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- Aug 18, 2009
- Messages
- 1,915
Love that photo!
You have a special fan club!
Steve
---------
Member, W.F. Moran Foundation
You have a special fan club!
Steve
---------
Member, W.F. Moran Foundation
-
The BladeForums.com 2024 Traditional Knife is ready to order! See this thread for details: https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/bladeforums-2024-traditional-knife.2003187/
Price is$300$250 ea (shipped within CONUS). If you live outside the US, I will contact you after your order for extra shipping charges.
Order here: https://www.bladeforums.com/help/2024-traditional/ - Order as many as you like, we have plenty.
Who Says A Purpose Made Fighter Can't Double For A Hunter :) Hurak Content
- Thread starter JParanee
- Start date
- Joined
- Jan 21, 2000
- Messages
- 8,888
Just got around to checking back. Would love to read the long story version if it's not too much to ask.
Thanks!
Will
- Joined
- Dec 23, 2006
- Messages
- 15,019
Here you go Will
It was titled
Finally a good buck but maybe my last
It is running on top in two archery forums and getting a lot of kind words from hunters and non hunters alike
............
I can not claim this deer as an archery only kill even though it started out with an arrow......because in the end a 12 gauge slug also came into play.
The arrow would have eventually done him in but I'm impatient
A little back ground for those that are not familiar with how my friends and I hunt.
During the rut we do a lot of tree stand hunting but through out the season we mix in deer drives (more like pushes)
A group of us have been hunting together for a very long time and we have it down to a science.
This year we were off to a fairly good start with a couple of good bucks falling to drives in the first bow season
Than a few more in the start of the gun season one shot with a bow the other a gun
I have only gotten to hunt a total of about 6 days due to traveling in the beginning of the season and a hectic work schedule
Minus the time I sat with Blackie I only sat a stand for a total of three afternoons
I saw deer on all but one sit and had a close encounter with a shooter Buck that was the inspiration for my leg shaking thread earlier this month
The other days were spent doing drives twice in the first season and than once in the second
This year was very important to me
I was coming off a heart breaking loss of a big buck two seasons ago and had pretty much been so reluctant to shoot last year I went a whole season with out firing a shot
In fact it was three years ago that I had last scored a good Buck
He was a healthy high 140's 5 1/2 year old that I shot at about 6 yards on the ground during a push
My hunting has been tormenting me of late and while I would never dare to judge anyone's standards in what they choose to shoot I have pretty much resigned to only shooting mature Bucks that I would deem a trophy
To make the game even harder after a lifetime of hunting my desire to kill things is not what it once was
Don't get me wrong I love hunting. I grew up in a hunting family and want my children to know how important hunting is to us as a family tradition etc
But I would be lying if I did not say that I am a bit conflicted
With walls of animals and even some of my fondest memories spent in the field every year it seems to effect me more deeply than the last
I have lost a total of 2 big deer in my life and the last one that was 2 years ago almost drove me mad
So let's get on with the story and my rather long winded point
We started early and since all but two of us had tagged out my role was just as a poster vs being a driver
The first piece is a beautiful farm that has a river bottom that has fields on one side and an open hardwoods on the other
The two of us set up only about 50 to 60 yards apart and settled in
We were both using bows on this drive. Some drives we can use slug guns in the gun season but some we choose to use archery equipment do to the certain areas and landowner requests
It was a beautiful crisp morning and like on cue a beautiful buck appeared just inside the woods edge and as if he were on a wire he trotted right to my friends position
It was like I was watching a hunting show and I took a knee and got ready in case the buck would spook and head my way
Just when it looked like he was standing on top of my buddy and as I was muttering the words shoot shoot shoot I heard the thwack of the arrow and watched him bolt into the open field.
