produced 6 deer past my stand, a doe with a four pointer following her in circles and figure eights below my stand, 2 yearlings and a doe and fawn. No shooting for the three of us Saturday.

Sunday was quiet as well. I still hunted around the swamp and was able to attract some deer with my bleat and grunt calls. The deer were running toward me in the water outside the thick brush I was in. They were within 30 yards before I could see a doe which was followed by a nice buck which I shot. I heard a third deer run off but didn't see it. I'll save space and save the story of going back to the truck to get waders, tracking the buck and eventually recovering him. Through my hard work in the swamp I was rewarded with the largest buck I've harvested, a very nice 8 pt.

The walk in from the woods on Saturday made the weekend when my friend came across a buck that has been dead for quite some time. It was decomposed and had no meat left on him. The rack - 11 points , maybe a 12th scorable point that we gross scored 190 1/4". Unbelieveable deer! Very unfortunate it was killed before one of us could see him on the hoof. He was about 100 yards or more off the highway so I suspect he was hit by a car. I'd post a pic of the racks but I'm not sure how to post pics in these forums.

We'll be back up there this weekend to try to cull the herd a bit.

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I have a typical 11 pointer that was shot up north by my great grandpa back in the late 60s and was around 190" class. I am planning on getting a cape and then put the antlers on for a shoulder mount after taking my taxidermy class out west in Montana next fall. Thats a big deer... was it a typical or Non?

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Had a very good weekend. I shot this guy opening morning @10:45. 12point, 220lbs dressed. I put a doe urine scent wick out, he came walking right to it. Shot him quartering toward me at 20 yards. Friend I was with shot a button Sunday morning, and I shot a button Monday morning. Lots of deer around and harvested (Hackensack area). Was a great weekend.

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Hunted around Litchfield. 2 guys ended up with one nice 9 pt. Saw a couple more but didn't get shots at anything else. They were not moving very well last weekend but a few more cornfields were taken down this week so we will try it again next weekend. I will post a picture if I can find out how. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks

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Nice buck ewirz, resize it on your computer, then upload on to the hosting site, then re-post it.

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We hunt in a Northern MN state forest. Nothing real big, but a very successful hunt nonetheless. I had a first on opening day, I had a doe coming straight at my stand and dropped her with one shot. I had a feeling so I stayed put in my stand. Sure enough within about a minute I started hearing grunting coming from the thick cover the doe had come out of and here comes a buck! I shot him and he dropped about 20 yards behind the doe! Talk about being psyched!! smile.gif I filled my buck tag and my bonus tag all in about a 4 minute span! The buck wasn't big but nobody in my hunting party had ever bagged a buck and a doe together like that so it was pretty cool! We party hunt so I had the opportunity to hunt again and bagged another small 6 pt on Monday. I could have shot another one on Sunday but when I climbed into my stand I forgot to re-load the chamber of my gun and you guessed it "Click"! That's OK though because he'll be back next year and a little bigger. Pretty good for hunting on state land I would say.

~piker

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Alright Eric!! Nice job dude.

I bet that was quite a rush having that guy walk in on your area!!

Great picture and a Congratulations on bagging that nice buck!!

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The 190 1/4" gross scored buck we found was typical but not quite symetric. 12 1/2" max tine length. I'd post pics if I had a server to post them from but I don't... We haven't scored the 8 pt that I shot but it should be 120-130. My personal best.

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Was ground zero around me opening morning. I'm betting 5 deer were shot within 250 yards of me in a one hour period. Had me hugging the tree a little bit.

Watched a fawn and doe for quite a while with a nicer buck just working his way out of some thick stuff. dad was one of the guys who shot and he took a nice doe - unfortunately it was right as I was sighting on the buck and he was close enough to me that they spooked back into the thick stuff. Won't try to force one through brush so I let them walk.

Guy on the ridge north of me shot a bit after that so I imagine he dropped it.

Finally decided to take a couple smaller ones after passing on some deer when I realized how many guys were around me and cutting me off. Will hopefully be up in the woods this weekend for a day when there's less pressure in my immediate area.

We were really trying to get my grandpa a last deer, but to be honest I watched one or two head past his stand and in the end he said 'there aren't any deer in there just some birds and squirrels' - too bad. Tough when the hearing aid goes out in the woods.

