2017/2018

[InstinctiveArcher]

Its totally different hunting then.

It sure is (but I'm one of those gun hunters as well).

For sure. I gun hunt too and love it, I just love those crisp November mornings with a bow on my hand. Good luck in your firearm season.

[gas56]

Its totally different hunting then.

It sure is (but I'm one of those gun hunters as well).

For sure. I gun hunt too and love it, I just love those crisp November mornings with a bow on my hand. Good luck in your firearm season.

The Ohio gun season doesn't start until the Monday after Thanksgiving,... and you can still use a Bow, or muzzleloader rifle, along with a shotgun or permitted Handgun during gun season, and then
muzzleloader (primitive weapons) season comes in the beginning of January, while Bow Season continues all the way into early February.
That's what I like about our Bow season, you can hunt the early rut, the November rut, and the late season rut where the doe's come back into estrous that didn't get knocked up on the first rounds.
(I think it's every 28 days that they come into estrous)
The only problem for me is it usually gets way too cold during the winter months and with my health problems I can't get out.
All it's been doing here is misting rain & cold where I'm not comfortable at all with my breathing problems, but I'm hoping the weather will break before gun season
comes in, at least I hope it does.

[Violator31]

That's what I like about our Bow season, you can hunt the early rut, the November rut, and the late season rut

Same here. Our bow season runs from Oct. 1st thru Jan. 15. I have always liked Fall & Winter the best (hunting & football seasons ). I didn't take up bow hunting until about 10 years ago. During that first bow season I told people that "I could just about hang up my gun & just bow hunt." But I always followed it up with "just about".

[IzDaPat]

Always fascinating to read through the current year's hunting season thread. Congratulations to everyone who has been successful already, and good luck to all those who are still out there, waiting for their chance!


Raptor02, that's a fine buck! And it sure looks like your friends and family got their priorities straight. Do you even associate with non-hunters? (I barely do… )

gas56, really interesting pictures and notes on your Whitetails – they are closely related to our Roe Deer, and seem quite similar in their habitats and behaviors. Now, do I even have to comment on that buck your sister photographed? I expect a trophy shot soon!

Trenton, your stories just keep breaking my heart… Even as a rifle hunter, I can commiserate. Sometimes, everything just goes wrong for no apparent reason. That's hunting! Your levels of perseverance and dedication should be an example to anyone who wants to call themselves a hunter, though. Keep at it! (On a side note: my home country of Germany is still being stubborn, outlawing bow hunting, but I did pick up archery earlier this year – and, hell, is it addictive!!! I hope to take my bow to the field wherever it is legal in Europe, ASAP.)

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While I didn't get a chance for trophy Roe bucks in the rut this year, the fall and winter driven / stand / stalk hunting for larger deer, boar and female Roe deer has only just begun, and I'm off to quite a good start with 3 female Fallow Deer and a Wild Boar (earlier this season). I'm not actively looking for trophies, but I'm not taking any prisoners, either.

A few impressions from this season's hunts and harvests, so far. (In spoiler tags, as some might be considered a bit graphic…)

Spoiler:

[Raptor02]

Thanks. I’m really proud of that one. I grew up in an extremely outdoor type family. You can’t imagine Christmas parties. Or maybe you can judging by your photos. That’s one full hunting camp in that photo. And some nice kills. Plus that country your hunting in is beautiful.

[InstinctiveArcher]

Well, finally had things work out today. After getting up early and hitting it hard for the past few days, dad and I decided to sleep in and do some drives in the later morning. At 11:30 I posted for our first drive while dad worked up some ridges. At exactly 12:00 I heard what I thought was a grunt, but it was really windy so I assumed it was a tree. However, about 30 seconds later a doe came out of the brush 20 yards away. I was standing in a fairly open spot in blaze orange, just praying that she wouldn't see me. Evidently she was more focused on what was coming behind her because she walked by 12 yards away without ever looking at me. I heard more grunting and slowly raised my rifle and slipped the safety. We have a 3 on a side rule here, so I was just praying for a legal buck. When he came busting through the brush I knew right away that he was legal. He pegged me and slid to a stop at 20 yards, quartering to me. I knew he was going to run so I aimed low in the chest and shot him. He stumbled and almost went down, then plowed past me at 10 yards on his nose before piling up.
Pretty exciting hunt. I later learned that dad was lost and hadn't even done the drive as planned. I just happened to be in the right place at the right time when those deer came through. Ended up bring a heavy, chocolate racked 8 pointer. His antlers were sticky from rubbing cedars and he had bark ground into his antlers. My biggest to date. I would post a picture, but photobucket is being a pain with my pictures. I'll try and get it figured out though.

