I spend a ton of time outdoors. Of course hunting but also at work. I have walked up on and spooked deer within 10 yards of me numerous times. What I haven’t done until the other day is be that close without spooking them.

My wife and I went hunting Friday and were in one blind and got a notification of a hog at another blind and were walking over to it. We saw the hog about 200 yds away and were standing there on a road with light brush beside us talking quietly about how we should best take the shot. We hear something in the brush and look over and see two mule deer, a doe and a fork horn and they casually walk within 30 feet of us, stop and look at us, and casually keep on walking until they were out of sight. There was almost zero wind. Really cool and surprising experience.

When I was a kid out squirrel hunting I had a little 6 point walk within 10 feet of me. Tracked him with the little 20ga and he never saw me.

Regarding Mule Deer, I'm not sure if they a dumb or smart. A week after the season closed and they were totally unafraid of us in the Transpacos. When we were hunting Blues they would just walk, not run, 40 yards out in front of our jeep.

I hand corn every time I hunt. I`ve had young bucks and several does follow me to where I throw out the corn. I was walking to my truck this year after an evening hunt. I thought I was walking up on a hog in the road, but it was a doe. She just stepped out of the road, and I walked by. Got within 10 feet of her. I`ve had deer eating the hand corn while I climb up my ladder stand. The rope I pull by bow up with was tangled one time and I climbed down, and they just kept eating. I`ve been on this lease for 7 years and never had deer that would let you do that on other leases. First year we were on it we got a flat while retrieving a buck. Stopped to change tire in the middle of some thick brush and had a doe eating winter grass 40 feet behind truck while we were do it.

[video:youtube]https://www.youtube.com/shorts/lEWNwJXtoxw?feature=share[/video]

Two experiences come to mind. First one, I was sitting in a small box blind on the ground opening morning in East Texas. I had already seen several deer on a very active morning. A four point walked up the shooting lane to the side window of my stand and stuck his head in the window, almost breaking the plane of the opening and stared at me for what seemed like forever. He then proceeded in the direction he was going.

The second was a fawn with spots that was bedded down in some grass. I was riding my horse and rode over the top of it, my horse almost stepping on it. It never moved a hair. I rode back to the house, grabbed a camera, and went back and took pics of it. It made for some pretty good pictures.

I had the same thing happen to me a few years ago - sitting in a pop up blind and here comes a 160 inch buck down the sendero toward me. He walks up to the window and sticks his head inside - It was an awesome experience

I’ve had does come within 10 ft of my brushed in popup at the grasslands.

I had corned a few lanes with my road feeder on the front of my Kubota RTV, backed the RTV into some brush and just sat there waiting to see what would come out. Had a young 7 point walk down thru where I had corned, then he turned and came right up to my road feeder to eat corn that had fallen off as I backed in. He was there several minutes then walked back out to the other areas I had corned.

years ago, my dad and I were sitting in a hollowed out brush pile next to a cross fence. My dad had the barrel of his gun resting on one of the fence wires. A doe walked down the fence line to where we were and sniffed the end of the barrel of his gun.

the most unexpected was I was hunting in NM close to the Carson NF. I was down in a bowl and shot a good mulie up on a rim but he jumped up and went over the top. After my trek up the side thru ankle to knee deep snow, I found where he was and started following the blood trail up and over the rim to the flat backside. I had walked several hundred yards following the blood and scanning the direction he had gone when I heard something and looked to my right to see about 2 dozen cow/calf elk about 20 yards away behind some trees. I had walked right into the herd I was so focused on the MD and they just stood there motionless. After a couple of minutes, I spot the herd bull (decent 6x6) about 100 yards away walking up a trail to the next ridge. I could have shot him easily but it wasn't elk season in NM. I just stood there for what seemed like hours just watching the elk slowly graze away and up where the bull had gone. After they were gone, I went back to tracking the MD, found him after another couple hundred yards.

Nearly fifty years ago was hunting in the mountains of VA as a kid. We didn't have blinds back then, we just kicked the leaves away from a big tree. I had a small spike walk up on me. I had pulled my baseball hat down to cover my eyes. He was standing right in front of me with his head bobbing up and down to see under my hat. Our feet were almost touching. After a couple minutes, I popped my head up and said boo!!! He jumped back up a few steps and stared at me. He came right back with in a foot or so and stared at me some more. Finally he moved off and fed around me for a while before walking away. Cracked me up!

I mainly bowhunt so I’ve had deer coming within 10-15’ of me several times sitting in a tripod. Shot one almost directly under my stand.

Mule deer, I’ve had several does get within 10 yards of me in a national forest when im walking down a trail.

