Fresh Snow...Time to Track (pic heavy)

[Natty Bumppo]

When conditions are prime, I always enjoy getting out in NW Mass and Southern VT to find a buck and track him down. I've had some good success doing it this way. Didn't see a deer today, but I had a blast and took some pics throughout my hunt and thought I'd share. We had about 5 or 6 inches of a loud crunchy base and then we got about 6 or 7 inches of powder yesterday. It wasn't quite as windy as I was hoping for, but it was still relatively quiet. Today tracking was best done by shuffling the feet along when possible and keeping them under that fresh snow. Picking them up and and putting them down made more noise.

Heading out first thing in the AM...it was 23, snowing lightly, with a slight breeze. I always dress lightly to avoid over-heating.

Heading into a spruce swamp.

Classic example of the numerous wild apples I find just about everywhere I hunt.

First track...not a big buck, but a good sign. Deer were moving.

Followed the track for a while and found a bed...and many, many other tracks.

Crossed an old jeep road along a rock wall...

...and back into a spruce swamp.

Found this...30 years of hunting, skiing, hiking, climbing, mtn. biking, camping in New England and I've never seen a mature elm growing in the wild. I've seen big ones in town, and small ones in the wild. But never one this size. Didn't look that healthy.

The base of the Elm...roughly 24 or 26" DBH?

Nature calls....

This deer was alone...a small bed. Maybe a small buck?

I followed the deer for a while and he skirted the edge of this old field, staying in the spruce and hemlock.

Lunch...

Kept tracking what I thought was a small buck and found another fresh bed...

...kept on him into some thick stuff...this is when you need to be sharp and SLOW DOWN. Can't think about anything but spotting the deer before he spots you. You must think that he could be around the very next corner. I get on my knees a lot and look through the forest at ground level. I'll only move when the wind blows.

...thicker...

...he crossed a small brook...

...and then he went by the exact spot I killed a buck in 2012...a 9 pointer I tracked down on a very similar day.

Found his 3rd bed...very fresh...and at this point I was more positive it was a buck. Not a huge buck, but a buck nonetheless. The way he was moving, where he was walking, the fact that he was alone all day, the fact that he moved through several doe groups but never joined them...

But...the last pic...never caught up with him. Had to turn around and head back or else I'd be spending a night in the woods.

Sorry if this is boring for some. I always enjoy learning about deer hunting in other parts of the country and how it's done. I love seeing habitat pics and the live views from the stand. Thought I'd share my "live view from the stand" today. I was out for about 7 hours, saw some beautiful country, and didn't see another human being the entire day. Thought for sure I was getting close...but just wasn't going fast enough to catch the buck before I had to turn around for the day. To be honest, I'm not even 100% sure it was a buck. It wouldn't have been the first time I tracked down what I thought was a buck only to find a doe in her bed or staring at me before she bolted. :eek:

 

[tooln]

Nice set of pic's. Would have loved to see a pic of him bedded down when you snuck up o him. Also glad you didn't take a selfie when nature called.

 

[scott44]

Looks like a good hunt, thanks for sharing.

 

[NWWI]

Any deer you track down is a trophy. What a nice change of pace for a hunt.

 

[H20fwler]

Very old school...love it!

 

[wbpdeer]

You did a great job showing the day and telling the story. Where I live we don't get snow for tracking a deer like you do. Gosh I bet it fun going by the 9 point harvest location.

Thanks for sharing and it was fun to ride along on your tracking day. :)

Wayne

 

[Natty Bumppo]

Gosh I bet it fun going by the 9 point harvest location.

Thanks for sharing and it was fun to ride along on your tracking day. :)

Wayne

Thanks Wayne. It was nice to be in the same swamp where I got the 9 pointer. It was just about the exact same kind of a day...and it was exactly 4 years ago today...Dec. 31st, the last day of the season. Tracked him for just 2 hours in a heavy wind and fresh snow. Caught him at about 45 yards standing over his bed. He never knew I was there. Took this selfie just as I was losing light on New Year's eve. Had a long drag that night.

 

[chummer]

Great day deer or no deer. That 9 would be a top 10% at my place. Funny how similar terrains grow similar bucks hundreds of miles apart. Same dark rack our bucks have too.

 

[Bill]

Thanks for the post.
No way I'd have the patience to go slow enough to see anything but tails.

 

[bueller]

Natty, I can't see how anyone could find this thread boring. I love hunting from the ground. Our gun season is short and often times we don't have fresh snow. Rather than tracking I'm more or less still hunting trails. Something I've learned is not to give up if I "softly" bump a deer mid morning. IME that deer will bed down again very near to where I last saw them. I back out, sometimes eat lunch, and come back to setup between that bed and the afternoon/evening food source. Many times just before last light I will catch that same deer now on the move, less than 100 yards from where I last saw it in the morning.

Thanks for sharing, especially with the pics to add to the story.

 

[Jameson]

Thank-you for sharing, Natty!

I do much of my hunting in the same ways. With being 100% self taught it is reassuring to see someone, who has read the books and has experience, doing many of the same things I do.

 

[Bowsnbucks]

Doin' it the Benoit way !!! I see you had your green & black plaid wool shirt on - " O-fishal " New England states hunting wear. QUIET too !!

Forget boring. I could " sense " being there with you. I've been on many hunts like that and could almost smell the air !!

