Deer Hunting:
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2021-2022: My Eighth Deer Season!
Click on the hunting event below to jump
to the corresponding place on this page:
CONTINUING: Hunting deer in Georgia over/near bait is
now PERMITTED on Private Land in ALL Zones.
Public Land including Georgia WMAs and National Forests
still do NOT permit hunting any animals near bait.
CONTINUING: Hunting deer in Alabama over/near bait
continues to require an addition to the hunting license.
OPENING DAY IN GEORGIA
(standard firearms, statewide):
Saturday, October 16, 2021
Sandersville, Georgia
High 80ºF / Low (going in) 64ºF with a 15% rain chance
partly cloudy with wind @ 13 mph from the West
sunrise 7:36 a.m. EDT / sunset 6:56 p.m. EDT
Yep! I...
GOT ONE!
Georgia DNR confirmation# 101621D495
harvested 8:55 a.m. EDT, October 16, 2021
crunch-crunch-crunch-crunch-CRUNCH-CRUNCH-CRUNCH
She walked from behind the stand,
and then under and then in front of me.
This doe was completely oblivious to my presence!
I hit her under the right shoulder from 12 yards away at 8:55 a.m.
...then was: thrash-stumble-thrash-stumble-CRASH!!
My hunt began at 7:16 a.m.; just 20 minutes before daybreak
Soon after this photo, I heard some heavy walking far to my left.
Maybe a deer had just entered my area from the clearing.
It was warmer than I like, but at least the wind did not blow.
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| 7:27 a.m. It is better light now; I also have the mineral block in clear view |
7:53 a.m. A selfie; shows pathway in from east; I had to wait an hour for action |
8:54 a.m. I had just taken the shot; the end of barrel shows shot placement |
I came down at 9:05 to begin tracking,
as no more noise was made by my doe.
I had to go through briars; this made following the blood trail difficult.
She ran to my 3 o'clock and quickly banked to my 2 o'clock,
going 30 yards until she collapsed.
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| 9:06
a.m. |
9:07
a.m. |
9:08
a.m. |
9:09
a.m. |
9:12
a.m. |
9:12
a.m. |
9:12
a.m. |
9:15
a.m. |
She lie next to a dry creek bed.
I then followed that out to the main pathway, which as about 20 yards.
The last picture above, right, shows the four tall grasses, where to go in.
Robert had come to help me retrieve her.
She was packed in the bed of my truck by 9:50 a.m.
One interesting thing to note:
the flies vacated after having the cover of my truck bed block the sun.
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| We had to cut
through much brush and briars to get to my deer |
Robert had me turn
her over on the other side, to prevent flies getting to
the bullet wound |
She had a lung shot,
so she bled a lot through the mouth after turning her
over inside the sled |
Because the Sandersville processor had closed permanently,
I had to go to a place in Riddleville (ten miles away)
called Harry and Renny's Deer Processing.
Base price was $90 (including gutting).
I liked that they had stew meat as an option!
Robert and I were hungry at this point,
so we drove back to Sandersville to eat at the China Buffet.
REFLECTING ON THE PAST WEEK:
I originally had planned to hunt my own tree stand opening day;
yet, Robert suggested that I hunt a relatively new stand, which is
near the clearing (from 2020) on the southwest corner of the property.
I did not go to the property the entire year since beginning of 2021.
Robert informed me that as of September, one trail camera has fallen.
That camera, near my stand, and the one at Wild Hog Alley, had both died.
The "Clearing" Tree Stand
prepping this stand on October 9, 2021
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| facing west, clearing seen to left |
behind stand, facing north |
behind Robert's
truck is clearing and tree stand |
near trail camera, facing south |
closer to stand, facing south |
To the east of the stand (no photo), is a short path back to the main roadway.
We had spent Saturday, October 9, cleaning up this area from extraneous brush.
I also moved the camera from Edgar's stand to the "Clearing" stand.
We found a mineral block placed (not by our crew!) in the woods, nearby.
Because of the Clearing stand's placement location,
Robert expected bucks, not just does, to come by.
The clearing to the west of the tree stand now has tall weeds
and the woods to the north of the stand are relatively untouched.
