The Scribe would like to thank life-long Jefferson County resident, Nelson Sherrer for sharing three bow-hunting stories.  This is the first of four installments of the stories, to be followed by a bear hunt story and a moose hunt story in two parts. 

Well here we are again another deer season approaching and I can’t wait! It is the end of August of 2006 and September 15 Archery season opens in Missouri for the Whitetail Deer. I am going Elk hunting with Shaw Grisby, Mike Kahert and Randy Mills the third week of September and I am already planning for my White Tail Deer hunt in Northern Missouri on one of my farms. Its not that I don’t really enjoy Elk hunting with a bow but nothing is as rewarding as harvesting a Whitetail Deer, Doe, Button Buck or Antlered Buck, any Whitetail Deer with a bow is a rewarding experience. When you hunt Elk you are calling them in with a bugle or you may be stalking them on foot walking endless hours just to get within 40 yards of a 600-pound animal.

Now you can stalk Whitetail, but it is no easy task. Archery Hunting with a bow for Elk, the success rate is 3 hunters out of a 100 harvest, with Whitetail Deer it probably is 3 hunters out of a 1000 harvest.  Those odds are only a guess. Sneaking up on a Whitetail is like walking upon a Turkey that’s looking at you and if you’re a hunter or have ever hunted Turkeys you and I both know you don’t walk upon a Turkey, it just don’t happen! The Whitetail Deer doesn’t see as well as a Turkey, but their Ears and Noses make up for all the difference. If you step on a limb and it snaps a hundred yards away the infamous Whitetail will be on the run in the opposite direction.  And when you’re hunting in the woods you may be able to see 30 to 40 yards and if you’re in a thicket, 5 yards is a long way. A deer can run through a thicket that you have to craw through. Remember it has been said by many an outdoor writer and hunter that a Whitetail Deer is considered the Ghost in the Woods. You see tracks, tree rubs, trails where they have been and maybe where there going but only on an occasion do you get to observe the animal and if you’re lucky a shot!

Now this is not to say it is impossible to harvest a deer I just want the readers to understand it isn’t easy. When you’re in the woods hunting deer, you’re in their house.

Have you ever been over to your friend’s house and had to go to the bathroom, and you ask where is your bathroom? Your friend politely says third door to the left and please turn out the light when you’re finished.  When you’re in the woods the deer knows where the bathroom is and how many doors to the left or right it may be. The deer live their lives in the woods, they hear every sound, trees falling, limbs breaking, turkeys walking, squirrels running and playing looking for acorns. A possum walking across the forest floor may not make much noise to you or I, but to a deer it is a possum not a squirrel, skunk, and rabbit, ECT.  It’s a possum! Get the point?

This time of the year I am in the woods three days a week, Friday, Saturday and Sunday, and any more time I can steal from work and not make my boss unhappy? I fish professionally and this time of the year fishing takes back seat to my hunting. The archery deer season is about 3 ½ months long and I       might get to hunt 36 days of this time. Spending up to 8 to 10 hours every day I hunt in the woods hoping to find a legal Whitetail Deer. I do most of my hunting prior to the Gun season, which happens in November. I believe the deer are most vulnerable at this time. After the Whitetail Deer have been shot at with 30-06, 30-30’s, 300 Winchester Magnums for almost 10 or 11 days, they get to say the least weary, they have been trained to avoid all humans, (their only real enemy in Missouri) as there scent is now all over the woods, many times where your hunting. My objective is to bring a Whitetail Deer to within bow shooting range, which is approximately 30 yards or less. I know in order to make a clean kill this is my best range. Judging distance in the woods is a lot different than judging distance a target range where the targets are set at 20, 25, or even 30 yards and you know that distance. When you’re archery hunting you need to practice walking thru the woods and picking out a target, guess that distance and shoot a practice arrow at it. Ninety percent of the unsuccessful shots are because of misjudging the distance, so practice, practice and practice.

Well it is November the 9th, 1pm. I have already dressed for the occasion; I have my Scent Blocker Suite in the 3 D with the moving leaves on it and have sprayed my all rubber boots, hat and exterior clothing down with the Scent Shield from Roberson Outdoors. I don’t go to the woods with out this stuff. If I am to have a chance of out smarting a Trophy Whitetail I can’t smell like a human, I have to be invisible in the woods! I must use every trick in the book and I know Roberson Outdoors stuff works.  I have already hunted 18 days over 180 hours in the woods. I harvested a little doe on the 21st of October. I have been seeing 4 to 6 bucks in the evening but only one legal one in the bunch.

