Well I thought deer season was over the other day, then I told you it wasnt. Turns out it was, my buddy got his dates mixed up and we missed the last day after all. Oh well, its all good. I was looking forward to getting a hunt on video, maybe we can get some turkeys on camera this spring. Sorry for the delay in posting anything new, I have just been busy.I saw a lot of ducks yesterday on game lands, but I wasnt duck hunting, just running the Brew and looking for wabbits, no rabbits, thats what I said , wabbits(anyone seen the new elmer fudd commercial, I love that guy) and squirrels. So any ways, here we go.
As I have mentioned in previous posts, I believe that throughout the season, and perhaps from one season to the next, deer learn to pattern hunters. What we wear, what we smell like, different attracting scents we use, and how and when we travel through a tract of land. I was reading a Deer and Deer hunting article the other day that covered some of these things, so I cannot take credit for all of this. I just want to elaborate on their ideas a little.
To start off, we need to determine what type of property you have access to. Does it contain bedding areas, feeding areas, staging areas and travel routes. Or is it one of those or the other? Knowing this will help you to understand why deer move like they do on your property. We also should observe how other hunters move through the property since most of us dont have the luxury of being the only hunter around. Right now is the perfect time to investigate these things if you dont know. Get out and walk all around your property.Sit in the woods an afternoon or two in a different place then you hunt, walk into the area a different way too. Go talk to your neighbors and see if you can walk around their property, offer to return the favor. With a better knowledge of what purpose your property serves in the life of a deer, you can develop better strategies to pursue them. Here is a list of other things to keep in mind to separate yourself from other hunters.
1. Dont always hunt from a tree stand. I hunt from the ground quite often. It gives me two advantages. Since I hunt on public land most of the time, I dont make any noise getting setup in my climber, or getting down.I can sneek right in and be setup immediateley without even a squirrel noticing(haha). And also, I keep my options open by hunting on the ground, not all areas have suitable trees for climbing, the wind might not be right for a certain area, or I might encounter another hunter. I generally use my camo folding stool.It weighs about 3 lbs and has a shoulder strap, it works great. I can make it work on a hill by putting a rock or stick underneath the front legs to level it out no problem. Ground blinds are great too, however I find that generally they need to be in place for a few weeks before you hunt from them. This gives the deer time to become comfortable with them. Deer notice new things like that in their territory just like we notice something new in our yard or house. While there are many advantages to hunting from a tree stand, we do not want to become too predictable, so it is great to get on the ground from time to time. One of my favorite things to hunt from is an old blow down, these work great to conceal movement and break up your outline.
2. Hunting hours 99 percent of hunters do the same thing. Get in the woods before first light and exit the woods by 10:00.Or they get in the woods at 3 and leave at dark. I want to suggest two things that may help us bag more bucks. First off, we should set several days per season apart (preferably during the rut) to only hunt from 10:00 or 11:00 in the morning to 2:00 or 3:00 in the afternoon. If you can stand it, stay in the woods until dark, but you might see some great action in the middle of the day. Secondly, make it a point to NOT walk into the woods on several of your morning hunts until it is light out. Once again I believe deer(especially older wiser deer) get used to hunters entering the woods before dawn and may stay away,or run as we approach. We have all been there. This makes sense to me seing as how the average age of a deer killed by a hunter in NC is 1.5 years.Creep into the woods an hour later a few times in the morning and see what happens. A few old time hunters I know use this tactic and they kill more deer and have more big bucks on their wall then anyone else I know. To go along with this, go out of your way to be careful as you exit the woods. Being careless here can also tip the deer off to your presence. Many hunters make this mistake(including me).
3. Givem what they dont have This third idea applies to those hunters who have the luxury of planting food plots and manageing the land they hunt. To get the most out of your property, know what the properties are like around you. Figure this out legally, we dont need more trespassing hunters. What food sources/habitat is on the neighboring properties. Figure this out and do something different. If there are lots of clover or mixed green plots around, plant something else deer like. There is all kinds of stuff deer eat. If you will have long term access to the property, plant some apple trees, persimmon trees or pear trees.Create some clear cuts, bedding areas, wind rows, fence lines or false edges of fields etc... If you do not have long term access to the land, deer love sweet potatoes, pumpkins, strawberries and watermelons among other things. You dont have to spend a lot of money to do this, just a little maintenance will do the trick. What can you offer the deer that no one else around you can? Figure this out and you will be sure to see more deer and see them more often.
4. Leave the calls alone. I like to watch hunting shows just as much as anybody. One thing we see them doing is rattling and calling with grunt tubes or snort weezes all of the time. I would be very cautious about using any calls or rattling unless I have a visual on the deer I want. Many times hunters over use or misuse those tactics and it ends up hurting more then helping. Sitting and observing is your best bet in my book. A man who taught me a lot about hunting told me his secret to killing big bucks, Stay in the woods he said. That is simple enough.
These are just a few ideas. There are many other things you can do to break the mold and become a more productive hunter. Think outside the box a little, dont be predictable. While I came up with a lot of this, thanks to Deer and Deer Hunting for coming up with most of it. I know I am leaving some stuff out that I meant to put in this post, I will revise it if I remember. Thanks for checking out this blog. Stay tuned, got some good stuff coming soon. I know I am a little off the wall with my flow and sentence structure, all this is no attempt to be professional,its
just me.
-Andrew
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