Persistence was a lesson learned the hard way, but fortunately early on. My second year bow hunting and I was getting bored on my stand when I decided to call it a night and go home a little bit early (mistake number one). I hooked my pack on my bow (mistake number two) and lowered it to the ground. As I turned around in my climbing stand to go down, I saw a big 8 pointer walking about 15 feet behind my stand. He never saw me and commenced to walk around and feed no farther than 25 yards from my stand for almost 10 minutes. I have no Idea how he didn't see me lower my bow or move around in my stand. All I could do was watch, keep counting points, and hope to God I would see him another day when my bow wasn't on the ground. The real kicker is that he got hit by a car later that year. The deer was destroyed and the rack broken into pieces. I vowed to never leave a stand early again.

Many moons ago,while deer hunting as a lad,my naivet'e allowed for an ingenuous time of short duration,in discovering some of the secret ways, of the ever so elusive big whitetails.

In the most candid stalk,of my very early career of deer huntin',while traipsing through the woods,I discovered just how curious "some" big deer can be.

I never used a tree stand when I first started pursuing whitetails.I would "shimmy up" just about any tree that looked as if it might have acorns holding on until they dropped.

During one such adventure,I walked up a small knuckle that was at the end of a long ridge. I soon realized that this must be the place, because I could smell deer urine everywhere.

I had to reduce the pressure on my bladder,so I relieved myself of unwanted fluid in the same area of the deer urine. After realizing just how much noise a zipper can make,I found my way up the knuckle to where it dropped off the back of the ridge.

I located the perfect tree that I could perch myself in, as if I was a hawk lookin' for its prey. After thirty or so minutes,I noticed a large white rack moving on the other side of the ridge,towards the spot I had just emptied the remains of an early morning Coca-Cola that I had downed before my arrival.

The big buck approached the area with caution,and its nose held high in the air to catch the drifting molecules
of the dispensed bladder liquid. The deer became excited,as if it had discovered something no other deer had experienced before.

The deer became giddy with delight,as it began to walk closer to the scent I had deposited.The buck kept sniffing the air,while walking briskly to the exact spot. Only problem was ... I had urinated some eighty yards down hill from the branch I was sitting on. A long shot for a lad of my stature.

The big buck continued to sniff the area,and its body language indicated to me that he was as excited as I was! I never could pull the shot off,even though the big buck stayed in that paricular area for over thirty minutes,and came back a second time to see if it had been refreshed.

So ...when I'm pursuing the ever elusive whitetail,I make my own "scrapes with a purpose" when nature calls. \ When I walk to my deer stand, and the urge is over wheming,I let it fly,after I scrape the ground with my boots.

Scott,I agree with your assertion about the wind change on the "valley floor." The big bucks, in my neck of the woods,if they get bumped from above, will almost without exception run down hill across a creek,or " valley floor" and go back up to "experience" the new and different thermals on the opposite hill side!

Great Scott,buck!

Great deer! I have learned a lot about deer. But one thing for sure I have learned is that they are individuals some tolerate things others will not Some do things others will not. About the only thing that they all have in common is their taste.

I must be one of the few that actually calls every deer a 'shooter'. I sometimes wonder about the entire scent thing. In PA I really try to judge wind direction and how I smell that day. But in Ohio I hunt a rather urban setting with lots of houses and people, so I figure the swirl of scent is everywhere and then focus on scents that aren't there. So I get my scents and food plots smellin real nice. I think this works best for me.

Ross
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