Thanks for sharing the day, Natty. That pic of the latest, new bed looks like it was laying there watching it's back-trail. I've tracked deer like that in snow and it's a blast. Adrenalin flows all day long while tracking / looking ahead. Red alert X 10.

Those spruce swamps remind me of the country in Maine. Snow sticking to everything cuts the sound down to nothing - as long as it's not the crunchy stuff. Beautiful to be out in territory like that ..... deer or no deer on the meat pole. Thanks again for posting it up, Natty !!

 

[Natty Bumppo]

Great day deer or no deer. That 9 would be a top 10% at my place. Funny how similar terrains grow similar bucks hundreds of miles apart. Same dark rack our bucks have too.

That's interesting chummer about the dark racks. What do your bucks weigh on average? The 9 was probably a 2.5 year old. Maybe 3.5. He only weighed 140 lbs...skinny guy, like me.

Thanks for the post.
No way I'd have the patience to go slow enough to see anything but tails.

Bill, that's funny because I am a terrible stand hunter. I get so impatient in the stand....just lose patience. I just don't have the mental toughness needed to grind it out for all day sits, though I know there are days that I really need to.

Natty, I can't see how anyone could find this thread boring. I love hunting from the ground. Our gun season is short and often times we don't have fresh snow. Rather than tracking I'm more or less still hunting trails. Something I've learned is not to give up if I "softly" bump a deer mid morning. IME that deer will bed down again very near to where I last saw them. I back out, sometimes eat lunch, and come back to setup between that bed and the afternoon/evening food source. Many times just before last light I will catch that same deer now on the move, less than 100 yards from where I last saw it in the morning.

Thanks for sharing, especially with the pics to add to the story.

Glad you liked it bueller. Thanks.

Doin' it the Benoit way !!! I see you had your green & black plaid wool shirt on - " O-fishal " New England states hunting wear. QUIET too !!

Forget boring. I could " sense " being there with you. I've been on many hunts like that and could almost smell the air !!

Thanks for sharing the day, Natty. That pic of the latest, new bed looks like it was laying there watching it's back-trail. I've tracked deer like that in snow and it's a blast. Adrenalin flows all day long while tracking / looking ahead. Red alert X 10.

Those spruce swamps remind me of the country in Maine. Snow sticking to everything cuts the sound down to nothing - as long as it's not the crunchy stuff. Beautiful to be out in territory like that ..... deer or no deer on the meat pole. Thanks again for posting it up, Natty !!

Glad you enjoyed it Bowsnbucks. You got it! Even though I am in southern New England, at 2,000 ft. elevation my neck of the woods does have a northern Maine feel. Over the years I've tried different hunting clothes for tracking...camoflage, fleece, primaloft, etc. I always go back to wool. Love the way it breathes, very warm (even when wet) yet not bulky. And if I am going to track in wool....it's got to be green plaid!

 

[chummer]

Our 2.5's go 140 dressed. The last three mature bucks were 3.5, 5.5, and 4.5+ all the same body size 160's dressed. The 5.5 was shot end of November so he had lost a bit. That is about as big as I get. I did have one around for a bit this summer that was 200 plus. He was the biggest deer I have had around. Chainsaw is at the bottom of my hill and I believe he gets a few 200 plus. We get so few past 2.5 it is hard to know the top end. I am pretty sure with the plots and apples I have now I at least get the top bucks to pass through at some point. Still rebounding from the worst 2 winters back to back so it will be interesting going forward as all new deer will know my property and have a chance to move in.

 

[chummer]

This is the biggest deer I have had to date. He was around for most of August then never seen again. Not sure where he went. I only got pics in my deep woods plot. Not one pic under apples, brassicas, or clover plots in front of property. Hopefully he is still walking.



I think our properties parallel each other in many ways. 5 years ago I got nothing but spikes. It has been quite a journey with the three bucks mentioned above taken. We do not have the top end bucks others around the country have but I thinks the improvements we make are magnified more. You will see a big jump in what shows up next year.

 

[chummer]

One more point about this buck. I had him in this plot many times in August. Many times he was there for a long duration. I did not get one pic of him looking at the camera. He was always facing the ther way. He was poached or is still walking because no way any locals would keep quiet about this one.

 

[Natty Bumppo]

One more point about this buck. I had him in this plot many times in August. Many times he was there for a long duration. I did not get one pic of him looking at the camera. He was always facing the ther way. He was poached or is still walking because no way any locals would keep quiet about this one.

Thanks for the feedback chummer. We definitely have many parallels going on. That's a beauty of a buck...sick G2's. I have never gotten a pic of a buck like that. But with a year of experience hunting my new food plots and my apples, I see that I have to spend more time back in the deeper woods off the plots. I can't even imagine how your local herd is hammered each year by the snow you get.

Always good to hear from you.

 

[j-bird]

I have never tracked a deer in the snow with the intent of killing it - property size here is just too small for that. I do however like to take the opportunity to see what the surviving deer herd is doing. See where they are heading to and from and what they seem to be feeding on. I like seeing how deer use the land and to try to figure out the "why" portion of what they do. Every once in a while it leads to some hunting changes the following year as well!

 

[Red Picqua]

That is very cool! Like someone said. the Benoit way. great story.

 

[Merle Hawggard]

Wonderful pics Natty! We got maybe a half inch today so I got the beagles out in it for a while. I love to run rabbits in the snow.
Beautiful country you hunt in too.