A special thanks to a great young man

Outdoors with Bud premieres with the Kokomo Lantern

By Bud Fields

Outdoors with Bud

With the Indiana Deer seasons winding down, many hunters are enjoying some tasty, tender venison, and others are thinking back, trying to figure out why they didn’t get a deer. Don’t give up. There is always next year.

Maybe it was simply a matter of misjudging the correct yardage. Maybe it was the wind direction that alerted the deer of your presence. But trust me, the deer manages to win many more times than the hunter. That is why they call it hunting, not killing!

I was extremely fortunate this deer season. For one, I was rather doubtful that I would even be able to hunt after having part of my right lung removed, and I realized that I would most likely be limited to what I could do. There are several high ridges and deep ravines where I deer hunt.

Many years back, I had carried deer out by carrying them on my shoulders, and I could navigate the steep climb up those ridges. But that can’t happen anymore. Even the smaller deer become too much, and after several surgeries on my lower back, lower neck, and hip and knee issues, I had to make adjustments. And it always seemed like every deer I shot managed to get down in the bottom of those ravines.

My regular hunting buddy has moved to Florida, so I knew he and I would have limited hunting time together. I ended up hunting alone. I don’t mind hunting solo, but as I age, I have become more aware of my physical limitations.

I have three grandsons. Two of them love to deer hunt, and I enjoyed getting them started, but one of them live in Batesville, Ind., and can’t make the trip up here as often as we would like. He is working full time and also has other hunting companions, but we try to get together and spend time in the woods. My youngest grandson loves fishing and prefers that over hunting. My middle grandson, Conner Zeck, has really come on strong as a hunter. He loves bow hunting and enjoys using a bow, muzzleloader, and high-powered rifle, but with his full-time job and other commitments, he can’t hunt as much as he would like.

I remember when my grandsons were younger, they used to get on my computer and play a bunch of my deer hunting games. They spent hours laughing and sharing the fun they would have when they grew up. Conner really got into those games, and I took him and his older brother, Colton, with me pre-season scouting.

I tried to teach them the ins and outs of deer hunting, especially hunter safety. We set up trail cameras, and after they had taken and passed their hunter safety education course, I took them hunting as much as possible. I was with them when they took their first deer, and they both have taken several deer and some dandy bucks.

The second day of the 2022 archery deer season, Conner and I were hunting in Cass County. It was a cool weekend, and the deer were on their feet. I had hunted this property extensively for 10 years, and my trail cameras indicated there was still deer activity in the area.

I could hear deer walking in the woods before daylight, and I was just hoping they would remain until it was light enough to see. I usually don’t have opportunities early in the season, but I always say, take the first high percentage shot available. I watched several smaller does and button bucks walk through the area, and about 30 minutes after daylight, two huge does came walking in from the standing cornfield. I decided to take one of them if a shot opportunity was offered.

One of the big does came directly toward me, and I got my crossbow ready. When she was about 32 yards from me, she turned slightly and offered me a good shot. I put the crosshair of my scope on her shoulder and squeezed the trigger. The arrow was launched.

I could see the Lumen-Arrow in flight as the Lumenok glowed bright red. It looked like a brake light on a car. I could tell she was hit well as she took off running, straight for the deep ravine behind my stand.

I heard her crash to the ground. I sent Conner a text and told him I just arrowed a big doe, and I was afraid she was down in the ravine. I told him we could wait until 10:30 a.m. to look for her and for him to stay in his stand. Hopefully, some deer would move by him.

About 10:30 a.m., Conner texted me back and said we could start tracking the deer. I got down out of my stand and headed for my ATV. I drove to the far end of the property to the lane leading to where Conner was hunting, and I picked him up. We headed back to where I had been hunting.

I drove the ATV to the last place I saw the deer as it headed down the ravine. We looked over the edge of the ridge, and sure as heck, there she laid, down in the bottom. We parked the ATV close to the edge of the ridge, and I tied a rope around the base of a big tree and then around the trailer hitch to secure the ATV.

