Steve Bartylla will bring you along as he hunts Missouri, Wisconsin and on a late season doe hunt at the end of the year.

BUCKS & BEARDS DEERHUNT 2000
 Day #1: Matt Parker Gets The First Buck | Day #2: Re-Scouting  | Day #3: Looking For Bucks | Day #4: I Get A Buck  | Day #5: Brent's Turn At The Plate | Day #6: Rain, Wind & A Massive Buck  | Day #7: More Hunting | Day #8: Final Day |
  
Day 4 - I Get A Buck

Brent and I decided to split up today and make sure we were completely set for the last 4 days of our hunt at Bucks & Beards. Brent hunted the stand he had hung by the windmill the day before. Mid morning he heard a squirrel barking and carefully turned to investigate. Behind him, a doe and 3 fawns were making their way to their bedding area. He would have never seen them if it were not for the squirrel’s warning. Other animals often alert us to approaching deer. That alone can make the difference between not seeing a deer, being caught flat footed and not prepared or a successful shot opportunity.

Later in the afternoon Brent spotted 4 turkeys on the top of the ridge. In Missouri you receive 2 turkey permits with your archery license. As the toms slowly milled their way down to him, Brent readied the video camera and got in position for the shot. They were feeding on acorns a mere 30 yards away, but the kill zone on a turkey is very small and Brent waited for them to come in closer. It never happened. 

I spent the morning hunting over 4 fresh scrapes that were located in the back corner of a remote meadow. After 4 hours of enjoying a beautiful, yet deerless morning I spent midday scouting. It paid off by finding 2 more spots to hang stands. One was a great pinch point formed between the river and a meadow. It was thick, filled with sign and could be almost completely covered by a stand in the middle. The only bad part is that I had to do some major clearing to have any shooting lanes. That can often kill a stand when chasing the big boys, however we would be hunting Bucks & Breads again next year and I know this will be a killer stand then for sure.

The other stand was a crossing over a dry creek. On the west side of the dry creek, two steep ridges tapered down to the crossing, forming a topographical funnel. With grassy meadows on both sides of the ridges and the other side of the dry wash, this was a beautiful crossing point for roaming bucks. A concentration of fresh scrapes in the area helped to validate this.

With the stands hung I headed back to camp to shower. Each time before I crawl into a stand I shower with Scent Killer soaps, drench my, already washed and stored in sealed garbage bags, under layers with Scent Killer spray, brush my teeth with either baking soda or simply water and eat an apply. Finally, I dress in treated cloths to wear while driving to the location I intend to hunt, get out of the truck, dress in my Scent-Lok suit, put on my boots, spray my equipment with Scent Killer and head to the woods. This abbreviated description of my routine may seem like a lot, but it has saved more tail from being busted way more times than I could possible tell you. I have to work very hard to put myself into position to see mature bucks. I do my very best to see I don’t blow it when it happens.

Arriving at the river bottom stand that I had hung in the funnel along the edge of the bedding area on day 2, I laid a scent trail of Special Golden Estrus from the bedding area to the mock scrape I had put in earlier and hung a couple of scent wicks. I was already very confident with this stand. It was one of those spots that you just look at and know it is right. When I saw the size of the fresh tracks in the mock scrape my confidence soared. I had waited to hunt this stand again until everything was right. Because there could be deer bedding very close to my stand I wanted to be able to sneak in very quietly. A midday rain shower had made that possible. With the wind blowing away from the bedding and the skies still very overcast and a cold front moving in, I couldn’t ask for anything more.

After setting up the video camera and settling in, I spent the next 3 hours watching squirrels. I still had an hour left when the wind switched to blowing into the bedding area and a steady drizzle began to fall. Switching winds is one of the primary reasons I go through my scent reduction ritual so religiously. Light rains like this are great for hunting, but not for filming. Electronic equipment and water just plain do not get along. I had no more than put away the camera when I saw him.

