First deer hunt

Kevin has always enjoyed watching hunting shows and it's something the kids have grown fond of. Eli especially took to watching deer hunting. She seemed to really enjoy the big game the most. The more she talked about wanting to go deer hunting the more we realized we may have to get this figured out for her. Over a couple years of starting to figure out how to get on a deer hunt we discovered that the South Dakota Game Fish and Parks department has a mentor hunting program and they even take adults out. I filled out the form and waited in anticipation to hear back about if anything was going to happen. I soon got an email to go to the range for some practice shooting. I'm used to a shotgun so this was a little out of my comfort zone. Let me just say, I may have enjoyed this more than I should have. I only got to shoot a few times but it was awesome! I was given some instruction on where and when to shoot a deer and I was ready to go. They do offer a deer hunting 101 class that I would have loved to have attended but it just didn't work out.

Some time went by and I finally received the text asking if I was able to get out that week. We figured out a day and time, which had to be changed once since the weather wasn't going to be as good, and there I was wrapping my brain around actually going on my first deer hunt! I was excited, but to say I was nervous would be an understatement. As you can imagine, I don't leave the house alone much these days and going to meet a stranger in the woods was definitely out of the ordinary! Well, the day came, I got all my stuff together and I was on my way to meet my mentor. We met at the gas station and I rode with him the rest of the way out there. My mentor was a very nice man and was immediately comfortable to be around. Did I look him up before going out there? Yup! That's just how I am. On the drive out there he gave me some tips and told some other stories of hunts he had brought people on. When we arrived at the spot I was surprised we weren't in the woods out in the middle of nowhere, we were in someone's cut corn field with their farm nearby and some houses not too far off. I was informed that they can't take adults to their usual spots so this was a new place they were trying out. My mentor told me about how to work with the wind and where the best spot would be to set up. After I slammed my door shut he gently reminded me that it is a good idea to just be as quiet as possible the second you get to a spot.

We set up in the corner of the field looking out at a small tree line along the corn field. To the left was a pretty steep hill with a lot of tree cover. My mentor had said the deer will come out along the trees and eat the corn to get out of the wind, So we were set up and then came the waiting. I practiced looking through the scope periodically and was fighting nerves, but also really enjoying the quiet. It was so peaceful and I thought, maybe I'll just have to be a full time deer hunter after all! Sitting in the quiet, enjoying God's creation was just what I needed. Seeing all the wildlife was worth the hunt in itself. There were turkeys everywhere, and they really didn't seem to care about us much since they had even seen us getting set up. There was a bald eagle and so many different birds. I had a robin land on the barrel of my gun and I just about jumped out of my skin, but I recovered quickly and without too much embarrassment and resumed watching for a deer. I never imagined I would actually see one so I was pretty relaxed.

Only about 20 minutes in I heard my mentor say, “there's one.” I looked to the left and sure enough a deer was making its way up the hill to the tree line. He said, “Hold on, it's a buck but there may be more with it. No wait, maybe that is a doe. Let's see when it gets through the trees.” Through the program we are only allowed to harvest a doe. Sure enough the deer popped through the trees into the cornfield (just as my mentor had said the deer would move) and it was in fact a rather large doe. She had her butt towards me so I had to wait for my shot. I was still fidgeting around trying to figure out the scope and I was told, “hold your head still.” I was amazed that every time I made the slightest movement the doe stopped moving. I could feel my adrenaline rising and was trying my best not to let it take over. I never thought I would see one let alone have a shot! I didn't want to let my mentor down with the perfect set up he put me in so I was determined to make a good shot. Then, sure enough, the doe turned and I heard, “there's your shot”. I focused in on the scope, still in full denial that I would ever shoot a deer, but I had everything lined up and I squeezed the trigger. I may have blacked out for a moment and had the full on shakes at this point but I heard. “you got her”. I couldn't believe it! And I won't lie, I still didn't believe it. I figured we would never find her and I had actually missed. Seems as though I didn't have a lot of faith in my hunting skills, but it was such an amazing experience I couldn't believe what had just happened.

I was told we would wait a bit before we went and looked for her. Then to our surprise a huge buck popped up! Even my mentor was drooling over this one. He sure was a site to see. Also, just to make sure I felt bad, a fawn also went by. We soon went to the spot where the doe was and followed her blood, and sure enough, not too far away, there she was! I actually got my first deer! The adrenaline was still pumping, we got some pictures and then it was time to gut her. I was able to just watch this time since I have never even seen this done before. I was amazed, disgusted and humbled watching this process be done. I'm sure my mentor thought I was strange based on my commentary and the noises I was making. Also having to assure me that her fawn was in fact old enough to be away from her. He was a beast though and had her gutted in no time. She was quite large but we did manage to drag her up the hill and get her into the truck. We stopped by and thanked the farmers, which I really appreciated, and got back to my car. Before I could even process the experience I was home and telling my very excited husband and kids about the hunt.

Through the mentoring program they then take the deer back to their facility and two days later we were able to come learn how to finish processing the deer. We brought all the kids with to check it out and Kevin adamantly volunteered to help with the processing, instead of chasing the kids around. The instructions were better than expected and we had the best experience. The guy helping us was very patient with all the kids and so helpful teaching and showing us everything. The kids even got to do the grinding of the meat which they loved. We bagged up all the meat and were on our way. We brought about 25 lbs of ground venison, backstraps and tenderloins home for the freezer. The pride I felt filling our freezer was unimaginable. I am still in awe with how amazing this program is and I am excited for Eli to be involved next year!

Field to table:

We started off with some fresh backstrap steaks which were delicious. We have since had venison chili, spaghetti and tacos which we all agreed might just be better then beef!