Your Thoughts? Maybe No Good Answer.
 

Ok, I hesitate to post this, but I am still kinda confused as to what happened. What are your thoughts?

The story goes, I am in my climber this AM at around 7:30 when I see about a 2.5 yr old 6 pointer approx 15" wide coming broadside in front of me. I am hidden behind Holly tree limbs and he has no idea I am there. I have no shot at this point, but he is slowly walking to my left. I have a light North wind in my face, so he does not smell me at all. He gets to 15 yds at my left, I am about to come to full draw and he stops in a small triangle of 3 half grown pine trees. He is very visible to me and I see what he does. He places his head down and looks around almost as if he is scanning the ground level towards me. All of the sudden, he almost does a back flip and runs 20 yds and stops facing away from me. He stands still about 10 seconds and then starts walking back the way he came from. I used my grunt real lightly when he was about 35 to 40 yds away to no avail. He went back where he came from.

Now, the thing I find questionable is, did he smell me? (Wind was definately in my favor) Or, while he was scanning theground towards me, did he spook at the sight of of my rechargeable mag light at the base of my tree, where I foolishly, halfway hid it before climbing? (Regardless, Everything goes up the tree from now on. No exceptions.)

Your thoughts/experiences?

LT

RE: Your Thoughts? Maybe No Good Answer.
 

If where he dropped his head was the path you walked to get to the stand yeah he caught wiff of ya.

RE: Your Thoughts? Maybe No Good Answer.
 

Kanga, he came across in front of me from right to left. I came to the base of my tree from the complete opposite direction. No chance of him crossing my trail. He never got closer than 15 yds from my tree or my path to the tree. I could totally understand if he had hit my trail, but at 15 yds, I have my doubts about that.

LT

RE: Your Thoughts? Maybe No Good Answer.
 

smelled ya LT, take a damn bath!!! :D

RE: Your Thoughts? Maybe No Good Answer.
 

What your scent is doing once it gets a few yards from you.....you'll never know until you get some kind of windicator. I learned that a wind in your face isn't always a good wind....if your scent is blowing somewhere else. I had times I walked to stand this year with my wind puffer out.....and it blew my mind (thermals/swirling winds/change of direction at higher points/terrain features that affect wind).

He could've winded you.

Also.....a deer's hooves will emit a secretion when they bolt. Maybe something bolted from that site earlier (last night?) and he caught that scent. Was your entrance trail near where he got spooked (just wondering).

They're amazing. I had a doe get all spooked, tonight.....and all she discerned was the tracks I took (in rubber boots, sprayed down) to put out some doe urine scent. She was antsy as heck.....but positively upwind of me.

RE: Your Thoughts? Maybe No Good Answer.
 

With him that close he my have got a look at something that my have not let him feel totally comfortable. That something my have been you but he was not sure of what he was seeing.

RE: Your Thoughts? Maybe No Good Answer.
 

I had a doe come flying in today and then circle and ascting all weird and she finally spooked, they smell soooo freakin well...

RE: Your Thoughts? Maybe No Good Answer.
 

Vabowman, I did. Scent free soap. Clean scent free clothes/gear. Rubber boots sprayed down. (Scent Lok Baselayers, just in case:D)

Jeff, I know the winds could have very well did this to me. I just would have thought he may have spooked sooner in front of me if that was the case. Guess only he knows that answer. My entrance trail to my tree is at a 90 deg to his trail which crosses 15 to 20 yds in front of my tree. I really do not believe, as posted above, that entrance trail had anything to do with this episode. The flashlight on the other hand, makes me sick at my stomach. I sware he looked like he was looking straight at the base of my tree where that thing was laying.

This trail is definately used by other deer Jeff, and the hoof secretions is an interesting, very possible scenario I suppose.

LT

RE: Your Thoughts? Maybe No Good Answer.
 

i know your confusion buddy.. in this past week. had deer walkin directly down wind i mean blowin right at them an they didnt spook at all.. thne i had deer in front of me with the wind blowing completely my favor an do almost exactly what your talkin about.... its what makes it so fun!!!!!

RE: Your Thoughts? Maybe No Good Answer.
 

