The SHNF is a very tough place to hunt, but thrilling as you are seated with a rage blade notched in your noc of your bow awaiting the elusive whitetail to emerge and to see one of the many creations of gracefulness and beauty that our Lord created. On these hunts, I'm reminded of the Psalmist, David, who wrote in Psalms 42:1 "As the deer pants for the water brooks, so pants my soul for You, O God."

This was my first year to bow hunt the correct way and I owe many thanks to my good friends Tim and Marty who taught me the basics and nuances of how to bow hunt. Though I did not bag a deer, I saw more deer during October than I have ever seen in my life during hunting trips and got closer to them than I could have ever imagined.

One morning, I had a young doe walk in directly behind me at shooting light. She eventually walked directly beneath my tree stand and rubbed her head on the metal support tongue between the tree and ladder. After that, she took her time circling away from me out to about 14 yards and gave me a perfect broad side shot. Though it was legal shooting light, I was not able to see the small oak branches and leaves between me and her through my peep sight and the arrow deflected over her back and she ran off safely untouched! The personality of the deer touched me so much in comical fashion, I was glad I missed that one.

Having said that, I learned another important thing about the whitetail. They are unpredictable, even when you think you can predict them. On other morning's, I was set up in areas based on their previous movement of where I thought I would have easy shots. I shoot to the left so I positioned my stand in this area that way.

On two successive weekends, I had deer come out to my right, both bucks. Last Saturday, I had an eight point come out from my right at an angle and I could only see one side of its rack. It appeared to be a young deer because its rack was pencil like rather than thick like mature deer so I wasn't sure if it was a 13 inch rack (legal deer) or not and initially decided in my mind to pass on it and just watch it. Then I went ahead and attempted to clip my release onto my noc and because I was wearing thick gloves for the first time bow hunting (40 degrees that morning), I was not used to the feel and my release slipped to lock onto the noc and made a louder than normal clicking sound and the buck stopped dead in its tracks with a perfect broadside shot that I ranged at 19 yards. The problem was I had an oak branch with lots of leaves to my right, and remember, I wasn't sure if it was a legal deer and I had to sneak and spin to the right in order to shoot him if was turned out to be legal.

So, after about 5 minutes of the buck trying to see where the clicking sound came from, he was still frozen like a statue and seeing the body perfectly and in the kill zone, I snuck my head down below the branch so I could see if his rack spanned out past his ears and he must have saw the reflection off my glasses because he calmly turned around the way he came in and left. I don't think he was legal because as he left the other side of his rack seemed to be just inside his left ear so he will be a good for next year.

This Friday, the last day of bow season. I got to have another close encounter of another kind. While my good friend Marty (the guy that looks like he escaped from Huntsville State Prison in the doe photo's of Mr. Tim), was seated to the North of me about 60 yards in an oak tree, to watch an area I had seen 5 days the previous weekend after witnessing the eight pointer on my right. Nothing was moving that morning, resultant of the bright overhead moon, so after 9 am I began grunting and rattling with the new Academy plastic small thingy. I did that off and on for about 15 minutes and stopped. 5 minutes later, I had a small 5 pointer come out of the same direction of the 8 pointer from the previous week, right up to my stand and stood about 6 yards to my right!!!! Wow, talk about close encounters!!  He medaling around and then walked about 15 yards away from me, too small to shoot, rack was not outside ears and I wouldn't have taken him anyway, he was a very young deer. He walked over to Marty and licked on a branch, then did a slow turn around and circles away from us. For some reason, my buddy Marty never saw him come up to him!! Marty was looking away from where he came in. That begs the question, how many deer come by us up close that we never see or know were there?? The mystique of the whitetail!

One last note in my long-winded list of stories. This is just good FYI for everyone to know. Let me preference it by saying I have nothing against Primo’s. I spend about $45 on several bottles of a scent killer product called  "Silver." According to a guy at Bass Pro shop, it was supposed to be the best thing on the Market. He's wrong!! On two different hunts, I had deer wind me with the stuff on. I noticed that Silver has an odor, unlike some of the other products and I personally think it spooks deer because it's something they are not used to smelling.

Anyway, wearing the Scent Kill (99 percent) product, I had deer come as close as 5 yards to me with the wind blowing right in their nose and they never knew I was there. Just an FYI for all you fellow hunters, not an advertisement, just fact.

Remember during rifle season out in the SHNF these things please: let's all (including me) work together to have safe, enjoyable hunts. Deer don't wear hunter's orange so be sure of what you are aiming at. Be courteous to other hunters and try to educate new SHNF hunters on the rules and regulations concerning the 13" rule, hunter's orange, the 72 hour stand rule, and no baiting of any kind.

Have a safe enjoyable hunt and good luck to all!