2013 Is coming to an end...

[DHaffner]

A recap of our 2013 season would have to start in 2012 when we won entry in the The fishin Crew tournament trail, so without a doubt the hunt fish balance would be skewed towards fishing this year.


So we found some Walleyes this summer...






and once we were done buzzing around on the water it was time to catch up on some time in the field...



Pheasant numbers were down in SD this year, but we still managed some great hunting with my 78 year old Grandfather and his brother.

 

[DHaffner]

I was a little disappointed when SDGFP tried to buy my West River Deer tag back because the herd in my county was decimated by EHD, after seeing how hard EHD and Blue Tongue were on the Whitetails East River last year and how the mature bucks were still few and far between it was a bad year to draw a white tail only tag out there. I managed to find this whitetail bedded in a pasture that we were about to turn some cows out into... I was literally in the middle of the stalk, about 350 yds out when the rancher drove within 50 yds of this deer while checking fence. I had to lay there and pray he wouldn't spook because he was the one and only buck I would see on the trip. He stayed in his bed and I was able to seal the deal...



The East River deer season, was quite an experience. I don't remember any years where I was able to look over so many deer, but unfortunately it was flat top after flat top with a few basket bucks intermixed. We were seeing a few mature bucks but they always seemed to be on the wrong side of the fence. Just before Thanksgiving I saw this guy peak out of an unpicked corn field . I had promised to help my Dad with his Black Hills tag after the holiday, so I made a quick decision that it was time to punch my tag.


Spending the final days of the season in the hills was a fantastic trip. It had been many years since my Dad had been interested in hunting hard and he held out for what was to him a nice Black Hills Trophy. Since the number of tags has been cut over the past few years, it is getting to be more of a wait to draw a tag, but we are starting to see more mature bucks. Hopefully it will be my turn to draw the tag next year, but it is hard to imagine a more rewarding hunt until my boys are old enough to get started. Seeing how excited he was taking this deer the morning of the last day of the season will stick with me for a long time.

 

[duckhunt]

I love the walleyes. Done a little tourny fishin myself. Dont do it anmore, took the fun out of fishin.

 

[warmer]

Nice ER buck. Can I ask which county? I hunt around home (Turner) and we are really down on population here.