I released the cable on the front of the ATV, and Conner took the winch hook down and tied it around the deer. I used the remote control and winched the deer up the ridge. After we got everything loose, we loaded her on the rear carrier, and after that, it was easy-peasy getting her to the truck.

I told my wife I had a deer for the freezer. I could relax and pick my hunting days. But the wind started getting rough. It caused me to stop hunting for two weeks. I was not accustomed to that. If I hadn’t taken that big doe, I would have probably toughed it out and hunted, but I don’t like hunting in the strong wind.

I kept watching the weather app and planned my hunts accordingly. Conner and I had been texting back and forth about not being able to hunt, and I told him I was going out the next afternoon. He told me he couldn’t hunt, but if I got one down to call him. He would come help me get it out.

I drove up, unloaded the ATV, and as I was loading my seat cushion, crossbow, and everything I needed on the ATV, I saw a buck run across the picked cornfield. I got somewhat excited. They had just picked the standing corn, and I felt sure I would see deer activity.

I climbed up my ladder stand and settled in for a rather cool afternoon hunt. I started seeing deer within maybe 30 minutes, but nothing close enough for a shot. It was starting to get close to quitting time, and I was actually preparing to climb down when I saw movement in front of me. It was a deer.

It stayed behind some bushes. I could not identify if it was a buck or doe, but it had a good-sized body. It was maybe 35 five yards away, standing behind two trees. I had an open shot to the ribcage, and I took it. It was a nice buck. I texted Conner and told him I had shot a buck. He took the time to come help me drag it out and back to the truck.

A couple weeks later, I was hunting with my .50 cal. CVA Accura 2 muzzleloader. I had one doe tag remaining. As luck would have it, I saw several bucks but gave them a pass. I was hunting the same stand where I had taken the other two deer. It was cool with very little breeze, and I could hear squirrels running through the dry leaves.

Suddenly, I heard something that I was certain was a deer walking. I kept looking, and there came a big, fat doe. I got the CVA ready, and I stood up. When she stopped, I fired the shot. The smoke from the muzzleloader filled the air and made seeing difficult, but I saw the direction she headed. I was sure I had made a great shot.

She was headed for the open field, and I was happy because the ravine was behind me. I relaxed a few minutes, and I once again texted Conner. He called me back immediately. He had just gotten home from work. I told him, “I just smoked a big doe.” He told me he was headed my way and to just sit tight.

I had got down and found the blood trail, but the deer fooled me. She had headed for the field but turned back inside the woods. Then, she turned north and headed for the habitat area. I thought, “Great! She will fall in the open field, and I will drive the ATV right to her and load her up.”

Conner called me and told me he was just parking his truck. I told him to get the ATV and drive it into the habitat. Of course, I found her laying in the bottom of the deepest ravine there. Once again, I tied the ATV to a tree, and Conner took the winch hook down the ridge. He came walking back up and asked me if I had anymore rope. I had a spool of 100-foot rope in a bag I carry on the ATV, and it took every bit of that rope, plus the winch cable.

Once we hooked her up, I backed the ATV up until the deer was on level ground, then I started winding the winch cable back up. Conner told me, “Grandpa, you might consider getting a helicopter for next year!”

I tell you one thing. If it hadn’t been for Conner helping me get those three deer out, I would still be huffing and puffing and dragging deer. He took a lot of his personal time to help his grandpa, and I am especially proud of him.

I don’t regret teaching the grandsons how to fish and hunt, or all the times I took them hunting. Now, they are taking me hunting, and I love them. Please excuse me for being emotional and proud. They are all great men, and I regret nothing! I can’t wait until next season!

Bud Fields is a life-long outdoorsman and professional hunter and fisher. He has spent decades in north-central Indiana, teaching the principles of responsible, ethical, humane, and safe activities in the wilderness. He accepts questions and topic suggestions for future columns, and he is an accomplished speaker available for presentations at trade shows, service organizations, and civic functions. Read more of his work on the Outdoors with Bud Facebook page.