| Day One - September 9th: Up at 6:00AM, and breakfast was served at 6:30AM. We were in the Ford F350 Diesel Crew Cab by 7:00AM and off to the hunting area. This seemed too late to be getting in the woods, but the deer aren�t pressured like they are here in Vermont. The Vaureal lodge was broken down into three sectors. The first day sector one was ours. Joe was the first dropped off on an old road, which went for about four miles. Larry was next a few miles down the road. I was dropped off and told to walk up a streambed about 1,000 yards until I came to a lake. John-Paul and Marcel (an older gentleman from Quebec) continued down the road in the Ford. I made my way along the streambed, working my way through the thick spruce forest looking for any sign of movement. The only movement I saw was the driving rain blowing side ways into my glasses, binoculars, and scope. There was a lot of deer sign in the area, but no deer as of yet. After a few hours, I managed to jump two doe out of their beds. I was able to video tape the second doe for a few minutes before she took off. At 10:45AM I heard a shot. I made my way back to the road at 11:30AM when John-Paul and Marcel were going to pick me up. The shot was Marcel who took a small 4 pointer, which weighed about 120 pounds. As we drove to meet Larry and Joe, another shot was heard. Larry had shot at a handsome 8 point. The buck had come up out of a thicket and stepped into a small clearing. Larry took a 75-yard off hand shot and hit the deer further behind the shoulder than he would have liked. The trail consisted of a heavy dark colored blood, which usually indicates the shot was in the liver area. After a 50-yard blood trail, there was no more sign of the wounded deer. Larry, Joe, John-Paul, and myself fanned out to try and locate the buck. Larry came across him about 300 yards from where he first shot. The 8 point dressed out around 120 pounds. Larry, Joe, and myself stayed in the field as John-Paul and Marcel brought the two deer back to camp. On their way back, Marcel shot a nice 5 point and was tagged out the first morning. The remainder of the day was uneventful. We saw several doe, but no bucks. At 5:30PM, Joe was working his way along an old trail when he spotted the movement of an antler about 40-yards ahead of him. Joe settled his cross hairs on the buck�s shoulder and squeezed the trigger. The shot found its mark and the wide 6 point managed to go only 30 yards before expiring. The buck weighed 132 pounds and had a 17� spread. On our way back to camp that night, we saw a nice 6 point standing next to the logging road. I jumped out, but the buck had no interest in hanging around. We continued our drive back to camp. Only four deer were taking the first day out of 12 hunters, and they all came from our group. Day Two � September 10th: The same morning ritual took place with breakfast. Joe was dropped of in a large swamp where a big buck was sighted the day before. Larry was dropped off in another location, and JP and myself worked the edges of two lakes and a large meadow. We saw several doe and a large buck across the meadow. At a range of about 320 yards, I just wasn�t comfortable taking an off hand shot. We tried to circle around the buck to get closer, but never did catch up with him again. We picked up Larry and Joe and had our lunch in the truck while glassing the grassy shores of a large lake. The afternoon had Larry working a streambed and Joe walking a seven kilometer trail. JP and myself began working the banks of the Vaureal River glassing every few yards looking for movement. We spotted a doe in the middle of the river about 200 yards ahead of us. As the doe moved off to the left, we continued upstream. We were looking in the direction that the doe disappeared, when across the river a bedded buck spotted us and took off. As it bounded away, I put the scope on it and saw it had a nice spread with six to eight points. Since it was a marginal shot at best, I didn�t fire. John-Paul was upset at himself because he hadn't spotted the bedded buck. I told him not to worry about it as the deer was well hidden and I was sure we would get another chance at a mature buck. As we rounded the next bend in the river, we saw two deer about 100 yards ahead of us. After a quick glassing, I could see they were two bucks. The larger of the two was at the rivers edge, while the second buck had bedded down in the tall grass. With nothing to speak of to use as a rifle rest, I tried a shot . . . and MISSED! The big eight point jumped and ran about 5 yards and stopped. The six point came up out of its bed and looked around. They didn�t know were the shot came from. With lady lucky smiling on me, I leveled off my Winchester Model 70 and hit the big eight in the shoulder. Down he went. The six ran a few yards and paused for a second to look back. Big mistake! A well place 180 grain Federal Classic in the neck was all it took. The two bucks fell eight yards a part! After we dressed out the two deer, JP went back to get his truck. He drove the Ford down the hard packed riverbed. After loading the bucks, we went to get Joe. Joe and JP headed down the same banks I had just traveled. After two hours, I heard the roar of Joe�s Browning. A hard horned eight point was on the ground and Joe was also tagged out on day two. Day Three � September 11th: With Larry holding the only tag, he and JP headed out to sector 2 for the day. The morning was very windy and the driving rain was back. It wasn�t looking good for the hunters who had tags left to fill. These types of days usually have the deer bedded down in sheltered areas out of the wind and rain. As Larry and JP drove by the edge of a swamp, a long tined eight point was standing a mere 100 yards away in the rain. One shot from Larry�s .300 Savage brought the end to our quest for the elusive Anticosti buck. Our six deer ranged in weight from 120 to 135 pounds. With the three of us tagged out, we kicked back and relaxed the remaining day and a half we had at the lodge. Day Four � September 12th: The final day was a bright sunny day, but very windy. The remaining hunters with tags didn�t do well. As the end of the hunt approached, twelve hunters took 20 deer out of 24 tags (an 83% success rate). They included our four 8 pointers, our two 6 pointers, two 5 pointers, two four pointers, one 3 pointer, three spikes, and six doe. In the two days I hunted, I saw 13 deer (one buck) the first day and 16 deer (five bucks) the second day. Some Final Thoughts: Anticosti Island is a unique place. The island is made up of thick spruce forest, open meadows, shallow lakes, and a beautiful coast. With a deer population close to what the state of Vermont has, there are a lot of deer. We went the second week of September, which I wouldn�t do again. Although we brought back some decent bucks, we really didn�t see any of the �big boys�. I think the larger bucks stay back in the thickets until the rut forces them to be on the move. I know a few people who have shot bucks in the 120� to 130� class range. I am told that they take only a few deer each year over the 200 pound mark. If you�re looking for a monster whitetail, this is not the place to go. If your looking for a fun hunt where you will see many deer, have incredible meals, and stay in a modern comfortable lodge, you may want to check out Anticosti. S�PAQ ANTICOSTI 1 (800) 463-0863 www.sepaq.com |