I went out this morning for my third time hunting this year. It was overcast but not raining, so it looked like it would be a great morning.
Got down to the farm little late, about five minutes before legal hunting time so it was plenty light out, I checked the fields and the yard and saw nothing. So I slowly sneak down to the corner blind that Steve had cut out the blackberries and set up.
Set up for me is probably a little different than most as I have to decide where I think the deer are going to be coming from ahead of time and set up with a rest for my gun to be able to take the shot when they get into range, if i move the gun off the mono pod rest that i use i can't steady it again untill it's back on the rest again and that's way to much movement and noise when deer are close.
So I set up to hopefully get a shot at deer going through the gate opening in front of me approximately 7 or 8 yards away, this way, if one came from the left or the right. I would have an excellent chance at it. After sitting for about 30 minutes. I caught a movement to my left and coming from behind me down the hill, when it got to where I could see it clearly without moving anything but my eyes I saw it was a buck with a high wide rack. But at that point. It was directly beside me and maybe 4 yards away with the wind going right at it.busted
The buck turned and trotted away, after he had gone about 20 yards he slowed to a walk and just started sniffing and walking away. He appear to be following the scent trail I had laid earlier walking in. For about the next 30 to 40 minutes I saw nothing and then I see this same buck slowly coming back. I couldn't believe it, I guess he liked the scent trail I laid out more than he disliked the sniff of me that he got earlier. It only took him about 5 or 6 minutes to make it back to where I was from where I saw him the second time, he walked through the gate and it was game over for him. Was I ever surprised to see him come back again.
Here's a picture of him a mature 3 x 3