First Mississippi and bow deer has Mrowczynski ready for more
The buck James Mrowczynski killed Saturday morning below the spillway at Barnett Reservoir is a modest one, even by his standards from past hunting experiences in his native western New York.
But, boy, did the 8-pointer have an impact on the hunter.
“Kind of strange,” said Mrowczynski, “I was kind of eaten up with hunting in New York. I even had one of those bumper stickers that said ‘I now interrupt this marriage for deer season.’ I was that into it, but I just haven’t continued with it since I left up there. I guess it’s the combination of work and not having the time to find good public land to hunt.
“Now, though, this experience has given me the bug again. I know I will be taking the time to start deer hunting again. Yep.”
Now the general manager for American Airlines in Jackson, Mrowczynski can thank his wife’s family, especially her father John Toney, for the kick start. It was at the retired judge’s urging that his son-in-law enter the first-ever drawing for hunts at two areas of Barnett Reservoir.
“I told him it was time to go deer hunting,” said Toney, of Brandon. “When they announced they were going to open these areas of Barnett Reservoir to draw hunts for the first time, I urged him to go get his first Mississippi hunting license and enter.
“I even ordered the Jackal crossbow he was using. I got one of those Cabela’s credit cards, where I can get points credits, and I ordered the crossbow and we set it up.”
The four-day hunt on the Rankin County side of the reservoir’s spillway area was a first for Mrowczynski in more ways than one. It was his first hunt in Mississippi, and his first since leaving New York, including career stops in Charleston, S.C. and Baton Rouge, La.
It was also his first hunt with anything other than a shotgun and slug.
But, he handled it like a pro, making a perfect shot from less than ideal conditions to get the buck.
After 1½ days of hunting, Mrowczynski found a trail with a lot of scrapes, and it was below a ridge where he could have a perfect view and shooting angle on the trail.
“Beautiful scrapes,” he said, “and a lot of them. I was hunting from the ground and the spot I had was ideal for that. I walked in, found a big tree and figured I could sit against it and I’d be hidden pretty good.”
He found out just how good it was within an hour of walking to the tree Saturday morning.
“I was late getting in there, and I was concerned about that, but the positive thing was that it was light enough that I could see the ground and walk in quietly to the tree,” he said. “At 6:46 I texted my brother-in-law Bubba (who was hunting in the Pelahatchie Bay area where he was drawn) that the mosquitoes were wearing me out.
“At 7:08, I texted Bubba a photo of my arrow where I found it in the ground after shooting the buck. It all happened in between.”
Mrowczynski said he first saw two bucks walking toward him when they were about 75 or 80 yards away, moving from his 3 o’clock position toward his noon position (right to left), following the trail that would lead them right below his position on the 5- or 6-foot high ridge.
“They were moving through trees and scrounging along and I could tell they were both rack bucks, very comparable, but it was never possible to see both of their heads at the same time,” he said. “It was thick and they were keeping their heads down. The wind was in my favor during their entire approach.”
At 40 yards, Mrowczynski got his first shot at the lead buck.
“But right as I put my finger on the crossbow trigger, he started moving and was now coming more toward me, right at me,” he said. “I decided I’d let him come on and he did. He was still sort of angling across in front of me and finally at about 20 yards, I realized that if I didn’t take a shot soon he was gonna either smell me or sense me so I didn’t wait to get another look at the other buck. It was pretty much a case of now or never.”
But Mrowczynski had a problem. His position sitting against the base of the tree with his tail on the ground and his back against the trunk didn’t allow him a good, clear angle at the vitals.
“I had to move,” he said, “and that meant getting off my tail and on my knees and I did it. I got higher and then I could see a perfect shot right through his vitals. I think he sensed me, either winding me or something, the second before I hit the trigger.”
It was too late for the deer.
“He took off running and I was looking for the arrow in him and I never saw it,” Mrowczynski said. “I was concerned and I sat there about 20 or 30 minutes letting that whole thing replay in my head. Then I found the arrow and it wasn’t sticking in the ground where it should have been. I took the photo to send to Bubba and told him it wasn’t where it was supposed to be.
“Then I picked it up and looked at it and it was covered in blood. Then I felt a lot better.”
The blood trail was not as heavy as he thought it would be, but it was good enough to lead him straight to where the buck had crashed and died about 60 yards from the shot.
Quick calls, texts and e-mails to friends and family followed and then he drug his kill from the woods. Mrowcyznski was happy and proud of his modest buck, which had a tight 12-inch spread and a legal left main beam of just over 18 inches.
It serves as a perfect example that bucks don’t have to be of record book quality to be trophies.
This one, it seems, has helped this Buffalo native get back in touch with his hunting spirit.
“No doubt about that,” Mrowczynski said. “I guess I will just have to get out and find me some good public land hunting or something. I’ve got the bug again.”
Be the first to comment