I finally know something!
- Thread starter JPN
- Start date
That's great mao!!! Congrats and just remember, she's hooked now. For a girl her age that is awesome. Congrats!!
Mao
Member
Last night will be a night that I never forget. The past couple years I have taken my daughter out to sit with me while I hunted out of a blind. She always enjoyed it and I loved having her come along. Earlier this year, she asked if she could go deer hunting with me again this year. I of course was happy that she was interested in going and told her of course she could go. I then asked her if she thought she would like to be the hunter. She liked the idea of that so the preparations began. I started by talking frequently with her about hunting, safety, life and death, etc. The things any parent would discuss before taking their six year old hunting. I felt she was ready, so it was time to practice shooting the crossbow. We talk each time about safety before shooting and her hand placement. It turned out that she was a pretty good shot from the get go, and with a little practice, she was putting kill shots on the 3D targets every time.
Her first hunt was a bust. We hunted a homemade ladder stand that both of us can fit in comfortably. It was a windy night and we did not see a deer. She played some games on my phone, but spent a lot of the night watching for deer and really just enjoying being out and being in a tree stand. Yesterday after school, I asked her if she wanted to go hunting again tonight. She jumped excitedly and said, "Yes! Yes! Yes!". The reaction any dad would be happy to get. So we headed home from school, got dressed and then went down to my dads to target practice. She stuck her first two shots in the 10 ring so I decided it was time to hunt.
We headed back to the same homemade tree stand that my grandpa built and got settled around 5:30. It did not take long for us to see her buck. He walked out in the beans at about 5:50 approximately 80 years away from us and began feeding. My daughter instantly got excited and focused on getting ready for the shot in case he would come our way. He fed across the field to our side until we lost view of him due to the trees. We had a 50/50 chance that he would feed our way or on out over the hill. We kept watch and he luckily turned our way and fed towards us. He walked to 25 yards and turned broadside. My daughter was doing her best to get on him but had some trouble. I could tell she was on him, but could not figure out where to shoot at. I whispered "be calm, you can do it, just shoot him right behind his shoulder". She said "okay, I got him". I then told her "okay, go ahead and shoot". A few seconds later she squeezed and sent the bolt into him in what looked like his shoulder due to him slightly turned quarter to us. When he turned to run I could see blood squirting right out the pump house and knew he was done. He went approximately 20 yards and started the "death wobble" and tipped over right on the edge of the woods inside of 50 yards. I could not believe what had just happened!!! She whispered, "I got him!" I grabbed her and gave her a big bear hug and kissed her. The look on her face after she realized what had just transpired was priceless! I was elated and could not stop shaking! We tried to calm down, but that seemed nearly impossible. When I was able, I called my dad and told him what happened. I told him to go get grandpa and get out here. We then climbed down and walked over to see her buck. We both were super pumped to say the least. For me it was a special moment to see my grandpa and my dad both come over the hill to help with the buck. My grandpa got me started in hunting and it was special that he could be there. We brought him home to a small crowd of friends and family who cheered for my daughter as we pulled in. It was great! We snapped a ton of pictures and then got him ready for the processor. It was an unbelievable night for me as well as my family. I could not be more proud of my little girl. She is six years old and a kindergartner and has already put an antlered deer on the ground with a crossbow. The pictures are of her pre-hunt shooting, four generations of Olinger hunters and her and her buck. Thank you all for your kind comments!
Hortontoter
Senior Member
Awesome story!!!!
The pictures say it all!
Congratulations to you, your daughter, and all involved in sharing the memory!
The pictures say it all!
Congratulations to you, your daughter, and all involved in sharing the memory!
Perfectly said Jon! Great read Marcus! Awesome job TOO the both of you! Great pic of the four generations sharing in the success! First time I've prolly ever saw that!
angelzd28
Junior Member
- 24,838
- 247
That's a deer story to be told a hundred times! Congratulations to you all. You are all so fortunate to be able to share the experience!
