"I finally got a keeper on the first day of late muzzleloader. Made a 2 hour stalk, through knee deep snow, to get within 60 yards of this buck and doe bedded in a thicket. Tried to grunt the buck out, but no luck. Figured this stalk would end quicker, but I ended up sitting against a tree in the fenceline from 10:00 AM to 3:00PM until the doe finally came out. Left my backpack down in the timber with my snacks and water, ended up eating a little snow to get me through. The doe fed out in front of me for an hour, then bedded down at 100 yards facing me for 35 minutes. I couldn't move at all and started cramping up. She finally got up about 4:40 PM and continued to mill around, while looking back into the thicket periodically. I was hoping he was still there. The buck finally stepped out about 4:50 and gave me a 100 yard shot. I dropped him in his tracks with my new Knight Long Range Hunter, which could be my new favorite gun. The bitter sweet problem was that he flopped his head a couple of times and snapped both of his antlers off and I was sick. He had to be within a couple of days of shedding his antlers. The doe that he was tending eventually worked downwind of the buck and allowed me a chance to reload. When she was about 10 yards from the buck, I popped her also. She ran about 75 yards. This was a hunt that I will never forget. The work to get them out was even harder, I'm glad that I at least took my snowmobile. My day finally ended about 10:00 PM. The buck is a typical 10-point with split brow tines and gross scores just over 158", the first mature buck I've taken with a gun for over 11 years. My success comes from one thing, and that’s because God continues to bless me on my hunting endeavors."
Congratulations on a great hunt and a great buck, Shawn! If sitting there all day in those kind of conditions isn't dedication, well then, I just don't know what is! That is definitely a bruiser of a buck and a hunt to remember!
