Didnt get skunked this season.

[megalomaniac]

Only got to hunt for myself 4 days in TN this year, another 15 days taking 6 kids.

But prerut started in south MS a couple weeks ago, and 1st rut is full bore right now. Killed this buck on my lease outside town this eve. Pretty representative 3.5yo. Didn't feel like dragging, so I cut him up on the spot.

I saw him cross a pipeline at 450y at 2p, but he decided to cross back at 300y at 5p. Didn't realize he broke the end of his left beam when I shot him, but after 30 days in the field.since mid Nov,... well sometimes something just needs to tip over!

He is the 2nd buck killed this year on my local lease in over 300 hunts by members.

Saw another 3.5yo tending a doe this morn, but entire right side was broken off at the pedicle.

 

[megalomaniac]

First time I've seen this... major puncture wound creating an actual hole in the skin between the pedicles. His opponents antler didn't penetrate the skull, but actually tore the periosteum. Not infected, but a gooey mess.

 

[270MONTS]

Congrats on a great buck.

 

[tn24]

Congratulations. I bet he had a headache.

 

[Gravey]

Congrats!!!

 

[rem270]

Congrats

 

[DoubleRidge]

Good deal! Congratulations!

 

[Billboy]

Good job!!

 

[TN Larry]

Congrats on a nice buck! So, when are your other lease members gonna figure out that sitting on the plots and feeders isn't the best thing to do. Lol.

 

[megalomaniac]

Congrats on a nice buck! So, when are your other lease members gonna figure out that sitting on the plots and feeders isn't the best thing to do. Lol.

They just can't help themselves... cameras on feeders is killing them. They get pictures of bucks tjey want to kill at night on the feeders and think those bucks HAVE to eventually hit them in daylight.... but they don't.

Yesterday morning, I set up on this particular pipeline on a high spot. I could see 2 feeders in opposite directions from me one 500y and the other 600y away. I watched 12 does / fawns and 3 bucks cross that pipeline... all in a low drain they can't see when hunting the feeders. Not a single deer hit those feeders yest morn, and in fact, 200y was the closest one came to a feeder.

Yest eve when I shot this buck, I was right by one of the feeders on that same pipeline hecause the wind direction had changed from the morning.. But I wasn't in the box stand 100y away that everyone else hunts, I was literally parked in the middle of the pipeline 5 yards away from the feeder and hunting from the roof of my tahoe (you need the extra height above ground level to see down into the bottom they travel 300y away, and you can't see it from ground level unless you get 50y from it). I'm sure the 2 cameras aimed at the feeder and me were wondering what the hell I was doing parked beside the feeder!

 

[megalomaniac]

This is how I hunt down here... slide a piece of plywood onto the roof rails to distribute weight, shooting mat on that, then sit in a folding stadium seat for back support. Shoot from prone position with bipod and rear bag when a deer comes out. It's a little tricky spinning 180d if they cross behind me, but as long as they don't smell you or see you move, they just ignore the vehicle after stopping to look at it for a but. Nice having an 02 Tahoe whose roof can support all the weight, just have to be careful not to put weight on the sunroof.

So far, I've only spooked 1 deer this season, and that was because the wind swirled on me and she blew at my scent.

 

[megalomaniac]

Sat eve, this was my view... I sometimes hunt the powerline beside the private blacktop road. Another member came in to hunt after me and parked his truck blocking my shooting lane 100y away. Took his picture, then to asked him to get back in his truck and park beside me so I could shoot the powerline bottom. I'm sure he was wondering what the heck I was doing.

 

[Big Pop]

Congratulations! Good buck!

 

[Lost Lake]

Thinking outside the box gets it done sometimes. Congrats on hanging in there and a nice buck.

 

[bigtex]

Awesome! Congrats!!

 

[Snake]

Nice buck congrats.

 

[BSK]

This is how I hunt down here... slide a piece of plywood onto the roof rails to distribute weight, shooting mat on that, then sit in a folding stadium seat for back support. Shoot from prone position with bipod and rear bag when a deer comes out. It's a little tricky spinning 180d if they cross behind me, but as long as they don't smell you or see you move, they just ignore the vehicle after stopping to look at it for a but. Nice having an 02 Tahoe whose roof can support all the weight, just have to be careful not to put weight on the sunroof.

That's cheating! ;)

 

[BSK]

Nice buck Mega. You're average 3 1/2 is a bit bigger than ours.

 

[megalomaniac]

Nice buck Mega. You're average 3 1/2 is a bit bigger than ours.

Not even close! This buck would have scored around 100 if he hadn't lost his g3 and end of left beam (he looks bigger in the pics than he really is). The other 3.5 y/o I saw that morning would have scored around 75 if he had both sides. Our 3.5y/os average around 85 to 90in here, 4.5y/os are 100-105. Highest scoring buck ever killed was 123 in the 6 years I've been on this club, and he was 4.5, but I also killed a 4.5 y/o that only scored 90. We have only killed 2 bucks that were 5.5. One scored around 80 in, the other was 115. You just have to set expectations a good bit lower when hunting locally. Per age class, bucks average 25inches less per age class from 3.5 and up than my TN farms. But there is an even more pronounced difference in the 1.5 and 2.5y/os. 90% of our 1.5 (really 1.25yos, due to fawn drop in Sept and Oct) are spikes with antlers less than 5 inches. Most of our 2.5y/os are 5 to 7pts that look like my TN 1.5yos.