[Knut]

A single night during the last full moon filled the cooler:


I got them all three within a couple of hours on a freshly harvested corn field, that the boars had pretty much ripped apart before.
It's directly next to a well frequented state road and protected by a roadside banking. Some brush directly connects it to a densely forrested area with heavy underbrush that's our best boar sanctuary.

The female Roe fawn I just shot because I'd spotted it the day before and saw that it couldn't use its left front leg. But it didn't offer me a chance for a shot then.
Otherwise hunting Roe at night would be illegal here.
It came out with doe and another fawn at around midnight and the .222 banned it to the spot.
It had a destroyed shoulder, likely from a car crash. And it weighed only a mere 7 kg. A good take down.

Just half an our later a small sow with two young piglets came right next to me a mere 50m away through the hedge and started to root on the field. I shot one of the piglets with the 7x65R and it collapsed immediately. When collecting it afterwards, I found out why I had such a hard time aiming and placing a good shot. It was tiny and weighed a mere 11kg field dressed.
With moonlight and a very light cloud cover, it seemed a big black lump on the field through the binoculars.
If I would've known and judged correctly, I would've probably used the .222 on it, although technically illegal on wild boar.

I was sure that was it for the night, but shortly after a badger crawled through the stubbles. Their grizzled light grey coat makes for an excellent camo with these light conditions and I couldn't place the crosshairs of my 60year old Schmidt&Bender on it well enough for a sure shot.

While I was enjoying the encounter, I noticed motion on the meadows behind me. A group of wild boar emerged from the fog down at the little creek behind me. Some 12-14 creatures. But they were still some 180 m away so I opted for letting them approach further. They stayed a compact group all the time allowing only for taking a shot at the lead sow, which would be an unethical thing to do.
Unfortunately, they approached the field in a wide circle and at some point got into my wind before I could get a chance and off went the stampede.

I was still contemplating the experience when I noted again some motion at the far end of the brush close to the road. Two big black trunks slowly moved onto the cropped corn. Boar again!
Both of equal size and that meant no long thought process of which to shoot. I waited for a bit to be sure that no small ones would follow and then send my leaden regards when one presented its broadside. Again, the 7x65R didn't disappoint and the boar went down like someone pulled the power cord.
To my big surprise it was a 3-4 year old sow of 65kg field dressed. Normally these kind of small groups of equally sized boar are bachelors.
The teats of the sow clearly had never seen any use and I can only conclude that it was infertile, though I couldn't find anything anatomically wrong with it.
It also had no exit wound and the bullet was stuck just under the hide of the opposite shoulder.

Both boars are now with a friend who's a skilled butcher and will transform them into his speciality, German-style wild boar sausages, Bratwurst and Mettwurst.

I will fondly recall this great night hunt when enjoying them sausages.
And they will also help to soothe the farmer's frustration, who due to boars, badgers and heavy hailstorms had cut his harvest in half this year.

[Knut]

My biggest to date. I would post a picture, but photobucket is being a pain with my pictures. I'll try and get it figured out though.

Please do, I'd love to see that buck.

Sounds like an awesome hunt and a great way to punch a tag. Waidmannsheil!

[Knut]

I can't be the only one, who thinks that this type of throwning an animal away or not even tracking it when they wounded it is a very pathetic man.
It makes me pretty angry seeing the way, that they deny an animal even the last honor by not even claiming it, let alone using it for it's pelt.
Makes me sick.

Fully agree with you, that's preposterous!

[MooseHunter330]

Nice animals. Waidmannsheil!
.222 is often underrated. I'd sometimes wish for one instead of the 5,6x50R Mag, since at distances closer than 100m,
you can basically throw everything around the shoulder blade away, if you hit it.