OUTDOORS

There is something very special about the opening day of deer season. Campfires from all across the state will be burning bright at deer camps from the Panhandle to the Pineywoods.

While arranging the necessary items in my hunting pack for the opening of the general rifle season, my mind backtracked through the years, all the way back to 1960 when I was ten years old and went on my first deer hunt. Oh, I ‘called’ what I was doing deer hunting but actually in retrospect, it was really an after school set in the woods. There were precious few whitetail deer in northeast Texas back then and even finding a track would get my hunting blood pumping! Sitting in the brush along the creek behind our little farm with my Mossberg .410 shotgun loaded with a rifle slug, I was full of anticipation and ready for a chance to kill my first buck. It was a few years later that I was successful in taking that buck, but I was out there in the woods at every opportunity, always optimistic that a heavy antlered monarch would step out. I’d seen the photos in the outdoor magazines, and I was hard wired for hunting deer at a very early age.

Looking back, it’s probably a good thing that I didn’t get a shot with that little shotgun. A .410 is less than a stellar weapon for harvesting a mature whitetail! In the ensuing 62 deer seasons since that first opening day, I have been blessed to hunt whitetails from the Canadian border south into Mexico. Many of the hunts I vividly remember but some have faded into obscurity through the many years. When I think back, it’s not always the deer I harvested that comes to mind first, but the fine times I had with many great friends and family members. For several years, I hunted with a German family that farmed thousands of acres right on the northern border of North Dakota, a stone’s throw from Alberta, Canada. I remember once spotting a wayward moose that had found his way to the open farmland. At first, I thought it was a horse; I had never seen a wild moose, and this critter was as big as a horse! I took several very heavy bucks up in that country, but I remember most the fine people and the great meals those ladies prepared each day. Yes, my love of deer hunting has given me a great number of wonderful experiences that I hopefully will one day reflect upon when it’s time to rock and reminisce! But that comes later. Now it’s time to get ready for the first rifle hunt of the season. After bow hunting, where up close and personal with deer is the name of the game, my bolt action Mossberg Patriot rifle chambered in 6.5 Creedmoor topped with a good scope puts an entirely different light on deer hunting. With this rig, harvesting a buck at 300 yards is entirely doable. When I hunt with my bow, I understand the chance of harvest is lower, the deer must be really close, and a lot of things must fall into place in order to be successful. The challenges make bow hunting fun and exciting regardless if I put a buck on the meat pole or not.

I’ll be hunting with a brand new rifle this year, very possibly the last one I will purchase. I’m not saying this to imply ole Luke is planning to cash in his chips anytime soon; I simply keep guns that I hunt with forever. I still have in my possession a little .243 Winchester model 88 lever action that I have taken countless game animals with. It’s time to retire that rifle and pass it down to my son that was with me when he was a boy, following ole Dad to the deer stand. I am excited about hunting with the Creedmoor though. The caliber is very close to the .243 in performance and an absolute tack driver. It shoots a bullet about 40 grains heavier than my old lever action. I had the opportunity to take a couple of deer with a buddy’s Creedmoor last season when I had a problem with the scope on my old rifle, and I was very impressed in the pleasant recoil and performance.

Rather than making a long jaunt for an opener of the whitetail season, I will be hunting about a mile from my home. A great friend invited me to join him for ‘opening day’ on a little piece of whitetail heaven on his property behind his house. He has shown me several trail camera photos of some gnarly old bucks that travel the slough adjacent the field we will be hunting. Bucks are breaking up from the bachelor herds they ran with a few weeks ago. Their ‘buddies’ are now competition for the breeding rights to doe that will be coming into estrus soon. The rut will begin in its early stages any day. We are already seeing a few scrapes, and bucks will soon be on the move, noses in the air, in hot pursuit of a receptive doe.

Many areas have a bumper crop of acorns this year and, although deer never completely cease coming to corn feeders, hunting around oaks dropping acorns is always a good bet, especially during early season.

The opener will be a bit different for me this year, but I am really happy to be hunting close to home with a great friend that was kind enough to invite me to spend the day with him. We always have a great time together, regardless whether we are hunting elk in the high country or deer in the back forty behind the house.

Best of luck to all of you on opening day and remember, even if you don’t harvest that buck of your dreams, you are fortunate to be out there hunting and more importantly, making memories that will last the remainder of your life.

Contact outdoors writer Luke Clayton via email through his website www. catfishradio.org.