Saturday 9/8 – New Jersey Opening Day Bow Season
Started the Morning Off at work at Automotive Repair Shop listening to the sound of impact guns, lifts going up & Down, & calling customers to let them know their cars were ready trying not to day dream & wish I was hearing the hum of my oversized bald tires on my old truck hitting the road to head home to get everything ready to go bow hunting. When I got home I rushed in to grab pruners, my treestand umbrella & canvas to hang from shooting rail for some extra coverage. I’m last minute at times haha and wanted to make sure with the rain forecast I had one umbrella up at least and pruners to make sure I had clear shooting lanes in all directions. I had a huge branch right in front I actually had to stand on the top of my tailgate to lean against the tree to reach it, wish I videoed it lol. I Ended up spending more time then intended but at least that stand is ready for the season. I have had one nice buck coming in and the same doe & two little ones. In NJ in the early season you have to shoot an antlerless Deer before you can shoot a buck and I was skeptical about hunting there & taking the only doe I have been seeing that he comes threw after. So I grabbed my compound bow & I decided to hunt in different stand & ended up being accompanied by 3 bears & saw a Doe & 3 younger deer with her but were all over 60 yards away. It felt so good just to be in the stand again & Unwinding to sound of the woods & was a great afternoon to dark hunt regardless.
Sunday – AM Hunt
Woke up at 3:30 & was so stoked. Went downstairs to see how hard the rain was so I knew how to dress & was down pouring but wasn’t going to let it damper my excitement to wake up with the woods. I Decided to bring my crossbow this time i can rest it easily on my lap & Shooting rail & Cover my Spy Point Action Camera From Getting Wet Easily if needed. The Past week has been so hot in the 90’s & yesterday & today it felt like someone flipped the switch to fall & was so cool it felt great & to be honest the rain wasn’t going to deter my mindset all I could think about was NO MOSQUITOES!! haha I put fresh batteries in my thermacell this week but lucked out because they have been so bad this year I cant leave the woods when checking trail cameras without getting bit 10 times. But I love the drive to my stand and getting pumped & Pulling in turning my headlights out & I only have one fog light that works on my old truck and it works out perfect to drive in to park haha. Turning my interior light out and fumbling in the dark just in case. Holding all my gear & trying to shut my door as quiet as possible even though my truck is no where near my stand its just precautions I have always practiced just in case even if it doesn’t make much difference but the first step out along the outer field edge & the crickets & breathing fresh cool air & my heart starts to pound & I know I’m smiling the whole time anxious to get up into my stand, situated, & Still. I try to let moonlight guide me in but use a very dim flashlight & try not to shine it anywhere but ahead of me even when I hear a rustle in the woods, But once up & Situated its invigorating to just lean my head back against the tree & just take it all in. The Crickets & the Rain were so loud but also calming. As everything in front of & around me started to dance around first light, it was welcomed with the screech of a red fox & slowly the crickets faded out & the sound off birds followed with squirrels arrived. Morning Hunts are my favorite & waking up with the woods in my opinion is great therapy & stress relief. As everything starts coming into view I couldn’t believe how fortunate I was that the tree canvas above me was acting as a great umbrella & it was still down pouring from the time I stepped out my front door to when I decided to head in to dry out for later, that for the first few hours I stayed relatively dry…as for my crossbow – already penciled in a date with it with a towel & a bottle of no scent oil to dry it off as soon as got home. I ended up seeing 2 bears off in the distance annihilating our sweet corn but no deer before I decided to head in to dry out. It’s Not Always about filling a tag just being able to get out to a stand is rewarding enough. Still can’t Believe Bow Hunting has finally Arrived & Can’t Wait to see what this season has to bring 🙂