| Several years ago during bow season I decided to | | | | back the string of my trusty Bear bow and let |
| take my 9 year old hunting with me. A decision I | | | | one fly. What happened next is something I will |
| will never regret because now at 32 he is my | | | | never forget for the rest of my life. I have often |
| number 1 hunting partner. This may have been | | | | heard that a deer can string jump a shot. I never |
| the day he got hooked for life. | | | | really knew what that meant until this day. Like |
| We got out of the camp early and made the trek | | | | sonar that deer ducked and the arrow went flying |
| up the hill to my custom made tree stand which | | | | over its' back. It was about a 20 yard shot from |
| was a custom made from an old large pallet just | | | | a guy that could hit an 8 inch paper plate 30 for |
| the right size for two people, well at least one | | | | 30 at 35 yards. I was much more proficient in |
| large and one small. | | | | those days then I am now. What that deer did |
| As first light started to peak over the horizon the | | | | next I have never seen before or since and have |
| forest was still. There were plenty of leaves | | | | never heard another hunter tell of either. The |
| down already and it was dry. It would be easy to | | | | buck jumped straight up in the air and came |
| hear a deer approaching today because of the | | | | down on his front hooves. And then he went right |
| crunch. As I looked around the stand I noticed a | | | | back up in the same spot. As his hooves hit the |
| scrape that wasn't there last week-end abut 10 | | | | dirt he would clear his nostrils and go straight up |
| feet from the stand. I told my son that we were | | | | again in the exact same spot. I would estimate his |
| going to see a buck this morning and he looked at | | | | nose was about 10 foot in the air each time. he |
| me rather skepticaly and asked how I knew that. | | | | did this 6 or 7 times trying to find us. He knew |
| I showed him the scrape and explained it to him | | | | we were there but he wasn't in a spot where he |
| and I think he thought I was from Mars. It didn't | | | | could catch our scent yet. My eyes were as big |
| take long and I could here some movement | | | | as saucers watching this deer jumping straight up |
| below us slowly coming up the hill. Within minutes | | | | and down. Finally he just walked away and I |
| we could see the deer. He wasn't the greatest | | | | never got another shot off with the bow. Two |
| deer I had ever seen but it was a buck. His nose | | | | weeks later on the opening day of shotgun |
| was on the ground like a blood hound and he | | | | season he made the fatal mistake of coming up |
| seemed to be on a mission. | | | | that same path at about the same time of the |
| I prepared myself and urged my son to keep still. | | | | morning. He had a deformed rack which was |
| Soon the deer was about equal to our stand and | | | | probably injured during early growth. And that will |
| I started to panic because he wasn't coming to | | | | lead us to our next story about my guard |
| the scrape. He was going to walk past and keep | | | | woodchuck. Till next time. |
| going up the hill. It was now or never and I pulled | | | | |