Final installment of “The Last Day” series
11:54 a.m.: A lone doe with one fawn walks out of the woods northeast of my stand, cuts south after passing my spot and enters the woods behind me. When I left the woods later today, I discovered a spot where these two deer had bedded down. I’ll detail this find in a note later in this journal entry.
Anyway, the pair entered an area around a stand I call “Powerline #1”. Here, two giant poplar trees with trunks bigger than you could encircle your arms around fell some years ago during a microburst wind storm.
As they collapsed, their huge branches and dense, heavy trunks smashed and ripped out an opening in otherwise heavy forest cover. They literally ripped down other large trees like skyscrapers falling onto smaller buildings.
Several years ago I discovered this place and hung a treestand in a huge cedar at the edge of the opening. I then used a chainsaw to cut the fallen poplars, which had been arching above the ground by resting on big branches that supported them like legs. Once flattened, an opening big enough to hunt was created east of the cedar I put my stand in.
12:56 p.m.: I hear a deep, single grunt from the woods behind me – just where the doe and fawn went earlier. I suspect a buck has responded to my calling and rattling and was circling downwind of the spot I called from (the Owl Stand) to try to scent check the area for the source of the calls. I’m so high up in this tree though, that my scent will pass over any deer coming up from the south (downwind) of me.
I can hear something moving in the heavier cover behind my spot, and I sure hope it is the buck that grunted! Despite the additional calls I make however, this deer does not show itself. In any case, I can’t turn far enough around on this small platform to get a shot in that direction if one presents itself. The main trunk of the tree my stand is attached to is in the way, and there is lots of heavy cover at ground level that way.
Note: Later this day when I left the woods, I walked through the woods straight behind (west) of the Owl Stand to see if I could figure out what happened. I found two fresh deer beds in the newly fallen snow about seventy-five yards away from where I had been posted. Just south of the beds, I discovered a large set of tracks approaching into the wind to scent check the spot.
The doe and fawn tracks left the beds, heading northwest, with the larger tracks following them. So the buck rousted the two bedded deer and would hound them for a while. I really think that buck was coming in to check out my calling efforts when he discovered the other two. That buck left good sized hoof prints. They seem as large as the eight-point buck I shot two years ago near here.
1:42 p.m.: A four-point buck walks into view from the north. Like the spikehorn that earlier followed roughly the same path, this small buck browses his way along, nipping at various types of woody forage. I watched this deer biting at small branch tips from trees and I think he even ate some spruce needles. This is somewhat unusual since spruce certainly is not a preferred food. This makes me recall deer I watched in Georgia one year that definitely ate needles from some species of pine tree. Of course deer up here in the northwoods eat white cedar all winter, so I guess each region has certain foods that appeal to the local herd.
2:30 p.m.: I have had enough exposure for this day. I’m stiff and my face is windburned despite the face mask I’m using. Seven and one-half hours up this tree is enough. I parked my four-wheeled all terrain vehicle about one-half mile west of here and I have to bushwhack through the woods to get there. Despite the fact that I did not kill a deer, I enjoyed this day. Muzzleloader season opens in another week and I’ll be back out again. I’ll have some new reports from that hunt.
Copyright Ray Hansen, 2008
Showing posts with label rattling bucks. Show all posts
Showing posts with label rattling bucks. Show all posts
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
THE LAST DAY - Part two
Author's note: This is part 2 of the series entitled "The Last Day. It details observations I made while spending 7 1/2 hours in an open treestand on the last day of the 2008 rifle season for deer (Sunday, November 30). I used no bait for this hunt. I wanted the movements I watched to be as natural as possible. I did do a lot of calling and rattling antlers to try to attract bucks - and I saw bucks. I was surprised at the amount of rut-based movement this late in the season.
Beginning of part two of “The Last Day” series.
A light snow has been falling for the past hour or so. If I sit very still, a dusting of the powdery stuff starts to cover me. I feel this is a good sign since deer tend to move more during periods of light snowfall. It is almost as though they sense that the new snow may cover up more of the stuff they feed on, and that they should feed more heavily while the opportunity exists.
10:48 a.m.: Three big deer cross from the north and trot toward another stand I have, “Birch Hill”. I almost hunted that spot today, but decided at the last minute to take this place instead. I’m glad I did. Birch hill is a ground blind made from brush and logs piled in a roughly circular formation. It is a great little spot where I can watch a small clearing surrounded by heavy woods, but it does not offer a panoramic vista as the Owl Stand has.
