Anyone ever seen anything like this? update

Suspension

This morning I noticed something just to the left of my stand when it started to get light. After a while (lighter out) the spot looked like it had been tilled up or something, I wondered what in the world my dad was doing with his tiller up in the woods.
When I decided to leave I walked down to see what he was up to, but the ground hadn't been tilled. There was nothing but deer tracks, fairly large ones to. This spot was (I stepped it off) 5 foot wide and 13 feet long, not a blade of grass left in it, just dirt and mud and deer tracks. The ground it sorta moist in this area, but not to bad and three weeks ago this area was covered with grass.
Any clues what happened? [:)]

NRA Life Member ---"A pocket knife, a clean hankey, and a pistol... things I can use." - Ted Nugent

Saturday afternoon around 2 I had four bucks come in on this spot. One was a small basket rack 8, a four pointer, and two spikes that looked identical to one another. They all messed around in the spot, no pawing or scraping though. They were there about a half hour then walked back into the woods. I saw three does to, but none of them went close to that spot. I think I might stay out of that stand for a couple weeks, I'd hate to * anything before the rut starts.

headzilla97

deer orgy or possible and end of summer beer party.were their cans or any other debris left over possible burnt wood fibers from the party? thats my only guess I have no idea what that would be other than a scrape

Messenger Boy: The Thesselonian you're fighting... he's the biggest man i've ever seen. I wouldn't want to fight him.
Achilles: Thats why no-one will remember your name.

fishermanben

Must be minerals in the soil that they're eating. You think maybe somebody might have put down some deer cocaine or something?

Ben

DONDALINGER

I'm not sure if it was the same as what you saw, but about 10 years ago me and a buddy were bowhunting and found a scrape that was about 10'X 10'. I have never seen anything like it since. I talked to a bunch of hunters and the concensus was that it was a "community" scrape used by a bachelor herd of mature bucks in the area. Supposedly, these scrapes are only checked and refreshed during night hours. An old timer told us you would be wasting time to hunt over it or near it because the bucks that made it and use it are strictly nocturnal even during the rut. I have yet to see another scrape that came even close to the size of this. It looked alot like what you described.

"They call me Don. Dr. Jason Donald Dalinger."

mpfennig

I have been putting Deer Caine down for the past two years. This year I only concentrated on one spot and put more down. Last week while scouting, I found a spot I used last year and the ground was torn up about 5 feet wide and 8 feet long - it also was about 6in deep. I think over the past two months the deer have had an abundent supply of food, but not minerals and have been tearing up the ground to get some. I'd suggest staying in your stand - hopefully down wind! Good luck.

Suspension

I am fairly sure nobody put down any deer caine, it's my dads property, but someone may have snuck on I suppose.
I wondered about natural mineral deposits, but I have never seen anything even close to that in that area. It is between a couple rub/scrape lines that always seem to reappear each year within 10-20 yards of the one the year before.
I'm liking this idea of a community scrape. I didn't find any rubs though, might be a good idea for me to head to walmart tonight and purchase a trail camera huh.

headzilla, no cans or burnt wood around, but a lot of small packages that said Trojan. [?]

NRA Life Member ---"A pocket knife, a clean hankey, and a pistol... things I can use." - Ted Nugent

buckeyboy

Susp I know it sounds early for this but if to bucks are sparing or fighting I have seen the ground completly ripped up. do any of the tracks look like the have slid or been pushed.[?]

fishermanben

quote:Originally posted by Suspension


headzilla, no cans or burnt wood around, but a lot of small packages that said Trojan. [?]



Lord help us if the deer start using protection.

Ben

Suspension

buckey, after I stood there puzzled for a while then I thought about maybe a fight and looked closer. Some of the tracks looked like they may have slide a little bit, but nothing more than an inch or two long.
I didn't end up getting a trail camera to setup.



NRA Life Member ---"A pocket knife, a clean hankey, and a pistol... things I can use." - Ted Nugent

muss

My dad had a water softner go bad last winter, He just threw it out behind the house for the winter. Needless to say the salt drained out all over his back yard. This spring the deer ate the grass down to nothing and tore the dirt up like a tractor. He has pictures of them pawing at the dirt in the middle of the afternoon. Funny thing is, his house is in the middle of a town. It is atleast two blocks in any direction to the nearest patch of woods.

It is better to be judged by 12 than carried by 6.