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Always more to learn when deer hunting
It seems that each year I either find that I wasn't as smart as I previously thought or I was taught another lesson by the whitetail.
There was the time I was up a tree in my neighborhood watching and waiting. I had hunted from this stand before and knew the lay of the land well. The stand had been placed in such a position that any deer approaching would offer a clear shot and the area behind me was all but impossible to traverse.
No deer in its right mind would come from that direction through thick cover and my scent blowing that way. I had seen a couple of does head toward the field and both were within shooting range.
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I looked down and the 10-point looked up. I don't know how long he had been there because I thought no deer in its right mind would come from that direction. Here I was, a large buck off my right shoulder below me. He was looking at me and I was looking down at him. Finally he decided I was nothing more than a harmless buzzard and walked away. Have you ever tried drawing a bow over your right shoulder when you're right handed?
That buck taught me an important lesson. They don't always behave the way you expect. Everyone knows that deer don't move much in the middle of the day so it's a waste of time to be in a deer stand. Or at least that is what many hunters assume.
One time, I had been in the tree all morning and now it was almost noon and time to leave. I tied the bow to a cord and lowered it to the ground. Just as I was ready to release the line I saw movement off to my left. Up came the line and bow hoping all the motion wouldn't be seen. I just got hold of the bow when a doe came calmly strolling by.
I held onto the bow for another half hour and decided to quit for the second time. Again I lowered the bow and again I saw brown. Up it came again like some kind of odd shaped yo-yo. It was another doe.
After she left I decided enough was enough and lowered the bow and quickly scampered down to the ground without looking around. As I trudged away from the stand making my way to the truck I thought I heard a snort. I refused to look back to see what made the noise.
Never assume that we know everything there is to know about deer.
Many hunters think a large buck won't tolerate the presence of a lesser buck during the breeding season. This is not true for the familiar lesser buck is no threat to the big buck's dominance. A pecking order has been established well before the fall rutting season. Most fights involve a buck that enters another buck's territory.
Another fallacy that is often accepted is that rub trees are used to remove the velvet from the buck's antlers. Actually the velvet would slough away without any rubbing. The rubbing of trees is done to strengthen the neck muscles before breeding competition begins.
Watching the body language of the deer can be a help when hunting. Deer swish their tails to chase flying insects but also give it a flick just before running away.
When spotting something it can't identify, a deer will bob its head. The head will be lowered and then quickly raised. I have always felt that they were checking to see if you moved thinking that if they looked away you may move and if they snapped up quickly they may catch you moving.
A little trick that can be an aid to the hunter is simply making a trail. Sounds too simple to be true but create a trail through heavy cover and the deer will soon be using it in their travels. Of course there must be deer present and the trail should go somewhere they want go, But like people, deer tend to follow the easiest path.
This tendency also works on mountain and hillsides as deer move up the gentlest part of the slope and utilize any saddle present.
However I learned long ago to not be surprised to find a buck climbing the steepest ridge in the thickest tangle. Never assume.
I have been looking at deer the last few weeks and have located quite a few bucks. The problem is most of them aren't legal. Just the other evening I counted seven buck without any having the legal four points on a side. Four of them were spikes.
I never saw but one spike In Washington County from the '50s until 2004.
n Poor Greene County, it can't win for losing.
First it was Duke Lake and now it is Dunkard Creek. Like many others, I read the excellent editorial in the Observer-Reporter and the equally good letter written by David Vukmanic in Monday's paper.
Years ago, I heard about the fine muskie population in Dunkard Creek and many local anglers considered this the best muskie water in the southwest corner of the state.
Now it is gone. Isn't it time that some of these industries stand up and admit their wrongdoing?
Of course they won't show any remorse or sense of responsibility. We try to teach our children that they are responsible for their actions and see these acts of greed done by supposed adults. As long as counties and states subsidize the damage done by these companies, they will continue to operate in a irresponsible manner. Yes we do subsidize with tax dollars when we repair bridges, roads, buildings and creeks damaged by careless companies.
