I am not getting it.

[slowhand]

I never worry if another hunter has already walked the trail I am on. Very often the deer will let the other guy pass by then get up to relocate and present an opportunity for Me.
My dad and I would hunt the same trail separated by a 1/4 mile or so. Often times the one of us that was at the rear would see more animals than the one that was up front.
I try My best to be as quiet as possible and stop to listen for long periods of time if I do make a noise. I feel that the deer do something similar. They also have a cadence of step, stop, listen, look, and repeat. I have snuck up on many that have no clue that I am there. If it's not a legal target I will just freeze My position and watch to see what happens and how they behave. I have learned quit a bit from doing this. The deer appear to have different levels of alertness but are always on guard. After all It's their life if they are not. Don't get Me wrong dumb ones are out there. Heck I have had a young doe think I was it's best friend and follow Me around. I suspect that doe didn't make it more that that season being so curious. 
 

[Sandberm]

I'm just trying to imitate what the native americans and settlers had to go through when I hunt....so if its tough...I really get what they were going through.

I will appreciate the kill even more

[Old Man Yager]

Yesterday i spent all day in the Klickitat breaks hiking as slowly  and quietly as i can with a pack  and a rifle. Saw  2 deer one bedded down 100 yards from where i stopped  to watch for a couple hours.  The other one was sprinting through a small clearing. He apparently saw me let me pass by  then apparently  bolted after  i passed.

I  went a bit further East  into Klickitat county and even out towards  Bickelton hitting  small pieces  of state land not seeing anything at all out there a few bed down spots in the sage is all..

This morning i was in West Klickitat 3 miles in from a locked SDS  gate. Lots of evidence of deer in there but no sightings  think i will try there  again tomorrow.
Tonight i am back near the breaks gonna go sneak around till dark. There is another  truck here , hopefully he walked  the other direction.

Next week i guess i head west for the last  3 days.

Sounds like you are going slow enough to start spotting them. If I'm looking at a clearcut, I'll look for area that you can't see into, or can't be seen from a road. A lot of people think they won't stay in a clearcut, but they will drop into a spot that can't be seen. I might have to hike in through timber to find those spots, but I know there might be one hanging in there somewhere.

[Blacktail Sniper]

Haha. Its called hunting, not seeing and killing.  Keep at it. Not sure where you are located. Might need to be colder.  Deer will spend more time eating when the weather is colder.  So they will be moving more around sunrise and sunset.

 

I will add...That is why it is called Blacktail Deer hunting!  They have not gotten the nickname "Gray Ghost" for nothing.

Rest assured, you are not in the minority of blacktail hunter's, you are part of the majority, and that majority contains some great company!!!

Don't get discouraged, closer to Halloween it gets, the better the hunting will get.

Just wish the moon phases looked better.  But I am going back out Sunday afternoon and taking the 30th & 31st off anyway.

That moon phase chart is cool! Not too encouraging...but cool none-the-less!!

[DoubleJ]

You sit on a spot and you see nothing cause they only come out at night.. you walk through the woods you don't  see anything because they either spook before you get there or they hide and run away after you go by... seems like an impossible task.

Just my

I felt the same when when I started.  The best tactic I ever came up with was to figure out where they were going in the evening and in the morning.  Then beat them there and wait.  But I archery hunt in September when they are still in very defined summer patterns.  Not sure how that relates to this time of year but I know I have put my sons on deer during rifle doing the same thing.  Does want to eat, bucks want does.  Find the does and where they're going and you'll find the bucks

[Rob Allen]

Nothing tonight unless you count ticks..

Back at it in the morning. 

This is only my 3rd year oh hunting so i shouldn't  complain. I am just a results oriented  person it's  hard not to view an unused tag as a failure.
Actually doing this by myself i kinda hope i don't  get an elk. Lol

[JDHasty]

Haha. Its called hunting, not seeing and killing.  Keep at it. Not sure where you are located. Might need to be colder.  Deer will spend more time eating when the weather is colder.  So they will be moving more around sunrise and sunset.

 

I will add...That is why it is called Blacktail Deer hunting!  They have not gotten the nickname "Gray Ghost" for nothing.

Rest assured, you are not in the minority of blacktail hunter's, you are part of the majority, and that majority contains some great company!!!

Don't get discouraged, closer to Halloween it gets, the better the hunting will get.