Anyway, these three deer are all does and I wonder where their fawns are. Any doe from 2 ½ years and older normally has from one to three of them tagging along. They have probably stationed them in nearby heavier cover since bucks are still chasing the adult does at this time. If the fawns were present with the adult does, bucks might injure them by driving them off during this phase of the rut.
11:18 a.m.: Three more large deer come running out of heavier timber north of my stand. They too, are traveling east toward Birch Hill. One of them gives out a loud bleat as it crosses the opening I watch. I go on “high alert” at the sight of these does and fully expect a buck to show at any time. Few reasons exist for the does to be running unless a buck is chasing them or a pack of coyotes have taken up their trail.
11:19 a.m.: Sure enough! A buck comes out of the woods where the does emerged. He is dogging them, nose down in the snow and zig-zagging along. Since the three does all ran on slightly different paths, the buck is crossing all three sets of tracks out repeatedly, trying to sort out where they went and how far ahead they might be.
I can see small antlers on this deer and I am confident it is just a six-point buck, meaning that it has three antler points on each side. It is possible that this one may have two additional brow tines near the antler bases, making it an eight-pointer. Even if this is true, I would not take this deer. It has some potential to grow into a considerably larger buck next season. Also, this is the last day of this rifle season. I don’t think this buck will be killed by anyone else who might still be hunting north or south of here. I know at least part of his home territory from the observations I made today, and I’ll be back next year.
11:30 a.m.: Two fawns come out of the woods northeast of my stand, followed by a spikehorn buck. Looking at this small two-pointer, I figure it is the same one I saw earlier in the day. They amble along, heading toward the Powerline #2 stand. They seem to have a specific destination in mind because they are not taking time to browse along the way. Most of the time, deer are almost constantly nipping at various types of plant growth or pulling leaves from trees and picking them up off the ground. This is especially true during the early winter time frame when they need as much body weight as possible to survive the lean times to come.
Note: All of the deer I have reported so far have been within range of this stand, from about fifty to one hundred and fifty yards away. I have seen other movements slightly inside the heavier cover, but have not counted them as deer since I could not be sure they were actually whitetails.
The final installment of this series will run tomorrow. Stop by then!
Copyright Ray Hansen, 2008
Beginning of part two of “The Last Day” series.
A light snow has been falling for the past hour or so. If I sit very still, a dusting of the powdery stuff starts to cover me. I feel this is a good sign since deer tend to move more during periods of light snowfall. It is almost as though they sense that the new snow may cover up more of the stuff they feed on, and that they should feed more heavily while the opportunity exists.
10:48 a.m.: Three big deer cross from the north and trot toward another stand I have, “Birch Hill”. I almost hunted that spot today, but decided at the last minute to take this place instead. I’m glad I did. Birch hill is a ground blind made from brush and logs piled in a roughly circular formation. It is a great little spot where I can watch a small clearing surrounded by heavy woods, but it does not offer a panoramic vista as the Owl Stand has.
Anyway, these three deer are all does and I wonder where their fawns are. Any doe from 2 ½ years and older normally has from one to three of them tagging along. They have probably stationed them in nearby heavier cover since bucks are still chasing the adult does at this time. If the fawns were present with the adult does, bucks might injure them by driving them off during this phase of the rut.
11:18 a.m.: Three more large deer come running out of heavier timber north of my stand. They too, are traveling east toward Birch Hill. One of them gives out a loud bleat as it crosses the opening I watch. I go on “high alert” at the sight of these does and fully expect a buck to show at any time. Few reasons exist for the does to be running unless a buck is chasing them or a pack of coyotes have taken up their trail.
11:19 a.m.: Sure enough! A buck comes out of the woods where the does emerged. He is dogging them, nose down in the snow and zig-zagging along. Since the three does all ran on slightly different paths, the buck is crossing all three sets of tracks out repeatedly, trying to sort out where they went and how far ahead they might be.
I can see small antlers on this deer and I am confident it is just a six-point buck, meaning that it has three antler points on each side. It is possible that this one may have two additional brow tines near the antler bases, making it an eight-pointer. Even if this is true, I would not take this deer. It has some potential to grow into a considerably larger buck next season. Also, this is the last day of this rifle season. I don’t think this buck will be killed by anyone else who might still be hunting north or south of here. I know at least part of his home territory from the observations I made today, and I’ll be back next year.
11:30 a.m.: Two fawns come out of the woods northeast of my stand, followed by a spikehorn buck. Looking at this small two-pointer, I figure it is the same one I saw earlier in the day. They amble along, heading toward the Powerline #2 stand. They seem to have a specific destination in mind because they are not taking time to browse along the way. Most of the time, deer are almost constantly nipping at various types of plant growth or pulling leaves from trees and picking them up off the ground. This is especially true during the early winter time frame when they need as much body weight as possible to survive the lean times to come.
