Would you go back?

[BillJ]

Yesterday evening I had about an hour after work (left early), so I ran to the farm and hunted a bit.  For time sake, I left the treestand at home, and just took my 3-legged stool and set up along a fence row facing a brushy area that had a lot of sign.  I believed it was a bedding area.  I had no blind to sit behind, so I just worked myself up against the brush along the fence row.  I was in plain site, but wearing camo and face paint.  I commenced to rattle and bleat and grunt for a while, but saw and heard nuthin.  

Just about the time it was getting too dark to shoot I heard a deer stand up about 20 yards away in the brush I was watching.  Good grief - it must have been there the whole time! I don't know how it hadn't seen me when I was rattling. Then I heard him proceed to beat the crap out of the brush with what sounded like a pretty nice rack!  I tried to pick out where exactly he was, but struggled to hear the commotion over the one being made by my own heart pounding.  The noises grew closer, but I could see nothing.  I was a statue.  The wind was good.  Just when it was too dark to shoot, suddenly a dark mass materialized about 10- yards in front of me, walking steadily toward me.  

Now I've already taken my buck this year, so I knew I couldn't shoot this deer.  But there's a monster that frequents that farm and I really hoped to see whether this was him.  However, I suppose it's just muscle memory... my fingers instinctively curved around the string, and with that tiny movement, I believe the end of the bow twitched ever so slightly.  The deer froze, snorted, and blew out of there taking half the brush with him as he went.  

It's possible he winded me, but unlikely.  The wind was good.  It's more possible that he either saw my bow twitch, or he noticed a dark blob where it shouldn't be up against that fence line.  

Which brings me to my question:

Seeing either the bow or the blob against the fence - he might recognize them as something he didn't want to be involved with, but would he recognize "human?"  If he recognized "human" I assume I shouldn't return to that spot for a while.  But if he just spooked over something he wasn't' sure about, would it be ok for me to go right back to that spot again (with a better job of brushing myself in?)

My son wants to hunt this farm tomorrow, and I'd like to put him in that area.  What do you guys / gals think?  Would you hunt it again this soon?

BillJ

[Tom Leemans]

If that's where he beds down, or at least used to bed down, You'd be hard pressed to sneak in there undetected again, unless you caught him on his way to bed. I doubt he new exactly what you were, but bucks don't grow old by sticking around and asking questions. Did he see a blob that didn't belong? You can bet the farm on that! I'd almost bet he's been back there to sniff around after you left.

To answer your question...  If I were to go back there, I'd brush it in with some limbs and stuff, like I was some farmer getting something out of his field and throwing it into a pile. Maybe even cut and stack a nice pile of fire wood next to it. I've watched many a deer standing next to, or behind wood piles. Make sure you dress like a farmer while doing this. LOL! Leave it alone for awhile before going back.

[trapperDave]

just dont sit in the exact same location, move 20-30 yds or more. He'll be checking out that spot for awhile when he comes by. My .02

[Aeronut]

You were in his 'living room' and he knows what everything looks like there and when something is out of place or shouldn't belong there.  I think I'd give it a few days before returning.

Dennis

[Jeff Strubberg]

I would give it a week or ten days, myself.  Move to a travel route or something.

[MI_Bowhunter]

I would not go back to the exact spot. I would give it a few days to settle down and then try to set up where he is entering or exiting the bedding area.

[vermonster13]

The rut should be firing up pretty good here this weekend. He's going be real hard to find soon. You probably don't have much to lose to try to set-up on him now somewhere in the area because most likely he'll be gone soon either way.

[BillJ]

OK - thanks guys - exactly the input I was looking for.

BillJ

[Jerry Jeffer]

He knew you were  there the whole time. All that stuff you were doing, grunting, ratling etc. He just waited until it got dark enough he felt comfy, got up and checked you out, then split.

[Bonebuster]

Vermonster is right. Unless he does not get involved in the rut too much, he could be miles away with love on his mind.

All that racket in his bedroom, and he didn`t move until dark tells me he is one of "those" deer. A ghost in the darkness.

[BillJ]

Bonebuster, the monster I've been hunting on that farm for the last couple years is definitely a ghost in the darkness.  I've only seen him at night, although I've busted him out of bed a couple times during the day.  Everytime I've done that, I was almost stepping on him before he blew out of there.  

How do you hunt such a deer?  I'm thinking of getting some guys together and trying a drive.  Any other ideas?

BillJ

[BillJ]

Well, just a quick update. My son did set up in that same area the next day, but about 75 yards away from where I was sitting.  He proceeded to take a doe.  His first.  He didn't see the buck I had seen the night before, but there was obviously still activity there.

BillJ