You see in several counties in Missouri a buck must have at least 4 points on one side before you can consider shooting him. I have been using my Swarovski Binoculars I purchase from Dunn’s Sporting Goods in Pevely, Missouri to carefully inspect each buck I see to make sure he is a legal consideration. However none had presented the opportunity to show themselves within 30 yards of me. I have had several smaller bucks within range but not legal bucks. I still love watching them in their natural habitat, move around, feed, their alertness, how they react to a sound in the woods, it is quite impressive!
It’s time to try something new, only two days to opening day of Rifle season. I had purchased some scrape scent, actually called Natural Scrape Scent and put a few drops onto the Buck scrape and the limbs above the scrape, then about 8 yards away I hang a piece of cotton soaked in the same scrape scent from a limb about 5 feet high off of the ground. I wanted the scent to travel as far as possible thru the woods in hopes of attracting the dominant buck in this area.

For those of you who may not know what a scrape is, a scrape is an area on the ground that a buck has pawed down to bear ground.  This area may be 4 or 5 ft in diameter. They can be smaller or bigger but it is a buck scrape. These are usually found where a buck can also rake his antlers on tree limbs above the scrape. In other words tree limbs will be hanging over a scrape and contain the bucks scent, a scent that attracts does and tells other bucks this is his area and to invade his area you had better be ready to fight! The buck will also urinate in the scraped area, again to let the other deer know that he is here and this is his area! Should another buck enter the area, or try to take over the area there will be a fight and sometimes a fight to the death. A mature buck will be waiting for a doe to leave her scent there to tell him she is ready for mating.

My tree stand is located about 45 yards from the main scrape area as I proceed to my deer stand I notice another scrape about 15 feet from my stand. I realized there is a hot buck in the area; he is aggressive and wanting to breed.
I secure my bow to the rope hanging from my seat some 20 feet higher and begin my climb up my ladder stand. It is now about 1:45 pm and I am secure in my stand with my safety harness tied to my chest.

I have screwed a tree step into the tree to hang my bow on, as I believe I will have time to retrieve my bow when a deer approaches. I pull up my bow from the ground below and hang it on the tree step and insert an arrow on the rest. I am now ready should the buck show his face. I get as comfortable as possible in the tree stand. Now I must be as still as possible, no moving, no noise, I must be nonexistent to the deer for three or four hours.

It is approaching 3:00 pm and so far just a lot of squirrels. A squirrel running across the forest floor can sound a lot like a deer walking or moving thru the woods, one must be observant to all the sounds and make a visible inspection just to make sure. I decide to make a few grunting sounds, a sound a buck makes during rutting season. It’s unlike any sound you have ever heard and very unmistakable once you have heard it. I make 6 or 8 grunts, all a little different in sound variations, remember a buck grunts when he is chasing a doe and those sounds are usually a little different in tone. His tone may change when he goes up a hill or down a hill. He could be exhausted from chasing does. This is just my opinion, an observation I have made from many hours in the woods and observing those sounds. It is now almost 4 pm still a good one-and-a-half hours before dark. I am looking behind me as I think the deer will be coming from a thicket behind my stand. It would make sense, as a buck should be approaching from his bedding area, at least one would be led to believe. I notice a little tingling in my neck from looking back so long and decide to look toward a soybean field in front of my stand, there he is, checking his scrape, raking his antlers on the limbs above the scrape. There is a look about him; he is angry and looking for the Buck that left that scent. His eyes are glassy, the hair on the back of his neck is standing up, and he is not a happy camper. He looks around as if to say, “where are you my friend; show your face and I will kick your butt.” Things are happing quickly; I must get my bow and get into position to shoot. I am sitting down in my tree stand, very slowly I rise up from my seat, my legs are a little stiff from sitting so long and not moving. My Hoyt bow is directly to my left and a little behind me. The arrow in already on the rest, I must be very careful as not to knock it off or let any part of my bow touch the metal of my stand and make any unnecessary noise. A thousand thoughts are running through my head. I turn my head just enough to see my bow and quietly ease my hand on to my bow.