On a funny note, he ripped one in his stand that both my dad and I heard blush.gif - sounded like a gun shot. I actually had to do a quick visual on him to make sure he hadn't knocked himself out of the tree grin.gif

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  • Your Responses - Share & Have Fun :)

    • JerkinLips
      41.6°F in Stuntz Bay Thursday morning.  Left my boat in the water to hopefully fish more before the lake freezes.  Caught four 9-11" walleyes in 2½ hours before I gave up due to the strong west wind.  Water level has not gone up more than a couple of inches at the most.  May be a good winter to jack my boathouse out of the water on the deep end.
    • Troy Smutka
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    • SkunkedAgain
      It doesn't look like the lake level has gone up at all. I was up a week ago and struggled to get my boat in and out of the public landing on the west end of Head O Lakes. I used my paddle to push the boat further out to deeper water. I could hear the hull moving over the sandy/muddy bottom near the launch.
    • JerkinLips
      Pretty tough.  Was catching about 2 walleyes per hour and the biggest was only 13".  Back up Thursday so I hope I have better success.
    • smurfy
      the kid and I always check our stands prior.......i'll go back to check the conditions of said stands before he gets there to see what we need. while i'm at it if i can i shoot at grouse with shells that appear to not have bb,s in them!!!!🙄
    • LakeofthewoodsMN
      On the South Shore...  With unseasonably warm weather, there are still some anglers hitting the water and most have been rewarded.  Limits of walleyes and saugers being caught, and the forecast looking ahead is favorable. The best bite on the south end of LOW has been in 22-28 feet of water. Water temperatures are dropping and as the temps cool further, the bite has been excellent.     Vertical jigging with frozen emerald shiners has been the program for most anglers.  Bring plenty of bait, as you’ll need to sort through some smaller fish and short biters.  Plenty of eater fish to be had, just have to do a bit of sorting.  Anglers are also reporting very good numbers of jumbo perch and occasional pike mixed in with the walleyes.     For those fishing structure, if you slide up on top of a rock pile, don't be surprised to catch a big smallmouth bass, there are plenty around.   This week’s hot colors have been gold, gold/glow white, gold/chartreuse, gold/orange, and gold/glow white/pink.     One tip, a stinger hook on your jig will catch you more fish if you start missing too many fish. On the Rainy River...  Bait dealers are reporting good numbers of shiners in the river this past week.  Interesting, each night is different.  Some areas have the small shiners called pinheads.  Other areas have the larger minnows.     The river is producing some nice walleyes in various spots from Four Mile Bay to Wheeler's Point, to Baudette all the way to Birchdale.  There are 42 miles of navigable Rainy River from the mouth to Birchdale with plenty of public boat ramps along the way.     Walleyes are being caught in various depths, but 15-25 feet of water has been good.   Jigging with live or frozen emerald shiners has been highly effective. Some anglers are also trolling crankbaits to cover more ground and find fish. Both methods are producing solid results. Sturgeon fishing has been strong.  The catch-and-release sturgeon fishing is open into the spring when it changes to the "keep season" on April 24th. Up at the NW Angle...  Fall fishing continues to be excellent. Points, neck-down areas with current, shoreline breaks, and transition zones from rock to mud are all productive locations for walleye right now.   It is traditionally a mixed bag up around the many islands in this part of the lake and this fall is no different.  In addition to walleyes, pike, jumbo perch, and crappies are in the mix.  A jig and minnow has been the most effective presentation. Good muskie fishing is the norm during the fall of the year and area reports have been good.  In addition to casting, trolling shorelines, points and neckdown areas has been effective.  Muskies are often targeting schooling tullibees this time of year. The weather forecast for the next couple of weeks is conducive for fall fishing.  If you don't deer hunt, or if you have harvested your deer, consider some bonus walleye action before the ice forms.  The bite continues to be excellent.    
    • leech~~
    • gimruis
      I'm not one to leave that to chance the day I need it.  I always check on my stands prior to the season.  Just like I always shoot my rifle before the season and I always run my outboard motor before fishing opener.  Too many things to go wrong without confirming it ahead of time.   I guess it could have been beavers but the house itself didn't appear nearly big enough along one ditch.  It was about the size of chair.  I've seen beavers houses many times before and they appear much bigger than that.
    • leech~~
      Good thing you made a check run.  That would have really suked walking into opening day.  Why do you think muskrats and not beavers?  
    • gimruis
      Well I checked on stands over the weekend.  Kind of a disaster.   All the ditches are plum full and twice as wide becauase muskrats have clogged an area.  I spent an hour unclogging it and the water is slowly moving again, but our bridges and planks were underwater.  The back portion of the land where the best stand is was inaccessible.  Hopefully that changes by Saturday.  I have a feeling the muskrats are just going to clog it back up again.   Tons of standing corn still too.  They've started on it, but being so wet now with more rain coming, whatever's there will remain there for the foreseeable future.   All the grassland is completely flattened like a pancake due to 3-4 inches of heavy wet snow.  That eliminates about 75% of the pheasant habitat in this spot.  Total buzz kill.  And this specific spot was one of my better producers last season because the grass was intact and lush through December last year.
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