Deer hunting may not share the same spear hunting tradition of hog hunting, but deer hunting itself is an ancient tradition. American whitetail is one of the most popular animals to hunt in the United States. Once spear hunting experienced resurgence with men like Gene Morris leading the way, spear hunting deer quickly became popular.
There are a lot of differences between hunting deer and hog. It’s difficult to declare which is more difficult to hunt. Each present their own challenges and each require different skills. Spear hunting hogs introduces a certain element of danger due to the hog’s aggression and ability to rip and tear. However, deer are a bit more clever, a bit more cautious, and more difficult to find.
If you are looking to spear hunt deer you’ll have to understand your prey, understand their abilities, their senses, and their habits. Deer hunting requires a lot of patience and the hunter needs to be clever and prepared both mentally and physically to hunt deer.
Deer Senses
The deer has an excellent sense of smell, and nothing smells less like nature than you. We live in a world of perfumes, and they all easily give away that you aren’t a natural critter. Deer are very sensitive to smell, and use it to effectively differentiate between threats and everything else. A deer has about 20 times the sense of smell than you do. You need to take the appropriate precautions to avoid becoming a giant neon sign of smell.
You should use scent block soaps, deodorants, and laundry detergent, and you should avoid carrying food or coffee with you. You may want to dab some doe urine on your boots, or at least spray no scent of some kind on your boots to avoid leaving footprints behind. You may even want to keep your clothes outside for a night to ‘air out’ and prevent them from gathering the smells from inside your home. The short and sweet of it is, if a deer smells you, you’re unlikely to ever see it.
Deer actually have poor eyesight, and they often rely on hearing and smell to confirm what they see with their eyes. While deer may not have the best eyesight, they have eyes mounted on the sides of their heads. This gives them a wide degree of sight, 310 degrees to be exact. Deer do pick up movement rather well, and if they see you moving they won’t stay around to watch for long.
Deer actually have an excellent source of hearing, and they use it rather actively. These deer have ears that can rotate around without moving their heads. They can isolate sounds and limit their own movement. On a good day a deer can hear you coming from a long ways away, and they could easily hear the cracking of that tiny twig under your foot. Avoid making unnatural sounds, cracking twigs may gain a deer’s attention, but if they don’t see or smell you they probably won’t dart away. However if they hear metal clanking, rubber squeaking, or anything human you are likely to catch the sight of a white tail running away.
Where to Spear a Deer
Deer has a nice spot that is easy to hit, and unlike a hog is relatively thin skinned. The deer keeps its hearts and lungs right behind the shoulder. The heart and lungs are perfect targets to humanely kill a deer, and outright drop it when struck with a spear. This area is a small target and a hunter would be wise to practice with a realistic bow target before they go hunting. The skin is thin enough that a good spear will penetrate with ease.
When to Spear a Deer
Deer are most active during the early morning and late evenings. Since hunting is illegal after dark, you are more likely to catch deer moving in the early mornings and late evenings. It’s best to be in position for some time before the sun rises and the sun sets. Once in place you need to be steady, ready, and armed.
Take the Challenge
Spear hunting deer is not an easy thing. It’s a sport that requires a lot of talent, a lot patience, and knowledge of your prey. Using a spear takes the challenges and ups it to a new level. Spear hunting always offers excellent thrill, and spear hunting deer is an excellent way to get a freezer full of venison during the winter.