Finally got some time to right up my story. Hunting Long Island what I would call semi-public land. I have permission to hunt I would guess about 10 acres that deer move through heading to a from their bedding and staging area. A compound hunter has permission for the whole property and he lets me hunt this small piece and I'm thankful for that. I say semi-public since people are always coming on the property to hunt without permission.
On November 4th, Tuesday I was at my job and my friend texted me and told me he was seeing some rutting activity. I had the next day off so I was pumped. The next morning had me in my stand and the weather was around 50 degrees. I'm about 50 yards south of the start of the bedding area and about 80 yards from a road that runs north to south. On the other side of me is houses about 70 yards that way with deer fences around them. South of me is where the deer will be coming from.
I'm pretty high up in a skinny white oak tree, only about 8 inches thick. That's the problem with this area, no large trees to hunt from. I've been busted countless time by these pressured deer so I moved my stand up a little higher to where there are branches for cover.
At 7;00am I hear loud wheezing and I figure a buck is chasing a doe so I'm looking behind me to the south and I can't see any deer. The wheezing continues and finally I see a big bodies deer limping along. He is walking by the deer fence and passes me about 70 yards away. He was limping and wheezing the whole way. He looked like he had a big rack but I really couldn't tell. I'm guessing he either got hit with a high lung hit or was hit by a car. All I thought to myself was "I knew I should have put up a stand closer to the houses after they changed the law from 500 feet to 150 feet this year".
Well at 8:00am I see a nice deer coming from the south and it looks like he will pass by one of the trails by my stand. I recognize him as one of the deer I got pictures of using Smokey's pre-orbital deer lure over a mock scrape with licking branch. He is a mature buck and a big six point. Unfortunately he passes at the trail that is about 30 yards from my stand on my right side and I didn't feel comfortable to make the shot so I let him pass. Ten minutes later he comes out of the bedding area heading south with his head down most likely following the scent a doe laid down earlier. This time he was also on my right side and the shot was once again a little to far for me. But as he was heading south he angled over closer to that deer fence close to where that other buck went through. Right then I decided to put up a stand today so I could hunt the evening along those trails. I stayed in my stand until noon but did not see another deer.
Went and got a quick lunch and then since I was hunting with my wedgelock all I had to do was put up some steps and the wedgelock chain with a lifeline and ?I was good to go. I was in my stand and all set by 1:00. First though I put out some Smokeys Deer lure on a wick, I put some tarsal gland and hot doe scent. Now I put it up in a little tree where there was a lot of leaves in case the buck raised his head to sniff the wick so he wouldn't see me. The wind was blowing towards the NE so my plan was any buck would hit that scent first before they got my scent.At 4:00 here comes doe and she goes right by where my other stand is and passes just east of me just out of range at about 30 yards. She didn't wind me so my scent must have passed just over her.
At 4:40 I here a deer moving and I see another doe on the same trail as the previous doe going right past my stand. Right behind her is the big six point I saw that morning. At this point I'm kicking myself for moving my stand since I don't think I'm going to get a shot. The doe stays on the trail and passes by at 30 yards but the buck heads west and goes where my scent wick is hanging. ( at this point I had forgotten about the scent wick hanging )s he walks out to follow the doe and passes the small trees cover I came to full draw and made the shot at about 12 yards. I hit him slightly quartering away and I knew it was a good shot if a little far back. He took off like he had jet engine on and I can barely see him stop and standing at 70 yards. I go to get my binocs but can't spot him anymore but I heard a thrash and guess he fell over. I'm nervous as heck and take a compass reading and mark the time. A little while later I hear a deer where he ran and see a nice buck that might be him come from that area but then I see him chance a doe and know it can't be my buck.
I wait a 1/2 hour and then follow a compass reading about where the buck has gone and see this
Topic: Smokey's Lures one in! (Read 1165 times)
