QuazyQuinton takes his kids hunting

Day 6, Evening

My daughter just got back to the trailer empty-handed, so we're wolfing down some meatball sandwiches and getting ready to get on the road for home. She saw one at a distance and heard another, but nothing was cooperative. I walked down the road just before dark and spotted four down on private, but that's not real helpful.

Long drive ahead....

QQ
 
Wrapup

We pulled in the driveway a little after 11 last night. Home safe and sound. The trailer is mostly emptied, but I still have a deer to process.

Overall, it was a good trip. We saw deer pretty much every time we went out. As I said earlier, most were in the thick stuff, and most were on the run, but at least we were finding deer. Probably more concerning is that of all the deer we saw, one deer that my daughter saw was a buck, and both she and I saw one other deer apiece that we each thought was probably also a buck. Apparently the bucks hide really well. Considering that this is at least the fourth deer season plus a couple elk seasons this fall, it's no surprise that everything is skittish.

I think the hunt is a good one, and I would put my kids in for the tag again. Being more familiar with the unit as a whole would be most helpful for choosing a spot. The main drawback to our spot was the "multipurpose recreation" around us. For two or three days, it was very normal to have somebody shooting/blowing up tannerite in the rock pit below, somebody else shooting in the lot where we were parked, and another group shooting/blowing things up at the gravel pile down the road. I would figure out how to camp farther away from that.

I always like to reflect on what I saw my kids learn from trips like this. Seeing my son helping with the trailer and generator shows that he's been paying attention around Grandpa. My daughter was determined to get a deer on her own, and she stuck with it. She eventually concluded that those big tracks she saw were cougar tracks, but that's nothing to fear. Just another possible quarry, right?
Hearing both of them reflect on the trip and express that it was a good trip even if nobody got a buck was heartening for me. We are mostly done for the year, but that means it's time to start looking forward to next year.

Thanks for following along. Sorry we didn't have any big bucks to show off. Maybe next time.

QQ
 
I appreciate the effort your kids put into the hunt. I bet they learned something everyday they can use in the future. Seems like on many of Oregon's late youth hunts road hunting is the preferred method.
 
Thanks for sharing the hunt ! Congratulations to your son. Your daughter has the makings of becoming a great hunter with her dedication !!
 
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