I have also seen this. Deer do tend to take the easiest way. And think about it, a deer's hide isn't that thick, so you know the briars have to hurt them too. I hunt a place with an old cattle fense up. I cut it where the deer were jumping it and I was amazed at the amount of deer traffic that came through once I cut the wire.

A few years back I got tired of seeing the tips of antlers and the white patches of deer out in front of me. So I went in the front of my stand and chopped and cut two lanes early one morning. Keep in mind this was during Sept and it was still 90 degrees out. So by the time I got done, I was smelling pretty rype. I was like what the hell I done all this work, so I sat in the stand that afternoon and a young buck walked within 20yds of me. Right down the trail I had cut. I got tired of watching him so I eventually took him home with me.

I got within 30yds of the biggest buck I have ever killed. Climbed in the stand, bleated, grunted. Made some sounds of my own and he never moved. He was 30yds in front of me bedded down. He is now on my wall. On the other end of that stick. A few years back I found an area with a couple of white oaks. A really really nice buck was feeding on them daily. I went in two weeks before season opened to hang a stand. Again this was in sept and it was 90+ degrees out. The buck came in that night and didn't come back until around december.

Deer are different. Some smell a human and think nothing of it. Some smell a human and leave the area for months.