The whitetail archery hunt in which all variables come into alignment is something all hunters envision. The stand is chosen for its position relative to the wind and sun with liberal amounts of cover scent masking all traces of the human element. Maybe even a lone doe decoy is placed within the limits of capability.
The hunter envisions how the hunt should develop with a little help from an animal that never got the memo, however. In reality, such plans are normally just that – plans. But, this time maybe it would be different for this hunter.
The 60-degree temperature made for a comfortable trek with what may have appeared like a week’s worth of gear attached to my upper body. A Horton Vision crossbow, a Hunt Comfort seat cushion and a gear bag full of necessities were hung from both shoulders. And, under one arm was a two-dimensional Renzo doe decoy – essentially a two-sided corrugated plastic silhouette.
My wild Shiawassee County deer urine, collected from yellow snow earlier this year, had been cold filtered, and frozen until ready for use. It was used on my rubber boots and all around the enticing accomplice. Thirty yards from my recycled wood playground structure -now a hunting stand – the decoy was set.
Well before prime time, a yearling buck made his way into the field planted with still-thriving turnips and rape with a side order of alfalfa and clover. Either the adolescent whitetail didn’t see my decoy or he wasn’t interested and wandered away.
Soon thereafter, a lone buck fawn headed in my direction, noticed the decoy and began to stomp the ground attempting to elicit a response from the uninterested female. The youngster kept his distance and chowed on the brassica smorgasbord, while unwittingly adding real-life motion to the mix, when I noticed antlers some 300 yards away.
With nothing to lose and daylight fading fast, I played a few notes on the grunt tube, but lost sight of the buck until he entered the small field in front of me 100 yards upwind. The buck’s 8-point rack was unmistakably that of a yearling – a qualifier for our self-imposed antler-point restrictions – but not a shooter this season.
He spotted the phony deer and came to an abrupt halt on the far side. He was tuned in to the trick – all eyes on the prize – as he began to investigate the lack of attention. He closed the distance getting within arm’s reach of the snob and backed off. The deer cover scent did its job, as the lustful buck carefully analyzed the imitator.
He finally made it downwind of the decoy, directly between it and me only 15 yards away. His attention had been diverted for a matter of minutes; the ruse was complete.
Rejected and with purpose, he located another group of real deer and wandered toward them, as light faded into quitting time.
Experience has shown me that decoys don’t always get such a response, but this time it was perfectly according to plan.
If you’ve never tried to decoy deer, at the very least it can be entertaining. At best, it can provide the opportunity of a lifetime.