He did not make it 50 yards and piled up from a perfect double lung shot
From my viewpoint I really thought this was an 8 pointer and as I walked up to my friend and the deer I was surprised to see that it was a big 6
Mature and broken up and with the frame of a big 8 it just looked like he was missing his G3's
Still a great buck and a perfect setup, and to watch it up close and personal like I did was a real treat. Being that it is my best friends son who at 36 is like the son I never had made it even more special. I have killed many deer and caught many a fish with this young man and many will remember his pics from my recent South American trip
This former Marine is great in the field
It was titled
Finally a good buck but maybe my last
It is running on top in two archery forums and getting a lot of kind words from hunters and non hunters alike
............
I can not claim this deer as an archery only kill even though it started out with an arrow......because in the end a 12 gauge slug also came into play.
The arrow would have eventually done him in but I'm impatient
A little back ground for those that are not familiar with how my friends and I hunt.
During the rut we do a lot of tree stand hunting but through out the season we mix in deer drives (more like pushes)
A group of us have been hunting together for a very long time and we have it down to a science.
This year we were off to a fairly good start with a couple of good bucks falling to drives in the first bow season
Than a few more in the start of the gun season one shot with a bow the other a gun
I have only gotten to hunt a total of about 6 days due to traveling in the beginning of the season and a hectic work schedule
Minus the time I sat with Blackie I only sat a stand for a total of three afternoons
I saw deer on all but one sit and had a close encounter with a shooter Buck that was the inspiration for my leg shaking thread earlier this month
The other days were spent doing drives twice in the first season and than once in the second
This year was very important to me
I was coming off a heart breaking loss of a big buck two seasons ago and had pretty much been so reluctant to shoot last year I went a whole season with out firing a shot
In fact it was three years ago that I had last scored a good Buck
He was a healthy high 140's 5 1/2 year old that I shot at about 6 yards on the ground during a push
My hunting has been tormenting me of late and while I would never dare to judge anyone's standards in what they choose to shoot I have pretty much resigned to only shooting mature Bucks that I would deem a trophy
To make the game even harder after a lifetime of hunting my desire to kill things is not what it once was
Don't get me wrong I love hunting. I grew up in a hunting family and want my children to know how important hunting is to us as a family tradition etc
But I would be lying if I did not say that I am a bit conflicted
With walls of animals and even some of my fondest memories spent in the field every year it seems to effect me more deeply than the last
I have lost a total of 2 big deer in my life and the last one that was 2 years ago almost drove me mad
So let's get on with the story and my rather long winded point
We started early and since all but two of us had tagged out my role was just as a poster vs being a driver
The first piece is a beautiful farm that has a river bottom that has fields on one side and an open hardwoods on the other
The two of us set up only about 50 to 60 yards apart and settled in
We were both using bows on this drive. Some drives we can use slug guns in the gun season but some we choose to use archery equipment do to the certain areas and landowner requests
It was a beautiful crisp morning and like on cue a beautiful buck appeared just inside the woods edge and as if he were on a wire he trotted right to my friends position
It was like I was watching a hunting show and I took a knee and got ready in case the buck would spook and head my way
Just when it looked like he was standing on top of my buddy and as I was muttering the words shoot shoot shoot I heard the thwack of the arrow and watched him bolt into the open field.
He did not make it 50 yards and piled up from a perfect double lung shot
From my viewpoint I really thought this was an 8 pointer and as I walked up to my friend and the deer I was surprised to see that it was a big 6
Mature and broken up and with the frame of a big 8 it just looked like he was missing his G3's
Still a great buck and a perfect setup, and to watch it up close and personal like I did was a real treat. Being that it is my best friends son who at 36 is like the son I never had made it even more special. I have killed many deer and caught many a fish with this young man and many will remember his pics from my recent South American trip
This former Marine is great in the field
- Joined
- Dec 23, 2006
- Messages
- 15,019
On the very next drive I grabbed my bow and headed into one of my favorite drives
It is a lush ravine that is very steep along the one side
On the opposite side the side I was on it is a stepped hill side that drops down to a knob. Below the knob a picturesque brook runs down the gorge
At the bottom right below the knob is a shear rock face that the babbling brook has carved thru out the centuries
I was posted higher on the hill above the knob
The deer usual run the bottom or the ridge that would be behind me
If you are to low and they go high there is nothing you can do to head them off. Since I was the only poster left with a tag I was on my own so I posted mid way and hoped that I would get a shot up the hill but in case they came low I could drop down quickly when they got behind the knoll and try and get a shot before they cut through the rock outcropping.
