Let natural sound help you to shoot deer

This buck watched kids get off a bus, and then I shot him

The big buck moved two or three feet at a time, stopped for a lengthy pause, studied the cover on both sides and in front of him, sniffed the air, and then moved forward again.

He was going nowhere fast. It was obvious this buck had been spooked by another hunter sometime in the past, and he was cautious. There were no other deer nearby -- just him -- and he was taking his slow, sweet time.

Another few steps, and a slight turn, and he would be within range. I looked at my watch, and knew this buck was mine. Every day at about the same time the school bus would come clattering down the highway, stop in front of a nearby house, and the buck would raise his head and look toward the road and listen to the noisy kids getting off the bus.

This buck always seemed to wait and listen for the school bus

He had just finished taking those steps when the bus came to a gear-grinding stop. The big 8-point raised his head, looked out toward the road, and the sounds of the kids getting off the bus caused him to raise his ears. It was a natural sound he had heard many times before.

What he didn't hear was my bow coming back to full draw as he stood quartering away. The arrow sliced in and that buck ran 60 yards before falling, his ears still hearing the kids chattering out at the road.

Deer are accustomed to hearing all types of natural sounds. Some are heard so often they become second nature to a deer. A deer hears the sound, recognizes them for what they are, and doesn't become alarmed.

These natural sounds can work to a bow hunter's advantage. I've deliberately placed elevated coops where the slightest wind will cause the tips of branches to rub against the roof of the wooden stand. It doesn't take a genius to figure out when to draw on a deer standing out in front of that blind. That deer is accustomed to hearing that sound, and hunters should wait until the branches start rubbing against the stand, and then draw, aim and shoot.

Years ago I had a stand placed on the ground near two trees growing out of a single trunk. Any breeze at all, no matter how softly, would cause those two trees to creak. I used the "creaking tree" trick to shoot a number of fine bucks over the years.

I had a stand once that seemed to be directly under the flight path of the Detroit-Traverse City late-afternoon or early evening flight. Perhaps this buck couldn't understand what the noise was, but every day he would stop, lift his head up, point his nose toward that passing jet, and it always provided me with an easy shot.

I passed on shots at that buck for two years, waiting for him to grow a decent rack, and when he did and came by and was in front of me when the jet flew over, it was an easy shot.

Any natural sound that a deer recognizes can  help the hunter

Squirrels running through dry autumn leaves always seem to attract the attention of deer. They may see that squirrel running through the woods a dozen times each day, but whenever they scampered from one tree to another, deer often turn to look at them. This often provides enough noise to cover the drawing of your bow, and the scampering squirrel is actually working on your behalf.

Birds flit overhead, land in nearby trees, and are common sights for deer but they always turn to look at flying birds. The movement catches their attention.

Crows fly overhead, cawing like crazy, making enough racket so 10 people could draw their bows. Deer seem to pay more attention to a crow when it is nearby rather than when 300 or 400 yards away.

Blue jays serve the same purpose as crows except they don't range as far. Jays often flit from bush to tree limb, to the ground, and up to a tree again. Each time the bird moves it attracts the attention of a deer, and when the deer turns to look at the jay, that is when to make your draw providing the animal is positioned properly.

Animal and bird sounds are natural. Let these sounds help you

Hunters must learn to take every possible advantage offered by natural every-day sounds. Wait for the deer to get perfectly positioned, and wait for a noise of movement nearby to attract their attention.

Use that time to come to full draw. Don't hurry it because hunters usually have more time to aim and shoot than they think. Acquire the proper sight picture, hold steady, and make a smooth release.

Hunters who learn this trick seldom go without venison during the winter months. I suspect, with a little thought, you can figure out others to out-smart a nice buck by using natural sounds the animals are accustomed to hearing.

Posted via email from Dave Richey Outdoors

A winter hike

This buck was photographed when there was little snow.

Soft, lazy flakes of snow drifted slowly down from a leaden sky as I decided to check out one of my hunting areas for some last-minutes bow hunting between Christmas and New Years Day. I may have bit off a bit more than I could comfortable eat.

I’d missed a few days with a tender back. It’s been broken twice years ago, and serves as a barometer of bad weather for me. And it can turn from good to bad in a minute or two, and hiking through thigh-deep snow isn’t the best thing for me to be doing.

I’d have been better served by donning one of the four pairs of snowshoes I owned. However, I chose to take the cross-country hike with only a ski pole to help me maintain some semblance of balance. I didn’t fall so it apparently worked/

My possibles bag had been forgotten the last time I sat in a pit blind, and I figured I’d check out that particular area, and pick up the bag with the black powder, sabots, bullets and the like while I was at it. So off I went in my shin-high rubber boots and my third leg, the ski pole.

Hiking was pretty slow going as I went from knee- to thigh-deep.

The first 10 steps was through snow that was up to my knees. The 11th step was almost up to my hips, and had it not been for the ski pole, I would have fallen in the deep snow. In and out of the knee- to thigh-deep snow, and after a quarter-mile of not seeing a track, I stopped for a break and to look around.

The fields were worse than the woods in one regards because the drifts were deeper. However, walking through deep snow is the woods is an interesting way to find out just how many ways there are to trip over things, get legs hung up in blackberry bushes, or finding slippery logs to slide down before catching a tree branch that breaks off in your hands.

I cut a trail angling through the woods, saw just one squirrel track from where a bushytail was scouring the woods in search of his stash of grub hidden for winter. The nearest corn field was almost a half-mile away, and I couldn’t see him going that fall.

Next was a pair of half-filled-in tracks traveling together. I followed them for a hundred yards, and they disappeared into another woodlot. They were probably looking for a deer away from it’s yarding area, but the tracks continue on a direction that didn’t coincide with my particular line of travel.

The next woodlot was eased into, and another trail through the woods was followed until it petered out in heavy woods before dropping downhill. I didn’t walk to go that way and have to climb out and up a steep hill in deep snow.

I kept looking for deer tracks in the snow but didn’t find any.

I kept looking ahead, and off to each side, trying to find any deer tracks. It was getting to be hard going, and I knew if it was tough on me, it would be worse for a deer. I kept circling back toward my car, and finally walked back out onto the road.

The hike felt good but my disappointment was hard to hide. If I’d covered that much ground, and not seen a single track, it tells me the deer pulled up stakes and headed for some thick cover that would provide some thermal cover for the animals.

I had picked up my possibles bag along the way, and had tested the ski pole with almost every step I’d taken, and had nothing to show for it except some good exercise. Perhaps in a day or two I take another hike in hopes of finding some deer but I suspect my deer hunting may be done for this year.

Posted via email from Dave Richey Outdoors