VIDEO from camera at Clearing Stand:
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| 10:20 a.m. EDT Thursday, October 14, 2021 This 8-point buck is a nice size |
12:28 a.m. EDT Friday, October 15, 2021 Notice doe being skittish near young buck |
8:33 a.m. EDT Friday, October 15, 2021 This is the doe I shot 24 hours later |
The videos above illustrate the need to wait to
not shoot the first deer that comes along!
EVENING HUNT:
I went to Edgar's old stand because of buck tracks I saw earlier.
The leaves have yet to change colors!
It was slightly miserable hunting because I was tired from little sleep
and because of the heat made me feel sticky.
The wind did blow quite often, which made it feel somewhat better.
No deer showed for me, but Robert shot a doe at 6:33 p.m.
We tried to track it, but we could not find it, as it got dark.
(Robert shot an over-200lbs. 7-point buck on Edgar's property
on Sunday morning, which kind of made up for it.)
I am still looking for El Toro or any other large buck.
My next hunt may find me at the creek stand.
Harry and Renny's Deer Processing texted me on Friday,
October 22 at 7:34 p.m., notifying me that my deer was ready.
Being texted about such is a first!
Saturday, October 23, 2021
Sandersville, Georgia
- CANCELLED -
[1] money is tight
[2] gas and food expenses went up!
Friday, October 29, 2021
Sandersville, Georgia
High 60ºF / Low (going in) 51ºF with a 7% rain chance
mostly cloudy with wind @ 11 mph from the SW
sunrise 7:47 a.m. EDT / sunset 6:42 p.m. EDT
No deer harvested this time!
For two weeks, I had difficulty deciding which day to go;
it was either today or Sunday, October 31. I ultimately
decided on today just to have the rest of the weekend free.
I could have gone to Sandersville again on Sunday,
but it costs $80 in gas just to make the round trip!
I was the only guy on property to hunt this day.
Robert, D.B., and Thomas all had work to do.
Just as originally planned, I hunted the clearing stand in the morning
and the creekside stand in the evening. Edgar's stand did not show
much activity on camera, so I didn't hunt there this time.
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| 7:44
a.m. - clearing |
8:15 a.m. - clearing | 3:08 p.m. - creekside |
3:27 p.m. - creekside |
In the morning, it was windy! No deer showed near the clearing.
Though, I heard a doe bleat on the wind at 10:25 a.m.
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10:45 a.m. - turkey hens CLEARING STAND |
10 yards from my 2 o'clock position CREEKSIDE STAND Note: the photo is from 2 weeks prior... The leaves looked greener then |
Clearing Stand
At 10:45 a.m., three turkey hens showed up at my 7 o'clock position;
they were clucking and purring really loudly!
This was my first time witnessing wild turkeys in the field!
They continued to walk along the edge of the clearing.
Creekside Stand
At 4:55 p.m., I heard some cracking noises down below to my right.
I saw some movement. All I could see was a doe's face in my scope.
The brush was so thick, it was hard to make out her shape.
Finally, at about 5:00 p.m., I got my crosshairs on her right shoulder.
When I squeezed the trigger, I only heard a "snap;" not a rifle report.
My rifle had a failure to fire!!! How utterly frustrating!
I can only figure that the bolt didn't fully close.
There existed no imprint on the cartridge's primer!
The doe looked up and me and went deeper in the thicket.
For the next few minutes, I carefully ejected that .350 Legend round
and loaded another. This doe played hide-and-seek with me for a while.
Actually, I had hope to bring the doe to a chef friend of mine.
After a series of noises by squirrels, I had to call it an hour later.
I knocked off at 6:05 p.m. (considerably before sunset)
just so I could have time to lug all of my gear
up the hill from the creek area.
The only deer I got today was the meat at
Harry and Renny's Processing in Riddleville, Georgia.
Sunday, November 7, 2021
Sandersville, Georgia
High 67ºF / Low (going in) 45ºF with a 1% rain chance
partly cloudy with wind @ 10 mph from the North
sunrise 6:54 a.m. EST / sunset 5:34 p.m. EST
No deer harvested this time!
IT RAINED ON SATURDAY, SO THIS WAS THE DAY TO GO HUNTING!
Today, I brought my Browning .30-06 A-bolt rifle with me.
