Deer for dinner

Rich went deer hunting for the first time and shot a buck. He went with a friend that we've gone to church with here in NC for many years, Don Albright. As you can see, his first trip was successful! Rich also took some pictures of the internal damage that the bullet did, but I'll spare you that. It will suffice to tell you that it was a quick, "clean" kill. The deer dropped right in its tracks.

They took the deer back to Don's house where he taught Rich how to dress it. Once they finished that job, they packed the deer "parts" in a cooler filled with ice (where it stayed for about a week). Next came the butchering of the deer, which was done in my kitchen. In the sink are a front leg (left side of the sink) and a rear leg (right side of the sink).

Rich prepares to butcher. (The back straps and tenderloins are in the baggies in this picture.)

He prepares cuts of meat for the freezer.

Butterfly steaks

stir fry
The first taste. YUM!

We have a freezer full of healthy, organic meat touched only once by human hands. We are excited that Rich was able to shoot his first deer. We are thankful to Don for letting Rich tag along on the hunt and learn from him. Rich is thankful his wife wants him to go hunting. (He rather enjoys it!) He loved the hunt - and didn't even mind cutting out the guts. He even said that he would rather gut a deer than a fish. He didn't love butchering it, though. He says that after several hours, the smell of raw meat really begins to take its toll. It took him many hours(spread out over a couple of days) to get it all done. I think he wants that to be my job - but I am certain that is just not possible!