How to exit stand when deer are close?
Contributors to this thread:Whitetail Deer
From: N8tureBoy
24-Oct-20
Legal shooting ends at sunset where I hunt, so there is still about 30 min of light left. How do you exit your tree stand when there are deer under your stand or close by without educating them about your presence? Do you have a better way than just waiting until after it is totally dark out? Assume it is not a farm area where a friend can drive by with a tractor or ATV to scatter them.
From: petedrummond
24-Oct-20
A meow and a hiss sends them packing
From: t-roy
24-Oct-20
A few coyote howls usually do the trick or me. They’re used to hearing coyotes regularly, so I don’t think it educates them to it.
From: IdyllwildArcher
24-Oct-20
Zip line
From: Mpdh
24-Oct-20
Drop your bow down and shake it around in the leaves or brush. You don’t want them to see you leaving the stand.
From: Pete-pec
24-Oct-20
I too, do a few coyote yips. They still smell your ground scent, so it's limited in how well it works on multiple attempts.
From: M.Pauls
24-Oct-20
I like the zip line idea, although the bow russling sounds a little more realistic. I’ve done that in a pinch. But I rarely hunt destination places anymore as it just seems to screw places up long term. I’d rather hunt a travel corridor, and hunt smaller odds but keep deer in the natural state. If you have deer under or around your stand in a travel corridor, just wait them out. Usually isn’t long until they’ve moved on, but I have stayed on stand for up to an hour after legal to ensure a target buck has moved on. In the rut I’ll get more aggressive and hunt destinations like food sources as I think you can get away with a lot more, and then it’ll cool off for a year before hunting again.
From: JL
24-Oct-20
I knew some guys who hunt in pairs and one would walk by his buddies stand on the way out to push the deer away from his buddies stand. I've played with lasers pointers before hunting hogs in an ag field at night. You want to get the deer off the field without alerting the hogs in the area. We would point the laser at the deer's eyes and they trot off. Would it work out of a treestand...I don't know but it maybe worth a try. I rarely stay in the stand till dark. I don't like getting stuck if a doe comes by and blowing the set up. I'd rather sneak out when no deer are around and protect the set up.
From: Dale06
24-Oct-20
This may not work in many cases. I hunt from ground blinds a lot. I set out an electronic predator call 30-50 yards from my blind. When it’s time to leave, if there’s deer nearby, I use the remote and hit a coyote howl and or barking and that clears the deer from the area.
From: Catscratch
24-Oct-20
I used to have that problem and burned out a lot of stands. I quit putting myself in that situation. Don't hunt where deer congregate; no bait, no plots, no ag. Hunt trails well away from night food sources. Deer walk through and give the same shots but don't stay and pin ya down.
From: Scrappy
24-Oct-20
Shoot one
From: IdyllwildArcher
24-Oct-20
Good one Scrappy. That seems to clear them out too.
From: cnelk
24-Oct-20
My hunting buddy in Minnesota stays all night in his stands. No busting them out at night or in the morning. Of course its an elevated box blind, big enough to lay down
From: Thornton
24-Oct-20
I've had them continue feeding and completely ignore coyote howls. Last year on opening day, I had 2, 3 year old bucks feeding directly under my tree. They wouldn't leave, it was dark, and I was ready to get home due to the mosquitoes so I started rustling tree limbs and scratching the trunk like a big coon. It worked. They got nervous and sauntered off.
From: esean
25-Oct-20
If you have a backpack, toss it at them, although sometimes they just stand there and look at it. How about keeping some cordage tied to a nearby bush and giving it a few pulls? I know deer are supposed to have good night vision, but on multiple occasions I've had deer just stand there within 15 yds as I climbed down and walked out once it was completely dark. One day I had 4 does and fawns ~30 yds away watch me climb into my stand in broad daylight, then come over 15 min later and bed down around the stand. That stand was close to the house, so I guess they were used to seeing me in the woods so much they didn't consider me a threat.
From: LINK
25-Oct-20
I just let it get dark. Like others have said, sometimes I’ve climbed down an hour after losing shooting light.
From: ahunter76
25-Oct-20
I pitch my rattle horns onto the ground & if that doesn't work I lower my pack & shake it around on the ground. If they are real close they usually leave.
From: skookumjt
25-Oct-20
Letting it get dark doesn't really do any good. Deer can see in the dark. I usually just lower my bow down or drop something that is large enough to make a noticeable noise.
From: sticksender
25-Oct-20
Where I'm at, deer behave as if they have poor night vision, at least when it's near totally dark. They let me pass by if I'm quiet and steadily-moving. But if there's any kind of moon or other ambient light they'll easily spot me walking, and run off snorting. If I'm pinned in a tree past dark with deer below, I'll sometimes blast them with a flashlight. They seem to have no idea what it is, and don't get alarmed. They usually just stare at first, then eventually move off slowly.
From: Highlife
25-Oct-20
I find letting out a loud Tarzan yell as I leap out of the tree works. Usually in the morning there's one or two still rolling on the ground laughing so I sneak over and put a rage in the cage with my crossbow.
From: Candor
26-Oct-20
In the woods I have found that most things I do to run them off results in them running off 20-40 yards and then being keenly tuned in to see if there is actually a coyote in the tree or how their cousin is up in the tree blowing at them.
From: Candor
26-Oct-20
In the woods I have found that most things I do to run them off results in them running off 20-40 yards and then being keenly tuned in to see if there is actually a coyote in the tree or how their cousin is up in the tree blowing at them.
From: Boatman71
27-Oct-20
Squall like a Yeti! They wont want to get eaten by bigfoot!!!
From: Wild Bill
27-Oct-20
I haven't had that problem lately, but when I did, I barked like a dog. Deer associate dogs with humans so any human smell left as you leave is acceptable. Of course, they might wonder where the dog was, ya think so?
From: firstblood
27-Oct-20
Carry a fold up sling shot like a wrist rocket with a small bag of pebbles or steel balls. Just the snap of it going off usually works. Shoot it toward them, or into the trees near them.
From: Tracker
27-Oct-20
I have a small mess bag with bells in it. I throw it out of the tree. In a couple permanent stands I have hung them on a string at the base of the tree.
From: Gman1
29-Oct-20
I bark like a beagle and the deer run. I don't ever let the deer see me climb down.
From: caribou77
29-Oct-20
Where we hunt in Iowa everything is small patches of timber. We hunt where they feed every night. If we get stuck on stand or whenever possible I call my dad or brother who drives the truck to the base of the tree. They come back like nothing ever happened as soon as you leave. Works very very well but not always practical for everyone.
