Fallow Deer rut 2007: Part two

I had been out and around the rides for about an hour. I was just coming back past the the block of forestry where I had started, when I saw a young pricket buck step out on the ride behind me. I stopped to watch him to see where he was going to, when two more Fallow bucks of about four years old came out on the same ride. Then the master buck stepped out too. I stood still to watch where they were heading as I hoped that they may return back to the rutting stand. They eventually disappeared back into the trees in various directions. I decided to get back to the stand and wait to see if any of them would turn up there.

All was nice and quiet when I got back and I quickly found a suitable place to hide, looking across the stand. I had not been there five minutes when I caught a movement out of the corner of my eye to the right of me. It was again another Fallow buck of about five years old and he was heading straight towards me. All I could do was just make myself as small as possible up against the tree stumps I was useing as cover. I could hear his footsteps getting closer and closer and was just waiting for him to suddenly get the fright of his life as he realised I was there. But he just kept coming.

The next thing I could see from under my hat was his hooves as he came and stood right next to me. I could have actually reached out and touched him! Was he looking at me? Did he know I was there? The answer was no. He never knew I was there even though he was only three feet away and standing looking over me!!! He was in fact just listening and watching to see if the master buck was about, and was wary of where he might be. He then slowly turned and walked away through the trees to my right. I let him get about ten metres away and then slowly turned my head to watch him disappear. Quite an encounter, but more was to come.

A short while later a young pricket buck came onto the stand. In fact, he came back a second time too, each time just wandering around and smelling where both the mater buck and the doe's had been. Both times he came to within twenty metres of where I was laying and I got some good pictures of him. The master buck though never came, and I left after about two hours. He was back there that evening when I drove past and stopped to listen. By the noise he was making, it sounded like the smaller bucks were pestering him quite a bit!

I spent every early morning for the next week wandering around trying to find a master buck in a good posistion. I was indeed seeing them and getting the odd picture of them out on the rides, but the weather had changed and it was now getting mild for the time of year. The Fallow then started to go fairly quiet and it was becoming a struggle to find them. Then, just as the rut was starting to finish, my luck changed. I arrived as per usual, well before first light and just listened. In the distance I could hear what sounded like a good buck, but he was right on the other side of the forest.

Time was on my side though and I set off in his direction. Twenty minutes later found me working very cautiously through a block of conifers towards him. I had by now seen him and he was by far the best buck I had come across during this rut. I could not get as close to him as I wanted though because of the wind. I did take one or two pictures but I still needed to get about another thirty metres closer. It was not going to be this morning though. I stood and watched them for a couple of hours untill things had gone quiet. Then, without being seen, I came away.

The next morning I was back even earlier and moving well into position before it got light. I had worked out a better route into the rutting stand when I had left the previous morning. And this morning I was working everything to my advantage. There was just enough light for me to see where I was going, but at the same time it was still gloomy enough for me to not get spotted if I was careful enough. Also, with the wind in my favour, I was able to get exactly where I wanted to.

The only difference between this moning and the previous morning, was that it was overcast so that the light was not great. I had no option but to click the ISO right up on the camera, but I was not complaining. It had taken over two weeks of early mornings and some evenings to get the opportunity that I now had. For the next two hours or more I took more and more pictures ready to weed out what I didn't want back at home.

I had set out at the start of the rut to try and fill my Fallow Deer stock a bit more. I had certainly done this and had some very memorable encounters along the way. At times it had been very frustrating and quite tiring, but right here and now, watching this master buck and his doe's on his rutting stand, it was all well worth the effort. With my flash card filled on the camera, I slipped away and left them to it. Two days later, the rut had finished. Just another year to wait the before I could do it all again!