Spooking a deer

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Spooking a deer

Post by PaddyT » 10 Mar 2019, 11:28 am

After some thoughts, went for a hunt in a nearby state forest over Friday/Sat which id previously scouted out whilst i didnt get my first red deer I did learn a lot and managaed to have two very close encounters with the buggers . First one was as i got back to my camp on the friday night in the dark, I had one crash through the bush about 20 meters behind me when I was digging through the car to get matches to light the camp fire- def a deer , very 4 legged in its running and way bigger than a 'roo. Next morning i dropped into the gullies i wanted to hunt and scouted around above them , when i tracked north along the spurs the wind was in my favour but was very slight and not consistant,So about 2 hours in I was moving slowly south back along a spur and im thinking "gee this gully looks good" lots of ferns, green, ran down to a main creek"maybe i should stop and glass here for a while" but the the next thought that entered my head was the breeze (it was coming from behind me in little puffs) and while im thinking and turning my head to look for somewhere to sit - BANG- sure enough a very nice sized red deer hind presents its arse at me while bolting very rapidly up the opposite hill and i get to watch its little fluffy tail dissappearing over the horizon-SO- i swore a bit and then stuck to my original idea and glassed the area for the next hour with nil return. Stalked the top of the gully after that and then went back to camp as we had different plans for the arvo. So my questions are- what do you do after spooking a deer- sit tight? maybe climb over the next spur and see if you can find where its gone? Obviously its best not to spook them in the first place but I can certainly do with some advice- oh BTW had a bloody good time anyway and found stacks of sign in about 4 different locations mid afternoon on the Saturday
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Re: Spooking a deer

Post by Bigjobss » 10 Mar 2019, 12:45 pm

You will always find a deer to spook if you're out hunting, count it as a lost opportunity and move on but take a moment to assess the situation, where were you, where was the deer, line of site, bedding?, wind? Etc to hopefully learn something.

Sometimes a young deer might run off a bit before stopping to look back, in which case you should have the rifle up incase you get a chance at shot.
But if the deer bolts out of site into the next gully etc. I very much dont expect to see that deer again!
Good luck.
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Re: Spooking a deer

Post by marksman » 10 Mar 2019, 9:02 pm

as said a lost opportunity but a good chance to find out a bit more about why the deer was there
you have to trust your gut and look a lot walk a little, deer either stand very still or take off
you can hear the difference in a roo bounding off and a deer crashing through the bush
the rut is coming keep getting out scouting to where you can camp and snipe them :drinks:
good luck with them :thumbsup:
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Re: Spooking a deer

Post by duncan61 » 11 Mar 2019, 1:19 am

I had a go at hunting today and learned many things.I get why you all go on about carry weight when walking.All I saw was things hopping away at great distance.2 of my rifles are Stainless steel so not good for walking Fortunately my HOWA .243 is a blued steel 22 inch knitting needle barrel and all synthetic so that is my walking rifle it groups great for what it is.I am after a small doe western grey for personal use but I think I may have to go back to spotlighting.Kudos to you real hunters
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Re: Spooking a deer

Post by PaddyT » 11 Mar 2019, 12:53 pm

marksman wrote:as said a lost opportunity but a good chance to find out a bit more about why the deer was there
you have to trust your gut and look a lot walk a little, deer either stand very still or take off
you can hear the difference in a roo bounding off and a deer crashing through the bush
the rut is coming keep getting out scouting to where you can camp and snipe them :drinks:
good luck with them :thumbsup:

Yeah good advice , i certainly feel like we are making some progression , weve gone from looking in areas with no sign, to a couple spots with a bit of sign to an area with lots of sign and a couple sighted /heard. Replaying everything in my brain !
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Re: Spooking a deer

Post by TassieTiger » 11 Mar 2019, 3:47 pm

Take note of the wind direction and don’t bother stalking downwind - deer can smell very well and you already know they hear like an elephant can.

A bedded down deer is almost impossible to see and they will hear/see/smell you before you do them...usually.

You are seeing good signs in the area, I’d now be either - continue stalking, very early mornings scanning for movement, slow steps and patients or depending how I was feeling, maybe going out pre dawn - and find a place to sit and wait...

Appropriate hours in the field, in the correct locations, will pay dividends.
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Re: Spooking a deer

Post by PaddyT » 12 Mar 2019, 10:00 am

true about the bedded bit , i reckon i looked right at her from about 50 meters away before she did the runner!
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Re: Spooking a deer

Post by TassieTiger » 12 Mar 2019, 10:19 am

How sweet is it going to taste - when it all comes together - bloody earned that’s how...!!!
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Re: Spooking a deer

Post by SCJ429 » 12 Mar 2019, 6:17 pm

duncan61 wrote:I had a go at hunting today and learned many things.I get why you all go on about carry weight when walking.All I saw was things hopping away at great distance.2 of my rifles are Stainless steel so not good for walking Fortunately my HOWA .243 is a blued steel


Why is stainless steel no good for you when you are walking Duncan?
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Re: Spooking a deer