Just wish the moon phases looked better.  But I am going back out Sunday afternoon and taking the 30th & 31st off anyway.

That moon phase chart is cool! Not too encouraging...but cool none-the-less!!

Don't let it discourage you.  It is just one more thing, not the be all and end all that a lot of guys make them out to be, but they can help you out when trying to get the odds in your favor and are trying to decide which block of time would be best and have to make a choice between opportunities. 

[fishnfur]

I killed my bt buck at 4pm yesterday...

What?  Your camera's broken?? 

[fishnfur]

Haha. Its called hunting, not seeing and killing.  Keep at it. Not sure where you are located. Might need to be colder.  Deer will spend more time eating when the weather is colder.  So they will be moving more around sunrise and sunset.

 

I will add...That is why it is called Blacktail Deer hunting!  They have not gotten the nickname "Gray Ghost" for nothing.

Rest assured, you are not in the minority of blacktail hunter's, you are part of the majority, and that majority contains some great company!!!

Don't get discouraged, closer to Halloween it gets, the better the hunting will get.

Just wish the moon phases looked better.  But I am going back out Sunday afternoon and taking the 30th & 31st off anyway.

That moon phase chart is cool! Not too encouraging...but cool none-the-less!!

Actually, the moon phase is really good for Friday and Saturday.  Deer telemetric studies show that deer move most at first and last light, but with regards to the moon, they move most during the last quarter phase.  Here's the other important "must know" fact regarding buck movement and moon phase (from https://www.qdma.com/10-things-know-mature-buck-movements/) : 

Regardless of moon phase, bucks move most at dawn and dusk. Similarly, in four separate GPS research projects from around the country each found that moon phase had little or no influence on deer movement. Three of these studies dealt directly with bucks and looked at the impact on daily, diurnal, and nocturnal activity; still, deer were crepuscular in every case regardless of moon phase. One project, contrary to popular belief, even found that deer were more active and moved earlier during the day following a full moon. Bottom line: No peer-reviewed scientific data to-date has revealed a correlation between moon phase and breeding dates and/or deer movements. However, numerous studies have shown a correlation between photoperiod (the length of daylight) and breeding dates. You do the math.

[blackveltbowhunter]

   Keep at it!! Lotsa great info, read boyds book if you can. Haugens book isnt bad either.

Stay ready!! A buck can come out of nowhere, and in places you may not expect. Always have your rifle ready.

Besides good rain gear( which you may not need the rest of this season) get a quality headlamp and become accustomed to traveling in the dark. I like at least a hundred lumens, as the majority can be set lower, with a red light option. Weather proof is a must and spare batteries. I also hunt typically hunt blacktails in areas that weight is not a concern and often have a more powerful flashlight as well. Big light is nice if a buck falls in ferns and its pouring out.

  Bucks typically won't go far if bumped if they are in their core or breeding area. Unless very pressured. But they will become more nocturnal. Thus you will have to move in on his core area.  I lightly bumped my buck Saturday on my way in for a morning hunt, in the dark. I killed him less than a hundred yards away with 5 minutes left of legal light at dusk. He had just gotten up from his bed. It pays to move in the dark. Dont be walking to the truck the last half hour. Stay in your spot or still hunt if in a good area. Good optics can help extend this graylight. The graylight at dusk is the pretty much the only time I have ever had bucks 3.5 years or older actually hold in the open outside of the rut. It can make it possible to get a shot off. As I have had them hold for few minutes rather than slipping out immediatley. My theory is they A) have a harder time identifying due to the light, and B) Believe they have cover.

  I am not a BT guru. But I have often felt that hunting for bucks 3.5+ is more of a chess game than anything else. With 5.5 yo bucks being the masters. You need to learn the opponent to beat him, and move to cut him off. That or good old fashioned dumb luck    

[Blacktail Sniper]

Haha. Its called hunting, not seeing and killing.  Keep at it. Not sure where you are located. Might need to be colder.  Deer will spend more time eating when the weather is colder.  So they will be moving more around sunrise and sunset.

 

I will add...That is why it is called Blacktail Deer hunting!  They have not gotten the nickname "Gray Ghost" for nothing.

Rest assured, you are not in the minority of blacktail hunter's, you are part of the majority, and that majority contains some great company!!!

Don't get discouraged, closer to Halloween it gets, the better the hunting will get.

