It all started (innocently, I should add) when dad and I were taking our deer to the butcher. When we walked into the front section of his ‘processing’ facility, I noticed some large deer heads mounted to the wall. I pointed at the biggest deer and asked where that one was shot. To my amazement, the butcher/hunter said he got it here on his farm. I was amazed because his farm is a very short distance from my own home. While the butcher told me the rest of the story, a small little dog ran between my ankles and on to the lap of a sitting women. I took a quick look down at the brief distraction at my feet and then, returned my attention to the final moments of the butcher’s deer story. He finished by saying,

“…and there is another one just like him running around your house.”

At that point, the lady on the chair said,

“His name is Thor.”

I thought to myself that is a great name for a monster buck and I began to think of ways that I might be able to catch-up with Thor during the final weeks of the 2008 deer hunt.

Then, the lady said,

“If you happen to see Thor running out by your place…

I finished her statement by saying,

“I’ll be sure to fire a ‘volley’ at him if it’s still hunting season!”

The lady was taken back by what I had just said as she cuddled her little dog closer to her chest. The dog barked, wagged his tail and ran off out the door. Fortunately, she laughed and smiled at me as she yelled to her dog,

“Don’t go too far Thor.”

Silent Sentry at the Cedar Posts

That being said, big bucks still frequent its silent gaze…

Day 1 (Monday)
The frosty, cold morning provided dad a glimpse of a couple of moose and a noisy encounter with some grunting bucks that were just out of sight.

Our afternoon watches were the most productive. Kyle saw 4 deer while ground blind hunting on a hardwood ridge. None of them were shooters. I scared 3 deer away from my evening tree stand by taking that crucial first step onto the tree-stand’s ladder.  Size and gender were difficult to distinguish. No shots fired

There was some laughter at the supper table tonight. The reason is worth sharing here. The humorous story occurred while eating cereal before a morning hunt three years ago. By the time the last person had poured milk on their cereal, they noticed that there were three dead mice in the milk bag.

We think they were planted by PETA – but we have no proof.

No sign of the ‘big guy’ yet.

Day 2 (Tuesday)

A beautiful day led to a crispy, could night watch. The quiet forest shared no secrets except for two moose that dad saw again and 2 deer that Kyle watched for a few moments.

Dad and Kevin Heading Back To Camp

Day 4 (Thursday)
On my way to my treestand tonight, a cow and calf moose watched me take the memory card out of my trail cam. It was almost like they knew that deer were the platter of choice this week. Some time into my tree stand vigil, something spooked and ran ‘dead down wind’ from my stand. I never got to see what it was.

Kyle saw two fawns on Heartbreak Ridge. This was the sloped ridge where he got his first ‘crack’ at the Brow Tine Buck. His guest of honour never showed.

Howie spooked an unknown deer not far from his watch while attempting to move around a chain gate.

No bucks down yet.

Kyle's Brow Tine Buck seen last week

Day 5 (Friday)

A minor blast of winter overnight created some snowy conditions for us this morning. The north wind easily chilled our hunting party while we were at our watches. There were no sighting this morning – despite a frosty night.

We are noticing the frequency of scrapes increasing as the week progresses. Howie exchanged buck grunts with an unseen deer about 6 pm. Perhaps the rut will be here soon.

Our window of opportunity is almost over as tomorrow is our last full day of hunting.

Dad's snowy approach to my location

We were trying to determine if the game came picture, that was taken north of the ‘Moose Bones’ deer watch, held the image of a new buck in town.

The ten-pointer (photo right) has been classified as ABI (A Buck of Interest) and we are planning to intercept as the hunting week begins tomorrow. The op has been called ‘Buck Down’. I will be trying to blog (and tweet) each evening from our deer camp. Consider logging on and reading about our adventures as the week moves on.

The only hitch to Operation: Buck Down is that I managed to burn my index (and trigger) finger on the woodstove door. A significant blister will make using my bow impossible and my firearm painful.

Worth it.

This blogger has been fortunate enough to enter the forest realm of these game birds twice this fall. Both trips have proven that the grouse still has a significant home-field advantage. A third, upcoming, trip could prove to be the end of the bird’s current advantage.

I will be armed with these ‘unofficial’ tenets of grouse hunting:

1. Where there is one grouse, there is more. Do not get frustrated when you scare one grouse out of cover. Shoulder your shotgun and scan the tree (or ground cover) it flew out of. Chances are there is another bird waiting and watching for you to make the next move.

2. Grouse can be bunkered when wet. Not sure where to start your hunt? Look low and under evergreens when hunting for grouse in inclement or cloudy weather. The branches offer protection and dry hiding spots.

3. Grouse can be sun strutters and roosters. On my last grouse hunt, the grouse were invisible until the clouds rolled out and sunny skies moved in. This was when we caught glimpses of them strutting across logging roads or roosting in sun-kissed hardwood branches.

4. Grouse have cloaking technology. When you see a grouse walking into cover, time becomes limited for the hunter. The moment you are sure of your target and what is beyond, waste little time pulling the trigger. Waiting gives the stealthy chickens time to spool up their forest-cloaks hyperdrives and the bird you thought would materialize on the other side of the log will have vanished.

5. Grouse will fly erratically into thick cover. Unless you are hunting grouse along the tree lines of large fields, expect a spooked grouse to fly in a way that makes it difficult to anticipate much lead time. Tree branches will snap, crackle and pop when a grouse flies through them to evade your shotgun’s bead. Try to get them on the ground before they launch.

6. Grouse react to a hunter’s stop. If you see a grouse on the ground, resist the urge to stop, look and raise your gun. Instead (with practice) be fluid in raising your gun while walking and stopping only to aim your bead at the bird’s feathered body. It has been my experience that the grouse become more alarmed by becoming motionless when you suddenly stop and prepare your shot. They will wait until you begin to raise your gun to take off for a more difficult shot.

A cloaked grouse

* My tenets are only generalizations. Tenets may vary in your area

Its silent melody is hard to resist.

Many times I have tried to ignore its charms, and many times the angle of the sun and the comfort of the maple backrest have ushered me into a dreamy slumber. I know I am not the only one.

One particular time, while I was under the influence of ‘The Knob’s enticing song, I awoke to the sound of twigs snapping not far from my feet. When the fog of sleep cleared, I was nearly face to face with two does within a few feet of my boots. The maple tree backdrop hid my presence. Apparently, ‘The Knob’ can mysteriously impact wind conditions because the deer had NO idea I was there!

After several, quick standing attempts and 1 empty magazine, the deer bounced away from ‘The Knob’s’ invisible tendrils without a scratch. I was left standing in the mid-day sun contemplating my next move.

At that moment, ‘The Knob’s’ silent, sleepy song rang out again across the sun-kissed hardwoods. I joined in somewhere on the third verse with a loud snoring refrain.

This was not to be the last time I did something like this. You should probably read my adventure from ‘The Throne” – another great deer watch…

Muskoka Doe used with Permission - by Dave McDougall