Better shot for better protein and better muscles

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Happy Thanksgiving!

This morning my dad and I got up way before the sun and drove a couple hours to spend Thanksgiving as so many other Oklahomans do- deer hunting!

The morning was cool but not too terribly cold, and I had the privilege of watching one of the most beautiful sunrises I have ever seen.  It was so peaceful to sit and watch it rise as the colors changed from a rich red to lighter pinks.  It was a windy morning, so we didn't see any deer in the clearing. 

So we went stalking for about an hour and a half, trying to scare the deer out of their hidey holes in the brush.  Dad coached me a little bit and then set me loose to double our odds.  Stalking with a 20 pound pack and 7.5 pound gun was fantastic exercise and I had to stop and remove layers as I kept sweating.  I had decided to wear my New Balance Minimus trail shoes because my tennis shoes felt too noisy.  I'm glad I did because it was a lot easier to move quietly in the trail shoes. 

I enjoyed stalking around our place, but I was glad when it was time to pack it in and go eat lunch at Grandma's house.  I stacked my plate high with turkey, dressing, sweet potatoes, and all of Grandma's yummy cooking.  I didn't even feel guilty eating a piece of her pecan pie AND my mom's Dutch apple pie, because I knew I had put in a hard morning's work with more to come.

When I went back out to hunt in the afternoon, I picked a spot to sit just below the pond with a creek bed off to my right and a good view of a field that was covered in deer tracks.  Dad had gone off walking in another area so I set there enjoying my solitude.  After a little while I heard what sounded like something walking in the brush in the creek bed.  There were a lot of fallen leaves between me and the treeline so I slowly crept over to try to get a look at the source of the noise.  When I finally made it into position I didn't see anything so I sat and watched for a while before moving back into my spot.  Must just be squirrels I decided.  A little bit later I heard it again, darn squirrels.  I kept hearing it, and I just felt like I needed to check one more time so I snuck back over to the treeline.  And there it was: a buck!  About 40 yards away, on the other side of the creek bed, a buck was walking through the brush.  I got down on one knee, took my aim and fired.  One shot was all it took, a perfect hit to the heart and the deer fell where he stood.  You should have heard me whooping and hollering!


The victory of the huntress

Dad found me about this time and came over to take my picture with my prize.  He held my rifle so I could drag it out by the antlers.  It was a heavy deer so we threw the rope over a branch and used Dad's truck to help hoist it up so I could gut, skin and butcher it.  I felt so proud knowing that I was directly providing the food that my family will eat.  It was frustrating having to throw away the hide (I believe you should use all of the animal that you can) but with such a warm fall it was crawling with ticks!  This may sound silly, but the grossest part of field dressing the deer was not the blood and guts, but having to deal with the ticks crawling in the area I needed to make my 1st incision.

I was so excited that I forgot about dinner until I got home and Seth carried in left overs from his mom's house.  It was a physically exhausting day and I know I will have sore muscles in the morning, but what a satisfying day with many healty and yummy meals in my future.