First muzzleloader buck! 195 lb. 8pt 24" inside spread. 27" and 28" main beams!
Let me first start by quoting a close friend of mine, who stated, this has been a "forgetable" season. This was not a typical deer season in the great State of Maine. With temperatures hovering between 45 and 65 degrees, the much anticipated rutting activity was "closed for business" during daylight hours and the breeding was conducted amidst the cover of darkness, when temperatures dropped down to 20 and 30 degrees. Due to this unexpected weather pattern, deer activity was much less active than it normally would have been during November. I did see (11) does during the regular firearms season, but only laid eyes on (1) buck on the last friday of the November season. That sighting lasted about a half second!
Hence, I purchased my $13.00 muzzle loader permit and prayed for some colder weather and with a little luck, some snow. My prayers were answered late in the evening on Dec 7th, when the flakes came parachuting down! On Friday, Dec 8th, I woke to 3" to 4" of white powdery gold. The only downfall was that the temperature was now floating around 10 degrees and the wind was gusting erratically between 10 and 35 miles per hour. I did not hesitate to grab the TC .50 caliber smokepole and venture forth in search of a track.
My search was successful and at 6:20 a.m. I was following a mature whitetail buck track with a long gait and wide girth. At first he was traveling as a loner but he soon connected with two smaller deer. I followed him through a stand of hardwood and up onto a ridge mixed with softwood. I followed him off the ridge into a swale bog, through a mixture of low lying furs and back up onto the ridge. The buck made this transition from ridge to swamp three times. The visibility in the forest ranged from 20 yards to 60 yards due to the snow being forcefully blown from the trees and swirling relentlessly.
On the third trip down into the bog the wind was at my back, which is not an ideal situation. It was about 8:45 a.m. I suddenly noticed the flickering bodies of three deer ahead that were bounding away from me. I dropped to one knee to try to get a better view of the deer. I watched as the deer began swinging to my left. It appeared that I would be presented with a broadside shot at about 60 yards if the deer continued on their path. I still could not determine if there were antlers on any of the deer but I knew the first deer was the largest and I did have a doe permit I could cash in on.
I put the cross hairs of my scope on the larger deer and began to follow it through the woods. I was waiting for an opening to provide me with a clear shot. As I watched, the deer would take several steps and stop. I could only see parts of the deer at this time. The deer moved forward again, and I briefly saw the left main beam and knew I was looking at a large buck. I looked to my left and could see an opening. As the buck stepped into the opening, I placed the cross hairs behind his front shoulder and fired! The buck immediately drove his front legs between his hind legs and bounded forward. I was confident I had made a good shot!
I trotted up to the area where the buck was standing. To my disappointment, I saw just a few gray hairs lying on the snow. No blood, no bone, and no fat. I was dismayed. I began to follow the buck as he made huge leaping bounds through the swamp. I still was not finding any blood. I stopped to reload and then continued on the bounding track. The buck continued his bolt for about 200 yards through the swamp and then began heading back up onto the ridge. The buck traveled up the ridge 50 yards or so and broke to his right. At this point the buck finally began walking parallel with the ridge. I looked ahead on his track and noticed some movement 40 yards in front of me. There was a large dead tree lying on the ground. I then saw the buck raise his head briefly and then drop out of site. I looked down briefly at the track and saw the crimson sign left behind by the buck.
I knew now that I had indeed hit the buck. I began creeping towards his bed and watched as he raised his head once more. I could see the large antlers swaying side to side and knew that he was in his final resting spot. I moved up the ridge to provide myself with a better vantage point. As I looked at the buck, I could see that my first round had hit 6" back from where I had intended. I finished the task quickly and placed another round in this magnificent king to end his suffering. As I looked down upon this beautiful beast I thanked God for allowing me the privilege and opportunity to harvest him. After dressing the buck out, I discovered that my first round had split the liver in half and penetrated the stomach. This day was my last opportunity to fill my tag for the 2006 season. The lesson learned from this season....Never give up the hunt!
