Well guys,

My unwitting membership of the Deer (and now General Game) Preservation society is soo fully fledged that I'm going to run for president!!!

Up until Nov 1st (Having missed Aug/Sep Due to working abroad) I was absolutely over run with deer. I thought I would need to take a stick with me so I could beat a path to the high seat so to speak... The problem was that they were all Does!!! Never mind says I. It bodes well for the Rut so I got my self ready for November. Along came the rut and the Bucks were shouting the odds all around. Unfortunately the big woosies were staying well hidden in the woods.

I've managed one buck fawn which I don't count really because I only took it so I could do the shoot dinners.

To date I have had deer that insist on staying on the Horizon.

Deer that come and sit in front of the seat I just got out of to go for a Walk,

Deer that laid up behind the seat I'd been sat in for 2 hours, then legged it as I get down to go home...( 2 weeeks ago and 2 bucks)

A keeper that rings me to tell me that "While I was feeding the cover crop this evening there were a bunch of deer in front of the iron pond... That was the seat you sat in last night wasn't it?"

You get the gist.....

Running up to Xmas I was starting to worry that I was the victim of some Voodoo curse. Now I'm past caring.

So out of curiosity what is the longest you have all been without getting a viable shot on deer? Falow or otherwise?

Rgds,

FB,

No worry, mate, this is Diana smiling on you.

I've had bad luck streaks, too. They seem to come & go, sometimes they last for a whole season and other times Deer appear to be standing in line waiting to get whacked.

Seriously, it got so bad one time I started using, Cabela'a Washing Powder for all my hunting clothes, to reduce Ultra-Violet light glow and odor elimination. Modern detergents all add "brighteners" to their color detergents, which is just the exact opposite of what a hunter requires. I think it helped and I continue using it.

Perhaps a consideration on After-Shave, Deodorant & mouth-wash?

i feel your pain! it"s not easy!
a target shooter asked me what deer stalking was like last weeek at the range. i told him "see those trees over there? well sit here and look at them till it gets dark, and then go home. that"s what deer stalking is like"
i don"t think he really understood.
i"ve gone out day after day and started to think that deer had become extinct, then one runs right out in front of me when driving home.
a friend of mine has just got the first pictures out of his trail camera, and i"m going to buy one as well. we"re hoping that using cameras will give us a better picture of deer activity, and allow us to plan our stalking better.
just think of all those hours as character building, and appreciate the achievement when you do shoot a deer, even just a kid, fawn or cull doe. only a dedicated stalker can really appreciate what it means to grass a deer.
good shooting

quote:

"see those trees over there? well sit here and look at them till it gets dark, and then go home. that"s what deer stalking is like"

LOL!!!

FB,

Probably the deer haven't returned off their migration yet!

Regards,

Pete

brass thief,

Any thoughts on which trail camera your going to get? In the States it seems that the basic 1.3Meg digital ones now are fairly cheap; Stealth cam is one brand I've heard mentioned but I have no idea about the quality..

I would be concerned about the damn things getting stolen especially with a flash to give away their position...

Regards,

Pete

i"m looking at a "wildview 2 mp" for $99.99,
(that"s what my mates got)from Cabelas.
he"s kept the flash turned off so far, for security reasons, and it"s really daylight activity we"re looking for. i"d be afraid of the flash disturbing the deer anyway.
we"ve got one picture of a deer so far, and the time and date shows up on the screen as well, so it"s useful info.
i think i"ll buy one, as using it over time would be an education on deer behaviour, and it would pay for itself by putting in the hours instead of me!
good shooting

Sat out for three hours last Saturday evening waiting for Sika, felt like it was three days, it was so cold I was never so glad it got dark.

