Monarch Valley Whitetail Adventure

My son Theo, a freshman at Orono High School, has hunted hard with his stick and string for the past two seasons but is still looking for his first deer. Last archery season we never saw a deer in the stand which is frustrating for anyone but especially a newcomer to the sport. To keep kids engaged I think it's important to balance work with success; Theo had put in his practice time and now it was my job to find him a better place to hunt.

Last summer I attended the Birmingham Deer Classic and met an outfitter, Steve Hedberg, Sales and Marketing Director from Monarch Valley Whitetails (MVW) in Blair, WI. Steve was giving away a youth hunt as a promotion and I was lucky enough to claim the prize. A few emails, phone calls and two months, later and Theo and I were on our way to MVW in Trempealeau County.

We left Orono on a Friday after school and zipped down Interstate 94. Who knew only two and a half hours from our home in Plymouth is a deer paradise? Excitement grew as we got closer to our destination…passing through Buffalo County, into Trempealeau County you crisscross ideal deer habitat; crops, hard woods, rivers/creeks and the occasional small town. It's also Wisconsin Amish country so seeing the occasional horse and buggy on the road was a cool experience for an impressionable 14 year old.

We pulled in to the farm and were greeted by MVW owner Dan Gallagher. Dan is a Wisconsin native who spent many years in Texas in the hospitality business. He returned to Wisconsin with his wife Lorraine and kids to fulfill a dream; create a hunting destination where he could share his passion for whitetail deer. When you enter the barn converted into a hunting lodge, you benefit from Dan's years of experience working in hotels. The place is immaculate and nicely appointed. As far as hunting lodges go it's about as good as it gets.

^{A view of the Cook's Quarters, Great Room and Guest Bedroom}

Dan and Lorraine went the extra mile to make sure we were comfortable; from the homemade pizza and other home-cooked meals down to the flannel sheets on the bed. The lodging alone was worth the trip! Working with Dan as outfitter and guide is Tim Johnson. Tim is a deer enthusiast and spent a lot of time on the phone with us in advance of our trip to maximize our chances for success. I knew this year if I wanted Theo to have a great experience I needed to surround him with people who are excited to share their knowledge and passion for deer and deer hunting. With Dan and Tim we found two of the best.

After a tour of the property we were off to bed for an early wake up and our first sit. Dan put us in a ground blind near a water hole, adjacent to a corn field. He explained the lay of the land, the typical deer patterns, locations of nearby buck scrapes and rubs. As the sun came up we soon had three doe approaching from our left. The deer stopped at about 70 yards and I glassed them. They turned about face and quietly walked back up the hill. Sorry Theo, I think they saw your dad! We saw a few more deer in the distance that never came in so we went back to camp for lunch. After a great meal and quick nap, it was back to the stand around 3 PM.

We had a great night at the lodge with good food, good friends and great discussion about all things deer. Theo asked Dan if it was ok to shoot a smaller buck. At MVW the goal is to harvest mature deer but Dan was very kind telling Theo "any deer that you'd be proud of, MVW would be proud of". They proved that the week before we arrived when they hosted two youth hunters who each shot their first deer.

^{Aspen Johnson, Tim Johnson-Guide (no relation to Tim) and Bradlee Ewert show off their MVW trophies!}

We woke up Sunday morning and made our way back to the same stand where Theo missed the previous night. About an hour after sunrise we were busted by a deer that we never saw…with two people in a stand and swirling winds in the valley conditions were difficult but we weren't too concerned. We returned to camp and came up with a new plan for our last sit of the weekend.

^{Theo and Mitch Petrie Head out of their last stand of the weekend}

MVW has over 600 acres and 40 + stands set up within a 10 minute walk of the lodge. There's always a great place to hunt regardless of the wind direction. We opted for a double ladder stand on the edge of a field about 70 yards above a watering hole which proved to be a good decision. Within an hour of our arrival we had several deer filtering down the hill towards the water. Theo picked up some movement behind him and saw a small 6 point buck heading our way. The deer spooked and ran off but about 10 minutes later a doe followed his path but came straight in to 15 yards. As Theo tried to draw back, his muscles wouldn't cooperate. Might have been buck fever or just an awkward position in the stand but it was a great encounter than ended in the doe walking off down-wind. A few minutes later we heard a deer blowing and what sounded like a herd of 20 deer leaving the valley having been alerted of our presence. Theo was pretty bummed that this would be how our hunt ended. Amazingly, the doe who had just walked off, walked back in! Clearly she had a death wish and Theo was more than willing to grant it! I ranged her at 32 yards which was within Theo's range. He drew back and let the arrow fly; I watched the arrow fly in what seemed to be slow motion didn't see or hear it hit the deer. We went down just before dusk and couldn't find the arrow and didn't see any signs he hit the deer. The next day Tim and Dan returned to the site to do their own search and confirmed a clean miss.

For more information on MVW or to book your own hunt, visit:

www.monarchvalleywhitetails.com

www.facebook.com/monarchvalleywhitetails