Sometimes the search for your first deer takes longer than you think, even when your hunts are on Managed Lands Deer Permit program ranches. And on some hunts, the deer you hope and almost expect to come out just don’t.
For Kamille Martin, the quest began in 2018 when she hunted with the Lone Star Outdoor News Foundation. Martin, who then worked for Dallas Safari Club, expressed the desire to go on her first hunt with another employee.
“It was fun and I learned a lot, but we didn’t see much,” she said. “There was never any opportunity to shoot. It seemed like we saw more deer away from the blind than when we were in it.”
She returned to the ranch, trying for a Rio Grande turkey.
“We never saw any gobblers,” she said.
This February, she made her third trip to the Stonewall County ranch.
“We saw a good number of deer, but they were mostly too young,” she said. “There was finally one I could shoot but
he kept moving each time I was about ready. The last time he moved, he didn’t come back.”
Still, many of the deer weren’t interested in the feeders.
“There was plenty of green weeds and a wheat field, maybe they were more interested in that,” Martin said.
She was invited to return to the ranch the next week, but she already had another invitation to the Sombrerito Ranch in Webb County.
“I felt kind of bad, we had tried so hard,” she said. “But they encouraged me to go and experience something different.”
The ranch, owned by the Carter family of Carter’s Country, is known both for numbers and size of deer. Martin was there to hopefully take a management deer.
“We saw some massive deer, though,” she said.
Watching the different deer come out, she finally got the green light on a buck from her guide, and made the 100-yard shot with a 6.5 Creedmoor.
“I used the tips Mimi Meyer taught me on the other hunts,” Martin said. “After I shot, the buck ran into the thick brush and I kept asking the guide if he was sure I got it,” Martin said. “He kept saying yes but I was anxious.”
After a wait and a short search, they were dragging her first buck out of the brush.
“I did help skin it,” Martin said. “They thought it was funny when one of my fake nails popped off. They said that was a first.”
Hopefully the hunts, including the successful finale, will lead to many more.
“I spent almost 5 years after that first buck,” she said. “I was glad to finally get it done.”