I settled in and waited for the scene to unfold
Almost to quickly I noticed movement at the top of the gorge at about 65 yards
There were three doe and at the back of the pack a beautiful high racked 8 pointer
His G2's stood out even at that distance with the naked eye and I stood there almost frozen as they trotted down the side of the brook way to low for me to get a shot.
As they went behind the knoll I can remember saying to myself............ You better do something.
I sprinted down the hill to the top of the knoll. Remember these deer were not running they were bumped and would trot and stop working their way down the ravine
As I made the top of the knoll I peaked over and there they were
He was now second from the first and standing about 30 yards quartering away
In another 10 yards he would go into the rock funnel and out off my view
All I remember is aiming behind his last rib hopefully angling up and in
I don't remember letting the arrow go and i caught a glimpse of it halfway in flight but I never saw it hit
All I saw was the buck mule kick with both rear legs and bolt around the rock corner
I looked up to where the buck had come from and there were the 3 drivers standing together watching me
Turns out the first got to the top of the ravine and had watched the whole thing
Later he said he never saw me run so fast
They walked down to me and we discussed what had just taken place
We never like to get to excited and count chickens before our eggs hatch because like I have said many times Bowhunting is a game of inches
We waited a bit looking for my arrow which we never found and than slowly started to walk the dry track
We soon found blood and it looked good with a small amount of bubbles etc
We slowly worked our way down the ever choking ravine which eventually empties out into a power line
This power line is choked with thorns and scrub bush almost impenetrable is certain spots
We did not go 100 yards when those big G2's rose from the brush and moved off in front of us
He was way to far off for a follow up shot and we immediately stopped and backed out
This is when the worry sets in
The second guessing
The replay of the shot
The doubts come creeping in as you play it over and over again in your head
We walked back to the trucks and waited for about an hour and a half
I would of waited longer but we only had about an hour or so of light so we made a plan and got ready
As much as I would have loved to finish this buck with an arrow and being that I was in a shotgun zone only area and it was gun season I did not pick up the bow
My only concern now was to dispatch him as quickly as possible so I grabbed my trusty old Belgian Browning Auto 5
This gun has been done up right for this type of hunting
It is set into a synthetic stock and wears a Hastings Rifled barrel with a big express sight. It reminds me of a big bore African Express rifle , fast handling and quick to point. I feed three 12 Gauge Barnes Expanders into the magazine and shucked one in to the chamber
The plan was simple
2 pushers would slowly follow the blood again while a friend and I ran went around and set up on the power line
If the pushers found the deer great, if he was still alive hopefully I would get another chance
We had the high ground and the wind was in our favor and soon we saw the 2 pushers coming over the opposite hill of the power line
Through hand signals we gathered that the buck was bedded down below us and that they were going to back out
I would use the wind to drop down and if he was strong enough to stand I would shoot him as he got out of his bed, we had the wind
Just as the light began to fade we started to ease down when we caught his Rack coming up the hill thru the scrub, those big G 2's again floating above the brush
I took a knee and waited
As he gained on us I struggled to find a hole in the brush. If he got past me it was only thicker and with light fading I was worried that I would never get another chance on this buck
Doubt and worry flooded my mind. I could see he was laboring and I felt very bad for him
He was hurt bad and moving slow
As he stepped forward I found an opening that I thought I could thread a slug thru and I put that big white express sight on him at about 30 yards and I pulled the trigger
He bolted up the hill on the path he was on and I took a knee to take a few breaths and calm myself as the darkness wrapped around me like a blanket
Again the replaying of the shot over and over again flooded my mind and that dreaded doubt started creeping in
Did my slug find its mark ? Did I hit a branch and deflect ?
After a few minutes we walked up to where we last saw him and again there was blood. How much could this poor bastard bleed and keep going ?
