It was a little warm this morning, but the sun was rising and the sky was clear.
Not much in the way of wind either, but it was somewhat at our face at least.
Not sure why, but I was just happy to be out there this week.
I could've honestly cared less what showed up at the feeder.
ATTT and I were going to have a good day.
We set up inside the blind just about a half hour before sunrise.
Sat real quiet too. No talking, eating or moving around.
The feeder went off and we could just barely see it any better than with just the moon to light it.
Nothing at the feeder.
Sat for ten minutes, occasionally chatting about "where"s and "why"s of the lack of deer the last two weeks, when I saw a dark spot move off the right of the feeder.
The light had gotten to the point where seeing the feeder was easy without a scope or binoculars. There was something down there. Looked like a moving stone from our 100 yard vantage.
I raised the new rifle and looked thru the scope.
Such a cute little animal. It still amazes me, at the tiny little hands a raccoon has.
With my new scope, I thought he was a plump medium sizer.
"We was after der deer doe."
So we sat content and watched as this little cute thief ate the deer corn.
It had wandered directly under the feeder and was behind wintered branches of some bushes. So, a shot with a V-MAX was out of the question anyway.
After 20 minutes of watching this little dark puff-ball,
"Quiet" had left our vocabulary. We began to chat and chuckle.
Even sang a little jig.
We had named the little thief... It's name was Jimmy.
Jimmy was still down there eating corn like a kid in an All You Can Eat M&M Factory.
I thought, "Surely, he's gonna get full soon."
(By now, you may have guessed it.
We were singing, "Jimmy cracked corn, and I don't care.")
Well, Jimmy began to wander back out from under the feeder whence he came.
Still cramming corn in his face.
ATTT had to water some bushes. And then, so did I.
Jimmy had almost completely exposed himself.
I moved my chair around, and my cushion, to get more comfortable.
Jimmy had come out in the open again.
I took the shot at the little thief's head.
I jerked the trigger, and pulled the shot to the right 2 inches. But, that didn't matter. I was over his head by an inch or so as well.
Jimmy scurried off behind a tree, where I couldn't see him.
ATTT broke out his rifle.
"Do you still see him?" I asked.
"Yep." says he, four feet to my right.
I sat patiently, watching to see where Jimmy ran off to.
He waddled his way back out from under the tree.
"Can I try again?" says I.
"Sure." says ATTT.
I'll never understand this.
Maybe Jimmy was stupid, but...
Jimmy the Coon walked right back to where he was when I missed. And began to eat again.
This little 'tard has a sonic boom go off an inch from his ear, and he returns for more thievery to the exact same spot!
I Kentucky Windage'd my elevation, and began squeezing the trigger.
My aim (this time) was true, exact, and deadly.
Click photos for larger sizes
Graphic pic here. Click this text to open it up
Yes, that's his eye. No, there was no socket holding it in there. The only thing I like more than clean misses, is clean kills.
Jimmy was a tiny little runt.
He wasn't medium sized at the least. Heck, Jimmy wasn't even a boy.
Jimmy, was this tiny, one pound at most, female raccoon.
How the heck she stuffed several cups of corn in her stomach is still beyond my comprehension.
She must've been freshly off the teet, empty stomach'ed, and inexperienced.
Wonderfully soft fur coat tho. I can't wait to have it tanned.
While I'm back up the hill, near the truck, skinning Jimmy, ATTT is making a commotion back at the blind.
He had rattled up a buck WAY past the feeder.
ATTT is a great shot, but he wasn't using our favorite V-MAX's.
Hornady doesn't make a .338 V-MAX.
I hear the AR-10T bark twice.
ATTT misjudged the bullet drop at that distance, and missed the head both times.
Both shots still hit.
One in one artery, the other in the other artery.
It's an odd way to happen, but a clean kill is still a clean kill.
The deer fell at the first hit. Picked his head up...
And never moved without assistance, after that.
Lack of blood pressure to the brain is an instant KO. Bleeding-out did the rest.
