Mule Deer: Deer Drives Part 2

Thinking Like a Deer
Dennis Wintch

Patience, persistence, and knowledge – these are three awesome words that every great hunter must have woven into their very body fiber. These three words, to me, make up a man or woman and what they can become. They will determine the level of success you can achieve for your whole lifetime in the hunting world. If you focus on these three words and try to add them to your hunting skills, you will always be on the cutting edge of great hunting and will soon be known as one of those lucky hunters. Lose sight of these three words and, after only three days of hard hunting, you will end up seeing nothing and most likely go away discouraged. You must at all times and at all costs, no matter what, learn to stay focused.

Now, I believe that of these three great words, knowledge is by far the best of the best to have in your little black book of ‘how to and how not to.’ For the most part, it will take a lifetime of failures and successes to achieve. You can, for example, be the most patient man in the world when it comes to sitting in a tree stand or on a rock, but if you never use knowledge to get you in the right tree or on the right rock you, my friend, will most likely only get a cold, tired butt. Also, you can be the most persistent woman hunter ever (always out there, first one up, last one to say uncle, etc.), but without the knowledge of knowing where to walk, when to run, when to sneak, when to look up, look down, whether to turn right or left or stop altogether, you will not be as successful. You need to keep track of the wind, never lose your advantage point, and know when it’s a waste of time to walk all the way to the bottom of the ravine or canyon….I could list a hundred other things you need to keep in mind. Without knowledge, you must always rely on luck and I would tell you all who only rely on luck that you will make a poor hunter at best. You must get past the word ‘Lucky’ and come to know all the things that make a good hunter lucky (successful) every year! There have been more big bucks killed running away from Joe and into Fred on the next ridge than any other way. Being in the right place at the right time is a big must if you wish to be consistent in killing a ‘Mr. Big.’ Here again, it is your brainpower or knowledge that puts you there. You can’t afford to be a slow learner - tags are costly, hard to come by and you are getting older each year. So, let’s take a closer look. Let’s look a little deeper into how to make successful drives.

1) It will, for the most part, take three years of hunting the same spot to start figuring out the do’s and don’ts of where to sit during a drive. The walkers need to figure out where they need to walk so they can successfully push the deer to the sitter. As a hunter, you also need to know what time of day is the best time for that particular spot. It will take much longer than three years if you don’t think, be observant of your surroundings, check out the deer tracks and notice where they are coming and going and take note of what went wrong on that drive or what worked and why. How many times has a big buck jumped up and only given you one quick shot - or no shot at all? How many times have you wished you had been at a particular spot when that buck ran through the trees, or watched two big bucks run up a mountainside 200 yards away and wished you were on that ridge? Well, what I am saying is, next time be there!

2) Never try to push a big buck where he doesn’t want to go. You must always try to figure out the best place to be so that you can get the shot that will raise your odds of getting ‘Mr. Big.’ Let him go where he wants to go - not where you want him to go.

3) Never waste time walking or making a drive where there is nothing in your favor.

4) Don’t try to push a big buck too far. Keep all your drives short and sweet if you can. The further you try to push a buck, the greater your chances of something going wrong increase. You can’t give him too many options to get away from you.

5) Always use land layouts to decide where to start your drive and where to finish it.

6) Never underestimate how far a big buck can run in only a few minutes. Always give the sitter plenty of time to get into place before you start the drive. My formula on how fast a big buck can move over the ground is 5 to 30 - that is to say that a buck can cover as much distance in five minutes as it took you thirty minutes to cover. However, this is variable depending on how rough the terrain is.

7) Never underestimate how good a big mule deer’s hearing is. Those big nine-inch ears are not just Christmas ornaments. They are a buck’s number one source of protection. Don’t talk loud when making your plans. The sitter must always slip quietly into his spot. Never use a radio to tell everybody that you are in place and ready to start the drive. If you do, it’s a good bet you just told old ‘Mr. Big’ you are there too.

Never sit where you can be seen or your outline can be picked out if ‘Mr. Big’ comes your way.

9) The walkers must try to stay in a straight line as they walk. Try to keep each other in sight. If someone has to go around, down, or over
some obstacle, wait for everyone to catch up and then continue your drive. Patience, my friend, patience.

10) As a walker, you must always keep in mind where your sitter is because that is where you want ‘Mr. Big’ to run. So, if you see a fresh track and he has gone to the left, back up and go around to try to push him back to the sitter. If you happen to jump a big buck in thick trees, make lots of noise. Hopefully this will make him nervous and he might make a big mistake and run straight to a shooter without thinking.

11) A sitter must never get bored and quit looking. You must always be on 110% alert. About 80% of the time if old ‘Mr. Big’ is killed, you are the one who will do it. So, don’t ever quit until the drive is completed and then some. Stay alert, eye of the tiger, no picking your nose or drawing lines.

12) Never get down or get discouraged because the last five drives produced nothing. Number six could be the lucky one where old ‘Mr. Big’ will run right to you and make you the happiest person in the world.

13) If you jump a big buck or see one that you have no chance of killing, shoot a shot off anyway. There is nothing I know of that puts everyone on high alert faster than a gunshot. Maybe someone else can move to, run to, or get to a different spot and be lucky enough to see him, knowing where you are at, and shoot him.

I hope these suggestions give all of you just a little more knowledge on how to make a successful drive. I know drives are not for everyone and they can’t be used in every situation but, when and where a drive is possible, I know they can work really well for you. A drive, for the most part, can help you see a deer that is lying down or is in thicker terrain. Hopefully it will up your odds of getting a shot at a big buck. Because of drives, I have been able to see and kill more big bucks in my lifetime of hunting. They have always worked well for me and hopefully they will work well for you. Keep the wind in your face and may patience, persistence, and knowledge always be a part of your every hunt.

Tags: Dennis Wintch, HI33, mule deer

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