Observations on deer and life
Initially, I was going to write that archery season has been off to a slow start. However, I may not have a deer to show for it yet, but it’s been a beneficial three weeks, and a whirlwind.
All those mornings and events sitting in the tree stand and the blind — they didn’t go to waste.
One evening while we were watching a small button buck walk along the edge of the food plot, my fiancé Jake pointed out that it’s a good chance to just observe.
He said it’s a chance to see how they act. How they interact with one another, how they show signs of agitation or wariness, how they react to sounds and smells.
It all helps prepare you for that future moment when that monster buck steps out. It enables you to read his body language and make better game-time decisions, Jake said.
The blind in the back food plot is a new investment. It’s a Barronett Big Mike Hunting Blind, coming in at 80-inches tall, so there’s plenty of room to sit, or stand, while drawing back your bow.
Any given evening around 6:15, a number of deer make their way through the plot. There’s been several yearling does and two button bucks. Though they haven’t been in shooting range. There’s also been three different 8-point shooters that hang around — “The Three Amigos” as we call them.
They were wary of the new blind — the new smells and sight. It didn’t seem to deter them, though, as they kept coming back.
I’ve seen deer my entire life, but I never took a second to watch them and see how they walk. Or how they graze through the leafy turnips and sugar beets in the plots. It’s been a chance to learn about their habits and what makes them tick. It also makes me more aware of the difficulty of an ethical shot in archery.
I took a shot at one of the does two weeks ago perhaps a moment too soon. It was a clean miss, nothing was needlessly wounded. What I thought would have been a perfect shot was flubbed by the doe chasing off a button buck with a couple of rapid trots and pounces.
I missed. But I learned more about their patterns and behavior, and it’ll make me all the more aware for next time. I never regret sitting for the morning or evening. It’s never time wasted.
And on a purely selfish note, it’s an excellent time to be at peace in the outdoors and think about wedding plans. The night we got engaged, Oct. 3, it wasn’t long after he put the beautiful ring on that we were out in the blind for the evening.
It’s a time to observe and appreciate just how fortunate I am to have the opportunity to hunt. It’s something I’ve grown to thoroughly enjoy. There’s no one else I’d rather spend my evenings in a blind or track a deer with.