Missouri Deer Season 2005-

Well, I kept hounding S1 to get my rifle done for the upcoming Missouri Deer Season. He got it done and I had a couple of days to work on some handloads. I didn't have enough time to run the full load developement but did have enough time to find a load that looked promising. Ended up with 69.5grs. of H4831SC in Winchester cases sparked by Federal GM210 primers. This combo pushed a 178gr. Hornady A-Max at a measured 2970fps. out of my 300WSM Nesika "Raptor" rifle.

I got to deer camp on Thursday afternoon and sat around and enjoyed the company of some of my hunting buddies that had also showed up early. Weather wise things were not looking good. It was unseasonably warm and they were calling for high winds on opening weekend. Friday rolled around and the rest of the crew filed in a couple at a time. Needles to say everybody was impressed with the Raptor and S1's ability. However because most of them are from the old school everybody thought the thing weighted a ton.

Opening morning brought mild temperatures and high winds(20-25mph) as a warm front pushed in from the south. This is also not good as the prevailing wind is from the North East and most of the stands are set up for this. Phil who leases the fields (farming)on the property had been keeping in touch all fall about a huge buck he had seen up on the North East field. Now keep in mind this guy knows what huge means. I helped his son ***** harvest a buck last year that Netted over 180 Boone and Crocket. However Phil had also told me he had been in touch several times here lately with the the Game Warden because some locals had been getting drunked up and going around gut shooting deer in fields with .22's. In fact they shot 3 right in the front yard of the neighbor's farm up the road aways. It was also noted that there was a fresh set of truck tracks leading up to the North East field. It is unknown who went up there, but Phil said they weren't there the other day.

Three hard days of hunting later. No record book buck to be found. In fact no decent bucks at all. Lots of spikes, forks and basket racks but nothing substantial. I've come to the conclusion that my Record Book Buck has succomb to poachers. They had better pray that I don't find out who they are or they may be poached out of their front living room.

I got off track a moment there. Back to opening morning. Seen several deer. Had a doe almost commit suicide as she attempted to run me down. I was standing in the bottom of a small creek that feeds one of our ponds and she and another doe came bounding over the hillside as I was standing there picking stick tights off my gloves. I heard the them and spun around and to my suprise she was running right at me. She only stopped about 12 feet away as I spun around. I wonder if the Conservation Department would buy in on a deer kill in self defense. Lots more does and small bucks were seen in the afternoon.

Sunday brought a few more does despite the hight winds (gusts up to 37mph per NOA Weather Radio). The deer were holding tight to their beds during the daytime.

Sunday afternoon everybody had left except my brother and I. The deal was that we would hunt opposite corners of the large lower field. It's about 625 yards corner to corner. The deal was no body shots on does unless they were farther than 250yds. At 4:15pm KABOOM! from across the field. I quickly scan in that direction thru my scope waiting to see what was scattering away. Nothing. I pack up and go down to help him. As I approach he is looking on the ground for sign of a hit. Out about a 100yds. in front of him in some head tall grass a dow pops out. I yell "Stop", he freezes as he can't see what I see. I draw a bead on the doe expecting to see signs that it is hit. But upon not seeing any, I figure since we are already making all this racket I might as well fill one of my doe tags. I draw a bead on her front chest at the base of her neck. Distance is 125yrds. Just as the sear breaks she darts to the left. The A-Max hits her midline in the left hip and flattens her. However she quickly starts trying to get away by pulling herself with her front hooves. She's facing to the right and I pull a clean head shot to end the hunt.

As I walk up to her my only comment is "Damm look at that hole". I'm not talking about the head shot but the hip shot. I'm thinking that I won't be taking any shoulder shots if I'm wanting to put it in the freezer.

Head Shot

I'll keep these images in mind! I'm shooting a 300 RSAUM 54 gr Varget 2879 fps

Note to self: Don't hit the shoulder!

No Kidding on the shoulder shot! If you look at the picture the entrance point was at 9 o'clock. Kinda makes me glad I didn't get the frontal shot I was aiming for. I processed the deer tonight and lost that entire rear leg because of blood shot muscle.

Wow, those little red plastic tips are lethal!

That's what I like about small Farm communities. Everyone knows everyone, hunt together and are real cool.
The amount of time we put back into making habitat and planting for the game, we get very angry when anyone disgraces the land and game.
Never had it happen yet on or around our Farms and adjacent BLM lands cause people who know stay off and people who don't are scared sh.tless anyway because they know we are well armed.
We are really,............I mean totally rural.
Anyone from family that's never hunted with us always goe's as a watcher 1st time out, especially with our bird dogs. Never tell a bird dog that keeps jumpin up on ya it's ok when the Master hollers get down. Respect the Masters always. Their dogs are their dogs and a necessity, not for cutey pie behavior in the field.

Glad you put the deer down quickly with the followup.

They really arent that bad on chest shots. The first one I shot with Amax's (300win 178gr), was a hip shot almost exactly like yours but on the other side. With a chest shot it destroys alot of rib meat, and the shoulder if you hit it, but thats it.