Top_Heavy's World

The mist was giving way to full blown rain as we circled and circled. There was no more blood, there was no deer to find, the tracks we found mingled with 1000's of others and I was pulled from the job. We drove home, the mood was much more somber. The following day was spent, 2 men in the pouring raing, looking for a possible carcass. The deer is still unfound.

"I have a scenario for you, I want your opinion..." the phone call started.
I knew by my nickname, used by only one person, who I was listening to. This very experienced hunter has had a dry run lately, the last few years have been hard on him. Lost wounded elk, lost wounded deer, missed opportunities, missed shots. He had so much pressure on himself to "preform" that he was in a frenzy.
"I stopped this buck and I shot him perfect... I aimed for the heart and I watched the arrow hit him perfect. I gave him a few minutes, walked over to where he was standing and found blood everywhere. I slowly followed the blood and a few yards farther on I bumped a big buck. I heard him crashing through the brush so I knocked an arrow. He came clear and stood at 50 yards. I started to draw and he snorted and took off... what do you think?"
I have to admit, I was unable to think anything by this time. I was listening to a man who has harvested many P&Y trophies talk like a first year novice... "Start at the shot; How far? 30 yards. What angle? Broadside. Standing or walking? I stopped him, he was walking and I grunted to stop him." (I don't stop deer over 15 yards, they are too alert.) "Where did the arrow hit? In the pocket perfect. Obviously not, he ran off! What angle? Broadside. What did the arrow look like? I never found it, but it doesn't matter, I heart shot him. What did his tail do when you shot him and again when he snorted you? He trotted off with his tail up and then after he snorted he really ran off with his tail up."
I put my brain in overdrive... Up tail means- miss, or low and not good, or 1 lung and not instantly overwhelming to the buck. I was betting on low, below and behind the heart but above the brisquit. This kills the buck, bleeds like crazy and tapers off, and can take a day or 2.
"It is going to rain in the morning, so you better get out there early..." He was in the field with help at daybreak. No buck found on day 1. Day 2 was spent rewalking the area and 75 yards from where they had left off, the buck was found. The buck is a monster bodied, well racked, mature whitetail. Because the deer was recoverd we get to see what really happened and evaluate it.
The entrance hole was back, perhaps 6" infront of the near side back leg (not a heart shot) and the exit was a few inches back from a heart shot had the deer been broadside. This means that guts, liver, stomach, diaphram, and barely 1 lung were hit. HOW DID THIS HAPPEN AND THE HUNTER NOT SEE IT?

The only 2 mature bucks I have missed were both under 30 yards, stopped and looked right at me and dodged the arrow. Both were over 140" gross and both would have been mounts in my trophy room if I had just shot them walking at the best opportunity. I do not stop deer at over simple simple simple range- perhaps 15 yards! They stop them on the videos all of the time, but you don't see how many of them are gut shot or hit back on the body! If you try to stop a deer, be drawn, pin centered and ready to shoot. As soon as the deer stops you must be settled on the center of the kill zone and release. Most of the time a buck will load up (flex all of his muscles to be ready to spring away once danger is identified) does are often more relaxed, but we are in the rut now and chasing mature deer, and they die hard! A buck that is loaded might look like a statue, but he is able to drop or turn far enough for the arrow to miss before it gets there, even at speeds over 300fps! This buck was stopped at 30 yards! The hunter later admits he sort of saw the buck look over his shoulder but most of the action was blocked by his peep sight!

Sorry, we will keep going next time
I will fast forward to

I finally got word that my antlers are completed! Rick's replicas are poured and painted and they will be shipped to us at the end of the week! I got the cashier's check sent off and I am as excited as a kid at Christmas.

These pictures show the missing drop tine on the left antler and the broken G3. I have velvet pics of the buck so Artistic Antlers in Wisconsin did the repairs as close as possible.

These pics show the repairs to the left antler, the G3 and droptine. I will rescore the buck when I get the antlers back, they should be in the high 190's as the broken rack scored over 185 gross. Jim Kindig will do the mount as he does all of my most prized trophies.
Did I tell you I am excited? The repaired antlers are on the way!

I must apologize, I got started on the blog and am excited and have a ton of new stuff to write about and.... my 3 youngest children have been passing the flu around the house. I have had atleast one child at home everyday since Friday Oct 23rd! The Mrs has been sick and my youngest is still out as of today. I am sorry, but work and family have taken all of my time. I actually didn't hunt a single time last week, 5 days is just too long. I got out this weekend and will complete a couple of ideas and stories I started and bring you up to speed on everything else starting in the morning. Sorry, I am trying!
Thanks for checking in. Matt

Friday was a mess, my oldest son had a fever and I was on call to stay at home with him the rest of the day. My work load needed me, but family is always first. I was feeling the pressure as the phone calls were regular and I could feel the tightness creaping into my shoulders. I managed to get to bed before 9:00 as I had high hopes for an early rise and a very long drive to a secret little farm I hunt in South Central Iowa.
The warm splash on my arm and a strange gutteral noise brought me upright from my slumber. Anthony was sleeping next to me and I realized how sick he was as the vomit ran down my arm and splashed onto the bed sheets and the pillows. We got him cleaned up and back to bed and then set about the task of cleaning a king sized bed, new sheets, pillow cases etc. The clock claimed it was only 2:00 but it felt much earlier. I had to be up in an hour to make the long drive.
The alarm was annoying so I turned it off and laid back down... I stretched it until I couldnt' take it anylonger... I showered and threw on some clothes, I was hunting this morning no matter what!

