It still pains me to be in the dark about Moe's fate, but it is what it is at this point and I have to flush that from my system. Despite that lingering issue, there are still a handful of things that have me excited for the 2012 season; deer and turkey wise! I was hoping for a lot for pictures to dig through with 6 cams out nearly 3 weeks, but I still ended up with some decent ones out of the 2,600+ on the cams. Since turkey season is going to be here first, I'll kick things off with a couple thunder chicken pics...
As luck would have it, the three best long beards out of this ground broke off from the flock to get their pic taken. These 3 run in a flock of 7 long beards...
There are 12 turkeys in this picture and every one of them has chest hair. This is the flock of 7 that I see regularly and a group of jakes. I had to sort through a couple dozen pics, but I'm 100% certain these are all males of one age and class or another...
As a leading deer numbers bitcher, I about pissed myself when I saw this picture. I have not had more than 3 deer in a single pic in a couple of months now. There are 6 does and 2 button bucks here. This was the only time all season that there were that many does in one spot and the cams still say that we only have one mature doe and her two offspring (does) using our farm with any regularity. But I'll take what I can when it comes to does numbers even if they don't frequent our farm...
My parents place is only 10 acres, but it has a knack for turning out a few dandies from time to time. We saw a 140" 10 back there on the 23rd of October, but I never could get a picture of him. I did manage to snap pics of an impressive 8 that I'm fairly certain survived the season, so he will be a for sure shooter this fall...
This is a cool buck that I hope to see again this fall. I'm pretty sure this is the buck we almost shot during muzzleloader. I have pics of him from this week, so I know he made it...
This buck made it as well...
This is the buck that I passed on the second to last night of the season. Nice deer, but he needs another year. I saw this deer several times this season, so I have a feeling he will stick around...
I saw this buck once this fall and believe he could be a real stud this year. The jury is out on age, but I'd say he'll be hard to pass this year. I have pics of him when he is walking that make him look 3, but he doesn't look that old here. Either way, I'll be sure to keep my eyes peeled for him come fall. Oh, and I know he survived the season as well...
At this point, the new #1 for the 2012 season is my buddy Captain Jack. With the whereabouts of Moe and Boss Hawg unknown, he moves to the top of the list. This is the first deer that I will have three years of history with assuming he shows up this summer. I have not written Boss Hawg off as he is a roamer and I will also have 3 years of history with him if/when he returns. However, Jack has the makings to be one of my favorite deer of all time. I love big 8's and with his split G2s, he could very well captivate me this summer. He made a great 3 year old, so here's to hoping he makes a stellar 4 year old!!!
As luck would have it, the three best long beards out of this ground broke off from the flock to get their pic taken. These 3 run in a flock of 7 long beards...
There are 12 turkeys in this picture and every one of them has chest hair. This is the flock of 7 that I see regularly and a group of jakes. I had to sort through a couple dozen pics, but I'm 100% certain these are all males of one age and class or another...
As a leading deer numbers bitcher, I about pissed myself when I saw this picture. I have not had more than 3 deer in a single pic in a couple of months now. There are 6 does and 2 button bucks here. This was the only time all season that there were that many does in one spot and the cams still say that we only have one mature doe and her two offspring (does) using our farm with any regularity. But I'll take what I can when it comes to does numbers even if they don't frequent our farm...
My parents place is only 10 acres, but it has a knack for turning out a few dandies from time to time. We saw a 140" 10 back there on the 23rd of October, but I never could get a picture of him. I did manage to snap pics of an impressive 8 that I'm fairly certain survived the season, so he will be a for sure shooter this fall...
This is a cool buck that I hope to see again this fall. I'm pretty sure this is the buck we almost shot during muzzleloader. I have pics of him from this week, so I know he made it...
This buck made it as well...
This is the buck that I passed on the second to last night of the season. Nice deer, but he needs another year. I saw this deer several times this season, so I have a feeling he will stick around...
I saw this buck once this fall and believe he could be a real stud this year. The jury is out on age, but I'd say he'll be hard to pass this year. I have pics of him when he is walking that make him look 3, but he doesn't look that old here. Either way, I'll be sure to keep my eyes peeled for him come fall. Oh, and I know he survived the season as well...
At this point, the new #1 for the 2012 season is my buddy Captain Jack. With the whereabouts of Moe and Boss Hawg unknown, he moves to the top of the list. This is the first deer that I will have three years of history with assuming he shows up this summer. I have not written Boss Hawg off as he is a roamer and I will also have 3 years of history with him if/when he returns. However, Jack has the makings to be one of my favorite deer of all time. I love big 8's and with his split G2s, he could very well captivate me this summer. He made a great 3 year old, so here's to hoping he makes a stellar 4 year old!!!