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Redemption Fail. Deer 2, Me 0.
So I managed to get back up the hill this afternoon after a busy morning at work. Started the walk in at 2pm easily making my way up the stream and then onto the ridge up a little less scary approach. Very slowly made my way up the ridge before being plagued with text messages from work about keeping things going smoothly. After a few replies to keep everyone happy I was back on task.
Once I reached the spot where I saw the hind last week I decided, because of the wind, to head down the faint game trail to see if I could find where she had come from. This became a bad decision after about 70 metres it started getting too thick to stalk quietly enough, I turned back and got back onto the ridgetop again. Checking the wind again it seemed ok to head down off the other side of the ridge.
Down another game trail I stalked very slowly sidling towards the headwaters with the faintest odour of deer in my nostrils. As I make my way over an area of loose broken rock I hear rocks falling upstream on the other side of the gully. More noise and falling rocks are heard as something large makes it's way along the face. Once directly across from me it almost sounds like a human walking so I let out a load bellbird whistle. The sound keeps moving and I whistle again still to no acknowledgement.
I decide it probably was a deer and continue down to cross the creek and follow the direction of the noise when I hear another noise very similar coming down almost the same way as the last one had come. It comes closer and closer until it stops across the creek about 40 metres away and lets out the loudest bark I have ever heard a red make. Still I can't see it so I slowly crouch and then its head and neck materialise above the crown fern from what I thought was a tree trunk.
Now here is my deja vu moment as I lift the rifle and try to steady low on her neck she trots to the right and behind some trees.
Looking across with sketch of where hind was standing.
Bush was a lot darker than what the photo shows.
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With another bark from her I respond with my best fawn mew which I think settled her slightly. Slowly I decend into the creek and start up the other side with more barking from the hind and a gentle mew from me after each. Once up to where the ground has leveled out enough for me to stand without holding on to anything I scan the bush for any sign of the hind but she has quietly moved off while I was climbing out of the creek. Now too dark to hunt I don the headlamp and start towards home hoping that as I thrash my way down through the crown fern I don't disturb any wasp nests.
Back at home I get to tell the family of another great hunt where I 'nearly' shot a deer.
