Some Bucks Do Fool Hunters

Some bucks do fool hunters, but in many cases, the animal simply gets lucky and the hunter never gets a shot. Over many years I've watched this happen to me and other hunters. Now as the 2009 deer season plays out the couple days of the season, the thought of being fooled by a buck's actions brings to mind several instances from previous years.

One year a buck came sneaking in from behind me, and then stepped out into the open, away from any ground cover. He stood, only 15 yards away, and it would have been an easy shot except for one thing.

The tall pine tree that my stand was in had long boughs that dipped down almost to the ground. This nice 10-pointer was perfectly positioned for a quartering-away shot except one end of a big pine bough covered his heart-lung area. His head and rump were clearly visible but not his vitals.

The buck stood motionless, sniffing the air.

That buck stood there, motionless, for 15 minutse watching other deer walk past, and never moved. When he felt it was time to walk off, he turned around and walked back exactly the same way he had come, and I never got a shot.

Did this buck fool me or did he just get lucky and decide to stand in the only place where I couldn't thread an arrow through? He didn't know I was there, but he chose just the right spot to stop. He didn't do it on purpose to avoid being shot; he did it because it was the natural thing for him to do.

I've hunted caribou many times in northern Quebec. I've also watched caribou come across the tundra for two miles directly to me only to reverse directions and head back the other way.

Did those caribou fool me? No, caribou do that all the time. I don't think even they know what they are going to do next. The same holds true for some whitetail deer.

I was up in an elevated coop where I could see deer come for 200 yards. A big buck began moving my way, and over the course of two hours, the buck kept coming. He was coming from my right and behind me, and his head was up even though he was upwind of me.

I couldn't turn to shoot so I had to wait until he walked past. Ten yards from where I'd planned to shoot him, a big doe sidled up next to the buck. The angle was just right so I couldn't shoot the buck because the doe was blocking his heart-lung area. The two deer walked off without ever knowing they were very close to extreme danger.

Did this buck fool me or was luck on his side? He was just plain lucky that night, but the doe that came from out of nowhere was what really fooled me. She was totally unexpected.

Bad luck when a doe takes an arrow meant for a buck.

A buddy got fooled last fall. He was watching a nice buck circling around checking out some does. The buck eased around the deer standing out in front of him, and when the buck was perfectly positioned, he drew and shot. Between the hunter and the buck was a doe that chose the wrong time to move. The arrow hit that doe as it started walking past the buck, and she caught the arrow in the heart. In fact, even though I'm aware of last-second doe movements, I've shot two does that moved into the line of fire when I shot at a buck. Bad karma on their part.

Again, the buck didn't fool the hunter. Bad stuff sometimes just happens and there is no way to prevent it.

Another time I sat in a treestand that had been productive all year. Two or three bucks and a couple of does had been taken there, and I set up  one night in that stand. A big 10-point had been seen nearby on several occasions by other hunters. The wind was right, and I made a last-minute decision to try it.

Several does and a few small bucks filtered past my stand, and I let them go. Fifteen minutes of shooting time remained when I spotted the big buck coming. He was moving in a direct line to me, and would pass cross-wind at 15 yards.

He stepped right along and kept coming. Closer and closer, and a big branch concealed my body. He couldn't smell me, and on he came. I could just see a bit of him between the branches, and he continued on until he was well within easy bow range.

All of a sudden he stopped. The buck looked in all directions, and the only thing around was the tree I was sitting in. He stood stock still, as if waiting for something to happen. I was at full draw, and I had to slowly ease down. The buck didn't see the movement, but he was really wired.

The buck stood, and stared at the tree, and moved away.

He turned slightly, moving sideway away from me, and once he was 50 yards from the tree, he broke and ran.

He didn't see, smell or hear me. I think he may have seen another buck or a doe get shot from that tree, and once he got too close, he stopped and stood motionless. He fooled me because I really thought he would continue along the same trail where other deer had been shot/

Some deer researchers believe a deer's memory doesn't last long but I'm convinced that some gut instinct may warn a deer. And this buck was one that completely fooled me. It's this uncertainty that makes deer hunting so interesting. We really never completely know what a deer will do, and it's this trait that makes it so much fun.

Posted via email from Dave Richey Outdoors