Bambi's Dad Comes to Visit

Today is the second Saturday of deer season here in Minnesota. The temps were in the high 30's and low 40's and it was windy and rainy. I know there are hunters out there as I write this, waiting, waiting, shivering, just hoping to glimpse some sign of deer - any deer. Some can count years between the times they have even had a chance at a shot. Most can only dream of bringing down a 10 point buck in their lifetime.

Well, today I got that 10 point buck - with my Nikon Coolpix 6.0. It was about 10:30 in the morning. The weather was exellent - 68 degrees in my townhouse, no wind, dry conditions. I had just finished my second cup of coffee and stepped into the living room when I sensed motion at my window. I looked up. There he was - the buck of my dreams! I immediately dropped down on my belly and combat crawled to my Nikon. Fortunately, it was already loaded. (You never know when a 10 pt buck might come to your window.) I continued crawling across the floor and got downwind of the beast and climbed up on my couch. He was still there! I squeezed off my first shot. Got him! He then turned away briefly. I dove for the floor again and belly crawled to the window. While he was looking away I slowly pulled the shade up. It was at this point, my hunting cat, Effie, jumped up on the window sill and growled. The Hancock mascot must have sensed the motion because he turned menacingly towards us. Effie froze. I squeezed off my second shot. Got him again! At this point the massive buck began to lose interest in all the action at my townhouse window and slowly began to move away. I held my breath and squeezed off several more shots. He never flinched. What a morning! I'll never forget the deer season of 2007.