Fourteen year old Jessica Bailey woke up the opening morning of youth deer season in Missouri ready for a long hard hunt. Not because she had been told that was what to expect, but because that was all she had experienced. Coming from a family of hunters, Jessica was considered one of the most unlucky. She had been hunting for three years for deer and turkey and had never had an easy hunt. In her three years of turkey hunting, she had yet to get a shot off or even have a chance to shoot. Jessica had been marched all over prime turkey woods by some of the best hunters around and still had no luck. For one guide she was the first unsuccessful hunter in three years. This had nothing to do with Jessica; things just never seemed to go her way. She kept trying however, and finally last youth deer season, after hunting hard for two days she shot a doe in the last minute of shooting hours on the last day of the season. It was the first shot opportunity she had ever had at any animal. Even with her success, she viewed hunting as a long and hard process. So this season, she expected no different.
She had been planning this deer hunt all summer. Her Aunt Tracy and Uncle Patrick had found a ladder stand that had a bench wide enough for two people to sit comfortably, which they placed at one of the best spots on the farm. The spot was saved for Jessica, with no archery hunters allowed near the area. The plan was to eliminate as many possibilities of things going wrong as possible. Jessica had watched through the archery season as the older hunters brought in bucks and does. She heard them talk about what a good season it was turning out to be. She couldn’t wait for her turn. Finally, the morning came and she packed her bag with snacks to hold her over on a long hunt. She was ready to sit all day if she had to.
Jessica’s stand had been placed in the only tree large enough to hold a stand, in a patch of spray timber that was thick and overgrown with young trees growing since a fire that had destroyed the woods years before. This thick timber had become a haven for deer to bed as the briars and thick underbrush protected them from predators. The large tree sat on an old pond dam, the pond had been dry since before the fire, that was at the bottom of a large draw that extended up behind the tree. Deer had used this consistently as a way to enter the timber, coming from feeding at nearby alfalfa fields. The setup was designed to catch deer coming and going from the bedding area to the feeding area, but with the rut started deer could be expected from anywhere.
Jessica climbed up into the stand and waited as her aunt followed. After getting situated she put the shooting rail down and practiced aiming in various directions. Her aunt had brought the video camera to try and get the hunt on film. It was a cold morning, with wind blowing in small gusts as Jessica pulled her bright orange ski mask over her face and prepared for the long sit that she had become accustomed to. That would not be the case this time.
After sitting for about twenty minutes Jessica noticed movement in the timber across the pond. Her heart began to beat fast as she made out the shape of a deer. "I see one," she whispered, "over there by the green tree." Her aunt looked to the cedar tree that Jessica meant and saw a glimpse of white horns through the brush. "It’s a buck Jess!" Now her heart was racing. The deer was walking along the top of a ridge about 100 yards away. It then disappeared into thicker brush as it turned and walked away from them.
"Let’s see if we can get it to come back." Tracy whispered, as she pulled out a Primos can call and a Hands Free Buck and Doe set on Young Buck. She bleated once and followed it with a couple grunts. After about a minute, movement was seen on the hill again, this time two bucks. Jessica got her gun ready and began searching for the deer in her scope. The bucks walked back across the top of the ridge and one of them began rubbing on a small tree but because of the thick brush, Jessica did not have a safe shot. Tracy grunted more aggressively this time and the bucks stopped and looked toward the stand. Then began to move down the hill, moving in and out of clear spots, showing their antlers. One was a small forked horn and the other a nice eight point. "Can you see them in your scope?" Tracy asked. "No." Jessica answered. "Get the one in the front in your scope and wait for an opening," Tracy instructed.
Just then, the eight-point came into clear view. His rack was tall and white. To Jessica he looked huge and she began to shake. "Don’t look at his horns," Tracy said. "Just find his shoulder in your crosshairs." The buck walked out of the brush and began to make his way down the pond bank. He was about fifty yards now. He kept walking broadside down the bank into the bottom of the pond. "Do you have him?" Tracy asked. "I’ll stop him." She grunted once at the buck and he stopped, a perfect broadside shot, then continued on his way. Jessica did not have him in her scope. He walked behind a tree and out of sight. "Just wait, maybe he will turn back." Tracy grunted again. The buck stopped, looked back and turned around. "Get ready, he is coming back the way he came." Tracy whispered.
The buck walked back across the pond and lunged up the side. Jessica thought he was going to leave when he suddenly stopped at the top of the bank. "Shoot!" Tracy whispered. The sound of the .243 echoed through the woods. The buck lay on the pond bank. Jessica was still shaking as she realized what she had done and she and her aunt climbed down to get the buck. Jessica thought he was beautiful as she picked up his head by the antlers and looked at her deer. "Let’s get the truck." She said excitedly.
At the check station Jessica proudly stood by her deer as other hunters came and congratulated her. Her luck had changed, and her love of hunting grew even stronger.
