I made the symbolic switch today from 2 3/4″ 6s to 3″ 3s. What’s that mean? It means the mallards are here, and duck hunting is no longer about teal and wood ducks. It’s a good thing. Last night while bowhunting I had thousands of snow geese flying over me. Also a good thing. Today it’s snowing with a Northwest wind. Both good things.

This afternoon’s shoot:

40-37 Kansas in the 2008 Border War. Another stunning example of incompetent coaching by Gary Pinkel, and another notch on BF Mangino’s belt…

I’ll be with family for the next few days. There will be bowhunting, duck hunting, maybe some quail, and probably a fall turkey drive.

What’s a fall turkey drive you ask?

When you see a group of turkeys let them see you and they’ll run into a tree line. Then it’s just a matter of blockers and pushers. When you get into a big group (80-100 are not uncommon) all hell can break lose. I’d say it’s the most fun way to fall turkey hunt although it wouldn’t work in places where there are no tree lines.

The thing I’m continually amazed at with hunting like this is how predictable they are. They will not leave that tree line even if two groups of people are closing in on them from either end. Usually when they fly they fly straight down the tree line. Frequently they’ll say put exactly where you last saw them go into the trees.

When you get into a good bunch of them this type hunt is an absolute riot. I’d recommend it to anyone. My wife and I did a two person version of this hunt a few years back. I stationed her at one end then went back and started pushing. The bunch in this case was 40-50, most of which ultimately flew her way over the course of 15 minutes. I heard 2 shots. After I’d dropped my shotgun, fell in a creek, and nearly shot myself out of shells, I finally had my 2 birds (you’re actually allowed 4 now).

When I got to the end, my wife had two laying at her feet and was wondering what the big deal was.

Sorry for the lack of posting. I’ve been on a Missouri rifle bender. I hunted Friday night, all day Saturday, and Sunday evening. I passed on dozens of deer over that span but I never got another chance at the big non-typical. The season ends tomorrow evening and I have some significant hearings in the early afternoon. I plan to take my gear with me but it may not happen.

On the plus side, another solid archery buck is in the salt. Pictures and a story to follow when I get them.

I was wearing almost everything I own tonight and I was still cold. Unfortunately my suffering did not produce an opportunity at one of the studs I saw earlier this week. I did see several bucks including an average 8 point and several does. As much as I’m dreading it, I’ll be back in the area at some ridiculous hour tomorrow morning. After all, there’s only a few days left in the Missouri Rifle Season.

Sorry for the lack of action. I’ve been working hard for the last few days. I’m hoping to get out tomorrow and work on that Missouri rifle tag.

We had a good shoot in Pratt. Perhaps not as many roosters as last year, but the weather was terrible. Mid 30s and raining for the whole trip… not good.

Up to this point everything I’ve touched has turned to gold. Tonight things balanced out a bit. I had two tremendous bucks, both in range, and never had a shot. I was hunting a marshy area where the deer could take a step or two and disappear into tall grass, only to reappear 50 yards away. For a brief moment I had a chance at a neat non-typical that looked to be a base 7 with all kinds of funky growth. He was as tall as any deer I’ve ever seen. Unfortunately a shooting opportunity never presented itself. After that came a small 8 point chasing a doe. Then came a very symmetrical 10 point with good mass and solid length. I figured him to be around 150. I watched him for nearly 5 minutes, at one point even flipping off the safety and taking a deep breath, only to have him turn and vanish into the grass. Frustrating.

On the plus side, I’m very pleased with the quality of deer I saw. Today was my first hunt at this spot, but it won’t be my last.

One of the two gentlemen from Arkansas who came up to bowhunt with us scored last week. After 5 days on stand, and passing several smaller deer, he had a nice broadside on this dude:

Rough scored at 137, it was reasonably tall with good mass but not much width. Strangely, no one had spotted this buck before. It was his largest bow kill to date. Congrats.

So many deer, so little size. This is the 15th consecutive year I’ve opened the Missouri Rifle Season at the family farm near Springfield, Missouri. In the early years I was pleased to shoot any buck, but over the years my hunting has evolved. Limited nutrition, bad herd management, and powerfully uneducated hunters makes the Ozarks region a difficult place to find a real trophy.

On opening morning I passed two mature 8 pointers, the bigger of which probably would have been in the 125-130 range. He was tall and narrow but had good tine length. I passed on him and about 10 does and spikes.

Today was a perfect deer hunting day. It was a cold and clear morning with light wind. I encountered the bigger 8 again, plus this young 7:

I had about 25 deer sightings this morning, plus turkeys, ducks, and geese. Unfortunately nothing was worth my tag. Starting tomorrow I’ll be hunting closer to town on a piece of ground that has great swampy habitat and better trophy potential.

Well, since I’ve punched my Kansas tag, it’s time to change states. Tonight I’m headed Southeast to a family farm in the Missouri Ozarks. There will be a bunch of deer, but the biggest buck I could honestly expect to see would be a 130-140 class deer. I should have plenty of pictures tomorrow.

I also just got word that one of our Arkansas guests just stuck a nice buck that rough scored 137. I’m being promised pictures by mid-day tomorrow when I come out of the woods.

I’ve also heard the same story from two different second-hand sources about a monster buck that was stuck on the public ground not far South of here. Rumor has it that the buck was gut shot and ran by the hunter with intestines visible. The hunter apparently jumped the deer twice more before he lost him. TWICE?!?!?!? I can understand once, but twice? Anyway, I know the area this deer disappeared into quite well, and I may try my own hand at the search later next week. I feel bad for the hunter and the deer.