"There's a doe!" my son Caleb whispered to me excitedly. "Where and how far?" I asked, since we were facing different directions, watching different trails. "She's standing at the edge of the bean field, but she's too far out," he quietly replied.

I slowly turned to see a mature doe standing about 150 yards away. She was checking the wind. Last year this would have been the perfect shot. At that time Caleb and I were hunting in Missouri. His .243 would have made short work of a standing deer at that distance. But here and now, with a 20-gauge slug-gun, he and I both decided to wait for a better shot.

This was a good spot and we were hoping for more deer to move closer to us. Caleb's stepbrother, Spencer Dietrich, had taken a nice deer from this location last year, with this same gun. Patience, we decided, was our best bet. But no more deer were seen that morning.

Caleb Roux (l) poses with his first buck, along with John Caldwell, who owns "The Break" hunting preserve in Hancock County, Ill. (Photo by Mike Roux)

At lunch the discussion was about the total lack of deer movement that day. It is somewhat unusual for five hunters to spend the morning on this property and only see two deer. This property, by the way, is owned by John and Sue Caldwell, in Hancock County, Ill. "The Break" provides guided deer, turkey and waterfowl hunts during the Illinois statewide seasons, as well as liberated pheasant, quail and chuckar hunts from October through March.

Setting Up A Deer Drive
The lunchtime conversation led to pushing deer and how to best set-up a deer drive. There were two major contributing factors that caused us to consider an organized drive. First, over 30-acres of standing milo and 8-foot tall Sudex gave the deer way too many places in which to hide. Second, the hundred-yard wide strip of real estate between the levy and the Mississippi River was also thick and brushy.

With all of these places for deer to hide, we had to increase our odds somehow. A drive seemed logical. We decided on an "L"-shaped maneuver. John would take three drivers to the north end of the levy and begin to push south. About 15-minutes into the drive, two more hunters would move west through some timber at the south end of the drive. This should move any deer to the south end of "The Break" levy.

In the event that deer tried to cross the levy to get into the milo, we stationed shooters about every 150 yards on top of the levy. I was set to be the southernmost blocker on the levy. I told Caleb to make his way to the river's edge and find a good spot looking north. "The does will run along the base of the levy, but the bucks will hug the river. Set-up so that nothing can get between you and the water," I told my 12-year-old apprentice.

Caleb is no rookie in the deer woods. He accompanied me for several seasons before completing his Hunter's Safety course. At that point he graduated from observer to active participant, and promptly harvested a big doe on his first morning of actual deer hunting. That was the hunt in Missouri last year that I referred to earlier. So putting Caleb on a blocking stand, alone, did not concern me.

I watched as he crossed the maple-timbered flat between the levy and the "Great River." I smiled as he chose his spot, examined his shooting options, and moved to a better location. Finally, he found a position to his liking. With a huge maple tree to his back, he faced north to await the potential the drive might send our way. He was less than 10 yards from the water.

As I stood on the levy, also looking north, the vast expanse of the Illinois Mississippi River bottom stretched out in front of me. In a few minutes, the other set of drivers would approach from the east. My job was two-fold. First, and most obviously, I was to stop any deer that came my way. I had two permits and Caleb had one, so we could take three deer on this drive, if possible.

The second thing I needed to do was to watch to see if any deer eluded our blockers on the levy and got into the milo. At that point we would subsequently drive those fields. The drive had been underway for about 20 minutes when I saw the first movement.

A Deer Is Spotted
A deer was moving quickly west, out of the timber to my right. Its first path would have had it crossing the levy in easy slug range for me. However, as it left the timber, the nice 8-pointer saw my truck parked at the east base of the sand hill.

Even though it would not have passed anywhere close to the vehicle, the buck turned 90 degrees and headed north through the milo about 125 yards from me. Then, for some unknown reason, the deer turned again, quickly crossing over the levy and into the heart of the southbound drive.

We had a blocker positioned at the precise point that the buck jumped the levy, but he had moved 100 yards to intercept the oncoming drive. Caleb motioned to me that he had seen the deer cross over and that he was ready.

My good friend Kevin Brunstein had pushed the buck out of the timber and now took a place on the levy. It was not long before I could see him making moves that told me he was seeing deer. As the buck passed him, now going south, he motioned to me to be ready. I got Caleb's attention, as well.

When I saw the buck coming, about 100 yards north of Caleb, I said out-loud, "That buck's gonna go between him and the river." I glanced over to see if my son had seen the very rapidly approaching deer. Caleb had his 20-gauge leveled right at the river. As the buck passed him at a dead run, Caleb fired.

With the shot, the buck's running gear was pushed out from under him. As he tried to stand, I took a too far shot to try to put him down for keeps. My efforts were in vain, but Caleb kept a clear head. He cut the 30 yards between himself and the buck in half before dispatching him cleanly with a second, fatal slug.

"Man was he movin' fast!" were my young hunter's first words as I approached him and his first buck. "You did well son," I told him as we admired his trophy. "You said the bucks would come along the river. You were right," he continued.

Caldwell and the others quickly joined us to share in the excitement of the moment. As Caleb field-dressed the buck he commented on how much harder it was than last year's doe. He was still brimming with excitement as we took our photos. I truly believe, if there had not been so many people there at the time, that Caldwell would have gotten a hug on that December morning. For you see, Caleb was well aware of whom arranged this drive along the river.

Caldwell can arrange a deer hunt for you or someone you love at "The Break" by calling him at 217-647-3355. Perhaps Caleb, Spencer and I will see you there next season.

--Sportsmansguide.com