On November 12-16 I went up to the Beaver Trail Hunt Camp with my friend Rick for my second whitetail deer hunt. The following is a day-by-day account of this great trip.
The story of last years hunt can be found by
clicking here.Day 1: Wednesday, Nov 12
Rick and I arrived at Greens Landing at about 1pm and had all of our gear over the Madawaska River and into the camp by about 2:30pm. The weather was a very nice +4, sunny and calm. For the late afternoon watch I went to the "North Ledge" just above camp and Rick hunted towards me from the "Top". While we saw some deer "scat" we did not see any deer. It was dark by 5pm so we retired to the camp and relaxed and prepared for the next day's hunt. There was a near-full moon that rose early evening casting a very strong light on the forest. It has been a long time since I have seen such pronounced "moon shadows".
We were settled into our bunks by about 8am with plans to get up well before first light. With only the two of us in camp I had the privilege of sleeping on a lower bunk, which are normally reserved for more "senior" members of the camp. Considering that we heat with wood stoves the upper bunks can be quite warm.
Day 2: Thursday, Nov 13
We woke up around 5am to a temperature of about +3C and a cloudy day. The barometer was falling quickly and the forecast was for rain. While I was outside before light "taking care of business" I saw a pair of eyes in the hemlock tree in front of camp. After stopping and shinning my light up the tree I counted at least 3 sets of eyes from a family of raccoons. I bet they got a whiff of the food stored in the camp's outdoor ice box and were building the courage to check it out. After a few minutes of letting me watch them, they scurried down the tree and into the bush.
The plan for the morning hunt for for me to walk the main trail to "The Gut" and then to meet Rick at "Grants Watch" around 10:30. Rick took the southerly trail over "The Limestone" and then on the old trail.
The rain started at about 7:30am but it was surprising dry for most of the walk due to the heavy evergreen canopy. I walked slowly stopping every 8-10 steps for a few moments to look around. Aside from the rain the woods were very quiet. I stopped for a bit near the "Y" trail and then at the "Hogs Back". Slowing continuing up the trail I reached "The Gut" around 9:30 am and watched there until heading over to "Grants Watch" for 10am. Rick arrived at about 10:30 and we stopped to talk for a bit to plan our next steps. I made a small campfire and heated up a can of chili for lunch. Nothing like chili to take the chill off on a raining day!
Rick told me that he saw several large deer scrapes along the old trail so we then headed that way so he could point them out. On the way we saw some moose and bear scat along the trails. There were many large scrapes to be seen. Several were new with others being there for a few weeks. This was proof that there were bucks around!
We continued up towards "The Balsam" while enduring the steady rain. Just before climbing up towards "The W" we stopped and talked for a bit. The plan was to head back to camp to dry off, warm up, and then plan our late afternoon hunt. A few minutes after we started out towards camp, Rick, who was about 20 paces in front of me, stopped, raised his rifle and after a very short pause fired one shot I heard a deer run through the bush down towards the swamp. Rick confirmed that he hit a buck. Yipee! I stayed in placed for a few minutes hoping to see any doe that may have been with the buck and then spooked by the shot. After a few minutes I walked up to Rick and we saw that the buck had dropped about 40 yards or so down the hill off the trail. It was a solid hit! I congratulated Rick and then we headed down to dress out the buck. Spirits were very high! It was a nice sized 9-point buck.
After watching Rick dress out the deer (and trying not to get in the way or ask to many questions ;-) we then had to figure out how to get the deer back to camp. The most direct route would involve dragging the deer several hundred paces up the hill and then down to the camp. The second part would be much easier than the first. We decided to head back to camp, drop off our packs, and then take the deer carrier (basically a large wheel barrel) back to the deer around the hill. This would still be tough work, but much more manageable. When all was said and done we had the deer hanging behind camp at about 5pm...just over 5 hours from when when Rick shot the deer. We were both very tired but also very satisfied that the hard work was over. We dried off in camp and I cooked a dinner of pork chops, potatoes and veggies topped off with a glass of red wine. What a great day it was! With a fire on in the barrel stove we collapsed into our bunks around 8:30pm wondering what the next day would bring.