About five years ago, I went to Donegal every Saturday morning at 4.30am for six weeks, eventually shot a yearling hind at about 4.00pm on a November afternoon. Refused to go back to the place for the rest of that season.

i heard a sika whistling(first time i"d ever heard one) last autumn. i sat on the hill opposite with the .308 every chance i could get(dawn and dusk) for weeks. i still have"nt even seen a sika on my ground!
when all"s said and done, we"re looking for a nocturnal animal during the day, and that goes for all deer!
good shooting

Fallow Buck........ phewwwww and I was thinking it was only me that was suffering from the deer repellent syndrome. Same story, seen 'em; smelt 'em, but not getting to reach out and 'touch' 'em. Mrs Roe has been safe from me so far this season, but I shall be out in the next week or two to try again.

Like you, I spend at least half the year out of the country for work, which means that stalking is taken when I can; rather than when I would prefer, I guess that doesnt help the success rate either.

I remain ever the Optimist and hope your current run of luck turns into good fortune very shortly.

KR
T260

quote:

Originally posted by Pete E:
FB,

Probably the deer haven't returned off their migration yet!

Regards,

Pete

Ahhhhhh..... that must be it then??? That young lady definately left her mark!!!

I might need to pop into that pub and see if I can consult with her again!!

FB

FB - May I suggest the weekend of the 12th? Im quite entranced by this tale - or should that be 'tail'?? Presume you don't lend out Spaniels?

rgds Ian

I have just returned from a two day epic trip to the ground I share with others.

To set the scene it is both sides of a valley setting in a location known locally for very cold spells in the north of England.

I was after Sika or Roe Does, but preferably Sika and knew from exchanged information that the Sika were currently in one area of the forest. This area has two very well placed high seats, which have in the past produced high returns.

I arrived at the forest at 06:30 on the first - bitterly cold and well before light. I had expected a long wait so I wrapped up warm with two t-shirts, two thin jumpers a fleece and over the top my usual Kammo jacket. Michelin man had nothing on me!
I arrived at the chosen HS and waited, dawn came and went, nothing, except the sound of distant whilstling and some twittering of nearby birdlife. I remained there for a further three hours getting colder and colder, Diana was not smiling on me at all.

AT 11 am, I decided to break for lunch and try stalking some of the forest in that immediate area, I found lots of spoor and tracks - very fresh but no beasties popped out. After a further three hours of stalking, I saw absolutely nothing.

I then whent to another very productive HS untill dusk and saw,,,,,yes youve guessed it, nothing.

Day 2 was somewhat milder, but now raining that wonderful misty drizzle that makes you drenched within minutes.
Muach the same as day 1, lots of fresh tracks but no deer of any kind.

Was I dissapointed, yes, did I enjoy my trip, you bet,, has it dulled the hunting spirit, no way and it is nice to hear some of my fellow hunters have the same luck as me sometimes..

Ian,

I was thinking the same thing myself!!! A little swing by the pub to research the current migratory trends in the local fallow population would be handy. Luckily Pete E will be with us as I don't actually remember what she looked like...

I'm looking forward to that weekend, and the shooting will be fun too!!!

Andy,

My spirit is in no way diminished... In fact I just bottled a whole new batch of Sloe brandy this week so no fear there

I'm gonna test it in Sloegasms on Saturday. Neat itis very good indeed, althought the testing has already used up half of it!!

Saturday is my day for the deer. My dad is in town and we are going stalking early doors before our last syndicate shoot. I ALWAYS see deer when he is over so watch this space.



Rgds,

same old story!
went out this morning, in position for 7.40 am, just getting light. moved after an hour when the traffic got heavier on a nearby road. glassed everywhere(it was a good sunny day), but nothing moved. stayed out longer than i intended(3pm), and saw nothing. i heard a buck, and saw lots of tracks, and even a few scrapes. where do the buggers go? i think they"ve started to dig burrows to lie up during the day!
good shooting

quote:

Originally posted by Pete E:
brass thief,

Any thoughts on which trail camera your going to get? In the States it seems that the basic 1.3Meg digital ones now are fairly cheap; Stealth cam is one brand I've heard mentioned but I have no idea about the quality..

I would be concerned about the damn things getting stolen especially with a flash to give away their position...

