SEE no Evil

Before dawn during Illinois’ gun opener, I’d intended to head for a stand just off a main food source. In the previous week, Reconyx images from that spot had revealed all the bucks I was after. They were at that main food source during daylight, so it seemed like a no-brainer to hunt there.

So why was I arguing with myself about where to sit as I prepped and left the truck? The argument was so intense that halfway to the stand, I took a left and headed to a spot hundreds of yards from the nearest camera. I had no hard intelligence about the activities near that stand, yet I was supremely confident I’d be tagged out within an hour of shooting light.

Sure enough, just as the sun was rising, the buck I’d planned to meet trotted down the ridge. Moments later, he was crumbled in a ball.

I’d been wrong. I wasn’t