HOW MANY DID I SPOOK ???

[ImAfossil]

Going back to opening day of buck season, and the 9 deer I saw between 7:20AM and 7:40AM, I got to thinking about the following.

Somebody told you or you read it in say, Field & Stream or Outdoor Life. When you see a doe or a few doe, that are traveling by your stand naturally, not pushed by another hunter, etc., stay on your toes, there could be a buck following.

I kinda' followed that rule in the past, but after 5 or so minutes I started to get the binocs out, or move around lookin' in all directions to find a buck.

Maybe my concentration should have focused on where the these deer came from, not for 5 minutes, but maybe closer to a half hour.

On this opening day I saw one doe, than three, 2 minutes later, then another three, 3 minutes later. The spike showed up 7 minutes later and finally the really nice 4 point came 8 minutes later. They all came from the same place and if I thought it was all over after I saw the 7 doe, I may have not seen that spike and beautiful Y buck. The clock ticked for 20 minutes until that big Y showed up.

In the past that Y I saw coulda' been a 6, 8 or who knows, but I may have spooked him.

When you are seeing deer are you disciplined and patient enough to keep focused on that particular area where they are coming from ????

If I had the chance to go back in time, I would fix this problem. How many did I spook----I have no idea----He got me before I knew he was on his way.

fossil

[mosseater]

Going back to opening day of buck season, and the 9 deer I saw between 7:20AM and 7:40AM, I got to thinking about the following.

Somebody told you or you read it in say, Field & Stream or Outdoor Life. When you see a doe or a few doe, that are traveling by your stand naturally, not pushed by another hunter, etc., stay on your toes, there could be a buck following.

I kinda' followed that rule in the past, but after 5 or so minutes I started to get the binocs out, or move around lookin' in all directions to find a buck.

Maybe my concentration should have focused on where the these deer came from, not for 5 minutes, but maybe closer to a half hour.

On this opening day I saw one doe, than three, 2 minutes later, then another three, 3 minutes later. The spike showed up 7 minutes later and finally the really nice 4 point came 8 minutes later. They all came from the same place and if I thought it was all over after I saw the 7 doe, I may have not seen that spike and beautiful Y buck. The clock ticked for 20 minutes until that big Y showed up.

In the past that Y I saw coulda' been a 6, 8 or who knows, but I may have spooked him.

When you are seeing deer are you disciplined and patient enough to keep focused on that particular area where they are coming from ????

If I had the chance to go back in time, I would fix this problem. How many did I spook----I have no idea----He got me before I knew he was on his way.

fossil

This is oh so true! And equally true,while focusing on that spot you still need to pan around. I've been burned by that too.

[A-5]

Spooked? Many have I spooked. Just our human nature. I would like to take back a couple dumb moves I have done that spooked deer

[GrumpyBear]

Spooked ? I don't have enough fingers and toes to count the spooked deer in my hunting career.

The one's I want back are the bucks that got away while trying to count the "damn" points.

[Yoder]

My dad seen this a few years ago. He shot a really nice buck, tagged it and was sitting on stand waiting for the rest of us to help him drag it out. He had three doe run past, then a spike, then a couple minutes later a huge 8pt. This was before Ar's. He watched them all run down the hill. The guy below him shot the spike buck and never even seen the wall hanger that was coming by in a few min. When it comes down to it, I'll bet the guy was happy with the spike. You just have to be satisfied with what you shoot. I pass on does all the time looking for a buck. Tonight I would have been glad to shoot a doe but I didn't see anything. I'm good with it since I've shot a bunch of doe over the years. For someone new to hunting that doe would have been a trophy.

[louie]

Deer are creatures of habit, even during the rut (hunting season.)
If possible, try to locate the trail the doe were using, and move your stand accordingly.
If you spotted the does in the early morning, they likely are returning from feeding, and headed towards their bedding area(s).

I've seen spooked deer run by me, only to stop, turn around, and wander back to the spot where they were spooked! Crazy bastiages!

One of God's creatures that man will never truly understand.

[bamboomaster]

Going back to opening day of buck season, and the 9 deer I saw between 7:20AM and 7:40AM, I got to thinking about the following.

Somebody told you or you read it in say, Field & Stream or Outdoor Life. When you see a doe or a few doe, that are traveling by your stand naturally, not pushed by another hunter, etc., stay on your toes, there could be a buck following.

I kinda' followed that rule in the past, but after 5 or so minutes I started to get the binocs out, or move around lookin' in all directions to find a buck.

Maybe my concentration should have focused on where the these deer came from, not for 5 minutes, but maybe closer to a half hour.

