Do Share - Where are you going to be Oct 1st opening bow season?

[makeithappen]

Well, I'm heading up tomorrow to be in a stand along the Salt Fork on Saturday morning. I've been getting 400-600 pictures a day on my cameras since the first week of August, and there has still only been one mature buck (5+ year old) show up.

I've got to be honest that this is the least excited I've ever been about the opening of deer season. I believe Okie4570 suggested earlier in another thread that I forget the cameras and just go hunting, so I guess in a way that's what I'm doing....

Yes sir. 24 hours from now, sitting in the dark Looked at over 7k pics off of 3 cams from the last 2 weeks and not a shooter on cam in the last week. Got the one bizarro crazy racked buck that shows up like clock work. Hopefully my daughter can get a shot at him tomorrow evening............probably going to be a doe parade in the morning.

It's crazy that multiple people, who usually have a good selection and pattern of mature bucks on here, do not, this year. I know they're around, but for RetrieverMan, Okie4570 and DennisHoddy to not have big bucks on their cameras is a touch mind blowing. Maybe there's a chance for the rest of us to actually get big deer! lol

 

[Okie4570]

I'll be happy with a doe.....meat in the freezer!

Her too, she won't let any slick head have a pass in the morning.

 

[brian89]

I'll be in my bed opening morning sleeping in.. I never have much luck hunting mornings in the early season. But Saturday evening my 8 year old and myself will be out, slick heads are fair game for him and the ole crossbow..

 

[slas]

I'll be in my bed opening morning sleeping in.. I never have much luck hunting mornings in the early season. But Saturday evening my 8 year old and myself will be out, slick heads are fair game for him and the ole crossbow..

I've yet to get my 8 year old son enthused to hunt. Been working with him on shooting the 243 hoping he'd be ready for youth season but he's more enthused with a basketball goal than shooting and deer hunting. I'll keep working on him. I think he'll come around in a year or two.

 

[Seansworth]

I'll be getting off work and going to bed. Since I hunt public lands I like to get out in the middle of the week when there are fewer people walking through my shooting lanes.

 

[retrieverman]

I've only got into the deer hunting world over the last 2 years so I don't have cameras yet. Only a friend telling me, "Hunt over there in that section, I've seen several deer over there the last couple of years". I figure if I don't see any I can do a little hunt and stalk. Even if I don't see any I'm still excited just to be out there.

This is the attitude and enthusiasm that I wish I still had, but over the last 20+ years, I've become obsessed with big buck and have made deer hunting into work. On my 8 hour drive up here today, I pondered how to get that "spark" back and if it's even possible.

 

[Okie4570]

This is the attitude and enthusiasm that I wish I still had, but over the last 20+ years, I've become obsessed with big buck and have made deer hunting into work. On my 8 hour drive up here today, I pondered how to get that "spark" back and if it's even possible.

I can relate. Still like to go for the sake of being out, but I don't have to drive near as far as you do. Kind of living through my daughters spark right now, watching her go through the same stages I went through. She's after mature bucks and does already though, way earlier than I was. We know a lot more now than we did back then though too.

 

[retrieverman]

You're right. We as hunters have learned a lot about deer management. When I grew up in east Texas in the 70's, deer were a rare commodity due to heavy poaching, but by the early to mid 80's, they had started to make a come back. I killed my first deer on my uncle's place in 1983 and have killed close to 400 since. My Dad had a friend from south Texas when I was a kid, and he had a bunch of big bucks mounted and would tell me stories about deer hunting. That made a huge impression on me and made me want to hunt like Mr Sonny.
I got my first buck shoulder mounted in 1994, and at the time, it was a giant for the area. If you told me then that I'd get the opportunity to kill "A" buck over 170 inches, I'd have thought you were crazy, but I've been blessed with not one but three.
A buddy and I were talking about this a few weeks ago. I've been exponentially blessed with hunting success up to this point in my life, and if for some reason I never kill another deer, I've had a great run.

 

[dennishoddy]

A buddy and I were talking about this a few weeks ago. I've been exponentially blessed with hunting success up to this point in my life, and if for some reason I never kill another deer, I've had a great run.

True.
I've had a great run as well, and would like to pass it on to my grand kids, but they are Texans, and can't get up here for seasons.
We are entering into another phase of our lives. Hunting season in Ok is still a priority.
RV life coming up.

 

[makeithappen]

I shifted some work around and my coworker is covering for me so I can get in a morning hunt.

20 minutes after shooting light, another hunter approached with the grace of an elephant. I had to yell, after he tried sitting down 40 yards from me. He moved off, but has now reappeared, walking through to the other side of me. I'm not sure what he's thinking, but I'm not real pleased given the second encounter and his passing through to the other side of me now.

I missed a doe at 40 yards thanks to a squeaky tree putting her on high alert and the infamous invisible twig high fiving my arrow as it passed. The lumenock is now glowing smugly at 40+ yards.