Saskatchewan…The Land of Giants

Saskatchewan…The Land of Giants

By:  Tracey Splechter

Our hunt had been planned for a few months, with a few twists and turns along the way.  The day had finally arrived to fly to Saskatoon, Saskatchewan for our whitetail deer adventure.  Kirstie Pike, CEO of Prois and I were meeting up on Saturday, November 6^th and planned to overnight in Saskatoon that evening, prior to our departure to camp on Sunday.  All travel plans went off without a hitch and we were ready to go by 9am on Sunday morning.  Devin, the outfitter, and a few other hunters met us at the hotel Sunday morning and we loaded all of our gear into the trucks and headed north.  It is approximately a two hour drive from Saskatoon to Leoville (location where ATV’s are stored for ride into camp) and the guides offer to stop in Leoville to let hunters purchase any extra beverages or snacks they need for the week.  We arrived at the base camp in the early afternoon and each hunter’s gear was loaded onto trailers which were to be pulled by quads (also known as four wheelers).  Each hunter drives their personal four wheeler for the one hour adventure into camp.  I say adventure because this is exactly what it was.  The guides had just brought the previous hunters out of camp two days prior to us making the trek but not long after starting down the trail we hit our first bump in the road.  One of the hunters dug himself deep into a mud hole and had to be rescued.  The weather was quite warm for early November so the trails were not frozen as they typically would be when hunting season begins.  The second bump:  a large tree had been chewed down by a beaver and was blocking our “train” from passing by.  The tree was too large for the six guys to lift and move off the trail, so the guides took each four wheeler around the tree so we could continue on our journey.  The rest of the ride in was uneventful, but the scenery was amazing.  We saw several lakes, miles and miles of timber, clear blue skies and wildlife galore!

Once at camp, the guides unloaded all gear and we were shown around camp.  There was the main cabin, where hunters sleep and meals are prepared, the guide’s cabin, the cleaning shed, a workshop, and the changing cabin.  The heated changing cabin is where you stored all of your hunting gear.  The owner is a firm believer in scent control and does not allow any of your hunting clothes to be brought into the main cabin to keep the scent problem down.  While the guides were busy cleaning the four wheelers, we unpacked our hunting items into the changing cabin and took everything else into the main cabin.  The main cabin has three bedrooms, each with a set of bunk beds, a bathroom with shower, kitchen, dining room, living room and deck overlooking Higgins Lake. The main cabin is also equipped with a wood burning hot tub.

Next on the agenda was the sighting in of each hunter’s gun.  Once this was complete it was time for dinner and to get all paperwork out of the way.  Each person drew for their stand placement and guide for the Monday morning hunt.  This works well as it keeps things fair between all hunters.  After a quick video, it was off to bed as the morning would come very quickly.

Bright and early Monday morning, the coffee was brewing and breakfast was cooking on the stove.  Dustin, the cook and guide, made the most amazing meals you could imagine in a back country hunting camp.  After breakfast was cleaned up, it was off to the changing shed to prepare ourselves for a long day in the tree stands.  We all loaded our gear onto our four wheelers and wished each other well for the day.  My guide for the week was Tom Beebe, the outfitter’s dad.  Tom has been guiding hunters in the area for 21 years so he knows the land very well.  It took about an hour to navigate our way into the stand.  My stand the first morning was named Jack Pine 2.  It was about 20 feet in the air and about 111 yards from the bait pile.  I had three good shooting lanes and a lot of action all day.  I had a nice 10 pointer chase a few doe around for the majority of the afternoon but I didn’t get too excited about him.  I decided that if I was in the same stand on Thursday and hadn’t shot anything, he would be my Thursday deer.  During the twelve hour sit, I also saw four 8 pointers, four 6 pointers and several spikes.  I lost track of all the does that came into the bait pile, of alfalfa straw and peas.  Every day, the guides drive around to all 35 stand locations and place fresh bait, if needed.