Note: All of the deer I have reported so far have been within range of this stand, from about fifty to one hundred and fifty yards away. I have seen other movements slightly inside the heavier cover, but have not counted them as deer since I could not be sure they were actually whitetails.
The final installment of this series will run tomorrow. Stop by then!
Copyright Ray Hansen, 2008
Monday, December 1, 2008
THE LAST DAY - Part One
THE LAST DAY
By: Ray Hansen
As I fumbled around the house in the darkness before sunrise Sunday morning, I was struck by the thought that this was the last day of the deer hunting season for so many people.
Here in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, that portion of the deer hunting season in which the use of modern rifles is permitted, ends November 30. Hunting deer while using bow and arrow, or primitive firearms (muzzleloaders) continues, but for most hunters, the season ended thirty minutes after sunset Sunday.
I spent most of the daylight hours the last day thirty feet up a big spruce tree, surveying an expanse of second-growth poplar, spruce, cedar, black ash, and elm. I call this spot the “Owl Stand” because I once watched a pair of owls roost nearby. Snow covers the ground, offering better visibility than was possible when this part of the season began on November 15.
While many trees grow in this spot, I can see for one hundred to two hundred yards north, northwest, northeast, and east of the stand. The heavier spruce and cedar cover bordering this opening stands like a solid wall along the edges. Deer come out of the thick cover at random times.
The many long hours sitting high up on a tiny platform in the frigid weather left me stiff, cold, wind-burned and tired, but not bored. I saw lots of deer. The fact that I did not shoot one did not diminish my enjoyment. I was outside in a natural setting and was able to watch animals I hunt go about their daily routine. I learned things as usual. Here is a recap of the day’s events:
8:48 a.m.: I have been hearing brush break near this stand since daybreak, but I have not identified what is causing the sounds. I suspect it is from a buck chasing does, but I do not know that at this point. I have been trying to lure deer out by using a call.
Suddenly, one big deer busts out of the heavier cover north of me, with another large one chasing it. They zig-zag back and forth for half a minute or so, and I can see antlers on the second deer. I need to stop it to get at least a brief look at the headgear. I may decide to take this buck, but I need to confirm that it has at least four points on one side or more to make it a legal target. They are running nearly full-out, cutting corners, changing direction, and leaping over fallen trees.
I blow several loud grunts on my deer call but fail to stop this buck. The pair crashes off into the woods east of my stand and breaks more brush before moving out of sound range. Watching them from a thirty-foot perch has given me something akin to a hawks-eye view of the proceedings. It is like watching a play from a balcony level box seat.
9:20 a.m.: A lone spikehorn buck appears on my “radar”, walking slowly from north to south and browsing on weed tops sticking up through the snow and the woody tips of branches on small trees. He is stopping to scan his surroundings frequently – probably to try to pinpoint the source of the calls I have used.
Note: I am calling frequently today, using doe bleats, buck grunts, a fawn-in-distress sound, tending grunts, and buck “clicking” calls at fifteen minute intervals. I am also using my “Treestand Rattlr’” rattling bag to simulate bucks sparring (www.brushwolfgear.com). As the day wore on, I seem to have attracted some curious bucks as you will see later in this report.
10:20 a.m.: A 2 ½ year-old doe walks by from the direction of another stand I have placed near here called “Powerline #2” stand. The various stands were originally set-up as bowhunting spots, but some do double duty as firearm hunting sites as well. This doe has a fawn walking behind her. They turn northward near the stand I am using today and walk out of sight.
End of part one. Check in tomorrow for part two.
Copyright Ray Hansen, 2008
By: Ray Hansen
As I fumbled around the house in the darkness before sunrise Sunday morning, I was struck by the thought that this was the last day of the deer hunting season for so many people.
Here in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, that portion of the deer hunting season in which the use of modern rifles is permitted, ends November 30. Hunting deer while using bow and arrow, or primitive firearms (muzzleloaders) continues, but for most hunters, the season ended thirty minutes after sunset Sunday.
I spent most of the daylight hours the last day thirty feet up a big spruce tree, surveying an expanse of second-growth poplar, spruce, cedar, black ash, and elm. I call this spot the “Owl Stand” because I once watched a pair of owls roost nearby. Snow covers the ground, offering better visibility than was possible when this part of the season began on November 15.