I am turning back toward the huge White Tail Buck, trying not to make any sounds. Every step on the little standing area seems like a major move. I now notice I don’t need my binoculars to see if he is a legal buck he is a Monster, an eight- or ten-pointer and may score well. The Huge Buck is starting to walk away from me and if I am to get a shot before he is out of range, I must move quickly and get into position to take a shot, one that would provide a clean kill. I want a shot through both lungs if possible; a quartering away shot may be better? Wait the buck has stopped, something has got his attention, could it be another buck? He puts his nose into the air; he is now paying attention towards that piece of cotton with the scrape scent on it. Remember I hung a piece of cotton with the scrape scent on it and it has caught his attention. He turns and starts walking toward the scent patch, he is now about 28 yards from my stand, my perfect range, I draw my bow being careful not to make any sounds that might make him bolt and run. I placed my twenty-yard pin on his spine just behind his front shoulder, as I know my arrow will drop a little. I only have two pins, a twenty-yard and forty-yard pin.  I have already used a range finder and knew it was a thirty-yard shot to this cotton scent patch. I release the arrow with a 100 grain Broad Head on the end.

The Huge 10 Point Whitetail never even knew what hit him; the arrow passed thru both lungs and my archery hunt was over just one day before rifle season was to begin. After the shot I started shaking and knew I had to get down from this tree stand. The excitement was just beginning to hit me as I realized I have just taken the largest buck of my hunting career. The tracking process was just about to begin but I knew my shot placement was in the right place and the huge 10-point would not go far. I waited about 15 minutes and had to proceed to locate my trophy. I walked over to where he stood smelling the cotton scent pad and immediately saw the blood trail, and within minutes saw the magnificent White Tail. At first all I could do was stare at his rack and the size of his body, he was huge all over. I decided to take a break before the field dressing started and just realized all my hours of hunting had paid off, not only for this year but all the years past. All the countless hours preparing, planning and studying had just paid off in a big way. 

I have taken Bull Elk, Bull Moose, Mountain Lion, and many Whitetails with a bow, bucks and does; however none has ever equaled this event.

Ok you guessed it, I can’t wait till after gun season is over so I can start all over again, because I know there is another Monster Buck out there and I won’t quit until he is on my dinner table!
 

The Scribe would like to thank life-long Jefferson County resident, Nelson Sherrer for sharing three bow-hunting stories.  This is the first of four installments of the stories, to be followed by a bear hunt story and a moose hunt story in two parts. 

Well here we are again another deer season approaching and I can’t wait! It is the end of August of 2006 and September 15 Archery season opens in Missouri for the Whitetail Deer. I am going Elk hunting with Shaw Grisby, Mike Kahert and Randy Mills the third week of September and I am already planning for my White Tail Deer hunt in Northern Missouri on one of my farms. Its not that I don’t really enjoy Elk hunting with a bow but nothing is as rewarding as harvesting a Whitetail Deer, Doe, Button Buck or Antlered Buck, any Whitetail Deer with a bow is a rewarding experience. When you hunt Elk you are calling them in with a bugle or you may be stalking them on foot walking endless hours just to get within 40 yards of a 600-pound animal.

Now you can stalk Whitetail, but it is no easy task. Archery Hunting with a bow for Elk, the success rate is 3 hunters out of a 100 harvest, with Whitetail Deer it probably is 3 hunters out of a 1000 harvest.  Those odds are only a guess. Sneaking up on a Whitetail is like walking upon a Turkey that’s looking at you and if you’re a hunter or have ever hunted Turkeys you and I both know you don’t walk upon a Turkey, it just don’t happen! The Whitetail Deer doesn’t see as well as a Turkey, but their Ears and Noses make up for all the difference. If you step on a limb and it snaps a hundred yards away the infamous Whitetail will be on the run in the opposite direction.  And when you’re hunting in the woods you may be able to see 30 to 40 yards and if you’re in a thicket, 5 yards is a long way. A deer can run through a thicket that you have to craw through. Remember it has been said by many an outdoor writer and hunter that a Whitetail Deer is considered the Ghost in the Woods. You see tracks, tree rubs, trails where they have been and maybe where there going but only on an occasion do you get to observe the animal and if you’re lucky a shot!

Now this is not to say it is impossible to harvest a deer I just want the readers to understand it isn’t easy. When you’re in the woods hunting deer, you’re in their house.

