Buck Found, Lessons Learned

When I was ten my father lost a hundred dollar bet to my mother.

In 1983, that was a lot of money.

She was going to let him off.  I will let you keep the hundred dollars if you will just say, "Honey, you were right.  I was wrong.  I will try to keep that in mind in the future."

Dad thought for a few seconds, "I think I'd rather give you the hundred bucks."

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Out of Sunday's three tracks, the first not-found buck bothered me the most.

Something did not add up.
Something just wasn't right.
The still quiet voice said "It is here if you would see."

I was ready to blame the dog for not being capable.  Maybe.  She's still green.  She's going through a bit of "pup-a-lescence," but I am the big ape with a little bit of poetry in him.  It is my job to bring the value-added problem solving.

Regardless,  I am thrilled to say the buck has been found.

The landowner found the buck and called the game warden.
The game warden called the hunter and asked him to describe the rack.
After passing the description test the warden invited the hunter to come out and collect his deer.

Junior collects his buck

The meat was past saving, but the hunter was still ready to throw his tag on it.

What I got wrong:

• It was not a brisket shot.  He shot it in the hind quarter and the arrow went out through the belly.  That is why we had such a great blood trail.
• At one time I walked within 20 yards of clear line of sight of that dead deer.  No brush, no saplings, nothing but mature canopy.  My head was down looking for blood.  He'd bled that much, it was open forest, I should have walked through another time with head up.

What I got right:

• It had lost enough blood to die.  I doubted myself by the end of the trail but that deer was dead.
• After we loss the trail, my best guess was that the deer went into the near-by treeline.  To be fair, after one restart, that is where Sparta took me too.  A better handler might have let her lead him farther despite the absence of confirmation.
• I asked Junior to drop me a note if the deer showed up.  I am so glad he did.

What was awesome:

• The landowner made an effort to find who had killed the deer.  A lot of people would have just cut off the head, saved the skull, or cut the antlers.
• That buck went about seventy yards after it stopped bleeding.  Imagine you've lost enough blood that you're no longer bleeding, then walk 70 more yards.  "'Dem deer are tough."

Biggest Lessons:

• Under similar circumstances, walk through one more time with your head up.
• Remember how much blood that deer loss.  Next time add another 70 - 100 yards.
• Remember, there are some awesome people in the world who go beyond fair chase.

Always be ready to say "I was wrong and I will try to keep that in mind in the future."

Bow Season Rules of Engagement 2015

I've said before that fair chase is a moving target.

Basically, if you are improving as a hunter you need to continue to limit yourself so that quarry has a chance.

I mean, lets face it, we could exterminate nearly any other species on the planet if we took a mind.  How sporting would that me?

With bow season approaching I am long past due to lay out my own rules of engagement for the coming season.

It might be my first year bow hunting in over two decades but I have spent a lot of time in the woods in those years so I still think I am safe to put some rules on myself without fating myself to frustration.

• I will hunt from the ground or natural elevation (hill sides, downed or easily climbable trees).
• I will hunt on public land.
• I will buy no more than one piece of additional clothing and buy no special detergents.
• I will not use scent lures.  
• I have some old scent neutralizer in the garage somewhere that I might use. 
• I will use one of the recurve bows I have inherited and wooden arrows with old fashioned broadheads.

What did I miss?

A military surplus shirt was the one new bit of clothing.

Fair Chase is a Moving Target

I don't play a lot of video games but there is a basic virtue exhibited by those who do: the goal is always to attain to a more difficult level of play.

Many hunters remain quite satisfied to hunt with the methods and equipment that they have always used.  The average hunter might purchase a new piece of equipment to make the hunt more comfortable or easier but rarely will he buy something or adopt tactics to make the hunt more difficult.  

Over time he might become a more efficient killer of game animals but he does not become a more accomplished hunter.

At this age, hunting with a rifle is a challenge.

Gamers, however, seek to improve their knowledge, skill, and reaction time in order to advance in any given game or to play the game at a more challenging setting.  If it is our goal to become a better hunter, we need to adopt a similar mindset.

I have successfully hunted deer with rifle, shotgun, and bow.  It was fun, I enjoyed it and if my only goal was to put as much meat on the table as possible, I suppose I would seek to do those things as efficiently as possible.  Moreover, I wish these meat-hunters good fortune, but there is a risk they will

A challenge for the more experieced

become bored with the sport.

Many seek to relieve the boredom by purchasing additional equipment or undertaking tactics promising to increase the hunter’s efficiency.  This at least in part due to the fact that many hunting programs and magazines are supported by companies which are marketing their products to hunters.  They have a vested interest not in helping you become a better hunter but merely a more accessorized hunter.

If we hunt for enjoyment if we are hunting game and not just seeking to put meat on the table as efficiently as possible, then the mastery of basic hunting skills is the opportunity to hone those skills and add additional ones.  The definition of a bad hunt is not necessarily coming home empty-handed but, rather, rather growing bored with a sport that no longer offers a challenge.

Fred Bear understood that risk as did the hunter of the 1950's and 60's who were growing bored with killing game with high powered rifles.  Yes, he too was trying to sell something but he was selling challenge not ease.

If we desire to become better hunters, if we desire to gain the skills and the virtues of those engaged in the truly oldest occupation of human society, then our concept of "fair chase" cannot be a static set of principles.   “Fair chase” can not be just the use of any new toy allowable by the rules laid down by the state Department of Natural Resources.  Fair chase, rather, is about each hunter’s relationship to the animal pursued.

Is it fair chase if I shoot a whitetail deer from 150 yards with a modern rifle and eight power scope?  Not anymore.  What about the use of a crossbow or a compound bow tricked out with the sights and a trigger release?  I will not begrudge them to a hunter who needs them as either a place to begin their pursuit of virtue or due to age or infirmity.  But if any of us are able to pursue a more difficult task, is it to our credit if we exchange it for a simpler one?

As each of us become a more accomplished hunter “fair chase” requires increasing the level of challenge we experience.  I am better, therefore I must limit my advantage in some other way in order to keep the pursuit “fair.” Maybe it is time to learn to hunt from the ground?  Learn to shoot instinctually? Take up the recurve or a longbow? Step off your uncle's deer preserve and accept the challenge of public land hunting?  

If any of us wishes to become a better hunter we do so by making the task harder, by playing at a higher level of competition.  Every sportsman worth the name understands the concept.  If we won’t model this virtue for our children, perhaps it would be better for their character if we just let them play Mario Kart?

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/next/body/what-science-knows-about-video-games-and-violence/