A Priceless Hunt – A Grandson’s First Buck

With only a couple of days before Michigan’s 2014 gun season, I was having my doubts about my 13 yr. old grandson harvesting his first Mi. buck with his crossbow. He had hunted patiently but we hadn’t even seen a buck. As we sat for the chilly evening hunt I wondered if there was anything I could have done differently. We were hunting Southern MI river bottom, backed into a blow-down and sitting on the ground. I knew things could change quickly and whispered in his ear to stay alert. It was hard, so many hours on stand had passed thru the season without success. As I turned my vision toward the area in front of us, I noticed a large doe, she would do; she stood broadside at less than 30 yards, he drew a bead thru his scope, his bow sitting on an improvised rest. Suddenly without warning a 7 point buck was materializing out of the weeds to our left, putting him on a course directly in front of my grandson’s aim. Don’t shoot I told him, here comes a buck. I see him he whispered excitedly. At 20 ft. he fired, the shaft taking its broad head right behind the right shoulder. The buck exploded crashing thru the brush, then silence. I’ll never forget the excitement as he hollered, I did it , I did it, I did it; tears rolled up in my eyes as I remembered his late Dads first deer at 14, he had passed away at 24. I thanked God for the time hunting had given us together and for the many memories it had created. This deer was special, it was our memory together.