I hunted in the creekside stand in the morning...
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| 6:37
a.m. Start the hunt |
10:28
a.m. Uninvited guest |
12:28
p.m. Going to lunch |
At 6:27 a.m., a large-sounding buck snorted at me from the creek.
...and D.B.'s stand in the evening.
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| 1:00
p.m. Tiny hoof prints at salt block |
1:01
p.m. View towards D.B.'s stand |
3:13
p.m. Begin afternoon hunt |
I called it a day, an hour early.
The only thing showing today were squirrels.
I was able to pass through Sparta while it was still light.
Had I hunted the Clearing stand, things would have be much different:
This doe came along after 9:30 a.m.
It should have been where I hunted here,
and bringing her carcass going to my chef friend.
Oh, well...
Saturday, November 13, 2021
Sandersville, Georgia
- CANCELLED -
[1] money is tight
(cost conflict with Alabama hunt)
[2] gas and food expenses are still high!
OPENING DAY
IN ALABAMA(stalk hunting, firearms, statewide):
Saturday and Sunday,
November 20-21, 2021
Roanoke, Alabama
| Saturday: High 60ºF / Low (going in) 35ºF w/ 1% rain chance mostly sunny with wind 11 mph from the East sunrise 6:17 a.m. CST / sunset 4:36 p.m. CST |
Sunday: High 65ºF / Low (going in) 45ºF w/ 15% rain chance partly cloudy to overcast w/ wind 5 mph from SSE sunrise 6:18 a.m. CST / sunset 4:36 p.m. CST |
No deer harvested this time!
Actually, I saw no deer on Saturday or Sunday.
The only activity was at the bottom of the sloped meadow.
Even that was WAY after dark on Saturday:
This doe came along after 8:00 p.m. CST
The FALL Colors for this weekend are
SPECTACULAR!
Usually orange has a great showing,
but this year, the winning hue is amber.
I started my hunt Saturday morning in the one-and-a-half-man stand:
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| 7:01 a.m. CST Saturday, 11/20/2021 |
7:08 a.m. CST Saturday, 11/20/2021 |
7:08 a.m. CST Saturday, 11/20/2021 |
7:10 a.m. CST Saturday, 11/20/2021 |
7:51 a.m. CST Saturday, 11/20/2021 |
Black Friday, Saturday, and Sunday
November 26-28, 2021
Roanoke, Alabama
| Friday evening: High 53ºF with NO rain chance sunny with wind 10 mph from the NNW sunset 4:34 p.m. CST |
Saturday: High 61ºF / Low (going in) 29ºF with 1% rain chance mostly sunny with wind 5 mph from the West sunrise 6:23 a.m. CST / sunset 4:34 p.m. CST |
| Sunday morning: High 57ºF / Low (going in) 38ºF with 3% rain chance cloudy with wind 6 mph from the WNW sunrise 6:24 a.m. CST |
No deer harvested this time!
Actually, Olivia and I saw no deer the whole weekend.
Sandersville, Georgia
- CANCELLED -
[1] heavy rain expected
[2] money is tight
[3] overtime at work happened
[4] need to spend time at home w/ family
With work, family, and little cash, it was difficult to plan
for the next month...
Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday
January 3, 4, & 5, 2022
Roanoke, Alabama
| Monday
evening: High 45ºF with 5% rain chance partly cloudy with wind 13 mph from the NNW sunset 4:46 p.m. CST |
Tuesday: High 52ºF / Low (going in) 27ºF with 8% rain chance sunny with wind 8 mph from the ESE sunrise 6:45 a.m. CST / sunset 4:47 p.m. CST |
| Wednesday morning: High 57ºF / Low (going in) 36ºF with 3% rain chance mostly cloudy with wind 6 mph from the WNW sunrise 6:45 a.m. CST |
No deer harvested this time!
| This guy was caught on my new
Stealthcam trail camera (meadow bottom location): |
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| January 3, 2022, 2:31 a.m. CST |
This video was the first recorded large buck in 3 months!
Once I saw this video and no other activity on the property,
I decided to focus my hunt around the sloped meadow and pine grove.
