Zach Monroe
Bearcat
Today was opening day of the firearm deer season here in Michigan and for those that don't know November 15th is pretty much a holiday for much of the state. In rural areas like where I live schools are usually closed for the day and certain businesses are even closed. This is due to the large numbers of people that would be gone anyway. So I found myself getting up at 6 and heading to my Grandpa's for a quick breakfast and then heading out to the stands. Around here you either hunt in a stand or in a blind or just sit on the ground, since this is farm country with small woodlots scattered about. The ground is flat and the woods aren't very big so that's the best way. (we will change tactics drastically when we head to the UP next weekend) Anyway now to the good stuff.
I have hunted only with handguns for the last 3 years taking a deer each of those years and feeling very accomplished because of that. However this year due to many factors I haven't been shooting as much as I would like so I made the decision last night to carry a rifle along with my 44 special. I know I can still shoot fine within 30 yards with the short barrel special so if something showed up close I would pull the sixgun and if a shooter was out farther I would us the rifle. I could've taken my Ruger .280 which I know won't let me down out to a couple hundred yards or farther, but where I was planning on hunting I can't see more than a hundred yards so my grandpa and I agreed that I should carry my great grandpa's Marlin in 35 remington. My great grandpa has been gone for a few years now and he didn't hunt for more than 15 years before that so the gun hasn't seen much use in a while. Its got a classic Lyman 4x scope with the old post style reticle and was made in 1953, just a real nice old rifle that has killed bucks and bears over the years but hasn't done any killing in quite a while.
So I started out this morning with several does coming through and then a 6 point and a really nice 8 point that was tall and wide. We usually pass on the small stuff and go for the nicer ones so I was not worried about the small one but focused on the big one. But it wasn't meant to be and the six point passed through in the open and the big one passed through in the brush never giving me a shot with the sixgun or rifle. So I sat there a little disappointed that I hadn't got a crack at the nice one and a couple more does and 2 more small bucks came through spread out a little bit. It was getting to be a little after 11 and I was starting to think about lunch when I heard quite a ruckus behind me coming up the trail. It was a buck and a doe running full out (they ran right by my grandpa and wouldn't slow down for a shot) and I knew I had to get him to stop or I had no chance. So when he came into to the more open woods I let out an extra loud bleat and he came to a screeching halt. I pulled the rifle up examined the antlers one last time and decided I better shoot. I saw he had what I would call a unique rack and wanted to get him for two reasons, one because I like weird racks and two because it will help the gene pool. So I put the post right on his shoulder and pulled the trigger. He was quartered slightly towards me and he about flipped over at the shot, then proceeded to run through a small brush pile (notice I said through!) and then crash into the brush out of sight. I knew he was hard hit so when grandpa showed up a few minutes later we followed him up. He didn't leave a lot of blood but I followed the trail through the leaves and we came up with him about 70 yards away. Grandpa was tickled that I shot a deer with that old rifle and he said great grandpa would be impressed.
This makes three years in a row that I have taken a buck on opening day, it must be luck of some sort. My grandpa says its that big orange hat since I have been wearing the for probably the last 5 deer I have taken. I guess it could be, maybe I better keep wearing it!
Finally here are the pictures
I said he was unique!
An old box of silvertips that my Great grandparents both thought were the best for hunting. If they didn't have enough to fill the gun they would at least have one in the chamber so that would be the first shot with regular bullets following them.
I recovered the jacket tucked under the hide on the far side. Around 2 feet of penetration, the bullets are old technology compared to most available today but they managed to bring him down fine.
I have hunted only with handguns for the last 3 years taking a deer each of those years and feeling very accomplished because of that. However this year due to many factors I haven't been shooting as much as I would like so I made the decision last night to carry a rifle along with my 44 special. I know I can still shoot fine within 30 yards with the short barrel special so if something showed up close I would pull the sixgun and if a shooter was out farther I would us the rifle. I could've taken my Ruger .280 which I know won't let me down out to a couple hundred yards or farther, but where I was planning on hunting I can't see more than a hundred yards so my grandpa and I agreed that I should carry my great grandpa's Marlin in 35 remington. My great grandpa has been gone for a few years now and he didn't hunt for more than 15 years before that so the gun hasn't seen much use in a while. Its got a classic Lyman 4x scope with the old post style reticle and was made in 1953, just a real nice old rifle that has killed bucks and bears over the years but hasn't done any killing in quite a while.
So I started out this morning with several does coming through and then a 6 point and a really nice 8 point that was tall and wide. We usually pass on the small stuff and go for the nicer ones so I was not worried about the small one but focused on the big one. But it wasn't meant to be and the six point passed through in the open and the big one passed through in the brush never giving me a shot with the sixgun or rifle. So I sat there a little disappointed that I hadn't got a crack at the nice one and a couple more does and 2 more small bucks came through spread out a little bit. It was getting to be a little after 11 and I was starting to think about lunch when I heard quite a ruckus behind me coming up the trail. It was a buck and a doe running full out (they ran right by my grandpa and wouldn't slow down for a shot) and I knew I had to get him to stop or I had no chance. So when he came into to the more open woods I let out an extra loud bleat and he came to a screeching halt. I pulled the rifle up examined the antlers one last time and decided I better shoot. I saw he had what I would call a unique rack and wanted to get him for two reasons, one because I like weird racks and two because it will help the gene pool. So I put the post right on his shoulder and pulled the trigger. He was quartered slightly towards me and he about flipped over at the shot, then proceeded to run through a small brush pile (notice I said through!) and then crash into the brush out of sight. I knew he was hard hit so when grandpa showed up a few minutes later we followed him up. He didn't leave a lot of blood but I followed the trail through the leaves and we came up with him about 70 yards away. Grandpa was tickled that I shot a deer with that old rifle and he said great grandpa would be impressed.
This makes three years in a row that I have taken a buck on opening day, it must be luck of some sort. My grandpa says its that big orange hat since I have been wearing the for probably the last 5 deer I have taken. I guess it could be, maybe I better keep wearing it!
Finally here are the pictures
I said he was unique!
An old box of silvertips that my Great grandparents both thought were the best for hunting. If they didn't have enough to fill the gun they would at least have one in the chamber so that would be the first shot with regular bullets following them.
I recovered the jacket tucked under the hide on the far side. Around 2 feet of penetration, the bullets are old technology compared to most available today but they managed to bring him down fine.
