Illinois Whitetail // On a Northwest Wind
Words and Photography by Hunter Lewis
Read Time : 5 Minutes or Fewer
It is day five into my annual trip to the great state of Illinois. There is just something about the month of November up here I crave year after year.
After hunting a couple of different pieces of property, I’ve realized my odds of killing the caliber of whitetail I am after are going to greatly increase if I key in to this stand; a lone 20-acre block of CRP. The block is surrounded by a deep drainage ditch with thick shrubs and smaller trees. It rained the night before and the wind is hard out of the W/NW at 14 to 15mph. The conditions were perfect to get aggressive and slip in and get eyes on one of the mature bucks that use it.
A buddy of mine let me out of the truck at the southeastern corner of the CRP block at about 10:30 in the morning. I began to inch my way slowly along the east side of the field. The grass was a little bit taller than I expected. I used a few of the smaller trees to get a little more elevation while glassing. I made it to the northeastern corner about noon, not having laid eyes on a deer. I planned on camping the rest of the day around this block. To be as mobile as possible, I chose to not bring a stand.
The trees available to me were small. The biggest of those surrounding were in my corner so chose a cottonwood tree with a three-way split about 5 foot off the ground.
Wind was good.
Visibility was good.
Sign was good.
I had a field of winter wheat to my east and a fresh scrape directly under me. I felt really good about the spot. I settled into the split, I have definitely been more comfortable on a hunt but it honestly wasn’t too bad. I pulled my bow up and hung it on a limb under me just in case.
After about 2 hours of burning holes in the CRP glassing, I set my binos down switched my leg position and got back comfortable. When I looked up my heart skipped a beat. Coming down my tree-line from the west, already inside 20 yards was one of the mature deer that called that area home. My brain running on overdrive, I began to assess the situation. I was in a bind. I had to get my bow in my hand it was out of reach because I had slid up the limb a hair while I was glassing. I had one shot to make my move. The way he’s walking, we’d be just about eye-to-eye in just a minute.
When he got behind the big cottonwood limb in front of me, I took my chance. Reaching down in a smooth, careful fashion I grabbed the top cam of my bow and pulled it to me. As soon as I got it up to my body the deer came into view again. He’s way too close to comfort and my heart is beating out of my chest.
He stops to lick the limb over the scrape only 10 yards away…if that. This is the closest I’ve ever been to a mature deer. It felt as if I could count the hairs of his face. All I need the deer to do is look the opposite way for a split second for me to draw. I couldn’t let the deer get down wind of me. My mind is racing, thinking about every situation that could develop as I wait for my moment.
After about a minute of the deer not moving a muscle, I knew that he was probably catching the edge of my wind being where he was, but the good Lord looked down on me and that deer looked away just like I needed him to.
The moment had come. I came to full draw, touched my nose to my string, placed my pin, and, propped up on that limb, I released the arrow. I was in shock, honestly, as the deer ran off, after a perfectly placed pass through shot, falling over in the CRP only running about 60 yards.
My first phone call was to my dad back in Alabama and then my mom and wife. They are my biggest fans and no one was happier to see things come together for me. The way this hunt played out was so special to me, every little detail. This is why I love and do it year after year.
