As much as I love to archery hunt, there's just somethin' special about the first day of the PA Buck season; the huntin' itself is eclipsed by the trip to camp and the camaraderie shared with family and close friends. Last year, my friend over on the Main Line painted perhaps the best picture of it that I've read, and I encourage y'all to give it a read, as I just did (again).
That said, havin' my PA buck tag already filled throws a wrench into joinin' everyone upstate at Ron's for his annual Deer Eve festivities. I could have gone up and been camp bitch or bear hunted like Joe chose to do, but I decided to get some much needed solitude and mental health by headin' down to Maryland's Eastern Shore to try to whack a deer or two. Some good family friends have a retreat home on 11 acres that they graciously allow us to stay at and hunt at our leisure, with a manageable lease payment of a case or two of Natty Lite, a bag of Martin's Kettle-Cooked potato chips and some Reese's cups.
We've never seen a vast number of deer down here, but we've all killed our fair share and have made some fond memories down here. Jesse took his first buck from what we call the Kid's Stand, and Dad has taken two exceptional bucks, one from the Kid's Stand and the other from a gem that we call the Death Trap. Joe's second (or third?) buck came from a ladder stand set up near the Death Trap. I've only ever got one shot at a buck down here, and managed to shank that one due to rushin' the shot with an unfamiliar gun. Hopefully I'll be able to make amends sometime this week and put my first Maryland buck on the ground. I reckon a big doe doesn't want to walk by either since we can shoot whatever we want down here.
It never hurts when the property owners find stuff like this layin' around in the field next to the house...
On that note, it's time to get my shit together for the mornin' and head to bed. To everyone else that's headed out in the mornin', good luck to y'all.
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