Decided to go out for this first time yesterday to see what was lurking in the woods. It was un-seasonally warm with rain and fog patches which made me question if I should even go out. Normally we're well below freezing with snow which I would have preferred over these conditions. I started out at 8:30 and slowly worked my way along a bush road sitting and rattling a couple of times with no luck. After going about 3/4 of a mile I stopped for a break at 10:00. Once done I stood up and shouldered my pack preparing to move along. I decided to take a look down the road from where I came and seen a big bodied deer silhouetted in the fog against a pine tree over 200 yards away. A quick scope look told me it was a shooter. I dropped to one knee, lined him up and took the shot. Full disclosure, I was shooting out of my league being un-rested and carrying a heavy pack in foggy conditions. I knew he was hit hard by the way his tail shot straight out but disappeared in the mist. When I got to where he should have been he jumped up and noticeably struggled to head off into the bush. I sat and had a tea and waited 20 minutes before taking up the weak blood trail in the wet leaves. He went about 75 meters and another shot put him down. I was very surprised that he was a 6x6 with beautifully colored antlers. He weighed in at 165# at the butchers and I'm guessing it'll score mid 150's.
Let's see how everyone else's seasons are going.