A hypothetical whitetail

[John Y Cannuck]

You are walking down an old logging road with your favorite deer hunting firearm, it's deer season, and you have your license. Shooting here is completely safe in any direction. You rifle is at the ready, and loaded. You are walking slowly, and trying to be quiet. As you crest a small rise, a whitetail buck raises his head of horns, looks at you and in one bound vanishes into the brush, before you can fire.
Where do you go from here?

 

[John Y Cannuck]

It's a scenario I've faced several dozen times. I've beaten the odds a few times, lets here how you would do it.

 

[todbartell]

pull out my meth pipe, its go time

 

[John Y Cannuck]

Figures

 

[gonecountry]

I dont know I wish I did. Because that has happened to me a few times too. So far I havent beaten the odds.

 

[blargon]

Well, seeing your in Ontario, we're expected to lay down a hail of fire into the brush....


Seriously, I'd stop and not move for a while, sometimes they'll come back out the same trail if he really wants to go across. If not, try to figure out where, if possible, you can circle him.

If you know the area well, you can figure out where they're hiding out. But sometimes it takes years of hunting the same area to pattern the deer.

 

[Johnn Peterson]

Run after it. Give it a quick chase. Lots of times a Deer won't go all that far if they've just been startled, unless the hunting preasure has been pretty heavy in the area. A quick chase, what have you got to loose? Its already taken off for greener pastures anyway.

 

[blargon]

Run after it. Give it a quick chase. Lots of times a Deer won't go all that far if they've just been startled, unless the hunting preasure has been pretty heavy in the area. A quick chase, what have you got to loose? Its already taken off for greener pastures anyway.

Ever tried a quick chase in Boreal?

 

[MiG25]

first of all, how big is he? if he is a spike or basket buck i am going to keep looking for another deer.

i have been in similar situations, in one of them, i knew there was a power line on the other side of the bush, so ran to it, knelt down, waited, and missed the buck when he came out.

 

[cosmic]

Well - I'll give it a try... My strategy would be to sit still for 10 minutes or so. Deer can be curious animals at times, the animal may return to check you out.
If I dont see him or hear him after 10 minutes, I'd try an approach from down wind.
This worked for me once, I had the good fortune to harvest a nice animal. He turned out to have gone about 50 yards, was hiding in a clump of evergreens, looking in the other direction.

 

[huntinstuff]

I'd take a good look from where I was standing. If I couldn't see him, I'd move on slowly, looking all the time. Then I'd forget about him and move on.

 

[gunrunner100]

Call in a fire mission...fire for effect.

 

[7mm-08]

I would stand still and look into the bushes where he ran.If I had my grunt tube (you know the one I always forget on my truck seat,and remember I don't have it till I am a mile away from the truck) and give him a little grunt or two.If he shows he shows if not I'll move on.

 

[Timo]

You are walking down an old logging road with your favorite deer hunting firearm, it's deer season, and you have your license. Shooting here is completely safe in any direction. You rifle is at the ready, and loaded. You are walking slowly, and trying to be quiet. As you crest a small rise, a whitetail buck raises his head of horns, looks at you and in one bound vanishes into the brush, before you can fire.
Where do you go from here?

Turn immediately around and make my way back to the nearest tavern.
Tell every one in said tavern that I saw the worlds most massive whitetail
2 miles in the direction of travel from where I saw said whitetail.
I would then proceed back to where I saw the whitetail and wait as the parade of drunken enamored
bush pushers proceeded to push said whitetail back to me

Seriously... to many variables in your senario. Is there snow to track ?
Did the deer just move away or frighten off.

If I had a truck/quad/ horse I might go to where I knew the deer make its escape and beat it to that point and wait for it to appear.(Assuming I know my land)

No pat answers ... thats what makes whitetail hunting so great.

Cheers and thanks for the post

Timo

 

[7.62mm]

That Buck will likely try to wind you. Move quickly100yds or so downwind and wait for 10 20 min.. He may just sneak up to your position.

7.62mm

 

[weebull]

pull out my meth pipe, its go time

God does meth and has no answers

 

[Dustin]

I'd tell myself to wake up, then I'd crawl out of bed and actually go hunting.

 

[John Y Cannuck]

Here's what has worked for me.
Sometimes, I charge into the bush after the deer. Sometimes, twice actually, Ive come upon a very startled looking buck just standing there looking to see what was coming.
One time, after doing this, I found no deer, so i just froze in one spot, where I could see, but not far. Apparently, I had run past the deer, and he was between me and the road. Not wanting to go back to the road, he tried to sneak by me.
Then again, I've also had luck by sneaking forward as quietly as possible, and staring into the brush where the deer went. Sometimes he's only a bound or two off the road.

Incidentally, before I get the road hunter image going, these "logging roads" are now just grassed paths, they are at best ten feet wide, and most places a lot narrower.

 

[John Y Cannuck]

Ever tried a quick chase in Boreal?

Yes I have, you are SOL.
For those who don't know, boreal forest (Ontario version), particularly when it's young trees, are growing so thick together, it's like a picket fence woven with netting. If you throw your body against it, it will throw you back. Yet the deer seem to walk through like it's not even there.
Thankfully, where I hunt, the black spruce are only in a few areas.

 

[John Y Cannuck]

By the way, my apologies to the mods, this thread belongs in "Hunting"