Regards,

Pete

Pete/All

I have a digital Stealth Cam. It works very well. I shre your concern re security, but they also do an IR version that works without a flash.

Mine is currently guarding my hens against Charlie.

FB - You have heard on the TV (Mueller Yoghurt adverts) of the 'pleasure/pain' theory?

That for everyone who enjoys a great day - somewhere, another person takes out 30'06 ammo for his .243, looses his dog, gets a flat tyre and see's nothing after gaining frostbite in a high seat??

I just want to thank you for your efforts on my behalf!

Friday, I went out on for a morning on the Sika.
The Discovery started first turn of the key!
I knocked down a nice dog fox on the way out of the village!
Took a couple fat Sika that didn't try and die 30 yds back under a Rhodedendron tree!
The attendant in the supermarket gave me an extra slice of bacon on my breakfast!
Got back home in plenty of time for a security visit for my FAC renewal - the FEO was FEMALE, blonde, attractive, friendly and knowledgeable about firearms!

Hope you had a nice day on Saturday!!!

Rgds Ian

Ian

"FEO was female, blonde attractive and friendly"..........



Now you are in a fantasy land

Andy.

I kid you not - based in the Cullompton field office - suddenly FEO visits are something to be looked forward to!!

Rgds Ian

Ian,

My selfless acts didn't stop there I'll have you know!!!

I cancelled my staking on saturday morning as I had to go out and buy rolls and bacon for the shoot breakfast... I know, "qwhy didn't I get them on Friday?" Well the guys moan if the rolls are out of a packet and not fresh from the bakers!!!

I trudgerd through all the deepest cover for the day flushing pheasants for other people to shoot and ended up shooting one duck all day.

I went stalking on sunday morning with a mate who shot a buck within 5mins of getting in the seat. He then got out of the seat and walked back to the yard to get the quad, bumping 8 more deer on the way that I was stalking towards.... 3 nice bucks by the way.

I then put the gun in tha car and drove over to the other side of the farm on the quad to put a new seat up for your guys. I drove into the field and there at the bottom of the bank was a pricket. he trotted off about 120yds. I whistled he stopped broadside. I put my imaginary rifle up and counted to 5..... Bang!

If your mate shoots him next saturday, then I'm claiming half the shot!!!

All in all a normal weekend for me!!

Looking forward to next week. 8 of us ended up with 34 head on saturday so your guys should have a good day.

Ive smoked Olive leaves over my guns to ward off the evil Eye so I should be back to form by then!!

Rgds,

FB

FB,

There is no escaping the fact that you have to put time in to be successful no matter what deer density you have.

Woodland fallow are darn difficult to get consistant success on. Add in issues such as public disturbance, weather, wind, lack of backstop etc and if you're stalking weekends only due to work it would be possible to go a long time without success.

If you are like me you need to be especialy vigilent that you don't rush and miss when you finaly get one in your sights!

Hi 1894,

True true... I use all of those in my defense frequently to my missus who really likes the venison!!

To be honest I have been presented with marginal shots that I have turned down on a couple of occasions. I have a (hard earnt) philosophy that I take each shot on it's own merits. If I look through the scope and don't feel right then I just pass it up. Like I said it's a hard earnt lesson but I don't ever want to leave unrecovered deer if I can help it again.

what is really happening here is that I'm lulling the deer into a false sense of security for Pete and Ian in a couple of weeks...

Rgds,
FK

Hi All,

Three months, two weeks and a day!!!

Yes, I can officially give a difinitive answer to my own question after a scrappy 2yo Fallow strolled out in front of me on Sunday morning while out with PeteE and IanF.

Having been incredibly clumsy and bumped the same group of deer twice I can only take this offering from Diana as a sign that I have been accepted back into her circle of trust!!!

Thanks for all the offers of stalking from other posters in their endeavour to help me end my drought.

Rgds,

Good job FB! Good confidence booster.
I admire your restraint this season in not taking marginal shots. No 'gut busters' is also a good record to have.