Hunting Success!!!!!

October has been GREAT for us, and our hunting successes. Good thing, too, since September was such a bust. I saw a total of one elk during my archery season - granted, it was a big bull - and didn't come close to getting a shot, yet again. I did draw my bow and try to get a shot at a little 2 point buck, but he busted out of there before I could even look through my peep sight.

Anyway, I digress. We started off duck season on Oct 3, in Soda Springs, on the Bear River. It was a really slow morning, with only one shot fired, and it was a miss by my "little" brother. That evening, Heidi let me convince her to get us a babysitter, and we went back out. This time we hit a little pond off to the side of American Falls Reservoir. We, of course, forgot the camera, so this picture from my phone of Heidi getting ready is all I got. Good thing she looks so good!!!

We ended up coming home with three drake mallards - one of which was Heidi's - and a little pintail hen.

I went back out for ducks on Monday and killed four more. Then I took Tommy on Thursday (his parent teacher conference gave him a four day weekend). I didn't even have my phone for that hunt, so I got a picture of him and our lone pintail hen - I couldn't resist that one with Tommy saying "get it dad!" - when we got home. Man, that kid is getting too big!!! Two more years, and he'll be shooting with me!

After archery season was a bust, my new brother-in-law, Randy, told me he'd take me out during rifle season for a buck. I have never had luck deer hunting, and I wasn't holding out much hope for this year to be any different. But, as long as he was inviting, I was all for a hunt! Randy and his dad let me tag along with them to their family property somewhere north of Soda Springs. We hunted all day, walked like crazy, and rode the four wheelers all over that property. Finally, at the end of a cold, wet day, we headed back to the trucks. We had just come through one of the two gates when Randy's dad punched the throttle on his "wheeler" and I noticed he was speeding toward a guy standing in the road. I asked Randy who that was, and he told me it was his cousin, Chad. Chad had his rifle, and was looking through the scope at the hillside. I got the signal to stop, so I shut off the four wheeler, and Randy and I baled off to see what was so interesting. While we were looking in vain, Chad walked up and pointed out two young bucks on the hillside, just a few hundred yards from the trucks. I was able to kneel down, find the larger of the two bucks in the scope, and touch off my first shot before I even totally realized that I was shooting at my first deer! I missed a second shot as my buck was limping down the hill, and had to finish him off with a third when we jumped him up from where he had fallen. My first deer is a two-by-three, two to three year old, and I couldn't be any happier. Unfortunately, I didn't think about pictures until after Chad and Randy had dragged the deer down to the pasture, and after Chad's friend Colby had helped me gut him. This phone picture was taken in the light from my truck's cargo and reverse lights, and my phone's crappy flash. Sorry, it's the best I could do, it was dark by that time.

Here's hoping the rest of the year is anywhere near as good as October has already been!!!