Just wish the moon phases looked better.  But I am going back out Sunday afternoon and taking the 30th & 31st off anyway.

That moon phase chart is cool! Not too encouraging...but cool none-the-less!!

Don't let it discourage you.  It is just one more thing, not the be all and end all that a lot of guys make them out to be, but they can help you out when trying to get the odds in your favor and are trying to decide which block of time would be best and have to make a choice between opportunities.

Oh, absolutely!  Bottom line is be out there looking and there is always a chance. 

[JDHasty]

   Keep at it!! Lotsa great info, read boyds book if you can. Haugens book isnt bad either.

Stay ready!! A buck can come out of nowhere, and in places you may not expect. Always have your rifle ready.

Besides good rain gear( which you may not need the rest of this season) get a quality headlamp and become accustomed to traveling in the dark. I like at least a hundred lumens, as the majority can be set lower, with a red light option. Weather proof is a must and spare batteries. I also hunt typically hunt blacktails in areas that weight is not a concern and often have a more powerful flashlight as well. Big light is nice if a buck falls in ferns and its pouring out.

  Bucks typically won't go far if bumped if they are in their core or breeding area. Unless very pressured. But they will become more nocturnal. Thus you will have to move in on his core area.  I lightly bumped my buck Saturday on my way in for a morning hunt, in the dark. I killed him less than a hundred yards away with 5 minutes left of legal light at dusk. He had just gotten up from his bed. It pays to move in the dark. Dont be walking to the truck the last half hour. Stay in your spot or still hunt if in a good area. Good optics can help extend this graylight. The graylight at dusk is the pretty much the only time I have ever had bucks 3.5 years or older actually hold in the open outside of the rut. It can make it possible to get a shot off. As I have had them hold for few minutes rather than slipping out immediatley. My theory is they A) have a harder time identifying due to the light, and B) Believe they have cover.

  I am not a BT guru. But I have often felt that hunting for bucks 3.5+ is more of a chess game than anything else. With 5.5 yo bucks being the masters. You need to learn the opponent to beat him, and move to cut him off. That or good old fashioned dumb luck

You really have to be observant.  When I first started hunting blackmails, one late season around Thanksgiving I was in my little chair bind and just before the end of shooting hours I noticed a bump on a tree trunk 85 yards away that I was certain was not there before.  I thought: that is either a squirrel or a deer's face.  I put my binocular on it and it was a nice fork horn buck that had I not identified before he finally stepped out I would not have gotten.  I shot right at the last legal minute in a driving rain storm. 

What kills me is how I can not even have fallen asleep in my stand and just shift my eyes and there is a buck right out in the open that wasn't there before. 

One thing to be careful of is when you first see movement in your peripheral vision, move your eyes, then ever so slowly turn your head just enough to see clearly enough to identify what it is, don't turn your head suddenly.   

[fishnfur]

No one talks about this book much, but from a beginner's perspective, it may be one of the best.  A no nonsense, straight forward, often scientific approach to finding a place to hunt and how to go about it.  It has absolutely no information on chasing trophies, but instead discusses the deer's behavior, foods, and several tried and true methods to hunt them. It was written by the (then) Dean of my dental school back a million years ago or so but it is still very relevant.  It's only a hundred or so pages, so it is a quick read, especially if you already know how to field dress a deer, and have all the gear you need.

https://www.amazon.com/Hunting-Black-Tailed-Deer-Oregon-Perspective/dp/1878175181

[Jpmiller]

I always find the more I look at deer the more I see deer. Even if it's just driving roads through hay fields in summer evenings I feel like my eyes get trained to spot game. When I have the opportunity to see deer or elk year round I can pick them out much easier and more often.

I also try to constantly think about how many animals are seeing me that I am not seeing. Then I try to slow it down even more and look even closer. I more often than not can find something on the way to my "spot".

[Molon5labe]

I killed my bt buck at 4pm yesterday...

What?  Your camera's broken?? 

I've got a pic, but it's nothing fancy. It's the first legal deer this season and im not a gambling man. It's just a spike. But my point is they can and will be out even when you think they won't. I was looking for a good spot to sit until dark but I happened to spot him. I had scanned the cut several times over before he appeared seemingly out of nowhere. After I was able to sneak closer to confirm antlers I couldn't find him but he was bedded down right where I had spotted him. SLOW down and glass!