ChidJ
Senior Member
TL;DR I got a deer and here's a picture
A few weeks ago, @Jim Boyd posted a thread about sharing scrapes. I shared a scrape in that I had found on the last day of the season on a particular WMA and vowed that would be my first sit of the season.
Its been a tough year for me to hunt. My wife had our twins the second week of October, I've been working a lot extra hours at work; its just been tough to get out in the woods. But no excuses. I had to get out there this weekend.
I was super excited and up by 430 this morning, got my kit in the truck, and headed out. We had a cold front move in and it felt about like rut time; conditions felt right so I was amped up and ready to go. Upon arriving at the WMA I was a little troubled, though. On the sign-in sheet, there were already way more names on the sheet than there were for the entirety of the last year. I don't know if its COVID or somebody let out the word that my neighborhood WMA has a bunch of deer but when I left at 9am, the parking areas were packed.
That being said, there was no turning back. When I pulled up, there was a young guy hopping out of his truck with his gear and he appeared to be heading in the same way I was. I had a quick conversation and ascertained he would be nowhere near where I intended to go so that was that. I hit the trail running.
Getting to the tree was typically hairy. I'm glad the lake water level was extra high because it made crossing into my "bang zone" more difficult for the less intrepid hunters. And there it was, the tree above the scrape. I got up, situated, and waited for shooting light. Seems like on all my morning hunts, I feel like I'm up super high and then light comes and I'm hardly 12 feet off the ground haha.
Then, just as shooting light came, out of the planted pines strolls what I can only assume is the very buck who had left the scrape behind last January (makes for a better story anyways). I was elated but wanted to make sure I got a good shot. He was cruising and appeared to be throwing caution to the wind. I can only assume that we are in the 1st rut which aligns with the GON Rut Map. Thank goodness for an illuminated reticle otherwise I wouldn't have been comfortable with the shot.
Boom, didn't even take a step. I was thrilled. Some have stated that they have had less than optimal results with 6.5 CM but today's results indicate otherwise. He was a pain to get out of the woods but it was all worth it. I am just really grateful that Georgia hunting is so fun and accessible for folks who want to go out and have an adventure. Can't wait to make sausage next week!
A few weeks ago, @Jim Boyd posted a thread about sharing scrapes. I shared a scrape in that I had found on the last day of the season on a particular WMA and vowed that would be my first sit of the season.
Its been a tough year for me to hunt. My wife had our twins the second week of October, I've been working a lot extra hours at work; its just been tough to get out in the woods. But no excuses. I had to get out there this weekend.
I was super excited and up by 430 this morning, got my kit in the truck, and headed out. We had a cold front move in and it felt about like rut time; conditions felt right so I was amped up and ready to go. Upon arriving at the WMA I was a little troubled, though. On the sign-in sheet, there were already way more names on the sheet than there were for the entirety of the last year. I don't know if its COVID or somebody let out the word that my neighborhood WMA has a bunch of deer but when I left at 9am, the parking areas were packed.
That being said, there was no turning back. When I pulled up, there was a young guy hopping out of his truck with his gear and he appeared to be heading in the same way I was. I had a quick conversation and ascertained he would be nowhere near where I intended to go so that was that. I hit the trail running.
Getting to the tree was typically hairy. I'm glad the lake water level was extra high because it made crossing into my "bang zone" more difficult for the less intrepid hunters. And there it was, the tree above the scrape. I got up, situated, and waited for shooting light. Seems like on all my morning hunts, I feel like I'm up super high and then light comes and I'm hardly 12 feet off the ground haha.
Then, just as shooting light came, out of the planted pines strolls what I can only assume is the very buck who had left the scrape behind last January (makes for a better story anyways). I was elated but wanted to make sure I got a good shot. He was cruising and appeared to be throwing caution to the wind. I can only assume that we are in the 1st rut which aligns with the GON Rut Map. Thank goodness for an illuminated reticle otherwise I wouldn't have been comfortable with the shot.
Boom, didn't even take a step. I was thrilled. Some have stated that they have had less than optimal results with 6.5 CM but today's results indicate otherwise. He was a pain to get out of the woods but it was all worth it. I am just really grateful that Georgia hunting is so fun and accessible for folks who want to go out and have an adventure. Can't wait to make sausage next week!
