First Buck w/Rifle

[01Foreman400]

Congratulations!

 

[Rackmaster]

Saturday 11/5 was another great benchmark in my hunting journey.

On 9/11 I scored a nice 8 pt with my compound bow which was my first deer kill ever. It was on my grandma’s property which I used to hunt small game on back when I was really young with my grandfather who passed a few years back.

Being in Bartow county in a neighborhood with a ton of farmland, bucks just don’t make it past a couple years old without our neighbors taking them off their back porches etc. I’m hoping my relationship building over the next few years with them will help with QDMA. To give everyone some perspective I heard about 15-20 shots in just two days of hunting last weekend.

Over the past few weeks I’ve seen a ton of smaller bucks, spikes/small 4 pts, on the cams. Then the last 2 weeks I had not seen many deer at all due to the local pressure. Time to try some recommendations from my hunting buddies so I hung a Tinks 69 wick near my blind in good wind Friday and broke out the grunt call and bleat can to give those a go. Had a buck run up behind my blind Friday night just before last light but never got a shot due to my setup and windows.

Well, on Saturday I toted the rifle out to my blind setup which is on a shooting lane corridor between our pond, thick cover, feeding, and bedding to see if I could catch a buck cruising again. Morning was a bust and the afternoon was super hot and muggy. Fortunately a rain storm came in for about 35-45 min which cooled down the area and probably knocked down any scent I left coming in. During the rain storm I was hitting the bleat can pretty enthusiastically every 20 min or so, with a grunt or two peppered in too. 20 min after the rain stopped at about 5:15pm I caught movement and saw it was a buck I had not seen before. Most of the bucks on my cams had small or non existent brow tines. Not this guy! Well, he came in on a rope to my Tinks and some acorns I collected and put out and I told myself if I got an ethical short shot I’d take it.

Well the Ruger American Ranch in 7.62x39 did its job and I did mine with a perfect heart shot broadside at 17 yds. This setup, with the muzzle brake and Leupold 2x fixed scope is a dynamite setup that’s a tack driver, light weight, and no recoil really at all. The load I used was a S&B 124 grain jacketed soft point which provided great knock down power and a full pass through. I watched the buck pile up after a quick 20 yd dash.

Although it’s no monster like some of you are putting down, I’m still grateful to tag out my first year hunting in GA on two great first bucks. One with my bow and one with my rifle, both on my family’s property. I look forward to more great seasons to come on our 65 acres. I’m already looking into how to setup plots for next year and prep the property to hold more deer, hopefully helping out with the age class and quality! But I had to start somewhere and build experience/confidence, which this season brought a lot of for sure. Both recoveries and field dressings were DIY too which a learned a lot from too. I feel blessed for the meat in the freezer, and the opportunity to spend time with my grandfather on his land even though he is no longer with us. RIP Papa

Here's a couple pics, be safe everyone

SVT28

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Awesome story ang Great Deer, I miss hunting with my grandfather also!

 

[Mason Jar]

Nice Buck, Congratulations !!!

 

[slow motion]

Congratulations. Beautiful buck