do. It was low light, and I knew it was a buck, but I didn’t know how good of a buck, or which buck he was. I elected to pass the shot in hopes of getting a better look. He then turned and faced me in the lane and I could see he was a mature buck and assumed he was the Skinny 8.
As he stood there, I heard a few more deer coming up from the swamp behind him. Next thing I know, he was walking head on to the base of my tree under the canopy. I can’t see him but I can hear his footfalls closing the distance from 23 yards. When the sound of his hooves in the leave stopped he was directly under me. All of a sudden I see a wide heavy rack emerge from under the canopy. Right then I know 100% it’s him, but am I going to get a shot? I have no angle at all, and he’s facing the tree and begins to SMELL my climbing sticks! A million thoughts are racing through my head. I am a scent control freak and always keep my boots outside and spray them down with scent killing spray, but I know better than to think I can fool a mature buck’s nose every time. Then another thought comes into my head. I used the lineman’s belt on my muddy harness to climb the tree, so my hands hadn’t come in contact with the climbing sticks. I take tree stand safety seriously and try to be attached to the tree at all times. I know it could potentially save my life, but I think this time it ended the Skinny 8’s.