Thread: Waiting

Waiting

The dog winded keenly off the bush track. We were in business. Giving him the nod, he cautiously stepped forward. Every 10 metres or so he would stop and lock up. He would look back at me, then anxiously forward. From the way he was winding I could tell he couldn’t quite pick exactly where, but there were deer forward of us, and close. Very close. For some reason, lately I’ve taken to stopping dead still and waiting, however long it takes, for him to make the next move. It’s taken a long time to learn this lesson. This has resulted in some epic “standing dead still” sessions. The beauty of hunting behind a good dog is it’s often worth the wait.
But then he’d press forward again, freely, before slowing right down another 20 metres or so in front, winding, then locking up. I’d obediently follow, giving him confidence to apply his trade. He’s a far better hunter than me. He has much better eyesight, hearing and to be brutally honest, hunting sense. I cringe when I hear hunters bemoan their dogs’ mistakes. Really?


It's business time

As I followed him, I reflected on how much I relish this little game, played in such serene surroundings. What a blessing. About an hour in, he locked up, and wouldn’t move. Not once did he give me his final “tell”… The best one. The “I can see one, right there, just follow my nose, and shoot it now, hurry up” one. Time drifted. I strained and looked, not just at the bush, but through all the micro-holes. Straining for the slightest of movement. Listening for the crack of foliage under hooves. Deer can be clumsy sometimes too you know.
I noticed an object about 80 or 90 yards ahead. I couldn’t quite determine if it was a deer. My little Aimpoint is a lot of fun, but no help in situations like this. Then the “blob” moved away. Ahhh. A deer. And it hasn’t seen me (just the best ever). It was browsing quietly away. No wonder we weren’t quite clocking onto a deer at each stop. Excitement quickly overtook sound judgment. Ignoring that small, inner voice that screamed “what if there’s a deer right in front of you?” I pressed forward at double pace to close the gap to the departing deer. Stepping far too fast around the foliage in front, two deer boosted off. Kai was telling me they were right there, a few yards away. Bugger. Kai is very forgiving, but I couldn’t make eye contact.

After another inglorious stalk, I managed to successfully identify then shoot a “tree deer”. It was a perfectly formed image by sun and shadows of a deer at 10 metres. Feeling a little silly, I took a break. But what an awesome day. Out in the bush, playing the game of “stalk”. I’m glad deer aren’t armed.

Pressing forward we found a fresh bedding area, then clicked this was where we’d shot a young hind a few months earlier. Interesting. Added this spot to the memory bank and the Garmin. 100 metres later and Kai started locking up again. Game on. We waited, dead still, for a few minutes. I don’t know why, but the wind here is always favorable. That’s my view and I’m sticking to it. To be honest, I don’t focus too much on it, unless it is prevailing. The dog will adjust anyway. I find that wind can funnel in small micro eddies between systems. It’s the same for both the hunter and the hunted. To our surprise, there was the sound of an animal crashing off. Hum. It was only 10 metres in front, obscured from view, probably bedded. We never saw it. Must have been a puff of wind?


Kai led me to a hind a few months earlier. Her head and neck appeared where the supplejack is at the centre screen. Funnily enough, we'd had a ten minute break while on the stalk and had waited before I spotted her.


Taking the time to enjoy a quiet cup of tea, and some shared home made venison jerky with my mate.

After sitting down to munch on museli bar for lunch by a peaceful river, Kai crossed over. Then a little way along, he led us back across. Then up through the cabbage tree maze to the ridge line. There, we found a game trail with fresh stag and pig sign. Ignoring the dog’s indications down through the thick cabbage, I followed the main ridge until we hit a junction. I was starting to tire. It was time to head back to camp.

Kai headed down the ridge and stopped. An animal ahead. We heard something. He looked anxious. We sat and waited. And waited. 10 minutes later I slowly got up, and ever so quietly placed my feet another 20 or so steps. A ledge, overlooking a gut that leveled over 70 yards or so below. Ideal. And so, we sat again, for another 5 minutes or so. There just had to be a deer here. Kai looked around anxiously. I got up and stepped to my right, and peering down, I locked eyes with a hind staring back up at me. The steep downhill shot was a tough one. She only presented the top of her back, chest and head. I wasn’t keen on a snapshot at that range. So, I sat down, braced my arms with my knees, and placed the red dot on her shoulder. Gently, I squeezed the trigger. Click. And nothing happened. I hadn’t reloaded after successfully shooting the tree deer. Dork (polite word for what I really thought at the time).

Quickly chambering a round, again I placed the shot. She fell and started kicking. We made our way down the hill. She was rolling around, and then I noticed another deer, struggling too. Kai started to bolt forward. I quickly pulled him in line. “Get in behind. None of that carry on.” The lever flew into action. When did I shoot it? Making my way down, I got close enough to put the hind down. Upon inspection, I’d shot her through the upper shoulder, spining her. I clicked later. The fawn must have been standing parallel beside her, as they do. Obscured from view. The first shot had hit both.



I really value quality venison and have hungry young adults to feed back home. Where possible, I try to take as much as I can carry. Fortunately, the only meat lost was a small section of one of the hind’s back straps. Being late May I was able to hang the meat skin on, overnight. Ideal. This allows the meat to drain and rest. A quality backpack with a meat shelf makes for a manageable and safe walk out the next morning. It had been an enjoyable couple of days with my mate, lugging the lever action around the bush. The next few months are an excellent time of year for bush hunting and make winter that much more bearable. Perhaps even a little, dare I say, exciting.

Top quality read that.

Kai looks like a real dude. Proper dog.

Beautifully written.

I was up there yesterday and the wind was a piss off, good to see you and the dog are making it look easy

Cracker write up mate! Well done Kai and his tag along

Great writeup. And a great mate to enjoy the adventures with. Enjoy all that good meat.

Great read.
The joys of having a real dog.

That's brilliant!

Nice read with a Sunday afternoon coffee.Enjoy yr venison.

Thankyou
we live n learn,I will be sure to try that with young Poppy...her training on deer hasnt even really begun yet.we have shot a couple out in open but havent spent time together in bush without the old bitch yet...

Very well written story , Kai certainly knows his job, a full pack of meat proves that. Well done and enjoy the rewards.

Great read. Thanks.

Yeah brilliant read , thanks for taking the time to write that up , one of the better hunting stories I have read for a while

Awesome read, very well written.
Reminded me of two things, one how much I like shooting over my dog in the bush and secondly that I need to hunt a lot slower, you seem to have nailed that, thanks for the inspiration.

Such a good read! Thanks.