When we returned back to camp, dinner was ready and we all talked about the happenings of the day.  Every hunter saw several deer at each of their stands but no one had taken a shot.  We were all waiting for the monster!  The outfitter has about 20 cuddyback cameras placed at different stands throughout the week.  Everyday they pull the cards from the cameras to help pattern the deer movement.  They have a board in the lodge with pictures of deer they have gotten on camera that have not been shot.  They have each hunter study this board to be sure they know how to judge deer in the field.  The guides had spotted a very large buck on a stand they hadn’t placed a hunter so they decided to move a few of us to different stand locations.  I wasn’t really ready to move, but agreed to shake things up a bit.  Four of us were chosen to draw again and I drew lucky stand Carolina.

The next morning we drove about 1.5 hours to my stand location.  This time there was one shooting lane, the bait pile was about 75 yards and my stand was about the same height.  Before we headed out, I had told Kirstie that I had a nervous feeling in my stomach.  About an hour into sitting, I realized why I was feeling that way.  Two does came underneath my stand and headed straight for the bait.  They hung out for a while and something spooked one and off it ran.  The second one stayed on the bait but was looking in the trees to my left.  I scanned the woods to my left and saw nothing.  A few minutes went by and that doe hadn’t moved.  So I started searching the woods to my left again and there he stood; the large deer with the tipped main beams that I had remembered seeing on the board.   I knew instantly he was a shooter!  No need for binos, I went straight for my gun.  The buck went directly to the bait pile and turned perfectly broadside.  I took about five deep breaths and fired away!  Wow, what a rush!  I will never forget that feeling just after you take your shot and you watch your deer trot slowly away.  I immediately radioed my guide to let him know I had taken a shot, just like we were instructed to do.  About an hour after I had shot, I got all my gear and myself out of the stand and was going to investigate.  I walked down the hill to the bait pile and couldn’t find any blood.  All I found was a pile of fur.  I sent Kirstie a message to let her know that I had shot and good news, so had she.  She tracked her deer and had a very nice 12 pointer on the ground!  The timber was so thick that I decided to go back to my stand and wait for the guide.  A couple of hours passed and Tom arrived at my stand.  We went down to the bait pile, I told him which direction the buck ran off and the tracking was on.  We found a very large pile of blood and then tracked for about an hour and couldn’t find anything else.  I was getting that sick feeling like I had a bad shot, but knew deep down I was right on.  It was getting dark so Tom decided we needed to head back to camp and we would try again tomorrow.  I was beside myself.  The entire ride back to camp, I was speechless.  I felt I had wounded a deer and left him to die in the woods.  Tom did everything he could to console me and said that if he was down, the birds would be on him in the morning and we would find him.  Once back in camp, we realized 5 of the 6 hunters in camp had shot deer that Tuesday morning and mine was the only one not recovered yet.  There was Tom who took a 182, Kirstie with a 154, Ron with a 140 and Jessie with his first whitetail deer at 127.  The wait for Wednesday afternoon was the longest 12 hours in my life.  Tom, Devin, Ron, Jessie (Ron and Jessie were from North Carolina and Florida, respectively) and myself headed out on four wheelers Wednesday in search of my tipped main beams.  Along the way we baited a few stands and finally reached Carolina.  I showed everyone the fur at the bait pile, the direction he ran off and the large pile of blood we found the previous day.  We all started off in a different direction with our eyes and ears open.  Driving in we didn’t see any birds flying overhead so that wasn’t a great sign.  Devin yelled for everyone to be quite, he thought he heard something.  We all stood our positions and then we heard them, the birds squawking about 100 yards away.  Devin and Ron took off at a fast pace in the birds’ direction and Ron started yelling he could see him.  At that point, I was sprinting through the brush, my heart was pounding.  Devin was yelling for everyone to get there as he spotted an eagle.  Ron, my savior had found my deer!  Little did we know that Tom and I were only about 10 yards from the deer the previous day but could not see him through the thick brush.  It was smiles and hugs all around.  I was so excited!  I had my first Saskatchewan whitetail deer and he was a beauty.  My emotions had gone on a roller coaster ride in a short 24 hour period but everything ended well.  We made it back to camp and the celebration was on!  We had taken five deer in one day and that was a record at camp!  We had a fantastic meal and Jessie even played a few tunes on the guitar for us that evening.  Bobby, the only guy in camp who hadn’t shot settled in early that evening as he was going to try his luck again the next day.  It turned out that Bobby wouldn’t take a shot on this trip to Saskatchewan but had several opportunities at deer over 140.  Bobby and Tom both are returning to hunt in 2011.  As for the rest of us, we will be back again someday.