Monday was more about preparing a new hunting strategy for
the property. I scratched out a spot in the southern pine grove for
a future deer feeder. Additionally, I made the site
viewable from two hunting locations:
The permanent blind -AND- the two man tree stand.
![looking towards newly-cleared shooting
corridor [ZOOM]](pics/IMG_8806_event06_med_markup.jpg)
Monday evening only left one hour to hunt.
The patch of corn in the last photo is 110 yards away!
Tuesday was different...
It was SO cold and frosty the next morning!
I actually considered sleeping in (which I did next day).
The photos show the corn patch I made.
This will be the future site of another deer feeder.
Also, the site is now visible from two hunting places.
Of course, nothing showed! So after 2 hours,
I went to the local Huddle House for breakfast.
Afterwards, I hunted inside the permanent blind.
Nothing was productive for Wednesday, either.
!!! New Site !!!
Saturday, January 8, 2022
Sharpsburg, Georgia
High 54ºF / Low (going in) 26ºF with 1% rain chance
sunny with wind 9 mph from the East
sunrise 7:43 a.m. EST / sunset 5:47 p.m. EST
No deer harvested this time!
I arrived too late (minutes past sunrise) to take advantage of pre-sunrise.
A deer snorted at me at 7:50 a.m. before I could climb.
The Natural Gear camo was perfect for these woods.
I learned that these woods in Sharpsburg were mostly brown.
There wasn't much greenery for deer to browse.
No noticeable hard mast was available; maybe why I saw no deer.
Panoramic view westward while perched on the stand at 9:15 a.m.
I had heard a rifle blast at 9:10 coming from opposite direction.
No other rifle blasts were heard until sundown.
I then took a 2.5 hour break, getting warm
and eating my lunch in my truck.
My afternoon hunt resumed at 2:00 p.m.
I stayed until legal end of hunting for the day.
Many squirrels were present, but not my particular game.
My trek back to the truck occurred about 6:25 p.m.
The green appearance is from my cap-mounted light.
I spent the past Wednesday afternoon putting up tacks.
These reflective tacks on the trees in the photos keep
me on the winding path back to the woods entrance.
My friend, Tim, lives nearby;
we went to dinner together at Cracker Barrel.
HOW THIS ALL CAME ABOUT
I met a gentleman by the name of Richard on
one of my assignments with my regular job.
We connected well and I got the opportunity and
permission to hunt on his 12-acre tract of land.
He worked with me to secure a 30-year-old-plus
deer stand in the woods behind his house (southward).
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| "Before" view from North |
"Before" view from Southeast |
"After" view from North |
"After" view from Southeast |
Richard took me around the property and showed the place.
The stand was in relatively great condition;
however, the horizontal lateral support boards had rotted.
We installed some new 2" x 4" boards, both horizontal
and diagonal, with 3-inch screws instead of nails.
The stand had a bad wobble; afterwards, it was corrected.
I also plan to ratchet-strap the base of the seat to the tree.
The creek can be seen from behind the stand.
Richard's golf cart makes the trip a little faster.
On this past Wednesday, when coming back from my
Alabama hunt, I stopped by the property to mark the
trails with reflective tacks and put out some corn.
THIS IS THE END OF THE SEASON IN GEORGIA.
Friday, Saturday, and Sunday
January 21, 22, & 23, 2022
Roanoke, Alabama
| Friday
evening: High 41ºF with 10% rain chance cloudy with wind 7 mph from the NNE sunset 5:02 p.m. CST |
Saturday: High 46ºF / Low (going in) 26ºF with 7% rain chance partly cloudy with wind 4 mph from the North sunrise 6:42 a.m. CST / sunset 5:04 p.m. CST |
| Sunday
morning: High 48ºF / Low (going in) 21ºF with 4% rain chance sunny with wind 9 mph from the WNW sunrise 6:42 a.m. CST |
Yep! I...
GOT ONE!
Alabama DCNR confirmation code# 225A100559171033D22
harvested 4:51 p.m. CST, January 22, 2022
DAY 1
Friday evening:
I installed hooks in the blind for a make-shift gun rack.
Did not see deer or anything else.
I had to dress warmly and it only gets colder!
Having a liquid propane heater is a nice convenience.