While many trees grow in this spot, I can see for one hundred to two hundred yards north, northwest, northeast, and east of the stand. The heavier spruce and cedar cover bordering this opening stands like a solid wall along the edges. Deer come out of the thick cover at random times.
The many long hours sitting high up on a tiny platform in the frigid weather left me stiff, cold, wind-burned and tired, but not bored. I saw lots of deer. The fact that I did not shoot one did not diminish my enjoyment. I was outside in a natural setting and was able to watch animals I hunt go about their daily routine. I learned things as usual. Here is a recap of the day’s events:
8:48 a.m.: I have been hearing brush break near this stand since daybreak, but I have not identified what is causing the sounds. I suspect it is from a buck chasing does, but I do not know that at this point. I have been trying to lure deer out by using a call.
Suddenly, one big deer busts out of the heavier cover north of me, with another large one chasing it. They zig-zag back and forth for half a minute or so, and I can see antlers on the second deer. I need to stop it to get at least a brief look at the headgear. I may decide to take this buck, but I need to confirm that it has at least four points on one side or more to make it a legal target. They are running nearly full-out, cutting corners, changing direction, and leaping over fallen trees.
I blow several loud grunts on my deer call but fail to stop this buck. The pair crashes off into the woods east of my stand and breaks more brush before moving out of sound range. Watching them from a thirty-foot perch has given me something akin to a hawks-eye view of the proceedings. It is like watching a play from a balcony level box seat.
9:20 a.m.: A lone spikehorn buck appears on my “radar”, walking slowly from north to south and browsing on weed tops sticking up through the snow and the woody tips of branches on small trees. He is stopping to scan his surroundings frequently – probably to try to pinpoint the source of the calls I have used.
Note: I am calling frequently today, using doe bleats, buck grunts, a fawn-in-distress sound, tending grunts, and buck “clicking” calls at fifteen minute intervals. I am also using my “Treestand Rattlr’” rattling bag to simulate bucks sparring (www.brushwolfgear.com). As the day wore on, I seem to have attracted some curious bucks as you will see later in this report.
10:20 a.m.: A 2 ½ year-old doe walks by from the direction of another stand I have placed near here called “Powerline #2” stand. The various stands were originally set-up as bowhunting spots, but some do double duty as firearm hunting sites as well. This doe has a fawn walking behind her. They turn northward near the stand I am using today and walk out of sight.
End of part one. Check in tomorrow for part two.
Copyright Ray Hansen, 2008
Monday, September 22, 2008
YOU CAN RATTLE IN BUCKS!
By: Ray Hansen
If one question exists that immediately provokes a love/hate response from hunters, it is: “Have you had any luck rattling in deer?” Some will say it has worked for them and they continue to try it occasionally, while others will say it has never done anything for them and that they have given up trying that strategy. Maybe I can help make some sense of this “deer calling” tactic.
Lets begin with a look at what “rattling” is. In the simplest form, it is the use of a pair of deer antlers, rattled together, to imitate the sound of two bucks lightly sparring on one end of the spectrum or in a death struggle at the other extreme. This is done in hopes of attracting nearby bucks to the sound and providing a clean shot as they move around looking for the bucks they think must be close. For safety reasons, rattling is mainly used when bow hunting. In addition to regular antlers, synthetic antlers, and “rattle bags” are used to produce these sounds.
Many believe that rattling is more successful in southern states like Texas, but I – and many others – have used it to attract and kill deer in northern states such as Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Herd dynamics such as the buck to doe ratio likely have more to do with successful rattling than the area of the country in which it is used. Bottom line: it is worth using anywhere deer are found.
I carry a rattle bag because it is more portable than antlers, and I feel it can be just as effective. As a side note, because I take many things with me when bow hunting, I use a small backpack to keep things handy and to keep at least one hand free since I have to carry my bow as well. This year I will be using a new style bag called the “Treestand Rattl’r” made by Brushwolf Gear of St. Cloud, Minnesota (www.brushwolfgear.com).
Larry Boehm, CEO of Brushwolf and an avid deer hunter passed along a few tips about how to stack the odds in your favor. First off, the Treestand Rattl’r is sold with a detachable thirty-foot cord so that it can be lowered to ground level from an elevated position and manipulated with the cord so the sound is contained at the ground. That may prevent a buck from looking upward for the source of the rattling it hears, and discovering you in the tree.
Larry says he has enjoyed the best results rattling from mid-October to Mid-November in northern states, but that it has also attracted curious bucks in September. He places a log or branch at the base of the tree he is hunting from, in a spot where he can bang the bag against it for maximum volume. He also swings the bag out on the cord several feet from the tree then drags it back in to create additional attractive noise.
