Buck hung up in the thicket

[RipperIII]

Had an interesting hunt Yesterday morning.
Slipped into a hdw draw where it was raining acorns.
Historically a great spot this time of year...but this year very few pics and not as much sign as normal.
Around 8 a.m. had a mature doe trot into the draw from a thicket, she wasn't running, just sorta trotting ...about 20 yds behind her came a nice looking young spike with love on his mind.
The doe outpaced him into thick planted pine to my right.
20 minutes later a good looking 8 zigzagged his way along their route, moving through a scrape on his way past me and into those pines.
I had made a few bleat calls after the doe had past me...and I assume that the 8 had heard them and came out to pick up her trail.
About 30 minutes go by and I bleat again.
I heard a deep buck grunt in those pines to my right...and very close to me, probably ly 20yds or less.

I bleated once more, the buck began a series of deep guttural grunts...I switched to a buck grunt...and the buck grunted more...not a challenge, and not really a tending grunt...but he kept gruunting.
I went quiet.
I could tell by the sound of his grunts that he had turned and was moving away...I stayed quiet looking for him to emerge ...he never did.

Should I have challenged him with a snort wheeze?

It felt like Turkey hunting with a stuck goobler.

...or maybe he found the doe...I could hear movement in the pines.

I stayed quiet for another 20 minutes or so then bleated again.
A few minutes later that 8 came slipping in from those pines very cautiously scanning the draw as he crossed.

I think he ran into the bigger buck and possibly the doe...
What say ya'll?

 

[ryanh487]

3 long aggressive grunts and a snort wheeze has worked for me before. But I've also been ignored before. If he knows he's not the big boy on the block/ has already been whooped recently he might sneak off.

 

[Jdmb123]

sounds like you needed a lane there, and not a magical cadence if it was only 20 yards away. With ducks, turkey, and deer less calling is generally more. Grab the pole saw.

I’ve sat 7 times in the last 6 days and have heard grunts every sit. The interesting thing is the most aggressive ones have been the youngest bucks thus far. It’s nice to fantasize the one you didn’t see grunting was a giant, but from my experience this week it was just the little’uns

 

[treemanjohn]

Wait him out he'll always be there if he's not pressured. If you blow your cover he's gone

 

[Whit90]

Being so close, he may have not showed himself because he knew he should be able to see the deer that was grunting back at him. Just a thought.

 

[wildcats]

I think less is more from what you described. He knew something wasn't quite right. He couldn't put eyes on what he was hearing and he said "yeah time to ease on out". Doesn't sound like he was too spooked. Just uneasy. Had you been too aggressive with calling he may have been able to pinpoint you and then he probably would have hauled out.
Playing out like it did, he'll be back.

 

[RipperIII]

I think less is more from what you described. He knew something wasn't quite right. He couldn't put eyes on what he was hearing and he said "yeah time to ease on out". Doesn't sound like he was too spooked. Just uneasy. Had you been too aggressive with calling he may have been able to pinpoint you and then he probably would have hauled out.
Playing out like it did, he'll be back.

That was sorta my thinking

 

[RipperIII]

sounds like you needed a lane there, and not a magical cadence if it was only 20 yards away. With ducks, turkey, and deer less calling is generally more. Grab the pole saw.

I’ve sat 7 times in the last 6 days and have heard grunts every sit. The interesting thing is the most aggressive ones have been the youngest bucks thus far. It’s nice to fantasize the one you didn’t see grunting was a giant, but from my experience this week it was just the little’uns

Maybe so,...but this grunt was a deep low grunt, not the usual higher pitched nasally grunt from younger bucks.
There is a nice 3-4 year old buck in the area, not sure that this was him. Lanes are a good idea, but this was to my right and behind me as well as uphill...putting him almost at my stand height.

But yes, it is nice to fantasize

 

[sleepr71]

Had that happen once. I had the wind in my favor & they were in a jungle of a Clearcut,chasing..not 50 yds away. I grunted & it was ignored. He had what he wanted in that Clearcut! I got down..ran around my stand.. kicking leaves & making a ruckus..even broke a couple of small branches,then grunted..while hauling butt back into my ladder stand. 5 minutes later…a buck that I had hunted for 4 years came sneaking out of that Clearcut,about 20 yds from me! First time ever seeing him in daylight.! Took him 30 minutes to exit that Clearcut to the point I had a shot…he knew where he heard that other buck..but couldn’t find him. I tell ya..it was nail biting & praying the wind didn’t change the entire time.! It was an aggressive move,I knew they couldn’t see me & I had the wind. It paid off. Sometimes ya just gotta go for it…

 

[bfriendly]

I certainly don’t know, but that snort wheeze may have worked. I’d keep it on the ready.
That said, I’m with @Whit90 . That close, the deer knows he should see the other one unless it’s real thick!

 

[sleepr71]

Sometimes ya gotta roll the dice during the rut! It may be a deer from miles away that you’ve never seen before, or it might be a deer that you’ve been hunting for years… Just never had a chance at..and May never again. During the rut, I don’t think they’ll spook away, off the property like they would other times of the year. Especially with a Doe leading them around. This guy was totally Nocturnal..based on trail cam pics for years. Never a daylight pic. Right place,right time..and I painted him the picture of coming home to another man..in his bedroom..

 

[bowandgun]

Don't worry, you did nothing wrong. Deer are individuals and each behave differently. He is more than likely still in the area and not spooked. Give it a go next chance you get and don't worry about over hunting, but take precation with your scent. Scent will chase more deer away. Try doe grunts or non aggressive calling, first. Good luck and let us know

 

[James12]

Snort wheeze if it’s the dominant buck. They can’t say no.

 

[Long Cut]

I grunted in a cruising buck at last light 2 weeks back. Saw him 60-70 yards out, hit the grunt tube once and he turned on a dime.

Catch is the brush was 3-6’ tall between us and I had thick pines behind me, so he wasn’t able to look and see what made the grunt.

I unfortunately missed him at 24 yards with my bow. Last 4 minutes of light and shooting a compound is tough love. Regardless, I was able to grunt in a mature buck.

IMO as others stated, less is more calling wise and you NEED a Visual & Wind advantage. If he can see/smell where you’re at, you’re better off waiting until he leaves.

 

[chrislibby88]

So he was in the same thicket that the hot doe went into? Probably not much you could do to bring him out other than having live decoy doe in estrus tied up in front of you.

I had a decent buck, nothing crazy, but I wanted to shoot him, come through last year right at this time chasing a doe about 75 yards away. It was too thick between us for a shot, and I used the only lane I had to check his headgear while he was moving. I grunted to no effect, then snort wheezed. The combo brought him up much closer, but still too much brush for a shot. He then hopped the property line fence, went about 20 yards into a perfect opening and stopped looking straight at me trying to see the buck he heard. Of course he was off my property, so I just watched him through the scope.

Part of the issue that day was he could see my location pretty well. He looked from where he was and couldn’t see a deer. I think calling works best when you are buried in a thicket, or at least thick brush at deer level, so they have to come in close for a look. A snort wheeze may have worked for you that day, but I’m guessing he would have came just close enough inside the thicket to see where the sound came from, or he may have been too occupied with the hot lady to even care.