There is a chance this buck is 4.5, as one side shows enough wear on M2... but that side has abnormal dentition causing uneven wear. The other side is normal and is only 3.5y/o, so I think that is probably the correct age.

 

[BSK]

Not even close! This buck would have scored around 100 if he hadn't lost his g3 and end of left beam (he looks bigger in the pics than he really is). The other 3.5 y/o I saw that morning would have scored around 75 if he had both sides. Our 3.5y/os average around 85 to 90in here, 4.5y/os are 100-105. Highest scoring buck ever killed was 123 in the 6 years I've been on this club, and he was 4.5, but I also killed a 4.5 y/o that only scored 90. We have only killed 2 bucks that were 5.5. One scored around 80 in, the other was 115. You just have to set expectations a good bit lower when hunting locally. Per age class, bucks average 25inches less per age class from 3.5 and up than my TN farms. But there is an even more pronounced difference in the 1.5 and 2.5y/os. 90% of our 1.5 (really 1.25yos, due to fawn drop in Sept and Oct) are spikes with antlers less than 5 inches. Most of our 2.5y/os are 5 to 7pts that look like my TN 1.5yos.

There is a chance this buck is 4.5, as one side shows enough wear on M2... but that side has abnormal dentition causing uneven wear. The other side is normal and is only 3.5y/o, so I think that is probably the correct age.

Must be a smaller body making his rack look bigger than it is. I was thinking 115!

Amazes me how narrow your age-class bell curves are. At my place, a 3 1/2 year-old could be 60 and he could be 160.

 

[backyardtndeer]

Congratulations.

 

[megalomaniac]

Must be a smaller body making his rack look bigger than it is. I was thinking 115!

Amazes me how narrow your age-class bell curves are. At my place, a 3 1/2 year-old could be 60 and he could be 160.

not narrow, the numbers I used were the 'average'. scores range up or down 20pts from average. But there is a ceiling... just not enough nutrition in pine straw to get a buck over 135 inches, no matter his genetics or age!

 

[BSK]

Yup, I've worked on some of those pine straw Deep South plantations.

 

[redblood]

Nice way to end it out. Will be good fishing soon

 

[thirdwilliam]

congrats and good information

 

[megalomaniac]

Nice way to end it out. Will be good fishing soon

Been wanting to fish for past couple weeks... but this past weekend we had 3-5ft seas and small craft advisory. Weekend before I had to take care of the dogs while wife and daughter were at a theater competition. This weekend isn't looking great either weather wise. I have to really pick my days, as I'm driving 1h 45min 1 way to fish the marshes.

 

[TheLBLman]

Nice buck Mega. You're average 3 1/2 is a bit bigger than ours.

No way.
The ones he's killing are way above average 3 1/2's for that area.

 

[TheLBLman]

Congratulations, Meg, on the fruits of your labors.

Been wanting to fish for past couple weeks... but this past weekend we had 3-5ft seas and small craft advisory. Weekend before I had to take care of the dogs while wife and daughter were at a theater competition. This weekend isn't looking great either weather wise. I have to really pick my days, as I'm driving 1h 45min 1 way to fish the marshes.

Have to say, you remind me a bit of myself in my younger days.
Always going full blast, hunting & fishing.

Wondering if you'll ever "slow down" a bit on the intensity of your deer hunting, and just how many days annually you deer hunt.

I won't say I'm a "fair weather" hunter, as I do hunt some nasty weather at times, but will say I hunt less, when I believe the conditions are low odds. Same for fishing.

 

[megalomaniac]

Congratulations, Meg, on the fruits of your labors.



Have to say, you remind me a bit of myself in my younger days.
Always going full blast, hunting & fishing.

Wondering if you'll ever "slow down" a bit on the intensity of your deer hunting, and just how many days annually you deer hunt.

I won't say I'm a "fair weather" hunter, as I do hunt some nasty weather at times, but will say I hunt less, when I believe the conditions are low odds. Same for fishing.

So... for 2023-2024 deer season...

had to skip velvet hunt as I had a funeral the following weekend.

Hunted 5d TN ML prerut for myself
hunted 5d TN rut opening rifle for kids
3d mid Dec in Starkville for 1st rut
5d TN 2nd rut for kids
10d in Jan so far for 1st rut in south MS

So, I hunt a fair amount, but only during rut/ prerut, I just go wherever peak rut is timing wise in the season and don't bother hunting if peak rut or 2nd rut isn't going on.

Wife is understanding... she knows as long as I'm hunting, there is no time to chase women, go to sports bars and get drunk, etc, etc. Plus I literally have no other hobbies. Don't golf, etc. In fact, when kids were young, I didn't even fish (no time). Now that 2 kids are in college and the baby is a junior in high school, I don't have all the weekend kids activities any longer, so I've been able to start fishing again.

But I've always been the energizer bunny... my wife thinks I have ADHD, I just think its me not wanting to miss out on anything in life. Sleep, watching TV, laying in bed, etc just seems like a total waste of time.

 

[TheLBLman]

Sleep, watching TV, laying in bed, etc just seems like a total waste of time.

I seem to "need" an average of 7 hrs sleep nightly to maintain my vigor
But am with you on the watching TV.
Just amazes me how much time people waste watching TV for their entertainment.