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I did see 5 deer yesterday. One was the biggest doe I've ever seen. The 3 years of bucks only has really lets some of these does get big as cattle. All of the deer I saw were in and around clear cuts. Another guy in our party saw 4 deer. 2 bucks and 2 does. Noah was sitting with him when he shot the buck. Uncle shot the other buck, which was a 7pt. So we have 2 deer hanging.

Keep fillin' those tags, buddy.

Congrats to all the successful hunters!

I am sitting my last morning of 2015 firearms deer season and I'm accepting the idea that I will likely not see a deer. This will be my 9th day of hunting this year, I have seen zero deer. I don't mean zero shootable deer, I mean zero of the species.

Kind of hard to be excited about muzzle loader season, lol.

Nice Tom!

Dave, the sad thing to me about you not even seeing deer up there is that I kinda count on the metro-zone does only muzzle-loader season for some sure-thing extra freezer-filling.

Attaway Noah!! I'll bet he's hooked now.

Dave, that's a rough season. Hard to keep the motivation up. Had it happen to me in the U.P. after 2 hard winters in the mid 90s. 9 guys in the woods for 11 days each...0 deer sighted. It broke us. We moved camp below the bridge the next year. The MI DNR put in food plots everywhere and we' re seeing results. Food is everything to deer. Might be food plot time at Chickenbuck.

Keep at it. Front stuffer season might be the one!

The farm country deer herds will migrate to the forest now that we have snow cover. That could help our muzzle loader season.

Well, we are done folks. Hung it up, closed up the camo and went home early today. Our ninth hunting season at camp chickenbuck is all finished up. The "wall of fame" hasn't got much ink on it for the past 2 years.

I too am one of the empty tag brigade. I hunted most of six days and saw deer, but the longest antler was maybe two inches, which makes it an antler less. But it was a successful season, as two youth hunters scored their first deer. And I got to hunt and watch a weasel get three mice. Might do the muzzleloader thing, or it might be time to focus on white meat. Ice is 1.5 inches thick near shore, and an inch farther out.

We'll get em next year!

Noah strikes again!!

This time on a giant doe. Big ol cow headed sucker. 30 yd shot with a .243. In front of the front shoulder and out the heart, into the right knee. 50yd death run. Yay meat!

I shot a mangy coyote last Sunday out in Missouri, and about 20 minutes later, a fat little doe came by, headed for a saddle the deer like to cross the field in.

She didn't make it. I got all retro and used a .30/30 this year, it was funner than the .270s, maybe. She made it about 40 yards, all downhill, but I was able to get within 30 yards via an old logging road. It was a lazy year.

Tom,

Tell Noah CONGRATS!!!!

my total of critter sightings for the last weekend was one bird yesterday,and one rabbit 5 minutes into legal shooting time this morning.

I saw two more deer today, one of which Noah let the air out of. So my total is up to 7. I'm not being picky but would really like to see some horns. Even if I don't shoot it. We have plenty of meat now!

Tom, do you do your own processing?

Great weekend Tom,

Tell Noah congratulations !

Mrs Deb, also perforated a fat little buck, via her 7mm-08 !



Sorry for crappy cell phone last light photo.

Congratulations to Noah(twice times) and to Mrs. Deb.

Stan in SC

Slow weekend buck wise for our place. 13 baldies opening day. 15 baldies Sunday with 2 spikes and 1 fork. The properties below us in the valley really lit it up opening morning. Haven't heard that much shooting in many many years. They must have shot all the nice bucks.

My niece shot a doe with a 243 wssm and shot at a hog all opening morning. The DNR assured us that the hogs were taken care of. Guess they missed one.

Going out turkey day, forecast is rain. Hope it's snow instead.

For the most part I do. I take the parts in for burger grinding and sausage making though. I'm not so trigger happy now that Noah got us some freezer pleasers. There are a few nice bucks around and id like to hang one from the pole.

So far Tyler (Noah's uncle) is winning both buck pools. First buck and biggest buck. We can't have that.

Almost embarrassed to say it but I have been passing on some deer and killed three others. My wife surprised me in how much she like to follow the blood to the deer. She was a little shocked though at how fast the first one I shot hit the deck. I am just waiting on a nice yearling doe to make a mistake and I'll use my last tag on her. I don't think the wife will want to shoot one herself yet, but if I promise her she gets to go find it after I shoot I am pretty sure she'll be up for that again next year.

After this year's work I should be a lot better off in the neighborhood. I am not seeing but two 2015 fawns and both are really tiny. One still has spots. I think the doe I killed that was bigger than the six point might have been their mama. There's still way too many deer close enough to be sucked into the vacuum left by what I have killed, but I am hoping that they won't move in as replacements. So far it's way better than last year when I'd have 8-10 deer in my yard in the evening.

A couple more got smacked on 61 this past week too, so that helps.

Seven deer in two years (so far) hunting on 3 acres out of a neighborhood of about half a section should be making a dent in the population when added to the sixteen I know of hit on the roads bordering it. If I can't control the numbers working at it like this my long dead father will come back and haunt my ass until I get properly motivated. There's still too many, but I have removed six does and one buck, so there should be little to no growth in numbers come June.

Passed four smaller bucks before this one tempted me just a little too long . Wife is still hunting maybe she'll get one too.