Roughly ~160 Lbs.
Not much in the way of wind either, but it was somewhat at our face at least.
Not sure why, but I was just happy to be out there this week.
I could've honestly cared less what showed up at the feeder.
ATTT and I were going to have a good day.
We set up inside the blind just about a half hour before sunrise.
Sat real quiet too. No talking, eating or moving around.
The feeder went off and we could just barely see it any better than with just the moon to light it.
Nothing at the feeder.
Sat for ten minutes, occasionally chatting about "where"s and "why"s of the lack of deer the last two weeks, when I saw a dark spot move off the right of the feeder.
The light had gotten to the point where seeing the feeder was easy without a scope or binoculars. There was something down there. Looked like a moving stone from our 100 yard vantage.
I raised the new rifle and looked thru the scope.
Such a cute little animal. It still amazes me, at the tiny little hands a raccoon has.
With my new scope, I thought he was a plump medium sizer.
"We was after der deer doe."
So we sat content and watched as this little cute thief ate the deer corn.
It had wandered directly under the feeder and was behind wintered branches of some bushes. So, a shot with a V-MAX was out of the question anyway.
After 20 minutes of watching this little dark puff-ball,
"Quiet" had left our vocabulary. We began to chat and chuckle.
Even sang a little jig.
We had named the little thief... It's name was Jimmy.
Jimmy was still down there eating corn like a kid in an All You Can Eat M&M Factory.
I thought, "Surely, he's gonna get full soon."
(By now, you may have guessed it.
We were singing, "Jimmy cracked corn, and I don't care.")
Well, Jimmy began to wander back out from under the feeder whence he came.
Still cramming corn in his face.
ATTT had to water some bushes. And then, so did I.
Jimmy had almost completely exposed himself.
I moved my chair around, and my cushion, to get more comfortable.
Jimmy had come out in the open again.
I took the shot at the little thief's head.
I jerked the trigger, and pulled the shot to the right 2 inches. But, that didn't matter. I was over his head by an inch or so as well.
Jimmy scurried off behind a tree, where I couldn't see him.
ATTT broke out his rifle.
"Do you still see him?" I asked.
"Yep." says he, four feet to my right.
I sat patiently, watching to see where Jimmy ran off to.
He waddled his way back out from under the tree.
"Can I try again?" says I.
"Sure." says ATTT.
I'll never understand this.
Maybe Jimmy was stupid, but...
Jimmy the Coon walked right back to where he was when I missed. And began to eat again.
This little 'tard has a sonic boom go off an inch from his ear, and he returns for more thievery to the exact same spot!
I Kentucky Windage'd my elevation, and began squeezing the trigger.
My aim (this time) was true, exact, and deadly.
Click photos for larger sizes
Graphic pic here. Click this text to open it upYes, that's his eye. No, there was no socket holding it in there. The only thing I like more than clean misses, is clean kills.
Jimmy was a tiny little runt.
He wasn't medium sized at the least. Heck, Jimmy wasn't even a boy.
Jimmy, was this tiny, one pound at most, female raccoon.
How the heck she stuffed several cups of corn in her stomach is still beyond my comprehension.
She must've been freshly off the teet, empty stomach'ed, and inexperienced.
Wonderfully soft fur coat tho. I can't wait to have it tanned.
While I'm back up the hill, near the truck, skinning Jimmy, ATTT is making a commotion back at the blind.
He had rattled up a buck WAY past the feeder.
ATTT is a great shot, but he wasn't using our favorite V-MAX's.
Hornady doesn't make a .338 V-MAX.
I hear the AR-10T bark twice.
ATTT misjudged the bullet drop at that distance, and missed the head both times.
Both shots still hit.
One in one artery, the other in the other artery.
It's an odd way to happen, but a clean kill is still a clean kill.
The deer fell at the first hit. Picked his head up...
And never moved without assistance, after that.
Lack of blood pressure to the brain is an instant KO. Bleeding-out did the rest.
Roughly ~160 Lbs.
.