I did not go 25 yards into the thicket that he entered when I heard what had to be him crash in front of me.
He had bedded again that quickly, but enough was enough and in the blackness the decision was made to back out and come back in the morning
This is always the best course of action and for the Hunter the worst
Some deal with it well
I do not
It was along drive home and we had to get the first deer but when I tell you that I was down and second guessing everything I did this would be the understatement of the year
For as many bucks as I have shot you think I would know the game by now but these are the times that make me rethink my hunting
A sleepless night, wrought with tossing and turning followed and at 5 am I was on the phone with one of my hunting partners that had the day off and was planning on being on site at first light
I could not get there till mid morning due to appointments I could not cancel
To make my long story a bit shorter I will get to the point
He found the buck about 50 yards inside the bramble patch stone dead
The first arrow had entered back far and angled up into the liver and possible one lung
It would have killed him even if I had not fired the big slug
I am thankful to have taken such a fine animal with such good friends but in the end even though I love to hunt I do not love the feeling it leaves me with at times
Maybe this will be my last deer
A rare set of photos
These two photos were taken by one of the drivers when they first kicked him up before I fired that first arrow
So staring at these all night did not make the night pass any faster
Here he is with my girls right before we caped and butchered him
Thanks for looking and I hope you all have a successful season
It is a lush ravine that is very steep along the one side
On the opposite side the side I was on it is a stepped hill side that drops down to a knob. Below the knob a picturesque brook runs down the gorge
At the bottom right below the knob is a shear rock face that the babbling brook has carved thru out the centuries
I was posted higher on the hill above the knob
The deer usual run the bottom or the ridge that would be behind me
If you are to low and they go high there is nothing you can do to head them off. Since I was the only poster left with a tag I was on my own so I posted mid way and hoped that I would get a shot up the hill but in case they came low I could drop down quickly when they got behind the knoll and try and get a shot before they cut through the rock outcropping.
I settled in and waited for the scene to unfold
Almost to quickly I noticed movement at the top of the gorge at about 65 yards
There were three doe and at the back of the pack a beautiful high racked 8 pointer
His G2's stood out even at that distance with the naked eye and I stood there almost frozen as they trotted down the side of the brook way to low for me to get a shot.
As they went behind the knoll I can remember saying to myself............ You better do something.
I sprinted down the hill to the top of the knoll. Remember these deer were not running they were bumped and would trot and stop working their way down the ravine
As I made the top of the knoll I peaked over and there they were
He was now second from the first and standing about 30 yards quartering away
In another 10 yards he would go into the rock funnel and out off my view
All I remember is aiming behind his last rib hopefully angling up and in
I don't remember letting the arrow go and i caught a glimpse of it halfway in flight but I never saw it hit
All I saw was the buck mule kick with both rear legs and bolt around the rock corner
I looked up to where the buck had come from and there were the 3 drivers standing together watching me
Turns out the first got to the top of the ravine and had watched the whole thing
Later he said he never saw me run so fast
They walked down to me and we discussed what had just taken place
We never like to get to excited and count chickens before our eggs hatch because like I have said many times Bowhunting is a game of inches
We waited a bit looking for my arrow which we never found and than slowly started to walk the dry track
We soon found blood and it looked good with a small amount of bubbles etc
We slowly worked our way down the ever choking ravine which eventually empties out into a power line
This power line is choked with thorns and scrub bush almost impenetrable is certain spots
We did not go 100 yards when those big G2's rose from the brush and moved off in front of us
He was way to far off for a follow up shot and we immediately stopped and backed out
This is when the worry sets in
The second guessing
The replay of the shot
The doubts come creeping in as you play it over and over again in your head
We walked back to the trucks and waited for about an hour and a half
I would of waited longer but we only had about an hour or so of light so we made a plan and got ready
As much as I would have loved to finish this buck with an arrow and being that I was in a shotgun zone only area and it was gun season I did not pick up the bow
My only concern now was to dispatch him as quickly as possible so I grabbed my trusty old Belgian Browning Auto 5
This gun has been done up right for this type of hunting