Post by duncan61 » 12 Mar 2019, 11:23 pm

shine.Next time I have a go I will get camo on and move slower
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Re: Spooking a deer

Post by duncan61 » 12 Mar 2019, 11:34 pm

I had a safe at an industrial workshop and my 3 rifles were in bags and they got damp.The stainless Ruger polished up easy no problem.The Sendero stainless just had the odd small spot and the scope mount clamps had corrosion but polished up with a Dremel.The steel HOWA was a big orange mess.So bad I considered cutting it up and throwing it away.Later I had a go at it and the action was O.K. but the barrel was pitted on the outside so one day much later I took it to work and belt sanded it back to metal and used the good steel primer we had at the workshop.A week later I hand painted it with model paint as that is what I had.I was concerned that it might melt off but it didn't so now I will paint the whole barrel and action in camo pattern and that will be my walking rifle.There is pig sign down by the channel so I may come across pigs one day and I will need the .243
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Re: Spooking a deer

Post by Oldbloke » 13 Mar 2019, 5:01 am

duncan61 wrote:shine.Next time I have a go I will get camo on and move slower


There are no shiny straight sticks in the bush. Even blued barrels reflect pretty good.

Get some cammo tape for the barrel or some Cammo/dull cloth. Get the Mrs to sew the cloth into a tube then slide it over the barrel. A rubber band will hold it in place.


No expert here but IMO ambushing them is the best option. The buggers hear and see you long before you see them. Our senses are sh1t compared to there's.

Pick an area and knowing it well helps too.
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Re: Spooking a deer

Post by duncan61 » 13 Mar 2019, 6:15 pm

paint.jpg
paint.jpg (260.58 KiB) Viewed 4903 times
I am going to paint it camo with model paint
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Re: Spooking a deer

Post by Oldbloke » 13 Mar 2019, 7:04 pm

Did you under coat the stock?
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Re: Spooking a deer

Post by TassieTiger » 13 Mar 2019, 8:53 pm

It’s got me buggered how these bow hunters do it...maybe if I were 15 years younger and with chemically induced patience lol - but to locate and then stalk to within 30-40m ? Hats off to them big time! My experience is predominantly based around seeing them happily bounding away, well outside of what I consider to be ethical range...they always look back at me though...give a little wink, a little “Fark u” and keep going...or maybe that’s the chemical induced patients that makes that happen...
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Re: Spooking a deer

Post by duncan61 » 13 Mar 2019, 10:11 pm

I am going to do the barrel and action
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Re: Spooking a deer

Post by Oldbloke » 14 Mar 2019, 4:49 am

TassieTiger wrote:It’s got me buggered how these bow hunters do it...maybe if I were 15 years younger and with chemically induced patience lol - but to locate and then stalk to within 30-40m ? Hats off to them big time! My experience is predominantly based around seeing them happily bounding away, well outside of what I consider to be ethical range...they always look back at me though...give a little wink, a little “Fark u” and keep going...or maybe that’s the chemical induced patients that makes that happen...



Sounds familiar. Lol

Walk slooow see more
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Re: Spooking a deer

Post by bigfellascott » 14 Mar 2019, 8:04 am

A squeeze type bottle with talcum powder or corn starch etc to use for checking the wind direction is handy as is a bit of ol cassette tape or any other light type material that you can tie/tape onto the pointy end of ya barrel for quick wind change detection.

Lots of glassing and less walking is often a better way to go too, just depends on the terrain etc.
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Re: Spooking a deer

Post by Oldbloke » 14 Mar 2019, 8:11 am

bigfellascott wrote:A squeeze type bottle with talcum powder or corn starch etc to use for checking the wind direction is handy as is a bit of ol cassette tape or any other light type material that you can tie/tape onto the pointy end of ya barrel for quick wind change detection.

Lots of glassing and less walking is often a better way to go too, just depends on the terrain etc.


Great idea BFS. A 6" lengh of red cotton works well too
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Re: Spooking a deer

Post by bigfellascott » 14 Mar 2019, 12:05 pm

Oldbloke wrote:
bigfellascott wrote:A squeeze type bottle with talcum powder or corn starch etc to use for checking the wind direction is handy as is a bit of ol cassette tape or any other light type material that you can tie/tape onto the pointy end of ya barrel for quick wind change detection.

Lots of glassing and less walking is often a better way to go too, just depends on the terrain etc.


Great idea BFS. A 6" lengh of red cotton works well too


Yeah anything that catches the slightest breeze will do the job hey. :thumbsup:
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Re: Spooking a deer

Post by TassieTiger » 14 Mar 2019, 1:16 pm

But just remember - the breeze at your feet is different to the breeze where the deer might be...

Steve Rinella has a great episode where he stalks a deer to within 50m.
He stayed upwind, was quiet, camouflaged, etc.
He was 10 yards away from drawing his bow and he said he just felt a tickle of breeze on the back of his neck...deer looked up - and gone...
Why it’s called hunting I guess.
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