Make that two that got away!
TScott and I headed to the national forest for an afternoon hunt on the season opener of West of the Blue Ridge Muzzleloader. Our plan was to hunt the back side of a large 8 year old clearcut along the terrain break where the laurel covered ridges meet the clearcut. Figured the does would be using this area and given the time of year, well, where the does are the bucks are surely to follow. TScott was set up overlooking a draw and a saddle. I was high in a tree overlooking two ridges and hollows and the edge of the clearcut. It was a windy afternoon, with the only game spotted by me one little chiipmunk. That all changed at that magic time just before dark. I caught a glimpse of a doe running out of a hollow right for me. She never slowed as she ran right under my tree and into the clearcut. She wasn't alarmed, so I knew she had to have a buck trailing her. Two minutes later, here he comes down the same trail at the same speed. It's very near dark and I get him in the scope, but he is right on top of me and moving fast. He stops under my tree, so close the scope is blurry. I wait for a good quartering away shot as he walks by my tree and right down the trail of the doe. He stops 10 yards from the base of my tree and I squeeze the trigger. SNAP 
. He stands there. I try to get another cap on and in the process look away from the deer. When I get the gun capped and look back up, he has vanished. Two minutes later, another doe meanders down the same trail, but it is dark now and even if a buck followed, I would not be able to shoot. Back at the truck, I fire two more caps and the gun still doesn't go off. I'll be dissassembling the gun today. Very unlike a Knight to not discharge on the first attempt. I can tell you the antlers were outside the ears, but it all happened so fast that I didn't count points. Deer 2. Dale 0. The bad guu guu continues. I'll be perched in a tree all day tomorrow in hopes of kicking this monkey! Good luck to all.
