A Beginner's Guide to Deer Hunting

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Now start just ahead of the rectum and draw your knife foreword, slicing carefully with the blade rather than stabbing with the tip. When the opening is long enough to al low the intestines to begin to bulge out, insert your free hand and push the entrails in and away from the cut, then reinsert the knife, edge up, into the opening just ahead of your hand (Fig. 10). Cut slowly, using your hand to hold the viscera away from the knife to prevent puncturing the intestines. Stop the cut when you reach the base of the breastbone (sternum).

With that done, locate the bladder, cut around it until it's loose, and attempt to remove it without spilling the contents on the meat (Fig. 11). Then pull the tied-off rectum through from the inside, carefully cutting away any remaining tissue holding it in place. Roll the animal to one side, and cut loose any tissue anchoring the entrails to the side of the abdominal wall, then roll the carcass the other way, and repeat the procedure on the far side. Sever the gullet (esophagus) just ahead of the stomach, and use both hands to work the innards out onto the ground (Fig. 12). To save the liver, let it cool, and then place it in a plastic bag.

Next, cut through the diaphragm separating the chest from the abdominal cavity, reach up into the chest as far as you can, and sever both the gullet and windpipe (Fig. 13). The two tubes should now be able to be pulled free along with the heart and lungs. If you plan to eat the heart, place it in the bag with the liver, and roll the carcass over to dump out any blood that might have accumulated.

Out of the Woods

Depending upon your personal strength, the size of you deer, and the distance and terrain you have to cover to get to your vehicle, you'll most likely either carry or drag the animal out of the woods. Either way, cover its head with a blaze orange cloth in use you pase an unethical hunter who might take a snap shot at a bobbing car or antler. Once at the road, transport the deer in the back of your truck or in (Fig. 14), or wrapped in a tarp inside the truck (not ridding strapped to the hood of the vehicle where it can be wind blasted, bug splattered, engine heated, and exposed to the eyes of nonhumers who ought be offended by the sight). If your state requires that the kill be registered, proceed directly to the designated station (often a sporting-goods store), and go right from there to a meat processor that you've already determined handles wild game. (Should you plan to have the hide tanned or the head mounted, be sure to let the processor know when you drop the carcass off). With that done, you can head home to reward yourself with a shower (you'll need it!) before beginning to peruse your cookbooks for venison recipes—and, of course, starting the wonderful process of remembering the hunt just passed and daydreaming about those yet to come.

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