On this opening day I saw one doe, than three, 2 minutes later, then another three, 3 minutes later. The spike showed up 7 minutes later and finally the really nice 4 point came 8 minutes later. They all came from the same place and if I thought it was all over after I saw the 7 doe, I may have not seen that spike and beautiful Y buck. The clock ticked for 20 minutes until that big Y showed up.

In the past that Y I saw coulda' been a 6, 8 or who knows, but I may have spooked him.

When you are seeing deer are you disciplined and patient enough to keep focused on that particular area where they are coming from ????

If I had the chance to go back in time, I would fix this problem. How many did I spook----I have no idea----He got me before I knew he was on his way.

fossil

Really appreciate your frustration, for this is the first year we didn't purchase any doe tags since so many went unfulfilled in prior years.

So we're on the hill and at about 8:30, ELEVEN does walk up the path 30 yards in front of me. I would say at least five of them were 140lbs +. Since I didn't have a doe tag, I didn't shoot.

Fifteen minutes later (after walking up the hill), they walk down the path to where my wife was waiting. All of them walked straight into her rifle barrel as close as 20 yards. One bullet could have dropped two of them. But since she didn't have the doe tags, she didn't shoot.

She indeed waited another 30 minutes for "SOFA BUCK" to show up at the end of the line, but it just didn't happen - for we obviously missed his slick side-maneuver.

Were we disappointed by our own stupidity in not purchasing more doe tags. That's a "HELL YES!"

Did we have fun? "ABSOLUTELY!"

Are we done with hunting this year? No, for on December 26th, flintlock season starts and there are plenty of deer around here.

Oh, and BTW, she field-dressed and later skinned two deer for other members of our group.

What a great hunting partner!

[ImAfossil]

Really appreciate your frustration, for this is the first year we didn't purchase any doe tags since so many went unfulfilled in prior years.

So we're on the hill and at about 8:30, ELEVEN does walk up the path 30 yards in front of me. I would say at least five of them were 140lbs +. Since I didn't have a doe tag, I didn't shoot.

Fifteen minutes later (after walking up the hill), they walk down the path to where my wife was waiting. All of them walked straight into her rifle barrel as close as 20 yards. One bullet could have dropped two of them. But since she didn't have the doe tags, she didn't shoot.

She indeed waited another 30 minutes for "SOFA BUCK" to show up at the end of the line, but it just didn't happen - for we obviously missed his slick side-maneuver.

Were we disappointed by our own stupidity in not purchasing more doe tags. That's a "HELL YES!"

Did we have fun? "ABSOLUTELY!"

Are we done with hunting this year? No, for on December 26th, flintlock season starts and there are plenty of deer around here.

Oh, and BTW, she field-dressed and later skinned two deer for other members of our group.

What a great hunting partner!

BAMBOO:
You hit a key word 'FUN'--absolutely. Since this was the first time in a lot of years, to start huntin' Bucks again, my hunt had a different flavor than past years.

Gettin' together with the old gang at camp was FUN. In years past, there was a rivalry, competition, or maybe it did not have a name, but more of a feeling. This was not a pressure hunt. The weather was great, saw deer and I believe being relaxed, was a definite advantage for me that day.

Filling a tag out and the bragging rights you earn, were not in my game plan.

The bonus was this year, I learned to make sure the parade of deer was over, before I started to use my binocs. I knew that for 50 years, but failed to practice it.

I had a great, successful deer hunt. It doesn't get any better.
fossil

[Gunplummer]

I usually see a buck sneaking along after some doe move through that were pushed. The old saying "Women and children first" really applies to bucks. I saw a nice 8 point one year following some does that were on one side of a ravine and he shadowed on the other side and about 50 yards back. Then there is the old classic, a herd of frightened does milling around with a buck staying in the middle of them. Yeah, dumb animals. I know most of you won't agree, but I think an older deer understands the power of a rifle. When they see a deer go down after a shot a few times, they start to associate the two.

[bamboomaster]

Thank you so much for sharing your hunting experience with us.

When you finally get through all the riggamarolle about the tags, it's really about having a good time outdoors instead of sitting in front of the TV and watching whatever you're paying for months on end to watch.

Not everyone feels this way, but we're doing our best to stay connected to our food source and basic skills. And then pass it along to the next generation.

So when we get asked, "Dad, why aren't all the steaks and roasts we eat with you aren't as FLAT as the ones they sell in the store?"

Answer: "Where we hunt, nobody breeds them flat..."

Thanks to all of you PAFOA members and hunters, we're having a great year and it's only December!

Kindest regards,

-bamboomaster