We had been out on Saturday morning just to find the perfect spot and know exactly where we would be headed for the first day. Brandon seemed a little leary and I wasn't sure if he was quite as excited about the hunt as I, but I knew we had the perfect spot picked out and we were ready. I had seen a buck in the area weeks before and knew he was in there...we were only about 5 miles away from home so we didn't have to go far.
Brandon and his deer
Brandon and I woke up about 4:30 a.m. on Monday morning and got ourselves ready and my wife dropped us off at the edge of the woods just before 5:00 a.m. We staked out our spot and no sooner did the sun start to rise we heard two shots off to our left and I just couldn't help but wonder if that was our buck! We waited and Brandon was patient and quiet, he really surprised me.
Just about 9:30 a.m. I saw some deer out to the left of us and they looked like they were heading away from us. It was a nice size buck and two doe. I told Brandon to get ready, just incase. The wind had picked up and I wasn't sure if the buck would catch our scent or if we were pretty well hidden. Brandon was sitting on one side of the tree and I on the other and no sooner did I tell him to get ready, the buck started our way. We waited and within the next few minutes he was getting closer. I thought to myself, here it is the buck for Brandon.
We got ourselves together and I wasn't sure if I should go for the doe and let Brandon get the buck! I shot once, but the buck was still up, it was about 30 yards away and I told Brandon, go for it! With one shot, he nailed it right under it's front, shoulder and down that bad boy went! A beautiful 9 point buck, a little over 200 lbs., what a beauty. I think Brandon was in shock at first, but he was so excited, grinning from ear-to-ear and I couldn't help but think to myself how wonderful this was to be here with him on his first hunt! Not only did he get the big one on his first day out, but he was using the gun that his great-grandfather gave him, only a week before. The gun was passed down to him to use on this first hunt. His Great-Grandfather said it would be the perfect one for him at his age and boy was he right!
We tagged the deer and Brandon was so excited, we gutted him and Brandon watched intently. I decided our next time out, he's going to give it a try. We called my wife and shared the news, she ran up to take the pictures and I think she told the whole world! This was a moment I'll never forget, the smile on his face, the excitement of the kill and the bonding we had together. He'll be my hunting partner forever. The hunt between father and son is priceless, it's a time that the two of us will never forget and is, by far, the most exciting thing we have done together.
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