MdDave, I know what you mean. That is why they call it hunting. You win some, you lose some. This time, I lost, but I learned a few things as well I believe.

AR, I know that is always a possibility, as we can never actually pinpoint where their eyes are focused. I just never got the impression for even a second that he saw me. (Though something out of place, is always something a deer is looking for, it seems.)

LT

RE: Your Thoughts? Maybe No Good Answer.
 

LT....I also wouldn't beat myself up over leaving something at the tree base. I leave my LW bungee at the base of mine, every time. It's sprayed down periodically.....and I think it must just look like a twig to a deer. I don't give it a second thought. Flashlight? I wouldn't that, either (unless it was refelctive of light..the lens).

If he looked at the base of your tree.....there's a good chance he could make out your outline????

RE: Your Thoughts? Maybe No Good Answer.
 

I guess we will just chalk this up as Bucks=2, LT=0. And back at 'em in the AM. Off on Vacation rest of this week. Looks like tomorrow and maybe Thurs, Sat evening, and Sunday maybe will finish out my hunts for the week.

LT

RE: Your Thoughts? Maybe No Good Answer.
 

I believe 100% this Is why he spooked.

Jeff, I've had deer spook from accidentally leaving my light at the bottom of my tree. I've also had bear spot an arrow that I had also previously accidentally dropped from my stand and a bear's eye sight sucks. Anything that's not the norm they will notice In a heart beat. Ever cleared brush for shooting lanes and threw It In a pile where a deer might see It? Same thing will happen being It wasn't there before (looks out of place). I've been careless and have forgotten to hide branches from trimming, It cost me a doe one year.

RE: Your Thoughts? Maybe No Good Answer.
 

I think we can assign anything we can possibly imagine into "why" they spook. Can't be proven or disproven.

If you feel like a deer spooked at seeing a flashlight (and not smelling it or you.....seeing you move......smelling your entrance trail.....etc..., etc..., etc...)....then that's what you're gonna believe.

Did it? Who knows? And...you seemingly say it's happened more than once. Just for converstion's sakes, Steve.....how do you know this?

RE: Your Thoughts? Maybe No Good Answer.
 

Spending 24 years In the woods and watching how deer react to different things.

RE: Your Thoughts? Maybe No Good Answer.
 

He smelled you. Either where you walked or somehow the wind did a swirl.

RE: Your Thoughts? Maybe No Good Answer.
 

How do they react to flashlights?

I've only been at this for the better part of four seasons.....but as far as "experience" in how deer react.....I get to see a LOT more than most. 4 seasons hunting them......+/- 800 deer sightings.

I've left everything from hats, to binos, shirts......dropped NUMEROUS items from stand over the years.....and I just can't recall a single deer reacting negatively to something I left or dropped.

I think their nose is where we get busted most times (if they don't see US).

Just a differenc eof opinion. That's all.

RE: Your Thoughts? Maybe No Good Answer.
 

I could be wrong also Jeff but when your wind Is totally In your favor (no thermals) and there no where close to your walk In trail there not going to smell you IMO.

Sure Isn't worth arguing about that's for damn sure. Lets agree like you said It's just a difference of opinion.

RE: Your Thoughts? Maybe No Good Answer.
 

I'm leaning this way myself. Deer, like humans, react to things differently from deer to deer. However, deer are experts at seeing and recognizing something foriegn in their enviornments. Some of them will stop, stare then turn around and leave. A lot like a mature buck would do! ;)

RE: Your Thoughts? Maybe No Good Answer.
 

Did you walk on the ground he sniffed?

You could have had some sent swirling or reflecting in his direction. Just enought to make him feel uncomfortable. Ive seen it happen on cold days with slight to light breezes. Your sent drops with a slight down draft.


Ive seen deer get liery in front of me before for no reason at all. I call it their spiddy sense.:D

RE: Your Thoughts? Maybe No Good Answer.
 

