“Part of my hunting season success hinged on entering my treestand undetected. The QuietKat allowed me to do it.”
It was the first day of the Illinois late muzzleloader season and I was running late. Some important work obligations held me at the lodge longer than expected; I was on a 3 day self-guided hunt with Performance Outdoors Outfitters in West-Central Illinois. With a low pressure cold front setting in, I knew I had to make it to the stand for an evening sit, no matter what!
The need for speed (and stealth)
I arrived at the farm and pulled into my parking spot at 3:45 p.m., much later than I would have liked but with a short three-day season, it was time to roll the dice. To make matters worse, the parking area was just over a mile to my stand location overlooking a standing bean field that the Outfitter had planted for late season hunts. I knew if I could get in quick and undetected, I would still be in the chips.
I quickly got dressed, packed my gear, and unloaded my QuietKat Electric Vehicle out of the back of my truck in record time and set out to the stand overlooking the bean field. Normally this would have been at least a 40-minute walk through rolling terrain, which means I would have sweated up and got very cold once in the stand as it was 15 degrees and spooked deer while walking to the stand; but with the use of the QuietKat, it put me at the base of the tree in just over 5 minutes and I got to my stand completely undetected, not perspiring and ready for my hunt. I got in clean, even with does already feeding in the far side of the field.
With little time to spare, I was setup and in the tree by 4:00 p.m. with my hopes running high. Just after 4:20, a big-bodied deer entered the beans and slowly worked in my direction; my heart was racing.
It all comes together
A quick glance with the binoculars revealed it was the buck I’ve named “Swoop” because of his sweeping main beams. At 70 yards he turned broadside and I slowly squeezed the trigger. In an instant, smoke filled the air and the crack of the muzzleloader echoed in the distance.
After a short track job, I walk up to the biggest buck of my life; a 170” Illinois giant! The key factor to this successful hunt was getting in undetected and I credit that to the QuietKat Electric vehicle. This hunt simply would have never happened if I wasn’t able to get to my treestand quickly, quietly and scent-free.
Check out their full line of electric vehicles and electric mountain bikes at QuietKat.com and for info on Performance Outdoors go to PerformanceOutdoors.com.