Have you ever been over to your friend’s house and had to go to the bathroom, and you ask where is your bathroom? Your friend politely says third door to the left and please turn out the light when you’re finished.  When you’re in the woods the deer knows where the bathroom is and how many doors to the left or right it may be. The deer live their lives in the woods, they hear every sound, trees falling, limbs breaking, turkeys walking, squirrels running and playing looking for acorns. A possum walking across the forest floor may not make much noise to you or I, but to a deer it is a possum not a squirrel, skunk, and rabbit, ECT.  It’s a possum! Get the point?

This time of the year I am in the woods three days a week, Friday, Saturday and Sunday, and any more time I can steal from work and not make my boss unhappy? I fish professionally and this time of the year fishing takes back seat to my hunting. The archery deer season is about 3 ½ months long and I       might get to hunt 36 days of this time. Spending up to 8 to 10 hours every day I hunt in the woods hoping to find a legal Whitetail Deer. I do most of my hunting prior to the Gun season, which happens in November. I believe the deer are most vulnerable at this time. After the Whitetail Deer have been shot at with 30-06, 30-30’s, 300 Winchester Magnums for almost 10 or 11 days, they get to say the least weary, they have been trained to avoid all humans, (their only real enemy in Missouri) as there scent is now all over the woods, many times where your hunting. My objective is to bring a Whitetail Deer to within bow shooting range, which is approximately 30 yards or less. I know in order to make a clean kill this is my best range. Judging distance in the woods is a lot different than judging distance a target range where the targets are set at 20, 25, or even 30 yards and you know that distance. When you’re archery hunting you need to practice walking thru the woods and picking out a target, guess that distance and shoot a practice arrow at it. Ninety percent of the unsuccessful shots are because of misjudging the distance, so practice, practice and practice.

Well it is November the 9th, 1pm. I have already dressed for the occasion; I have my Scent Blocker Suite in the 3 D with the moving leaves on it and have sprayed my all rubber boots, hat and exterior clothing down with the Scent Shield from Roberson Outdoors. I don’t go to the woods with out this stuff. If I am to have a chance of out smarting a Trophy Whitetail I can’t smell like a human, I have to be invisible in the woods! I must use every trick in the book and I know Roberson Outdoors stuff works.  I have already hunted 18 days over 180 hours in the woods. I harvested a little doe on the 21st of October. I have been seeing 4 to 6 bucks in the evening but only one legal one in the bunch.

You see in several counties in Missouri a buck must have at least 4 points on one side before you can consider shooting him. I have been using my Swarovski Binoculars I purchase from Dunn’s Sporting Goods in Pevely, Missouri to carefully inspect each buck I see to make sure he is a legal consideration. However none had presented the opportunity to show themselves within 30 yards of me. I have had several smaller bucks within range but not legal bucks. I still love watching them in their natural habitat, move around, feed, their alertness, how they react to a sound in the woods, it is quite impressive!
It’s time to try something new, only two days to opening day of Rifle season. I had purchased some scrape scent, actually called Natural Scrape Scent and put a few drops onto the Buck scrape and the limbs above the scrape, then about 8 yards away I hang a piece of cotton soaked in the same scrape scent from a limb about 5 feet high off of the ground. I wanted the scent to travel as far as possible thru the woods in hopes of attracting the dominant buck in this area.

For those of you who may not know what a scrape is, a scrape is an area on the ground that a buck has pawed down to bear ground.  This area may be 4 or 5 ft in diameter. They can be smaller or bigger but it is a buck scrape. These are usually found where a buck can also rake his antlers on tree limbs above the scrape. In other words tree limbs will be hanging over a scrape and contain the bucks scent, a scent that attracts does and tells other bucks this is his area and to invade his area you had better be ready to fight! The buck will also urinate in the scraped area, again to let the other deer know that he is here and this is his area! Should another buck enter the area, or try to take over the area there will be a fight and sometimes a fight to the death. A mature buck will be waiting for a doe to leave her scent there to tell him she is ready for mating.

My tree stand is located about 45 yards from the main scrape area as I proceed to my deer stand I notice another scrape about 15 feet from my stand. I realized there is a hot buck in the area; he is aggressive and wanting to breed.
I secure my bow to the rope hanging from my seat some 20 feet higher and begin my climb up my ladder stand. It is now about 1:45 pm and I am secure in my stand with my safety harness tied to my chest.

