I had a good start to Muzzleloader Season. At about 7:30 AM three antlerless deer came out of the woods and started moving towards me as they were feeding. One of them finally stopped about 17 yards away from me presenting a shot between a couple trees. I took the shoot with my flintlock and had great ignition and had a solid hand when the gun fired; I felt sure I had made a hit on this deer. I took time to clean the barrel good with a wet patch and a few dry ones and then reloaded. Then I walked to the spot where the deer had been standing and was unable to find any blood or hair. My bullet had left a trace on the ground on beyond the deer so I think I made clean miss. Later that day I looked around the area where the deer had headed for after I shot and still did not find anything, so I am convinced I missed.

Later that day when I walking through some brush I saw a buck; probably had about 5 or 6 points. A few minutes later I saw an antlerless deer that seemed like it might have been a button buck, however, it did not present me with a shot.

On the plus side at the end of the day when I fired my gun, to empty it again, it went off without hesitation. Since I am on fall break from college I have Monday and Tuesday to try again! So, I am really looking forwards to spending some more time in the woods!