Poor things just are not bright

I've had deer walk within 5 feet of me on several occasions while hunting in man made ground blinds. The best are when I get in under a big cedar tree and stay still and the wind is right. You'd be surprised how close they will get.

Directly under my ladder stand many times so 12 feet or so. Several times just outside of a ground blind as well. Had a small sounder of pigs go with in 2-3 feet of me one day as I was shooting as fast as I could work the bolt. I love the close encounters when you can hear them breath...

Twice, over many many years, I’ve had deer about 2’ from me. I could have touched one on the left buttock. Both were doe.

Had one step out on me when hiking in the smoky mountains several years ago... a young doe.. I'd guess barely a year old at the time.. she walked out right on top of us, couldnt have been more than 10-12 feet away... then took off like a rocket as soon as she looked back and noticed us there..

when hunting I'd guess the closest Ive ever had one get was maybe 10 yards.. I had a pair of doe step out just to the rear and right of my elevated blind during rifle season.. even after I blew at them to get their attention they just hung out for another minute or two before deciding to leave..

"gotten." I just couldn't stand it any longer.

Within 4ft and with a dog

Just remembered a time, also way back when. Deer were coming out to eat on a cut over bean field in the evenings, but there was absolutely no place to set up to hunt them. It was winter, and the leaves were down. Finally I decided to get into a good position, get on my belly, and cover myself with leaves. It was a great plan, seeing that the deer usually came out of the woods in front of where I was, which would have given me a good shot without having to move much. But you know about how plans work out. The deer came out behind me and wandered down the ditch bank in my direction, eating acorns. At one point, they were all around me. Never smelled me and thank goodness none of them stepped on me. I never got a shot. And not too many ant bites. There was one hoof close enough to see out the corner of my eye. I never tried that approach again.

When does are guarding fawns—very close.

I've had does sniff the muzzle of my rifle barrel a few times. A few years ago a couple young bucks were chasing a doe around and around the base of my stand.

5-10ft while quail hunting in high winds.

Got right up on a buck before either of us knew the other was there.

Amazing how well they can hide in waist high switchgrass.

Had a stare off with a doe right under my tripod stand that had no skirt around it. Actual closest to a live one was getting a young buck out of my hog trap.

Went to sleep sitting under a tree and woke up to a doe sniffing my boot....Pretty Cool!!

Years ago I was sitting behind an old dead cedar tree and had a WT fawn walk up and sniff me, she knew something was off but must have been too young and dumb to care.

Last season, while still hunting by some oaks, I had two yearling axis bucks walk so close to me that I could have hit them on the nose, no more than an arms length away....again, they were too young and dumb to realize what I was. I do however sit in full camo including a facemask when I am sitting on the ground by the oaks.

My scariest experience was when I heard the brush breaking behind me and turned around to see a 100 lb. boar staring at me about 5 feet away.......on second thought, my most "puckering" moment was when a skunk walked by no more than 3 feet away and decided to stop and look around for a while. All I could see was the business end and I was only imagining how I was going to explain that one when I got back to camp!

Another fun one was an axis fawn sitting on our wide open gravel bar by the river. It was a cold and rainy day and we feared it may have been dead. I walked up and had to pet the poor thing to know it was indeed alive and well. That fawn never moved a muscle even as I was petting it.

All the stories above are why I have a really hard time sitting over a feeder in a blind that's a 100 yards away. Its just too much fun getting animals in your lap!

I was pronghorn hunting in CO in October. I tagged out luckily on opening day and figured I'd hang on the ranch I had access to and see if I could take some coyotes. I posted up next to an open gate that separated two pastures, was in camo and blaze orange required in CO. Had a rifle on a tripod and was just glassing for coyotes at dusk. Next thing I know, I see a big pronghorn buck come up over this knoll about 300 yards away. I froze and he proceeded to come directly to me. Crossed through the open gate where I was standing. He stopped directly to my left at about 3 yards (wind was blowing diagonally away in the direction he came from). He looked around because he could tell something was going on but wasn't sure what. He proceeded to walk casually another 10-15 yards behind me. I turned so I could see him and he stopped abruptly, catching a little bit of the movement. He pffted at me and so I pffted back. He still couldn't see me, confused he slowly began to continue on his way, crossed back in the direction that he'd originally had come and after about 20 yards he caught my wind and ran off.

Honestly may have been a cooler experience than my hunt. I didn't have my phone with me since I'd tried to use a youtube video predator call (fun fact, sound doesn't travel far enough for it to work) so I was pleasantly forced to just enjoy the moment.

Had a doe come up and sniff my suppressor the other day while hunting in Northern OK.