It had been raining for almost 3 days, the low pressure and chilly drizzle only gave way to heavy rain that flooded the street in front of my office. I checked the weather reports almost hourly looking for the break. Saturday would be a high pressure system and the traditional NW winds that accompany that. Any hunter worth his antler collection knows that mature bucks are on their feet the first day of a high pressure system. It is as much a sure thing as the sun coming up in the morning. The fact that it had been nasty for so long only added to the intensity of the expected movement. I was preaching to everyone I know "If you only get one day this week, make it Saturday! They will be moving like you dream of!" I preached so much that I knew I had to get to a stand... no, THE stand by sunrise.

I don't mind 1 or 1 1/2 hour drives in the morning, but this drive was too much. The broken center line didn't look broken and I could barely see. I had to get there. I had slept in but was convincing myself that late was better than never. I pushed on until the lights of Hy Vee welcomed me. I pulled in, picked up the sustenance for the day and I raced further toward my farm. Parking the truck I frantically loaded my pockets with food, rangefinder, release and windicator and grabbed my bow. It was light enough to see as I trotted away from my truck. I hate being late, I am in the stand 1/2 hour before most people get out of bed, so I was feeling sick. Perhaps I was sick from no sleep and too much stress, but that is beside the point. I hate being late. I forced myself to go quietly and made it to the hill that overlooked the stand. I carefully made it down the steep hill with out falling and climbed into the 20ft ladder stand.

I noticed the tree was leaning more than when I set the stand,so the platform was no longer level. I lowered the shooting rail to give myself a "sense" of security as I knew my calves would be aching if I had to stand for long. I screwed in my bow hanger and knocked an arrow... the tiny fluff of a broken strand caught my attention and I manually turned my peep to center it. I knew the strand was broken, but my Drenalin was shooting so well that I just put up with the peep turning as the string stretched a little more. Completely ready, I stood up to surmise my surroundings.
I was situated on the point of a large bluff. In front of me was a 25 yard wide flat that ended at the river bank. There was a long abandoned logging road in the middle of it that was now growing up in honeysuckle and brambles. Behind me the ground rose at more than a 45degree angle. South of me there was a flat that was covered with thick brush and is a text book bedding area. North of my stand the bluff angles back to the East and the timber opens up again. This stand is in the tightest most geographically perfect funnel I have ever found. The down fall of this set up is that you don't see deer until they are within 20 yards on either side and there is only a 10 yard shooting window. I have had deer get by before proper identification, but the number of big deer in the area made it worth this risk.
I was able to stand about 10 minutes before I felt calm enough to sit. I had dropped the shooting rail so I was going to stand to shoot, unusual for me. I replayed the moves I would have to make, this was important because the deer would be so close. I had my release in my right jacket pocket and I was ready. A let my back sag against the tree as I watched the trail to the North. I turned slowly to look over my right shoulder and then I turned to look South. "Holy Shit"... I actually murmurred it aloud! I watched a monster thick rack develope from under an overhanging honeysuckle branch. I knew in less than one step that he was the one and I rose. I had put on my fleece for a reason this morning, I was a little warm, but when silence is needed, nothing beats fleece. The bow was hung perfect and I barely extended my arm. Hand in place, I took my eyes off the buck only to properly click my release to my D-loop. I came to full draw as he took only the 3rd step since I noticed him. He stopped and started to take out his annoyance on the branch hanging in front of him.
I let out a large breath and followed the steam as I focused on the buck. The huge left antler had 4 good upright points and I could see a short kicker off of the G2... my breath went South East against the bluff, but then took a downward path as though it was swirling right where the stag now stood. Huge mass, all the way out... the close side looks as good, no spike or surprises. His body was facing right at me, maybe a couple of degrees off, but the trail he was on goes less than 2 yards from my stand and he was only 12 yards away. His head turned hard to his left and I saw the pocket. I touched the release and the arrow sunk where the shoulder meets the neck, about 2/3 of the way up the body. He turned and bounced off a tree, then another. He circled the clump of trees and headed South down the trail he had just walked up. It is amazing how clearly I could see him for about 50 yards with his tail partially up, but I never saw him as he approached. I removed my bow hanger, raised the shooting rail and carried my things to the ground.
The bucks tracks were obvious in the soft leaf covered soil. Not a single drop of blood... "please God, let that shot be as true as it felt.... please let it be true" The sun still wasn't over the horizon so I walked partially up the bluff and sat next to an old stump. I have spent many hours next to that stump, it is where I used to gun hunt with my daughter, she would sit on it and I would sit on the rock I was now perched on. The center of the stump is fairly rotted now, so I put my banana peel in the hole. I snacked on the days worth of food as I watched the sun rise. I had been in the tree less time than it took me to walk there from my truck. The lighting was a little better so I started again. No blood; not unusual for the shot I chose. I will state matter of factly, take this as bragging or just understand my logic, I shot this deer where I did because I know how well I shoot, I know what my equipment will do, I know deer anatomy, and I am very calm when I shoot. I know this deer is dead, my question is did it make it 100 yards? I found the broken arrow about 5 steps further. about 10" of arrow including the Rage 2 blade, was missing. There was blood on the shaft about 1" up so I know I got 11-12" of penetration. That deer isn't even going to make it to the bedding flat!!! I easily followed the tracks in the mud, it was almost unfair. The bright yellow leaves of the honey suckle bushes covered the ground and the rain had turned the entire area into a smooth almost "painted on" surface. His were the only tracks since the rain let up so it was like tracking in a fresh snow. I slowly walked about 20 yards when a doe bounded back towards the bedding cover, she was eating acorns on the side of the steep slope and decided they weren't worth an encounter with me. I could see a touch of white up the trail and I lifted my binocs. Bellyhair... then the large sweeping antler that assured me he was down. I continued to watch the track as I was still looking for the first drop of blood. He had just trotted, slowly, with tail only partially raised, until he dropped. It wasn't violent and he hadn't kicked or even roughed up the leaves. The massive Rage hole was perfect, exactly where it needed to be. I sized up the antlers and body. He was short, height and length, but extremely thick, I struggled to move him. His antlers were wide and also extremely thick, they looked too big for his body. My friend, the landowner, had told me of this buck and his many sightings on both ends of the farm... I bet the "Big 9" used this trail often.
Reaching the truck I found my cell phone and started calling "the guys". It was now 7:58 am. I had left the truck, walked 15 minutes, hunted, shot, waited, tracked, recovered and rewalked 15 minutes.... all in less than 90 minutes!

