Sherri’s Corner – Day Two Success

Anticipation surrounding a hunting-based holiday can be overwhelming at times with all the questions, plans, flights, packing and ‘to-do’ lists that need completing. Once you’ve reached your destination though, all of the hustle and bustle surrounding all that prep work suddenly becomes well worth it, especially if your destination is the beautiful Algar Safaris in Argentina.
The rut (aka the roar) was in full swing while we were there and the early morning air was filled with the sounds of roaring stags and barking fallow deer. Our arrival day was pretty relaxing, consisting of unpacking our things, having some appetizers and beverages in the common room and then sitting down to a steak supper served with red wine complete with dessert.

The next morning shortly before sunrise is when my hunt for an axis deer began. We scouted all morning and found a couple smaller herds that had a buck or two in them but my guide was not impressed by either of them, telling me they were all ‘chico’ meaning small. The afternoon scouting proved to be a bit more promising when we spotted a few axis in a group and could see the horns of a buck who was bedded down in some tall grass. We snuck through a drainage ditch and got within 50 yards of him which is the precise time that he decided to stand up. The buck was looking right at me so I couldn’t move to get the crossbow on the shooting sticks and he slowly turned and trotted straight away. We stayed low and watched as the herd headed over a hill allowing us to get up and move quicker. The deer weren’t too spooked from our previous encounter and we spotted them again shortly after. We circled around them, crawled to the ledge of a drop off that the herd was grazing in below. At the last minute, a cow stag who was laying in the sun on a side hill, stood up, looked in our direction and snorted, blowing our cover and again the axis were gone. We were once again on the move, glassing every couple of yards. This time we found them laying down by a stream so we snuck up the hill in hopes of getting around the other side which would give me a clear shot at the buck. We had gotten around the hill with no detection but as we were getting set up for a shot, we were once again busted by one of the does. By this time the sun was setting and the mosquitos started to make an appearance. We made the long trek back to the truck and headed for the lodge.

As much as I had wanted to get an Axis deer with my crossbow, the three previous stalks had proven that it might not be an option especially since the deer were on edge now. So for day two of the hunt I decided to take a rifle instead. We spotted the herd late in the morning up on top of a hill and immediately started the hike to close the distance. I got behind brush that was within 107 yards of the buck, I found a comfortable shooting position and just as I peered around the side of my cover with rifle in hand, he was gone!!!!! I brought my binoculars up on the other side of the bush and sure enough, him and his crew were already half way up the other side! I put the rifle back over my shoulder, took a deep breath and began the descent empty handed.
We didn’t see the deer again until mid afternoon. When we did, it required yet another stealthy stalk. The wind had picked up quite a bit which was an advantage for me to be able to move faster and gain more ground. We closed in on the herd in good time without being detected which gave me time to compare the two bucks grazing ahead of us. My guide and I decided that the one on the left was a shooter, we made our way to the top of one more small hill, I ranged the buck at 101 yards. He spotted us seconds later and started walking away, I brought the rifle up anyway in hopes I could still get a shot in. Just then his curiosity got the better of him and he turned broadside sniffing the air. I held the crosshairs on him, pulled the trigger back and a moment later heard the sound of the impact as he side stepped a few feet and fell.

My guide congratulated me and together we headed down the hill to go check out my very 1st Argentina axis deer! The buck had a broken off tine, most likely lost from fighting but he’s still pretty perfect to me! I was still beaming when we pulled back into camp, tired from all the walking in the heat but at the same time thrilled with how my day turned out! As it turned out, everyone in camp got an animal today so we all had some second day success!

A huge thank you to Jason Peterson from Into the Wild for organizing this trip. And to everyone at Algar Safaris for making it such a memorable trip!
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