Whitetail hunt

By Derrick Hucke

done differently. Thinking I had sat down in the wrong spot or maybe I shouldn’t have held eye contact. I just blew this.

“Be patient” I kept telling myself.

The other two bucks were feeding to the left of the bush, still completely unaware. I sat there for another 10 minutes, collecting myself. My ears had finally stopped ringing from the rush, and I could breathe. This was the experience of a lifetime.

He crested the hill about 15 yards from where he had previously been. Looking in my direction, we locked eyes again, but this time I was calm. I ranged him. Set my sight. Ranged him again. Doublechecked my sight and as cool as a cucumber I drew my bow back. I settled into the pin, executed my shot sequence, and released the arrow.

He ran back down into the brush. His pals were still feeding, and had not a clue of what just happened. As he slowly expired, they noticed something was out of place and began to walk up the hill where they originally started earlier in the day. They merged with the 3x3 mule deer I had been chasing at the beginning of this adventure and disappeared over the hill.

Beyond myself at what just happened the emotions of the hunt began to take hold. With tears in my eyes, I was so thankful for the opportunity, not only for the buck I harvested but for the lessons this hunt had taught me. Hunting will teach you more patience in 10 minutes than life will in 10 years. In this case, moving a few seconds later would have blown my hunt.

Walking up to him, emotions taking control again, I pulled him from the brush to admire what I had accomplished. A perfectly symmetrical rack, a healthy body, and a very fine creature of nature. I grieved and paid my respects, thankful for another successful harvest.

I made my way to the top of the hill and called a friend to help pack it out. Luckily for me, he also had some slick camera angle skills, so I got some great pictures. This is a hunt that repeats in my mind day after day, and I hope it will for many years to come.