24 1/2" and 25 1/2" beams, 22" inside spread and 38" of mass add up to 170 6/8" of total gross bone.

Many of you have already found 6 things you wouldn't do- the shot choice, the angle, the almost immediate track on a "poorly" hit deer with no blood trail... I know, you have your views and I obviously proved mine. On my next entry here, I will go over specifics and share with you how and why I do what I do.

Thanks for being here, you make it more fun and are why I write.
Matt Yamilkoski

I have been busy exploring "normal life"; family time, honey-do's, large work schedule and eveyday business that fills most people's days. I tried this lifestyle for the past 6 months or so and I have found I don't like it. I am a serious "Red" or "Achiever" type of person, so a day with out accomplishing something special is a wasted day. I have recently decided to step back into being ME and I must tell you, I am much happier this way. I will not apologize for knocking anyone else's style, it just isn't MINE. We all need to find what works and run or walk or accept... do what fits you and hold on, because if you have followed me in the past, you know I don't walk much.
I started a serious butt bustiing work out regimine last spring and I am still hard at it. Up and in the gym by 5:00 am has done miracles for my blood numbers and cholesterol as well as my overall appearance and shoulder width! I must admit, holding 70 lb draw is a much more comfortable undertaking than it had become over the past few years as well. I am going into a bulk phase so I might be sluggish and complaining come shotgun season, but I really want that 400 lb bench by Feb.
My kids, the best gifts from God I could have ever dreamed of, are all getting big. The baby decided to "potty train" 2 weeks ago and went from diapers to underwear over night and hasn't had an accident since. I am starting to think he has my intense focus?! I guess I am just letting you know I have a normal life and when I write about dialy hunts and incredible numbers of hours in a tree, I want you to remember that.
Work has been extreme, I am the Operations Director for a large environmental company and the hours are long. We run up to 70 guys when busy and about 20 when not... the issues and involvement of 20 people is pretty crazy but organization seems to be my strength. I am lucky to have a group of employers that allow me so much freedom in my schedule to hunt as much as I do. Again, remember I work over 40 hours per week, every week, even during hunting season.
I will be hunting Kansas, Missouri, Iowa and perhaps New Mexico this year. Urban and rural hunts and with every legal method possible. The year is looking great (fairly easy to say being that it has started and I have killed 8 deer so far!) so I will have lots of stories to share as the days melt away!
Thanks for being here and stick around, the gettin' is just starting!