It’s Time! As daylight begins it’s earthly turn toward fall, scientists say, the tiny pineal gland in the whitetail bucks brain signals with hormones to end blood flow to the velvet on antlers. And the beginning of a bucks increasing desire to fight off other bucks and mate with a receptive doe.

As blood dries up in deer antlers, the velvet dries and begins to peel off and the antler hardens as the weeks progress to October. Bucks join in rubbing off remaining velvet and seek other bachelor bucks to joust with. Just weeks away, does will come into estrus and may be receptive for mating.

Years back in late October, I was bowhunting in Pennsylvania, I was in my treestand and below me does were feeding in late afternoon. Suddenly, an impressive plump 8 point bucks shows up, his fur glistened in the afternoon sun.

The does, not yet receptive seem nervous. He steps among them smelling the air. He approaches one young doe from the rear but she hops forward and away.

He follows.

She mingles with other does and again he follows. Feeling harassed she darts away weaving among other deer. What a show, I thought as the chase was on.

I grunted from my stand hoping against hope the buck might come close. He was so focused on that doe, that I could’ve blown a trumpet, and he’d never hear it.

Again she weaved and lurched left.  Like a cutting horse he wheeled left. The panicked doe lurched right, again the buck wheeled, like a cutting horse, to cut off her exit.

I became frustrated not being able to take a shot, I grunted from my stand hoping for them to head my way. Crazy as it seems, the doe ran into thick brush under my stand,  weaving easily. The buck followed but due to heavy brush his antlers got hung up. I thought, Here’s my chance. I came to full draw and looked for an opening. The bucks chest, quartering toward me, was covered in overhanging branches. Still looking for a hole to thread my arrow, the buck looked up and saw me move. Still at full draw the buck backed out of the tangle.

I had no shot, thus I let down my draw.

The little doe now a hundred yards ahead in the hard woods. The buck slipped to my left and entered into the hardwood, still in pursuit. My hunt ended but the scene I encountered plays over and over in my mind. I was pleased that I did not attempt a shot. The angle was wrong, and the brush would have likely deflected the arrow. Pleased with my decision, I watched that handsome buck melt into the forest. Pleased that I let him walk to hunt him again. 

That’s Hunting