It is set into a synthetic stock and wears a Hastings Rifled barrel with a big express sight. It reminds me of a big bore African Express rifle , fast handling and quick to point. I feed three 12 Gauge Barnes Expanders into the magazine and shucked one in to the chamber
The plan was simple
2 pushers would slowly follow the blood again while a friend and I ran went around and set up on the power line
If the pushers found the deer great, if he was still alive hopefully I would get another chance
We had the high ground and the wind was in our favor and soon we saw the 2 pushers coming over the opposite hill of the power line
Through hand signals we gathered that the buck was bedded down below us and that they were going to back out
I would use the wind to drop down and if he was strong enough to stand I would shoot him as he got out of his bed, we had the wind
Just as the light began to fade we started to ease down when we caught his Rack coming up the hill thru the scrub, those big G 2's again floating above the brush
I took a knee and waited
As he gained on us I struggled to find a hole in the brush. If he got past me it was only thicker and with light fading I was worried that I would never get another chance on this buck
Doubt and worry flooded my mind. I could see he was laboring and I felt very bad for him
He was hurt bad and moving slow
As he stepped forward I found an opening that I thought I could thread a slug thru and I put that big white express sight on him at about 30 yards and I pulled the trigger
He bolted up the hill on the path he was on and I took a knee to take a few breaths and calm myself as the darkness wrapped around me like a blanket
Again the replaying of the shot over and over again flooded my mind and that dreaded doubt started creeping in
Did my slug find its mark ? Did I hit a branch and deflect ?
After a few minutes we walked up to where we last saw him and again there was blood. How much could this poor bastard bleed and keep going ?
I did not go 25 yards into the thicket that he entered when I heard what had to be him crash in front of me.
He had bedded again that quickly, but enough was enough and in the blackness the decision was made to back out and come back in the morning
This is always the best course of action and for the Hunter the worst
Some deal with it well
I do not
It was along drive home and we had to get the first deer but when I tell you that I was down and second guessing everything I did this would be the understatement of the year
For as many bucks as I have shot you think I would know the game by now but these are the times that make me rethink my hunting
A sleepless night, wrought with tossing and turning followed and at 5 am I was on the phone with one of my hunting partners that had the day off and was planning on being on site at first light
I could not get there till mid morning due to appointments I could not cancel
To make my long story a bit shorter I will get to the point
He found the buck about 50 yards inside the bramble patch stone dead
The first arrow had entered back far and angled up into the liver and possible one lung
It would have killed him even if I had not fired the big slug
I am thankful to have taken such a fine animal with such good friends but in the end even though I love to hunt I do not love the feeling it leaves me with at times
Maybe this will be my last deer
A rare set of photos
These two photos were taken by one of the drivers when they first kicked him up before I fired that first arrow
So staring at these all night did not make the night pass any faster
Here he is with my girls right before we caped and butchered him
Thanks for looking and I hope you all have a successful season
- Joined
- Jan 21, 2000
- Messages
- 8,888
Thank you for that, Joe.
Pulling the trigger less often with the passage of years, though often cherishing time in the brush/timber more, is a very typical and, I think, normal experience. My brother quit hunting for several years after losing one buck and having another wounded and almost getting away in the same season. I was always glad that he took up hunting again when his son came of age, but that experience definitely changed him. I spent my fathers last hunting season with him on our family ranch in south Texas as ALS (Lou Gehrigs disease) was slowly, relentlessly, turning his body into a prison. When he would see a buck I could see the cruelty of his world leave him for those few moments, and we so treasured those moments together that we went the whole season without pulling a trigger. Since he passed, Ive hunted with just as much passion and loved every moment in the field more than ever, but I rarely pull the trigger anymore. When I see a shootable animal, I inevitably go back in time to those moments we shared watching the deer, suspended in the hunters reverie, and the enjoyment of those moments now is greater to me than putting a trophy on the ground. I still zero my rifle in every year, still carry the best blade I can find on the planet at my side, and still love dearly to guide a grandkid or friend or a nephew or niece to a successful kill. Its just that the pleasures I find from hunting have shifted, and sharing time in the field with friends and loved ones, and experiencing the magic of time alone pursuing a quarry in the wild, now inspire my full passion. Im happy for you that you have your girls to continue your legacy, and their children after them, and lifetimes more of enjoying that sharingyour lifetime into theirs.