I have screwed a tree step into the tree to hang my bow on, as I believe I will have time to retrieve my bow when a deer approaches. I pull up my bow from the ground below and hang it on the tree step and insert an arrow on the rest. I am now ready should the buck show his face. I get as comfortable as possible in the tree stand. Now I must be as still as possible, no moving, no noise, I must be nonexistent to the deer for three or four hours.

It is approaching 3:00 pm and so far just a lot of squirrels. A squirrel running across the forest floor can sound a lot like a deer walking or moving thru the woods, one must be observant to all the sounds and make a visible inspection just to make sure. I decide to make a few grunting sounds, a sound a buck makes during rutting season. It’s unlike any sound you have ever heard and very unmistakable once you have heard it. I make 6 or 8 grunts, all a little different in sound variations, remember a buck grunts when he is chasing a doe and those sounds are usually a little different in tone. His tone may change when he goes up a hill or down a hill. He could be exhausted from chasing does. This is just my opinion, an observation I have made from many hours in the woods and observing those sounds. It is now almost 4 pm still a good one-and-a-half hours before dark. I am looking behind me as I think the deer will be coming from a thicket behind my stand. It would make sense, as a buck should be approaching from his bedding area, at least one would be led to believe. I notice a little tingling in my neck from looking back so long and decide to look toward a soybean field in front of my stand, there he is, checking his scrape, raking his antlers on the limbs above the scrape. There is a look about him; he is angry and looking for the Buck that left that scent. His eyes are glassy, the hair on the back of his neck is standing up, and he is not a happy camper. He looks around as if to say, “where are you my friend; show your face and I will kick your butt.” Things are happing quickly; I must get my bow and get into position to shoot. I am sitting down in my tree stand, very slowly I rise up from my seat, my legs are a little stiff from sitting so long and not moving. My Hoyt bow is directly to my left and a little behind me. The arrow in already on the rest, I must be very careful as not to knock it off or let any part of my bow touch the metal of my stand and make any unnecessary noise. A thousand thoughts are running through my head. I turn my head just enough to see my bow and quietly ease my hand on to my bow.

I am turning back toward the huge White Tail Buck, trying not to make any sounds. Every step on the little standing area seems like a major move. I now notice I don’t need my binoculars to see if he is a legal buck he is a Monster, an eight- or ten-pointer and may score well. The Huge Buck is starting to walk away from me and if I am to get a shot before he is out of range, I must move quickly and get into position to take a shot, one that would provide a clean kill. I want a shot through both lungs if possible; a quartering away shot may be better? Wait the buck has stopped, something has got his attention, could it be another buck? He puts his nose into the air; he is now paying attention towards that piece of cotton with the scrape scent on it. Remember I hung a piece of cotton with the scrape scent on it and it has caught his attention. He turns and starts walking toward the scent patch, he is now about 28 yards from my stand, my perfect range, I draw my bow being careful not to make any sounds that might make him bolt and run. I placed my twenty-yard pin on his spine just behind his front shoulder, as I know my arrow will drop a little. I only have two pins, a twenty-yard and forty-yard pin.  I have already used a range finder and knew it was a thirty-yard shot to this cotton scent patch. I release the arrow with a 100 grain Broad Head on the end.

The Huge 10 Point Whitetail never even knew what hit him; the arrow passed thru both lungs and my archery hunt was over just one day before rifle season was to begin. After the shot I started shaking and knew I had to get down from this tree stand. The excitement was just beginning to hit me as I realized I have just taken the largest buck of my hunting career. The tracking process was just about to begin but I knew my shot placement was in the right place and the huge 10-point would not go far. I waited about 15 minutes and had to proceed to locate my trophy. I walked over to where he stood smelling the cotton scent pad and immediately saw the blood trail, and within minutes saw the magnificent White Tail. At first all I could do was stare at his rack and the size of his body, he was huge all over. I decided to take a break before the field dressing started and just realized all my hours of hunting had paid off, not only for this year but all the years past. All the countless hours preparing, planning and studying had just paid off in a big way. 

I have taken Bull Elk, Bull Moose, Mountain Lion, and many Whitetails with a bow, bucks and does; however none has ever equaled this event.

Ok you guessed it, I can’t wait till after gun season is over so I can start all over again, because I know there is another Monster Buck out there and I won’t quit until he is on my dinner table!