Kirstie and I packed up and were ready to head back to Saskatoon on Thursday for Friday flights home.  We said all of our goodbyes to the hunters in camp with us and to the fantastic guides who we had the pleasure to get to know for a few days.  Overall this was one of the best experiences of my life and I would recommend anyone who wants to shoot a large whitetail deer to head to Saskatchewan with this outfitter.

Great meals, excellent accommodations and very friendly guides all make this an unbeatable, unique experience.  My deer ended up scoring a whopping 160 4/8 and for my first whitetail, I think it will be hard to beat.  Thanks to everyone who was involved in this hunt, Kirstie (my new best friend and hunting buddy), Ron from North Carolina (who I owe my first buck too), Jessie from Florida (Ron’s son who kept things lively around camp), Bobby (the only hunter who didn’t make a shot but deserved it more than the rest of us), Tom (who had the largest deer in camp for the week), Dustin (a fantastic cook and new friend as well), Tom (my guide extraordinaire), and Devin (who almost was the first to find my deer and who I owe this incredible experience to).  I can’t wait to do it all over again.

For more information about this whitetail hunt in Saskatchewan or any other outdoor adventure, contact Tracey Splechter with Outdoor Connection.

tracey@outdoor-connection.com

620-364-5500

My first buck-by Deborah Fox

After multiple weekends of whining and feeling sorry for myself; my many years in the woods finally paid off.  I hate to admit it, but I’d been whining. I was sick of hearing myself, and I know my husband would agree. It seemed that no matter what I did to hide my scent, be quiet, and make as few movements as possible, my cover would be blown!

We’d been hunting in Georgia for a few years with some “good ole’ boys” who had some “freezer” success but no real bragging rights. As the only female hunting on the property I didn’t really get a warm & fuzzy welcome from the other male hunters. At one point they even asked my husband, “Do you bring her every weekend?” He smartly replied, “I wouldn’t think of leaving her at home, she’s a better shot than me!”

The moon had been full or close to it for several nights so the deer had been doing most of their feeding then. There had been signs of rutting activity for a few days, and my husband witnessed several bucks chasing a doe.  As they raced past him, he spun around so quickly that he broke the chair he was sitting in. But that’s for another story.

We made the decision to sleep in the next morning.  We ate a big breakfast and head to the stands around 9:00am. We had plans to stay all day instead of breaking at noon for lunch and maybe catch some bucks wondering mid-day.

I had been in my ladder stand five minutes when I heard the fateful blow of an alerted deer behind me. I was so close to climbing down and going back to bed! But not wanting to mess up my husband’s hunt, I stuck it out.  I’m really glad I did.