Pulling the trigger less often with the passage of years, though often cherishing time in the brush/timber more, is a very typical and, I think, normal experience. My brother quit hunting for several years after losing one buck and having another wounded and almost getting away in the same season. I was always glad that he took up hunting again when his son came of age, but that experience definitely changed him. I spent my fathers last hunting season with him on our family ranch in south Texas as ALS (Lou Gehrigs disease) was slowly, relentlessly, turning his body into a prison. When he would see a buck I could see the cruelty of his world leave him for those few moments, and we so treasured those moments together that we went the whole season without pulling a trigger. Since he passed, Ive hunted with just as much passion and loved every moment in the field more than ever, but I rarely pull the trigger anymore. When I see a shootable animal, I inevitably go back in time to those moments we shared watching the deer, suspended in the hunters reverie, and the enjoyment of those moments now is greater to me than putting a trophy on the ground. I still zero my rifle in every year, still carry the best blade I can find on the planet at my side, and still love dearly to guide a grandkid or friend or a nephew or niece to a successful kill. Its just that the pleasures I find from hunting have shifted, and sharing time in the field with friends and loved ones, and experiencing the magic of time alone pursuing a quarry in the wild, now inspire my full passion. Im happy for you that you have your girls to continue your legacy, and their children after them, and lifetimes more of enjoying that sharingyour lifetime into theirs.
- Joined
- Jul 6, 2014
- Messages
- 235
I appreciated the story, thanks for sharing!
Joe, when I see your posts I feel like I'm seeing a part of myself... I'm into all the same things, knives, recurve bowhunting, cars, and most importantly, family... Your style in all of the above is evident, and enviable...
To put it simple: I hope one day to be like you
Joe, when I see your posts I feel like I'm seeing a part of myself... I'm into all the same things, knives, recurve bowhunting, cars, and most importantly, family... Your style in all of the above is evident, and enviable...
To put it simple: I hope one day to be like you
- Joined
- Dec 23, 2006
- Messages
- 15,019
Had a final thought I have to share with you. I just imagined what it's going to be like for a kid to have Joe Paranee as his (or her) grandfather. In a word...
WOW!!!
Will that would mean my daughters would have to date and we all know that can't happen
Thanks my friend
- Joined
- Dec 23, 2006
- Messages
- 15,019
That's the nicest thing anyone's ever said to me
Thank you for the kind words
I fail every day ....... I'm just to stupid and hard headed to stop trying
sheathmaker
Custom Leather Sheaths
- Joined
- May 18, 2005
- Messages
- 4,650
To those of you who want "to be like Joey someday", You must first master the high art of being a TRUE FRIEND in every sense and definition of the word, because that is Joe Paranee.
Paul
Paul
- Joined
- Jan 21, 2000
- Messages
- 8,888
Now THAT is a valuable piece of insight. So true! Thanks, Paul!
Joe, you're one of the few who can bring me to laughter, bring me to tears, and bring me to the edge of my seat all in the same post. Glad to know you, brother.
- Joined
- Dec 30, 2013
- Messages
- 598
Very Good story for sure. Thanks for sharing
- Joined
- Nov 25, 2003
- Messages
- 1,017
Congrats on the buck, Joe, and thank you for sharing the well-written story. You have a beautiful family, amigo.
- Joined
- Dec 3, 2007
- Messages
- 2,338
Will that would mean my daughters would have to date and we all know that can't happen
Thanks my friend
Joe, great thread! I am with you buddy, but people think I am crazy when I say the girls won't be able to date till they are 25. At least somebody understands.
- Joined
- Dec 18, 2008
- Messages
- 760
nice deer, and nice knife. cool bow (is it a recurve?)
kc
kc