SCENE #1. One year I was riding an ATV out to my "spider hole" and came over the rise of the field along an old fence row. There were three does standing there, looking at me. I had been riding as I usually do - little faster than walking pace. I had my shotgun in a zippered case on the front rack. The deer stood there as I unstrapped the case, pulled the gun, dropped a slug in, slowly stepped off and leveled on the biggest one. BOOM - one down. The other two jumped over the fence and weeds and stood on the other side, eventually running off like 20 seconds later. I had reloaded and was ready to shoot again but decisded to save a tag for a buck.

SCENE #2. We had a good number of hunters on the property this year. I had a new ladder stand ( I do mean LADDER stand here - 12' fiberglass A-frame converted into a tree stand) which had been sitting around my pipe fabrication shop for about a year and had been painted green/camo a week earlier, so you would think it reeked a bit. I was going to leave it behind the barn to season a year and "air out" but thought, what the heck, I'll put it out somewhere and it can air out in the woods for a year.

Well I let everyone have their pick of existing stands and when I looked at the spread of stands occupied, it was just obvious that in order to best cover the property, I would use the new ladder. I was last one out in the morning of opening shotgun season here in IL. I parked a new ATV in a weeded and treed fence row between two harvested crop fields, about 50 yards south of the woods which I had set the ladder back in about 50 yards.At first light I had a nice buck come east across the fields and crossed the fence row, right at the ATV without flinching. He proceeded to come straight up into the woods towards my position. He was moving quickly enough into the woods that I had to be quick. BOOM - down like a sack of concrete mix. He certainly did not seem to be even remotely concerned about any ATV or smells associated with the ATV or freshly painted stand.

It kind of helped me think differently. It's weird that he wasn't showing any sign of being disturbed by these paint and ATV smells, but in other cases you know you're BUSTED in the stand by your smell cause they don't look AT you just bolt away from you.

I don't know if color of ATV's is an issue here, but the buck who came in walked past my full camo ATV. I know I can see the red, blue, yellow, white and even black and green ATV's in the fields pretty well. But can't spot the camo ones nearly as easily. What about the deer?