Bondo's Buck

Double Odd Buck equals Bondo's Luck _________________________________________________________________ CB

It was a very cold November morning, and my father and I were hiking through an old apple orchard. We were making an attempt to reach our stands walking very slowly up an old cart road, when my father "Bondo" noticed what appeared to be a deer standing at the edge of the orchard. "Chris is that a deer?!?" he asked. Excited and without hesitation I whispered, "It sure is!" The deer was standing a good 100 plus yards away which would make this shot a difficult task for any shotgun. "Should I shoot?" my father asked concerned about the distance. Seconds seemed like eternity and somehow through an extremely quiet and excited discussion we decided that Bondo should take the shot. The deer was standing completely broadside and looking right at us. Bondo slowly dropped down on one knee and with his shotgun sight on the vital area of this whitetail, he fired his twelve gauge Winchester Ranger Model 120. The deer bolted and appeared to have slipped, as it ran off into the forest like a bolt of lightning. Bondo ejected his shell and to my surprise his first shot was a round of double odd buck by Winchester. We were both a little startled and disappointed wondering why we didn't consider shooting together, and the deer was gone.

We walked to the edge of the orchard where the deer was standing, and considered our options for this type of opportunity on future hunts. We could see the tracks where the deer was standing, and you could even see where the deer slipped on some old mushy apples. After evaluating all of the deer sign we split up, and Bondo took a stand ahead of the deer. I would hope to pick up the trail and push the deer into Bondo for another shot.

I waited for about twenty minutes so that Bondo could get into position, and then I began tracking the deer. Tracking without snow was a challenge and the few deer tracks that I found led me uphill. Once on top, the tracks were gone and I had no idea which way to go. I found absolutely no sign of the deer being hit, and I was sure that Bondo had missed. I decided to break to my left and head downhill as a fatally wounded deer might do. As I began to walk I couldn't believe my eyes, and there he was belly up just waiting for me to empty his belly. I approached him very slowly and with caution, and at one point I even thought that this was a different buck. When I put my hand on his big apple stuffed belly he was real warm, and I knew then that Bondo connected with an unbelievable shot.

I fired a round hoping that Bondo would return to help me field dress the deer, but Bondo figured that I jumped the deer and he remained on stand. He finally entered the orchard as I finished the job, and when I told him that I found his buck, tagged his buck, and field dressed his buck, Bondo replied with a big smile, " I was watching from that tree on the hill and I figured that you were just about finished." The joker and I then dragged his buck to the truck and headed home.

What a nice young buck, four points and one hundred thirty three pounds dressed. When we butchered the buck we found one pellet in his lungs. Was it skill, luck or Winchester double odd buck?

Pictured with the buck from left Norman "Bondo" Boyle and Chris Boyle