Well it took 4 years but I finally got a deer behind dogs! I don't think I have ever been so excited to shoot a button buck in at least 20 years. It was on the last hunt of the last day.
My in-laws live in Virginia and I am only there every other year. Doing a traditional hunt with dogs has always interested me and I was fortunate enough to meet a stranger who was willing to take me to his club for a hunt. We became good friends and this was the 4th year I have hunted with him.
The basic premise behind these hunt is a group of hunters surrounds a block of timber and then hounds are released to chase the deer thru the woods and hopefully past the standers. Mind you this is not Midwest timber. Rather eastern forest. Which is solid and no breaks/open areas other than logging roads and any new clear cuts which have recently been cut. Even then the clear cuts are thick and overgrown in just a matter of a few years! So it can be quite the challenge.
The hunts are really like no other. When the dogs start balling that's when you get excited because that means they are on scent/deer. For 4 years I heard and saw many deer shot but I was always in the wrong stand or the deer were just out of sight. It seemed it would never happen for me! Finally when it did it was just as I had imagined. The beagles started balling 6-700 yards out. At this point, being late on my last day to hunt , I already assumed the dogs would run them another direction like had happened so many times before. To my surprise the next set of yips came from 4-500 yards out. Then maybe as little as 300. I started getting excited and realized I better get my gun up. Then suddenly I saw a tail bounding thru the thick eastern woods. At his current trajectory I would have an open shot at 70-80 yards which I knew was right at the edge of my effective distance for my 00 buckshot. Amazingly the little buck made a left turn at the perfect moment and headed straight to my stand. At 28 yards my my load of buckshot dropped him in his tracks. I thanked the Lord right then and there for such a blessing and amazing hunt.
A few seconds later these two amazing little beagles, who had done all the hard work, came bounding out of the trees and stopped over my kill. The dog handlers showed up shortly after and I was able to snap this pic before they grabbed the pups and put them away for the day.
My in-laws live in Virginia and I am only there every other year. Doing a traditional hunt with dogs has always interested me and I was fortunate enough to meet a stranger who was willing to take me to his club for a hunt. We became good friends and this was the 4th year I have hunted with him.
The basic premise behind these hunt is a group of hunters surrounds a block of timber and then hounds are released to chase the deer thru the woods and hopefully past the standers. Mind you this is not Midwest timber. Rather eastern forest. Which is solid and no breaks/open areas other than logging roads and any new clear cuts which have recently been cut. Even then the clear cuts are thick and overgrown in just a matter of a few years! So it can be quite the challenge.
The hunts are really like no other. When the dogs start balling that's when you get excited because that means they are on scent/deer. For 4 years I heard and saw many deer shot but I was always in the wrong stand or the deer were just out of sight. It seemed it would never happen for me! Finally when it did it was just as I had imagined. The beagles started balling 6-700 yards out. At this point, being late on my last day to hunt , I already assumed the dogs would run them another direction like had happened so many times before. To my surprise the next set of yips came from 4-500 yards out. Then maybe as little as 300. I started getting excited and realized I better get my gun up. Then suddenly I saw a tail bounding thru the thick eastern woods. At his current trajectory I would have an open shot at 70-80 yards which I knew was right at the edge of my effective distance for my 00 buckshot. Amazingly the little buck made a left turn at the perfect moment and headed straight to my stand. At 28 yards my my load of buckshot dropped him in his tracks. I thanked the Lord right then and there for such a blessing and amazing hunt.
A few seconds later these two amazing little beagles, who had done all the hard work, came bounding out of the trees and stopped over my kill. The dog handlers showed up shortly after and I was able to snap this pic before they grabbed the pups and put them away for the day.
The responsible clubs now use beagles. Why? Because they can track just as well, but are A LOT easier to catch so you don't have dogs running wild across your neighbors land. You may or may not know that is a huge source of contention and the cause of many heated debates in deer/dog states.
