Snow in Indiana

Had 6 inches of snow in Indiana last night. Went for a walk and found these deer enjoying the snow. Didn't think you could get above anything in the Hoosier state did you!

JOE M. ON WATCH

J
Joe and I headed out with the bows today for the last day of the season.We spooked 2 deer on the way in to our tree stands. It wasn't long after daybreak that the deer were moving.
I'm not even sure how many deer we spotted 8-10?

(click on pics to enlarge)

LAST DAY DOE

Around 9:30, 2 doe were heading in our direction. They were both very leery on their approach. I thought, for sure, that I would be spotted because the area I was in had little cover.

The lead doe turned and headed right to me.

At 12 yards I took the shot.

WHACK-EM AND STACK-EM

We took the doe to the Butcher shop this morning, and my buck wasn't cut up yet.

They make a nice couple.

END OF SEASON BUCK

We had a very good day. Joe and I headed out today to do some Archery Hunting locally.

In the first hour, we saw 16 deer.

THIS WAS THE 16th

I hunted the exact same area the day before, and saw no sign of wildlife, not even a bird.

The area we hunt is 1 of 2, that is still open in Pa.

The last day is this coming Saturday.

I never expected this!!

(click on pics to enlarge)

10 POINT

I saw this same deer the last 2 days of the early archery season.

The Camp Team

AT THE BLIND PIG WITH FRIENDS

Joe M. Doug A.(camp owner)

Myself, Jim F.

Joe and I hooked up with our good friends from the state of Indiana today.

They were in town for business, and we all headed to the Blind Pig Saloon in New Ken.

The Blind Pig is owned by a good friend of ours, and features live music.

We all enjoyed the music, interesting conversation, and a few to many drinks.

We will all hook up again at camp for the Trout Season Opener in 93 days

(but who's counting)

WAITING

( A fresh 10-12 inches of snow greeted us today. There was plenty of deer sign and hopes were running high. The 1st drive produced no deer. That all changed during our 2nd drive. Deer were running everywhere! Our hunting party of 5 all saw deer, and 2 shots were fired, with negative results.

We headed to another area where we ran into a major snow drift that we could not penetrate.

We always have a picnic on the last day of muzzle loader season and this gave us an excuse to start early.

(click on pics to enlarge)

NICE DAY

This has been our most pleasant day of the season. Temps in the upper teens with minimal winds, blue skies, and sunny.

ICE TUBE

The last few weeks have been consistently below freezing. This Ice tube formed at the base of the out flow of Mahoning Dam.

ICE TUBE 2

MEDICINE

After the long hunting season comes to an end, it's time to take care of your aches and pains. We make sure to bring everybodys favorite remedies.

WARMER UPPER

For medicinal purpose only. It was a little chilly today, and a little of the Captain was what the doctor ordered.

SLOP

Butch called it slop. Noodles, hot sausage, onions, peppers, spices, and sauce, and I don't know what else.

It smelled great!

TIME TO EAT

OH MAN!!! Was this good! Hot and spicy. We will all need a nap after this.

WINGS, YUM!

Yes, wings are always served at the close of the season.

LAST SHOT?

This might be our last shot of the season. Across the major part of Pa. the muzzle loader season has ended. Wildlife Management Unit 2b is still open for a couple more weeks, but it is a urban area, much of it posted property.

We will see?

Final Tally?

Armstrong County Whitetails 17

Pa. Muzzle Loaders 5

ANTLER MOUNT

Here is Butch's trophy 8 pt. mount that he harvested in Nov.

FRIDAY THE 13TH.

BRRRRRR!!!!

Bitterly cold today. Temps in the teens, with brutal winds that had the wind chill well below zero.

(click on pics to enlarge)

WARMING UP

To get our bodies warmed up, we took turns taking refuge in a gas well hut that had a motor running. It wasn't much, but the few degrees temperature change and getting out of the wind felt GREAT!!!

MOVING ON

We did our usual 1 and 2 man drives with nothing to show for our efforts.

A few deer were seen, but no shooting opportunities.
.

ANOTHER SNOW SQUALL

We decided to make 1 last drive before heading back to the vehicles to warm up.Deep down we were all anxious to get the day over with.

The drive quickly had positive results. In a span of 10 minutes, 3 deer met there demise. Tim S. harvested 2, and Kurt P. took 1 with an unbelievable head shot at a running deer.

CHRIS FILLING OUT HARVEST TAG

THE WORK BEGINS

THE LONG TREK

The easy part of the hunt is harvesting the animal. The difficulty is getting it out of the woods.

As luck would have it, we were at the furthest point from the vehicle, and in the steepest area.

Chris S. and Kurt P.

CONGRATS GUYS!!

I have no idea where where Kurt got his shooting skills. I know it does not run in the family!

(just kidding Butch, You guys have done a good job raising your son)

The kid has shot his last 3 deer in the head!! He's a sniper.

In this pic, we have a small, medium, and a large.

Chris's deer are on the ends, and Kurt's in the middle.

LATE SEASON RALLY

Joe M., Ron G., Steve M.

Chris S., Kurt P.

The Flintlockers are making a late season comeback!!!!

Armstrong County Whitetails 15 (missed deer)

PA. Flintlockers 5 (harvested deer)

We have 1 more week to go!!!

Don't let the smiles mislead you, we are freezing our butts off.