2020 Deer Season

I have had a very long drought for deer, 2012 was my last. Many reasons, not as much interest, change of location, not going on the first day etc. This year was the first time since then I was able to hunt on the first day in the area that I wanted to be in. Made a difference. Saw 8 bucks during the day although we may have seen the same ones more than once as they were running all over the place. This was the second legal one that I saw, they must have at least three points on one side to be legal. Might have been the first legal one I saw also but I don't think so. I'm thinking the first was more compact and narrower. It was a lot further away.

While my rifle is not a milsurp, it is related to one, it's a 99 Savage.

https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo.../sgbF9Ib-1.jpg

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Originally Posted by shadycon

Mod 99's are great rifles. Mine is chamber in .300 sav..

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This one is in 243. I currently have three. The others are 300 and 308. The 308 is the 75th anniversary rifle and I've never fired it. The 300 has taken many deer for me and others over the years. My son in law has carried it for the past three and he shot an antlerless deer with it on the same day I shot this one.

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Originally Posted by Aragorn243

Saw 8 bucks during the day although we may have seen the same ones more than once as they were running all over the place. This was the second legal one that I saw, they must have at least three points on one side to be legal. Might have been the first legal one I saw also but I don't think so.

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Nice harvest! handsome looking buck, you too. You saw 8 more than I saw (alive) this year. :) Congrats!

Good to see you Steve, well done. Looks like weather is perfect.

The Savage 1899/99 is a great hunting rifle. Its too bad manufacturing costs eliminated it from the market. Congratulations on the buck. My taste buds are screaming for venison chilli and venison bourguignon.:super::super::super:

That is one of my goals for the new normality. I've been invited to go hunting by most of my South African friends and customers. I'll go next time I'll be in country.
But I put some rules. If I shoot and kill an animal, I want to dress and butcher it myself. With assistance, but I have to do it.
I just feel it would be too easy and totally "unfair" to just take a life without taking also the part that comes afterwards.

And, by the way, you look happy, Steve!

Ovidio, look me up if you come to SA. As to dress and butcher, I agree with you, but remember the workers who get paid to do that have families they have to feed.

Now I'm facing the dilemma of getting it tested for CWD or not. I'm probably just being paranoid. First they tell you there isn't a single case of a human contracting it and in the next sentence they tell you not to eat it if it's positive. The test is free but I had to leave the head behind due to not being allowed to remove certain parts out of the CWD area. Brain, spine, lymph nodes, spleen.

It has been moving into the area for years. This buck is obviously healthy. Heavy rut neck, eyes looked good, insides looked good, brain didn't have holes in it that I noticed when I cut the antlers off.

The test is free and I can get my dad to run it in to drop it off. I asked the game commission up there what their opinion was and it's personal preference, whatever the individual is comfortable with and while they are testing some, it isn't all by any stretch and those that are testing positive nearly all showed signs of the disease. I saw two other dead deer this weekend from the same area and all were healthy and none that were running around looked ill either.

This one came out of an early afternoon drive. The driver that went past me said guys had been shooting at it all down the line as it came in toward me, they all missed. It ended up 10 feet from where I was sitting. He was running flat out at a slight angle towards and past me. First shot I was holding on an opening between two trees about 75 yards out and fired as he crossed. Hard hit, stumbled but kept going full tilt. Second shot was broadside in some brush about 30 yards, went down immediately but was spinning in a large circle which brought him almost right to me. Best I can tell the first shot went in just behind the left shoulder but missed the vitals due to the angle and exited through the right hindquarter smashing the leg bone in the process thus the hard stumble. Second shot hit the same spot but due to a better angle went through the heart and then smashed the right fore leg on the way out thus the collapse.

I butcher my own, it isn't that hard. They aren't pretty steaks like you get at the store but the cook and eat the same.

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Originally Posted by Aragorn243

Now I'm facing the dilemma of getting it tested for CWD or not. I'm probably just being paranoid. First they tell you there isn't a single case of a human contracting it and in the next sentence they tell you not to eat it if it's positive. The test is free but I had to leave the head behind due to not being allowed to remove certain parts out of the CWD area. Brain, spine, lymph nodes, spleen

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I didn't know anything about Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) until you posted this. Must be because California is not on the list of areas so it not discussed, or as much, in California. Did you have to leave the Antlers as well?
If it were me, I'd eat it but cook it more than I would normally.

Supposedly cooking doesn't kill it as it's a protein that once it is in something is always there. Which is why we aren't to move parts of the deer out that may have it in them like the brain, spinal cord etc. But we can bring the bones and the meat out so you would think that is safe. But then they warn you not to eat if if you know it's infected. It's just bizarre.

I grew up where I hunt, my old friends and family are all up there and I imagine they pretty much ignore this. If the deer looks sick, that's one thing but a healthy looking deer? Bunch of rednecks that would probably be mocking me if they knew I was even worried about this.

As for the antlers, yes I have them. Cut the skull to get them off. They are permitted so long as you make sure to get all the brain matter out which I did. If I were to want to get the deer mounted, which in this case I did not, I would have to find a taxidermist in the CWD area.

And the dumbest thing is, I live in another CWD area. Not the same one. I can't take deer taken in that one to my home in this one. I did ask. Same CWD. It is very rare here and this one might go away. In 10 years it will likely be all over the state however. Came from either West Virginia or Maryland and is in the center south portion of the state and working it's way north, west and east from there. It's about 10 times the size it was originally about 8 years ago.

---------- Post added at 02:08 PM ---------- Previous post was at 02:02 PM ----------

One of the first things my wife asked when I sent her the picture was "are you getting it mounted?" No, and this is why. This is me 27 years ago in 1993 with the buck I did get mounted. Shot with the same 243 Savage 99 about a quarter mile from where this years was shot. I was probably 60lbs lighter and a lot less greyer.

https://www.milsurps.com/images/impo.../4yNFEvq-1.jpg

IMO, here in Michigan the State DNR has now made it more complicated than it used to be. Use to have plenty of Drive Thru check stations. But now because of Covid and financial cut backs there are fewer stations that are open for just a few days and fewer drop boxes.

I'm near an area that Bovine TB is more the issue than CWD.
At one time we were Required to have it tested.
Was easy to do, just use a DNR drive thru, they'd take a sample and give you a tag. You were only contacted if there was a Positive, you could also look up your tag number online.
I've always felt it was best to have any Deer tested for the sake of the Deer population.

Miles and miles of corn still standing around here so the harvest is slow right now. Just started getting colder weather and trace snow. Seems like I'm seeing fewer and fewer hunters every year. The price of licenses is turning some away. Not as many young hunters coming up like years ago.

Congrats on your Buck ! :thup:

Daan, I have a couple machines to get installed at Eskort, in Heidelberg.
I’ll definitely be around Centurion next time and send you a PM.

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Originally Posted by Ovidio

I’ll definitely be around Centurion next time and send you a PM.

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We'll need a pic of you two if you get together for beers and burgers or whatever...shooting...

Heidelberg is about an hour's drive from where I stay in Centurion. Nice town, next to the N3 highway Pretoria/Durban.