Emerging from the bedding area, nose to the ground as he followed my scent trail, was a definite shooter. Bucks this caliber are extremely touchy. At the moment I saw him I had 2 concerns: would my scent reduction techniques do their job and would I be able to draw on him if they did. In order to cover the entire funnel I had to place my stand in a very mature portion of the woods and hope the mock scrape would draw the deer’s attentions away from me while drawing on him. I stacked the odds on this one by drawing my bow a good 20 yards before he would be broadside, assuming he continued down his current path. Typically I would not do this, but he was following my scent drag trail at a good pace and the Mathews Q2 I shoot has a 70% let off, between the two I felt pretty safe I could hold long enough.

At twenty yards away he stopped. My heart sank as he lifted his head. 

From my testing the wind just minutes ago, I knew that if he was going to smell me that would be the spot he would do it at. I was certain that he was picking up his head to get a better whiff of the foreign odor he must have picked up. You can’t imagine my relief as he turned his head back toward the bedding area. Something had caught his interest and stopped him, but he had no clue I was there and I was still in the game.

Now the problem was that, although he was only 20 yards away, he was still on the approach trail quartering towards me and a dense mat of limbs separated us. I did not want to let down my draw and have to draw again. That much movement would surely result in the kiss of death for me, but I never take a quartering to me shot. I will not pretend to know how long I held on him. Time just seems to drag at moments like this. As time seemed to drag on forever, I caught the break I needed.

Horseshoeing the front half of his body around to get a better look at what had captured his attention in the bedding area, he offered a good angle to his vitals. Now the question was could I get an arrow through that jungle of sticks. Still at full draw I saw that I had a softball sized opening half way between him and I. Luckily, it was lined up perfectly with his vitals. It is odd how the mind works at times like this. 

My thoughts were exactly as follows. "OK, I have the opening, but will my trajectory guide my arrow through it or will I hit one of the branches along the top? I am shooting a Q2, drawing 70 lbs and flinging arrows at 270 fps. My carbon vision arrows have always flew true and I have never shot a head that flies better than the Rocky Mountain Titanium 100's that I use. I should be able to sneak through there if I aim for the bottom of the opening. The worse thing that can happen is that I hit a branch and my arrow flings off without hitting him. With over 10 yards between him and the opening, the arrow won’t touch him if I do so I don’t have to worry about wounding him."

I swear to God, that was not a commercial for those companies. Those were the exact thoughts that ran through my mind the moment before I squeezed the release. I always know the second I release if it is a good shot or not. This time was no exception. As the buck jumped, kicked and started running away, I knew he was mine. Because of everything that was going on, I did not have a chance to get nervous. My mind had been thinking too fast for that…until I saw him drop after less than a 40 yard run. One more weak kick and it was over. 

I sat in my stand, slowly putting all my things away and calming myself before the 25’ climb down my stand. If you will remember, I had hung a Rivers Edge Bigfoot XL to be sure I could shoot easily behind me. In a moment of spontaneous happiness, I kissed the seat of my stand as I climbed out. Being able to contort myself into position without the stand making so much as a quiet tweak was key to being able to make that shot.

I walked over to where my arrow was still stuck in the ground. It had been a perfect pass through. Circling around to where the buck laid, I was pleased. He was a fine buck. Inspecting him, I saw it had been a beautiful double lung shot.

Gathering my stuff, I left to wait for Brent to get back. When he did, Brent, Donnie and myself went back to hang him from a tree in the woods. I had to do video work and get photos of him the next day, although I wanted to hang him to be certain he would remain untouched, I needed him to be in the same place to replay the events accurately. The only bummer was that the rain hadn’t allowed me to capture it live on tape. 

Tomorrow: pics of my buck & more hunting...
 
  For those looking for every advantage in understanding whitetail deer, Steve Bartylla's column Becoming A Student Of Whitetail Deer is a must read.