Ten minutes later I noticed some movement inside the wood line about 85 yards in front of me.  I picked up my binoculars and scanned the edge to find out if it was a “shooter”. I caught the glimpse of an antler and my heart started to pound. I carefully raised my gun and tried to locate the buck in my scope. Where was he? Every time I looked in the scope I couldn’t locate him through the saplings and briars. I could only see him with the naked eye. I was really getting nervous! I thought back to the past few weeks and all the blown opportunities. I was sure if I didn’t get it together soon this would be added to the list. I took a deep breath and looked back in the scope one more time and found his front legs. Eureka! Just above that is his chest! I slowly moved my gun up until I found his front right shoulder and pulled the trigger on my 30-06. All four legs went in the air in the classic bucking motion. I had made contact! He broke into the field and headed straight for me. This is when I realized he wasn’t just a buck he was the biggest buck I’d seen in the woods, and the first one I’d shot at! I rapidly pumped my gun and fired off four more shots. He came to rest about fifteen feet behind my stand. I quickly grabbed another clip and slammed it into the gun. I wasn’t going to take a chance that he might get back up. He wiggled a little and I shot him again. Once I was confident he wasn’t going anywhere the celebrating began. Later I was told that I was heard on the other side of the property hoopin’ and hollerin’! My husband keyed up his two-way radio and asked if I was ok, and if I had one down. I confirmed that it was big but he should continue to hunt. I still had no idea the magnitude of what I had just accomplished. He waited about ten minutes but couldn’t stand the anticipation and headed my way.  By then I had finally stopped shaking and felt confident enough to safely climb down out of the stand.  I stood there for what seemed an eternity just staring at the magnificent animal in front of me. When my husband arrived he congratulated me with a hug and a tear. I then said to him, “Don’t even think about telling me I’m not getting it mounted!”

I’m very blessed to have found someone who enjoys the sport as much as I do and that we were able to share this moment together. The only thing that would have made it greater was if my Dad, who introduced me to hunting could have been there too.

As we started to drag the deer out of the woods my husband noticed there were only two shots in the deer. The first shot and the last shot. The first being the fatal one and the last was my nervous one….right into tenderloin, which to this day my husband won’t let me forget!

When we returned to camp we discovered there had been multiple deer shot that morning including an 8 point, a 6 point, and several does.  But nothing came close to my 11 point. Those “good ole’ boys ”  were in awe of what the “girl” had harvested. The president of the club said it was the largest buck shot on the property in 20 years. The guy who shot the 8 point couldn’t stop rubbing the antlers of my deer. He said he was really happy with his deer until he saw mine.

After all the congratulating my husband and I took my deer to a local “stop n shop” that had a scale to get it weighed. As they began to hoist it up the last number I read was 185 lbs before the scale blew apart. It might have weighed more than that but I’ll never know.

He now proudly hangs in our home on what I like to call my “Wall of Fame” along with two of the biggest fish I’ve ever caught.

I’ve always looked forward to deer season beginning, but since that October morning in 2005 things have been a lot different.

August’s Woman of the Wild-Tammy Ballew

Tammy Ballew is a court reporter by profession and a huntress by passion. She has spent hundred of hours over the last 30 years hunting deer, turkey and several small game species, in addition to fishing in her home state of Missouri. An avid outdoorswoman in many respects, Tammy’s love of hunting and fishing has enabled her in her outdoor writing career also. She currently is a member of WOMA, Women’s Outdoor Media Association, and is the field staff editor for the “Women in the Outdoors—Gals with Guns and Fishing Females” section of the West Tennessee Outdoor and Michigan’s Hooks and Bullets Magazine. Tammy also writes for The WON, The Women’s Outdoor News, and contributes to their “In the Bag” reviews. Tammy recently joined the Pro Staff at HuntingLife.com

Tammy started hunting in her early 20s, and although deer hunting was her first experience, she soon grew equally as excited about turkey hunting. “I loved the vocalness of the turkeys and the amazing transformation of Mother Nature during the early weeks of spring turkey season.” She admits she knew nothing about turkey hunting, but she bought a couple turkey calls and a training tape, and read as many articles as she could on the subject, and was soon on her way to chasing gobblers. In fact, the first turkeys she called up, she was so shocked that she did it, she didn’t even shoot. Lesson learned, she has since been successful on several toms.

She and her husband have five children, and most of them hunt at least some species. One of her fondest hunts was with her son, Travis, a Marine currently serving in Iraq. They doubled up on a couple gobblers after a morning of whatever-could-go-wrong-went-wrong hunt.

They also have five grandchildren, which Tammy holds a Kuzin’ Kamp each summer where she teaches the kids to fish, shoot BB guns and .22s, catch-and-release frogs and any other critter that comes in their path.

Tammy’s goals are to pass down the traditions of hunting and fishing to her children, grandchildren, and anyone else that wants to share in the experience.