Day 3: Friday, Nov 14
Friday morning brought cloudy skies and a temperature of about +8C. As has been my habit, I was up around 5am and put on the coffee. The plan for the morning hunt was for me to hunt at "The Point" while Rick would head up to "The Notch" and hunt towards me, with the hope of pushing a deer towards me. I left camp at about 7:00am and was at my watch at about 8am. Around 8:30am several hunters from the neighboring Iago camp walked up the trail from the water. The Iago folks explained that they were going to drive from the "Y" trail, with their dog, who is aptly named "Hunter", towards the main trail and to the west. They also informed me that so far that had not taken any deer, which must have been very frustrating for the ~8 man hunt party. Rick made it down towards me by about 10:30am. From there Rick went up to the North Ledge behind camp to collect pine cones for his wife, Melanie, who, I should add, also provided Rick with a good supply of homemade oatmeal cranberry cookies that he was kind enough to share with me. They were amazing!. I headed up into one of my favorite spots in "The Pines" and then headed back to camp to meet up with Rick at about 1pm. There was lots of deer sign in "The Pines" but no deer to be seen or heard!
After a short rest at camp I decided to head over the watch the meadow just about the beaver dam at "The Point". I found a nice spot that provided concealment and in which the wind was in my face. From this location I could see the entire meadow which was about 100 meters wide and about 250 meters long. With my Savage 308 Winchester rifle I figured I would be able to take a clean shot at any deer that tried to cross the meadow. I waited there until the end of legal hunting (30 minutes after sunset) and then headed back to camp. While no deer were seen, I enjoyed watching from there and plan on trying this spot in future hunts.
For dinner we had an extra special treat. Rick fried up the heart of the deer he shot the day before. He added some onions, butter, red wine and potatoes. While I was a bit hesitant at first, I found it to taste amazing! I believe that cooking it on a cast-iron pan on top of a wood fired cook stove also added a lot to the taste. What a great meal it was and we made sure to thank our Creator God before hand for the gift of this special meal. With the temperature warm and no way to preserve the left over heart, Rick decided to return it to nature and left it outside for the animals. After cleanup we relaxed for a bit in the peace and quite of camp.
Day 4: Saturday, Nov 15
We woke up Saturday morning to a warm +10C with a steady rain and a light wind. The low front had moved in completely and was saturating the forest with much needed rain. While it was very tempting to stay in the warm dry camp to try to wait out the weather, I forced myself out and into the woods as I figured that I had zero chance of seeing any deer in camp ;-). I decided to hunt closer to camp and headed down the trail to watch over one of the trails leading off the main train near the first meadow. It was dark, wet and dreary. I tried to convince myself that the only creatures that would be out in this weather were hunters like myself and hormone crazed monster bucks in search of does. I walked up to the Y trail junction and setup a watch for a while, before heading down to overlook the trails out of the meadow.
After watching for over two hours I called it a morning and headed back to camp. Rick and I then started to clean up and close up the camp as we planned to cross back over the Madawaska River and stay the forth night in a rented cabin. After completing all the camp chores and hauling our gear, and the buck, to the boat landing we crossed over the river and moved into the cabin.
As we were now on the more civilized (?) side of the river there was no need to cook and do dishes! Rick treated me to a dinner at
Shooter's Bar and Grill in
Calabogie. We had a piece of apple pie and coffee afterwards at a place we found called Polly's L'il Shanty located right on the main street.
Day 5: Sunday, Nov 16
The radio told us that the temperature would be dropping overnight and that there would be a chance of snow and high winds in the morning. Sure enough, we woke up to a temperature of about +2C with wet snow. As the wind was picking up we decided early on not to cross the river again but to hunt on this side of the river instead. With all the camp chores completed and the camp closed for the winter we had little reason to head back, especially if it chanced getting caught in a storm. We ended up hunting for a few hours along the river just to the North and West of the cabin on crown land. There was some deer sign (but no scrapes of any size) and I saw what I believe to be bear sign as well as what was left of a small deer that must have been taken by coyotes or wolves.
At about 10:30am, with the boat out of the water and Rick's truck packed up, we headed for home. While it was a great trip, I was really starting to miss my family and was especially looking forward to sleeping in my own bed. We hung the deer at Rick's place and he planned to take it to the butcher the next day.
While I was disappointed not to shoot, let alone see a deer, I greatly enjoyed the hunt and spending time at camp and in the bush. I am very much looking forward to my next trip to this area in the spring and I am already thinking of next fall's hunt......
Tom
