Movement Management

Ever been in a treestand on a nice quite early morning? You can see the movement in the trees and you just know its that perfect time in the morning for the deer to start coming in. Just as the first deer comes to the clearing it happens….. you have to sneeze! Perhaps it’s a creeking sound from the treestand, or your arrow falls off the nock. It could be an abudance of things, but just when should you throw in the towel? I’ll try and shed some light on my experiences and hopefully the next time you run into one of these scenerios you will make the right choice whether to stay or go.

Deer are naturally a curious animal and often as hunters, our assumption is that we must be completely quite in order to get a large whitetail close enough. You may be surprised at just how much noise your able to get away with when hunting. The two most common noises that get me in trouble while hunting is the cough and just a simple treestand or tower adjustment that creates a creeking sound. These items do not have to be the end of your day. The next time in the treestand, just simply sit there and listen. It helps to close your eyes and open your ears. There are so many natural sounds going on around you, that you may not have noticed in the past. These sounds didn’t just recently appear, they have always been there and the deer are very accustom to those sounds daily, minizing the level of attention deer give to those sounds.

Here are some common noises we tend to run into and I’ll give you some solutions to each:

Coughing – If you can muffle your cough into a sleeve, this can sound like a simple deer grunt. Will the deer alert to this, probably, but if they do not spook right away, they may continue on with caution as long as you don’t give away your position with movement.

Sneeze – Same as above, just try to create a wheeze or fawn bleep sound into your sleeve. It doesn’t have to be perfect. When you minimize your exposure to only curiosity, you still have a chance.

Treestand Creeking – Don’t ever give your position away with unneccessary movement because of an unexpected sound from the treestand. Large dead trees make very similar sounds when the wind picks up and although the deer may become cautious, they may quickly write it off as dead timber.

Bumps and Bangs – Same as above if you accidentally bump your gun or bow on the tree or you snap a twig, just relax, these types of sounds happen in the woods all the time. If you remain still, the deer will give little attention to it after a few moments have passed.

Smell – There are a lot of good products to help deaden human smell, but if your down wind, you will eventually get busted. So although there is a level of foregiveness when it comes to sound, there is nothing that can save you from being down wind. Manage your movements here by keeping the wind in your favor. I always like a little wind because it creates a more natural noise buffer. Managing wind is a huge key to any hunters success.

These are just few tips and remember, don’t assume if you’ve made one of these sounds that your day is over. If the deer have not spotted you via movements, it just takes a few moments before foregiveness sets in and everyone is back to business as usual. Make the most of your hunt and don’t let a little noise ruin your day.

Posted by Terry Sedivec