Heat of the moment was a little too much for first-time deer hunter ... but not for her dad.
The season started with little excitement. Although a big coyote came by early, I didn’t see anything with antlers. That was okay since I was more looking forward to my daughter Kaitlin’s first whitetail hunting experience later that evening. Another thing that made it special was my father Philip, 82, was going to join us.
After a brief recess for lunch, our eight-person hunting group decided to put on a drive on an adjacent property. Kaitlin and I were quickly designated as posters, so we headed to a big Maple tree we call Davy Crockett. Mind you, I’ve hunted this area all my 35-plus years of hunting deer and had never taken a deer on that property.
Kaitlin and I got to our spot and settled down. We didn’t have to wait long before we saw deer, including a small buck, moving through the woods below us.
I quickly got Kaitlin pointed in the right direction. The deer were moving pretty fast, however, and she wasn’t able to get a shot.
A few minutes later, Kaitlin whispered that she saw movement. Sure enough, more deer were coming our way, this time with a big buck in tow.
I coached her again as she waited for a clear shot, but it was obvious she wasn’t holding up so well. The excitement of the moment, along with the rushed conditions of the drive, were getting the best of her.
Finally, she looked at me and said, “Daddy, you shoot. I just can’t.”
After trying to calm her again, I realized she really did want me to shoot the deer. Looking at the buck moving through the woods again, I got a little nervous myself!
I was able to make what felt like a pretty good shot. Kaitlin and I then gathered up our gear and headed out to look for sign.
It didn’t take long for the drivers to catch up with us. Among them were my brother Darrell, my cousin Tom, my nephew Aaron, and my son Joshua.
We tracked the buck for a long and tiring time through ravines and the nastiest, thickest briars you could imagine. We all pulled up sharply at the sound of three shots on the neighboring property. I was sure my buck had just been taken by the neighbor, but we had to follow the blood trail to its conclusion.
As we come up the side of a small ravine, I looked up saw a deer lying in the leaves.
I thought, “There he is!” right before I realized I was looking at a doe. Just to the right was a hunter in a treestand, pointing at the doe to let us know it was his.
Darrell moved on toward the hunter to ask if he’d seen my buck. He indicated he hadn’t, but the two continued to talk.
As I watched them wrapping up their conversation, something caught my eye next to a large fallen tree. There was my buck tucked in tight not 10 yards away from them. It was alert, and it noticed me notice it.
I told everybody to remain still as I moved around to get a safe shot. At the report of the gun, the buck jumped up and took off. I heard the other hunter yell, “Where did he come from?”
The second shot had done its job, however, and it wasn’t long before we were admiring my buck of a lifetime.