Buck Hollow Sporting Goods - click or touch to visit their website Midwest Habitat Company

What am I doing wrong?

B

Bowbendr

Guest
I received permission to hunt some private land this year and thought during some pre-season scouting that it would be a good spot. I have hunted the area around 6 times now and have seen a total of 3 deer! There are trails going through the timber and have found scrapes and rubs throughout. Is it worth hunting the timber anymore? I am in a good area, there is no shortage of deer surrounding this timber. Got any advice?
 
There could be dozens of reasons why you arent seeing deer. One reason could be that you have "burnt out the stand" or have overused the stand. Are you paying attention to the wind direction and your scent? Use scent control and enter your stand very quietley. Are you setup next to a bedding area? If you are, you could be spooking the deer when you go to your stand. The area you are in may have a lot of sign but during the rut the deer have abnormal movement. Try rattling or calling the deer. When you walk to your stand, do you use some kind of scent to cover your trail. I like to use cow shit or some form of urine. The more you hunt that site, the more scent you will leave especially when you arent scent conscious. If you still don't see deer, try another spot. Try a spot that is somewhat out of the ordinary. Somewhere you would never guess the deer to be. I hope this helps. Good-luck!
Big Timber
 
Bowbendr,
First question that comes to mind...morning or evening spot? When have you hunted it? Many spots can be good both AM and PM or even all day, but some are strictly one or the other. The stand I took my buck from last weekend is an awesome AM stand location, but a complete waste of time to hunt there in the PM. Spend a few seasons hunting the land and you'll know. Good Hunting!

NWBuck
 
If there's "no shortage of deer surrounding the timber..." then that's where you need to hunt! I'm not saying this is right for everybody, but I always begin my scouting on a new area by watching the edges of the timber--the fields, to see where the deer are coming from. It seems like most of the deer will leave the timber and enter a field in very specific places.

Pay close attention to where the does are coming out to feed. If you find a route that is well-travelled by several does, or an area that is used by several does, then that's a spot to expect to see a buck ilooking for a girlfriend.

This time of year the bucks are probably still more interested in searching for and chasing does, than they are maintaining rubs and scrapes.

The most effective place to hang a tree stand is where the deer want to be. Sometimes we all try to think too much and that concept gets clouded. But if there's no shortage of deer surrounding the timber, that's where you need to be.
 
I have a bad tendancy to overhunt a stand. Example: 1st night saw 2 bucks, 6 does, 2nd night saw 1 buck, 3 does, third night saw 1 doe, fourth night saw nothing. It's hard to surpress the urge to hunt a stand that you've seen deer in the night before. My suggestion would be to try a different area on the same acreage, if possible or hunt another location. Come back in 1 week and try again. Also, pay attention to scent control. My $0.02
 
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Bowbendr:
I received permission to hunt some private land this year and thought during some pre-season scouting that it would be a good spot. I have hunted the area around 6 times now and have seen a total of 3 deer! There are trails going through the timber and have found scrapes and rubs throughout. Is it worth hunting the timber anymore? I am in a good area, there is no shortage of deer surrounding this timber. Got any advice?<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top Bottom