September 20, 2011 Palmetto State Deer Chase

The sign said "Smiling Faces, Beautiful Places" as I crossed into the Palmetto State there was already a smile on my face.  Having taken the scenic route thus far on the trip to SC it wouldn't take much to persuade me regarding the beautiful places part.  I'd seen more southern fried scenery in the last hour than I had in years and it was wonderful.  There were fields full of corn and soybeans and sorghum and peanuts and cotton.  Lots and lots of cotton.  Seeing so much agriculture in action was therapeutic.  

My buddy, Rusty, had sent a message saying, "Let's meet in South Carolina in a couple days.  Rifle season is open and the weather should be right."  My better half encouraged me to go but it didn't take much convincing.  I borrowed my uncle's Ford Ranger, stuffed a bunch of gear, snacks and camo clothes into a Rubbermaid container, grabbed the A-bolt and some ammo and took off.
We arrived near Bishopville around lunch time and headed over to his farm to check things out.  All the stands were in good shape.  Some of the shooting lanes needed work but the telescoping pruner, one of the best hunting tools ever, made short work of it.  The corn field we were going to be hunting had been cut a couple days prior and there was grain strewn all over the place.  To top it off, adjacent to the stand I was going to be hunting a persimmon tree was full of fruit.  It was going to be a good hunt
We headed back to the hotel, cleaned up and donned some camouflage.  It'd been 3 years since I had my Natural Gear on and it felt good....real good.
Rusty put the truck in park and we starting packing accouterments into pockets and backpacks.  Binoculars...check, facemask and gloves...check, thermacell...check, camera...check.  I needed bigger pockets.
After a quick prayer we headed toward our stands.  I scurried up the rungs of my ladder and quickly settled in for the afternoon. Surely I was going to see some critters during my sit!  My intuition proved correct and it didn't take long to do so.  A doe and two fawns appeared out of nowhere and began feeding on corn.  Fifteen minutes later another doe and fawn came in.  And so it continued.  Deer after deer after deer.  At one point there were seventeen of them, all does and fawns, feeding in the field at once.  Add three hen turkeys and a nice mature, gobbler to the mix and it easily became one of the best evenings I've ever experienced in the woods.  I was so busy watching animals and taking pictures that I didn't even consider shooting.  I might as well had left the A-bolt at the house.