October 30 Bow Hunt
Well, I hunted again last night from the same stand I hunted on October 2. This is a great gun stand overlooking some fine bedding cover. But for bow hunting most deer pass just out of range. Still, when trying to determine if a good buck is in the area, it is a good place to sit.
I got in to the stand about 3 PM. I spooked a deer as I entered the woods. I laid down a scent trail (doe estrous urine) to the vicinity of my stand. I hung the scent pad in a tree. I climbed up and got ready.
There were deer around almost constantly. I looked over my right shoulder and saw two deer moving about 75 yards away. I looked in front of me in the bedding cover (about 50 or 60 yards), and saw a small, odd-looking deer. At first I thought it might be a piebald (partial albino), but then I realized it was a very small spotted fawn. Strange for this time of year. I wonder what month its mother was bred?
I had a couple of does come to the edge of the woods from the bedding and spook from the doe urine. Later a larger group of five bald deer came and sniffed all around the scent pad and the ground where I dragged the pad.
Right about sunset, a doe was running in the bedding cover, chased by a grunting buck. I couldn't see how big his rack was, but it was small or I would have seen it better. I grunted at him. No results. A couple of minutes later I saw him by himself. I grunted again, and he walked toward the woods. But when he got to the edge of the woods he turned toward another deer I had not noticed that was on the edge of the woods. The first deer had his ears laid back and his hair bristled up. I was excited, thinking I was going to watch a fight. But the two deer just sniffed each other for a minute, then gently started sparring.
These bucks were only about 50 yards away, and I really couldn't see their racks. They were probably small 6 pointers. (or possibly smaller) If they had any kind of racks to speak of I would have been able to see them. Funny, if I was gun-hunting and interested in any legal buck (like a lot of hunters), I would have let those deer walk. I bet a lot of guys see bucks like this but fail to recognize them as bucks. Then they probably complain that there are no bucks in the area!
I got in to the stand about 3 PM. I spooked a deer as I entered the woods. I laid down a scent trail (doe estrous urine) to the vicinity of my stand. I hung the scent pad in a tree. I climbed up and got ready.
There were deer around almost constantly. I looked over my right shoulder and saw two deer moving about 75 yards away. I looked in front of me in the bedding cover (about 50 or 60 yards), and saw a small, odd-looking deer. At first I thought it might be a piebald (partial albino), but then I realized it was a very small spotted fawn. Strange for this time of year. I wonder what month its mother was bred?
I had a couple of does come to the edge of the woods from the bedding and spook from the doe urine. Later a larger group of five bald deer came and sniffed all around the scent pad and the ground where I dragged the pad.
Right about sunset, a doe was running in the bedding cover, chased by a grunting buck. I couldn't see how big his rack was, but it was small or I would have seen it better. I grunted at him. No results. A couple of minutes later I saw him by himself. I grunted again, and he walked toward the woods. But when he got to the edge of the woods he turned toward another deer I had not noticed that was on the edge of the woods. The first deer had his ears laid back and his hair bristled up. I was excited, thinking I was going to watch a fight. But the two deer just sniffed each other for a minute, then gently started sparring.
These bucks were only about 50 yards away, and I really couldn't see their racks. They were probably small 6 pointers. (or possibly smaller) If they had any kind of racks to speak of I would have been able to see them. Funny, if I was gun-hunting and interested in any legal buck (like a lot of hunters), I would have let those deer walk. I bet a lot of guys see bucks like this but fail to recognize them as bucks. Then they probably complain that there are no bucks in the area!
posted by Zarathustra | 6:28 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home