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| Pine
Grove South, January 5 - 09:34 a.m. CST Notice how the 7-point buck waits on the left for a moment before turning around. |
Meadow
Bottom, January 21 - 02:02 a.m. CST This was his nineth time passing through the meadow since January 3rd. |
Trail cameras show most activity around the sloped meadow.
Keep in mind that this is with NO corn on the ground.
A big-bodied 7-pointer is still hanging around!
DAY 2
Saturday evening:
This buck fawn first appeared at the far left at about 4:31 p.m.
He was looking right at me from 105 yards!
I think he probably saw me move as I turned to his direction.
He re-showed in the central alley at 4:50 p.m.
At 4:51, I took the shot from 85 yards
and he immediately plopped down on his right side.
His left ear twitched after about 15 seconds.
DAY 3
I slept in and had a late breakfast at the local Huddle House.
That afternoon, I prepared the pine grove for my next hunt.
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I wanted to have an extra treat for my 7-pointer,
so I put out Persimmon Crush close to the corn pile.
A better type of camera mount was on clearance at Walmart.
I was also able to test my new camera placement.
[It needed tilting upward about 5º to get the stand in frame.]
I moved the trail camera by panning it
clockwise about 30º towards the Northwest.
It had been held by strap in the same place for 4 years!
This was to accommodate viewing the tree stand and corn pile.
The right most photo shows the corn pile;
I intend to have another deer feeder here for 2022.
Sunday evening, Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday
January 30 & 31 and February 1 & 2, 2022
Roanoke, Alabama
- CANCELLED -
[1] money is tight
[2] need to spend time at home w/ family
NEXT (and last) EVENT:
Sunday through Wednesday
February 6, 7, 8, & 9, 2022
Roanoke, Alabama
| Sunday: High 51ºF / Low (going in) 26ºF with 2% rain chance mostly sunny with wind 8 mph from the East sunrise 6:33 a.m. CST / sunset 5:18 p.m. CST |
Monday: High 51ºF / Low (going in) 34ºF with 4% rain chance cloudy with wind 5 mph from the NNW sunrise 6:32 a.m. CST / sunset 5:19 p.m. CST |
| Tuesday: High 56ºF / Low (going in) 29ºF with 4% rain chance sunny with wind 7 mph from the NNW sunrise 6:31 a.m. CST / sunset 5:20 p.m. CST |
Wednesday: High 60ºF / Low (going in) 30ºF with 6% rain chance mostly sunny with wind 9 mph from the WNW sunrise 6:30 a.m. CST / sunset 5:21 p.m. CST |
Yep! I...
GOT another ONE!
Alabama DCNR confirmation# 225B100559072233A08
harvested 8:00 a.m. CST, February 8, 2022
DAY "0"
I arrive late Saturday evening to get prepared.
I throw out some corn at the meadow bottom and check 2 cameras.
Also... It appears that we indeed have an 8-pointer
as well as a 7-pointer!!
CHANGING OF THE GUARD:
7-pointer leaves property in favor of 8-pointer
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| Southern Ridge, January 23 - 09:45 a.m. CST | Southern Ridge, January 23 - 09:46 a.m. CST |
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| Meadow Bottom, January 24 - 08:12 a.m. CST | Pine
Grove South, January 24 - 08:22 a.m. CST He likes the Persimmon Crush! |
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| Meadow Bottom, January 24 - 08:13 a.m. CST | Pine Grove South, January 24 - 08:23 a.m. CST |
This 8-pointer guy came around January 24;
this was the day after I last left the property!
DAY 1
Hunted in the permanent blind in the morning and evening.
Saw nothing.
DAY 2
Hunted in the 2-man tree stand in the morning.
Hunted in the permanent blind in the evening.
Saw nothing.
Shot a crow, though!
DAY 3
Hunted in the permanent blind, and shot a spike!
ALABAMA and GEORGIA specifics
| Randolph County, AL |
Washington County, GA |
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 |
 Alabama DCNR regulations.PDF |
 Magenta Zone - either sex |
 Georgia DNR regulations.PDF |
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| Zone A
-- Stalk / Firearms: November 20 - February 10 |
(71.4 MB: file is HUGE!) |
Firearms:
October 16 - January 9 |
(27.7 MB: file is LARGE!) |
http://inner-redneck.com/