I had a doerun in and noticed an orange vest that I had laying on a mountain laurel bush at the base of my tree. At ten yards she did the whole stump and bob the head. She couldn't get it to move so she moved closer and repeated the stomp and bob. She continued until she was right on it and smelled it. I keep it enclosed in a container with earth scent wafers so thats what it smelled like. After smelling it she still stomped at it to get it to move. It didn't move so she backed away and continued down the trail stopping once to look back to make sure it was still there and then left the area. Do deer see the orange, keep in mind that I washed it in scent free no uv brightner soap and sprayed it down with uv blocker?

RE: Your Thoughts? Maybe No Good Answer.
 

We are talking about a half-hidden flashlight......at the base of the tree, right?

RE: Your Thoughts? Maybe No Good Answer.
 

I just caught that. I agree. If he could see it, it might have been just enough for him to realize it was something different and felt uncomfortable.

RE: Your Thoughts? Maybe No Good Answer.
 

You'll never know 100%.

Another possibility is that he was bedded nearby, heard you come in, and was a little curious but cautious. Could have seen your flashlight or you moving in your stand out of his peripherals.

RE: Your Thoughts? Maybe No Good Answer.
 

Deer spook for the oddest reasons. The buck I finally killed I have had in range 3 times this season before thwacking him. Each time, something would go wrong...wouldnt slow down, chasing a doe, and one time...for no reason, he did exactly as you describe....came in from opposite direction as I did, wind blowing back where I walked in from, steady wind at that...and he was walking with his nose to the ground and he glanced over at the base of my tree....and bolted. I had two stand backpack straps leaned up against the tree, and I feel VERY confident this is what that buck spooked at the sight of.

IMO, if a deer catches your outline in peripheral vision, they will look up at you out of instinct before bolting...too many things in the woods for them to bolt without getting a look at first (as far as vision goes)....scent wise, game over at the slightest hint in most cases.

Just in my experiences though, no where near Schultzys 24:), I've only been chasing em for give or take 8 years now. Only semi seriously for 3-4 and very seriously for the past 2.

RE: Your Thoughts? Maybe No Good Answer.
 

Hey I'm just trying to rationalize this. Maybe I'll learn something.

In my experiences......"catch my scent"? RARELY does this end well. "Catch sight of something"? I've killed a few that saw me. Could've killed a lot that saw me (one was just last night).

VERY similar occurrence, last night. Lone doe.....enters from the S. Wind is W and in my face (how I was facing). She enters from my left.....and gets to 15 yds and gets antsy. I thought I was still (I watched her enter), but she "seemingly" caught my outline in the tree I was in (who knows?). I was on the back side of the tree from where I thought they'd be coming in. She was also below me a little in elevation (8'?). I had doe urine out....but she didn't get downwind of my scent rag .......I don't think;).

Even after spotting me.....I still could've shot(at) her (after she settled down).

Did the wind swirl.....even a "little"? Don't know. Did she see me? Don't know. She never got to my entrance trail. I do know that.

All I'm saying is.....too many times I'm seemingly spotted in a tree.....and still have opportunities to take the deer....for me to think a half-hidden flashlight would cause a deer to bolt at it's UNMOVING sight....is a stretch. Would they bolt at a "new" stick or limb that's fallen the night before? Do you think they know the difference from 45' if they can't smell it?

RE: Your Thoughts? Maybe No Good Answer.
 

Just maybe she had ESPN.

RE: Your Thoughts? Maybe No Good Answer.
 

All interesting thoughts/observations. I have had deer see me and spook, smell me and spook, and had them see me and not spook. I have also witnessed deer skirting an empty treestand. I have also seen a deer spook from a tweety bird rustling the leaves on the ground. There are multitudes of reasons we can come up with I suppose. This time just really stood out as I have never seen a deer/buck do exactly what this one did.

Imagine a T. The top line on the T is the deer trail. The bottom line is the direction of my entrance, although I never actually reach the trail. I climb about 20yds back from it. Wind from the North, which would be the top of the T. The deer actually almost had his neck touching the ground flat as was his chin/jawbone. 5 seconds at the most and then backwards flip to about 20 yds back on his entrance trail. He stops. 15 seconds. Walks back the way he came. Not your typical "I smell you, I'm outta here scene". I still believe he either saw the flashlight or my outline and freaked, or he just got that "deer sense" and changed his route.

LT