Here is something I have learned: at times you will try rattling because you are not seeing any deer and you hope to attract one into range. Remember that bucks will often circle downwind of the sounds to scent-check the area before coming in. For this reason, use “blind rattling” from a stand that deer will have difficulty approaching from downwind. One at the base of a bluff, one with an open area downwind, a place with a river downwind or similar obstruction in that direction are examples.
In other cases, you may spot a deer passing well out of effective bow range, and you may try to pull him closer by rattling. I carry binoculars so I can get a good look at how the noise affects that particular buck, and let that information help me to decide whether to continue rattling or to wait a while.
Finally, you may experience a day when deer are just not moving, so you decide to rattle at regular intervals – say every half hour just to see if you can pull one in that would have otherwise not passed by your stand. I once rattled in a nice eight-point buck this way, on the fifth rattling sequence I completed. I elected not to take that one, but he stayed around my stand for twenty minutes trying to find his perceived rivals!
In any case, check out Brushwolf’s website for additional tips and try rattling again or for the first time this year. Maybe you’ll be the one with a few new stories to tell around the campfire this hunting season.
Copyright Ray Hansen, 2008
If one question exists that immediately provokes a love/hate response from hunters, it is: “Have you had any luck rattling in deer?” Some will say it has worked for them and they continue to try it occasionally, while others will say it has never done anything for them and that they have given up trying that strategy. Maybe I can help make some sense of this “deer calling” tactic.
Lets begin with a look at what “rattling” is. In the simplest form, it is the use of a pair of deer antlers, rattled together, to imitate the sound of two bucks lightly sparring on one end of the spectrum or in a death struggle at the other extreme. This is done in hopes of attracting nearby bucks to the sound and providing a clean shot as they move around looking for the bucks they think must be close. For safety reasons, rattling is mainly used when bow hunting. In addition to regular antlers, synthetic antlers, and “rattle bags” are used to produce these sounds.
Many believe that rattling is more successful in southern states like Texas, but I – and many others – have used it to attract and kill deer in northern states such as Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Herd dynamics such as the buck to doe ratio likely have more to do with successful rattling than the area of the country in which it is used. Bottom line: it is worth using anywhere deer are found.
I carry a rattle bag because it is more portable than antlers, and I feel it can be just as effective. As a side note, because I take many things with me when bow hunting, I use a small backpack to keep things handy and to keep at least one hand free since I have to carry my bow as well. This year I will be using a new style bag called the “Treestand Rattl’r” made by Brushwolf Gear of St. Cloud, Minnesota (www.brushwolfgear.com).
Larry Boehm, CEO of Brushwolf and an avid deer hunter passed along a few tips about how to stack the odds in your favor. First off, the Treestand Rattl’r is sold with a detachable thirty-foot cord so that it can be lowered to ground level from an elevated position and manipulated with the cord so the sound is contained at the ground. That may prevent a buck from looking upward for the source of the rattling it hears, and discovering you in the tree.
Larry says he has enjoyed the best results rattling from mid-October to Mid-November in northern states, but that it has also attracted curious bucks in September. He places a log or branch at the base of the tree he is hunting from, in a spot where he can bang the bag against it for maximum volume. He also swings the bag out on the cord several feet from the tree then drags it back in to create additional attractive noise.
Here is something I have learned: at times you will try rattling because you are not seeing any deer and you hope to attract one into range. Remember that bucks will often circle downwind of the sounds to scent-check the area before coming in. For this reason, use “blind rattling” from a stand that deer will have difficulty approaching from downwind. One at the base of a bluff, one with an open area downwind, a place with a river downwind or similar obstruction in that direction are examples.
In other cases, you may spot a deer passing well out of effective bow range, and you may try to pull him closer by rattling. I carry binoculars so I can get a good look at how the noise affects that particular buck, and let that information help me to decide whether to continue rattling or to wait a while.
Finally, you may experience a day when deer are just not moving, so you decide to rattle at regular intervals – say every half hour just to see if you can pull one in that would have otherwise not passed by your stand. I once rattled in a nice eight-point buck this way, on the fifth rattling sequence I completed. I elected not to take that one, but he stayed around my stand for twenty minutes trying to find his perceived rivals!
In any case, check out Brushwolf’s website for additional tips and try rattling again or for the first time this year. Maybe you’ll be the one with a few new stories to tell around the campfire this hunting season.
Copyright Ray Hansen, 2008
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