The One That Got Away

by Dan Chason

I’ll start this piece today with the motivation behind this story.  My friend Jim Andrews joined me at my camp for a deer hunt in January.  As we visited, I asked him what he thought would be a good story to share from our time spent in the outdoors.  He very quickly said, “Tell folks what happens to the deer in late season.  It’s like they go underground.  “Now, I could go to leading university studies, other experts or other hunters for direction but for a man like me that spends hundreds of hours and many days scouting and viewing cameras, I think I may have some advice.

I will use one deer for an example that I named Big Boy.  This deer first appeared on my Covert camera in early November.  He is a huge 10-point and in my “guestimation” is at least 5 years old.  I saw him in person during our first week of muzzleloader season.  He, along with a big 8 and a big 11-point came into my food plot right at dark.  They were bunched up like three salsa dancers on a bran pile. I could not get a shot as it was late and I could not definitely say the deer in my scope was him.  I opted to let him walk and sure enough, I never saw him in person again.  I have a large number of cameras in the woods and never got another photo of him until January 5th. The big 11 bit the dust about 200 yards off of my property so I just figured that Big Boy was laying up close to that area as well.  All of November and most of December was disappointing as the number of big bucks or shooter bucks (130 plus deer) had all but disappeared.  I had lots of groceries including clover, wheat and turnips planted and was about to give up on the food plots when it just turned overnight.  The rut really never cranked up except for a bunch of young bucks and spikes.  I only saw one deer chasing a doe and was wondering if some other factor had them vanish.  What I surmised was they travel far and away during and before the rut and come back home after.

What I deduced from my issue was pretty simple.  I looked at aerial maps and wanted to determine why these deer had just left.  I hunted many hours and adjusted hunting times to the moon phase.  Still lots of activity but no Big Boy.  What I figured was that I had to find the bedding areas these older deer were using and why I wasn’t seeing them in their same old haunts.  I came up and a plan, placed cameras in areas I had not hunted and waited.  Sure enough not only Big Boy showed up, but four other mature deer appeared on camera.  So the answer?  Get out of the same old stands; adjust for the wind; only hunt the stand when your photos verify that the time you have chosen is right; and be sure to maintain good scent control.  These deer are smart and any deviation of their natural, daily environment changes them.  It does not matter whether you walk in, drive in or crawl in.  If you don’t make changes and be unexpected, you will not have a chance.

My theory is that deer have a “home place” in early season.  I hunt in Area 1 so our season runs to the end of January. But come January, I change.  I move a lot and may even move  from one hunting area to another on a regular basis.  Once hunting pressure starts….lights, truck doors, wheelers etc., these deer move. And they are like a big bass, they are solitary animals and any signs of humans make them leave.  There are exceptions as I have a nice buck that lives no further than 100 yards from my camp.  The only time I saw him was when I drove in at night; didn’t hunt near him for a day; never cranked a wheeler; made sure no lights were on at the camp; and no banging doors.  If he thinks he is alone, he will go back to a moving routine.  If he hears any human activity, he lays low.  I call him “Scout” because it’s like he is scouting for hunters for other deer.  It’s amazing to me but that is what I have observed.  Scout figured out the closer to the enemy he was the safer he was and is.

       The same goes for fishing.  How many stories have been told about the giant fish that was lost or the one that blew up on a bait and was not hooked.  This has happened to me more times than I want to think about.  I remember one trip to a private lake where we were filming my TV show, and it was notorious for huge bass.  During the day, I had spotted what I thought was a log on a flat in about two feet of water.  As I approached, the boat drifted and hit a stump and this “log” exploded in his escape.  I looked at my cameraman and told him that had to be a bass and we were coming back in a couple of hours to see if he returned.  Sure enough, about an hour before dark, I chose an old Wood Chopper top water bait and casted where I knew he was before.  When I tell you he exploded on it…..it was like a tidal wave.  As big fish go straight to a stump he went and when that didn’t work, he went airborne.  This fish was absolutely the largest bass I have ever hooked or seen.   After he went back down, he wrapped on a stump and was never seen again.  I daydream about that fish when I go back to that lake.  Fish like that keep you going back to catch the fish of a lifetime.  But again, he got away.

Just like Big Boy, who at this writing has not been taken, (but I’ve got 22 more days)  I’ve walked in an hour before daylight, and pulled every trick in the book.  The last time I hunted him was just before writing this column.  I surmised that I was not seeing early deer movement at the crack of dawn due to my approach, lights and just bumping him.  I had him on camera at 9 a.m. the day before so I opted to walk in after daylight and creep to my stand.  Wouldn’t you know it?  He was on camera at my stand right at daylight.  Had I been in the stand earlier, I would have had a chance.  They don’t get big by being dumb.  That’s why we keep going back.  Good play Big Boy, you have  been a worthy opponent.