Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Deer Hunting Birth of a deer camp

Ope... sorry.

That was me. Must be the Blatz.

Just smells like Siberia to me. Everything is already frozen and covered white.

There was a time when that was exciting right before deer season.

Such a nice thread.....then someone brings Blatz into it!!!

I can't wait - had some personal hiccups here lately but hoping to spend opener week in the woods still. Would be the first week ever where it was me, dad and son for the whole week as he got the time off too.

Hope all is well Teal.

I’m bow hunting WI this MN opener. But I did sharpen a pile of knives yesterday. Had to fire up the Lansky. Not nut shaving sharp, but close.

Thanks man, just say this - logistics/trucking is a bloodbath right now. It's estimated that 35,000 trucking companies have shut down in the 12 months prior to Sept 30. Lots of people on the street.

Pssssst. Tomorrows the opener. Did anyone know that?

Good luck to you all. I hope you shoot straight and stay safe.

I've set up a deer ambush. I'm sitting in an elevated hiding spot over a deer trail.

I just heard the first rifle shot in the distance for MN 2023 season opener.

I've never heard of an internet forum thread lasting for 16 yrs before, but here we are.

A lot has happened in this decade and a half, for everyone I'm sure. The children in the beginning of this thread are now adults with children of their own. My grandchild count is 4. The teenage girl hunter "weezy" will turn 30 this month. She is a loving mother of 2 with sass, wit and snarky humor for her adult friends and family. For her children she has a Mrs Doubtfire type of energy. She's a fun mom. She helps her husband run a construction business. They have a wonderful home and a bright future.
"Plays with matches " is 26. He works with me and his younger brother. We operate a welding and fabrication business together. He's also a father of 2. He's our Mr serious, plans, schedules, budgets. He runs a tight ship but he inserts humor into his efforts. His wife is a professional in Healthcare, they too have a lovely home and bright future.
Little "runs with scissors" is 19 now and has been out of the nest for a year now. He has a steady girlfriend, a very fun gal that is hunting with us this weekend. They live together in a cute starter home on a wonderful rural property with their 5 dogs. Lol
Joey is energetic and spontaneous. His compass needle spins like a helicopter blade. His girlfriend is pursuing a career in Healthcare. Both of their rifle scope lenses were cleaned by me last night while they slept. Her scope rings will be tightened later this morning as I noticed they are a bit loose.
That's where I'm at, still that guy that tries to guide and iron out the forward path for my people.
Pam is great, still the concerned mother with tendencies to overthink everything. She is a wonderful grandmother, you should see her with the little ones.

For our regulars that keep this thread active, good luck this season. Enjoy the moment.

“Compass needle spins like a helicopter.”

That is a perfection description of Joe. Lmao

I haven’t been to chickenbuck in many moons, but in my minds eye I have a perfect view of how things are going in the camp. Dave is sharpening knives, cleaning scopes, making sure the guns function properly, and cooking a perfect camp supper.

Ma is running around the shack trying to keep the babies off the wood stove, tying to hold them all at the same time like grandmas do.

Shack full of light, wood stove cracking, Nate bugging Joe, dave laughing at it, kids giggling. Deer camp the way deer camp was made to be!

Thanks, reminds.me.of the.old.family deer camps my family had in northern Minnesota.

I'm sitting in a home made plywood "deer stand" that many would call an elevated shooting house or a box blind. It's resting on a lumber base secured in 2 mature cedars and a large tamarack that died 2 years ago. The "stand" is 12 yrs old, built in 2011. The ground is covered with snow from over a week ago. Recent cold temps have the ground freezing ahead of schedule.
It's snowing this morning. I have a stand of cedars behind me and off to my right. White paper birch edges the cedars with a blend of spruce and poplars transitioning to clumps of diamond willow and alder, red willows and canary grass, swamp.
I caught a glimpse of a deer moving through the cedars off to my right about an hour ago. Too obscured with cover to see what it was other than just a deer. It doesn't necessarily prove voluntary movement, it was moving fairly swiftly, evasive, not a natural browsing travel. I don't expect to see it circle through and present a shot.

Starting to think about breakfast in our newly renovated cabin kitchen....

We got fancy, pinkies out.

The rifle resting in the corner in my little shooting house this morning, is a 1965 Winchester model 88 chambered in .308

Optics are the same vintage 3-9 power Leopold in a very tight weaver tip off mount. Leather sling, 150 gr jsp winchester factory loads.

Loden pattern wool bibs, red and black flannel shirt with an insulated orange vest.

TV, social media and the like, will depict an absence of traditional American family with regular old moms and dads, brothers and sisters, husbands and wives, children with manors, unity and such. That's not accurate though.
My 4 year old grand daughter recited the pledge of allegiance for us in the cabin last night. She learned it in preschool, they recite it at the beginning of every day.

It's not all pronouns, purple hair and hate. Hunting isn't all high fence guided with composite and full "pro staff" gizmos and gadgets. Don't worry, someone will take offense to something I just said, and that's ok. I've got composites and gizmos too, no purple hair tho. Lol
The old America you grew up in, isn't gone. That's all I'm saying.


It's snowing harder now. Wow, someone just connected with 2 rifle shots about a mile and a half to the west.

Interesting to hear about the pledge Dave. Our youngest daughter, 5 years old, in kindergarten, also recites the pledge in the mornings. I’m pleasantly surprised.

Nice to hear an update Northern Dave. Good luck playing in the snow, shoot a big one this year.

Still another week until our opener but a couple guys I know jumped the two big bucks we've been watching all summer while they were flushing stock tank lines. Glad to hear they are still around. Gonna try to get my youngest her first deer this year.

The wind is blowing straight up this morning, in the out house.
Zero deers have been harmed or even frightened at the camp chickenbuck so far this year.
We're in for a warm up now snow will melt.

Good luck chicken buck fellas