Bayou Bucks Magazine — June 2012
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Words With Warren
Warren Womack, of Clinton, Louisiana, killed his first deer in 1968, and since that time has amassed an astounding total of 365 recovered deer kills; 175 by compound bow; 96 by traditional bow, and 94 by gun. Adamant about hunting active feed trees, Womack has kept full records for all of his several thousand hunts, and correlates much of his success to relentless scouting and a thorough understanding of the moon’s influence on deer movement.
Questions for Warren can be sent to Warren@BayouBucks.com
When I first started bow hunting, I developed a technique for spot and stalk deer hunting that sometimes made it possible to get within bow range of a deer.
After spotting a deer, before it discovered my presence, I would drop down and put the stems of a few leaves in my mouth and several between my fingers before beginning the stalk. Normally during a stalk, sooner or later the deer will notice movement and become alert.
Being downwind of a deer, it’s unable to smell me. While standing still and wearing camouflage, I’m not a visual threat. Still, the deer was alerted by my previous movement. To divert a deer’s attention from me, I would release a leaf. As the leaf floats to the ground, a deer will lock in on that movement. Being satisfied that the initial movement was just a leaf, it believes it has no reason for alarm. In most cases, a deer will flick its tail and return to browsing or picking up acorns. When it does, I would continue my stalk until it again notices my movement. Like the first time, I would freeze and drop another leaf. I’ll continue this process as many times as It takes to get within bow range. Like a lot of things that we try, it doesn’t work every time. However, the times that it does are very rewarding.
Once during a preseason scouting trip, I showed a friend how I did this. With both of us dropping leaves as we advanced, single file, we managed to get inside within 10 yards of a doe and her fawn. We were on a wooded ridge with no ground cover and had started the stalk from at least 200 yards away.
Later, after I learned the value of locating and hunting primary feed trees, I quit slipping and started running. I figured that the more trees that I checked, the better my chances were of finding a primary tree for a high percentage hunt. Indeed, spot and stalk hunting is a low percentage game. Still, the next time you see a deer and the conditions are right, remember this little trick. Hopefully it will work for you, too.
– Warren Womack
Questions for Warren can be sent to Warren@BayouBucks.com
When I first started bow hunting, I developed a technique for spot and stalk deer hunting that sometimes made it possible to get within bow range of a deer.
After spotting a deer, before it discovered my presence, I would drop down and put the stems of a few leaves in my mouth and several between my fingers before beginning the stalk. Normally during a stalk, sooner or later the deer will notice movement and become alert.
Being downwind of a deer, it’s unable to smell me. While standing still and wearing camouflage, I’m not a visual threat. Still, the deer was alerted by my previous movement. To divert a deer’s attention from me, I would release a leaf. As the leaf floats to the ground, a deer will lock in on that movement. Being satisfied that the initial movement was just a leaf, it believes it has no reason for alarm. In most cases, a deer will flick its tail and return to browsing or picking up acorns. When it does, I would continue my stalk until it again notices my movement. Like the first time, I would freeze and drop another leaf. I’ll continue this process as many times as It takes to get within bow range. Like a lot of things that we try, it doesn’t work every time. However, the times that it does are very rewarding.
Once during a preseason scouting trip, I showed a friend how I did this. With both of us dropping leaves as we advanced, single file, we managed to get inside within 10 yards of a doe and her fawn. We were on a wooded ridge with no ground cover and had started the stalk from at least 200 yards away.
Later, after I learned the value of locating and hunting primary feed trees, I quit slipping and started running. I figured that the more trees that I checked, the better my chances were of finding a primary tree for a high percentage hunt. Indeed, spot and stalk hunting is a low percentage game. Still, the next time you see a deer and the conditions are right, remember this little trick. Hopefully it will work for you, too.
– Warren Womack
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