Advise Needed

[TJ Bauer]

Hi everyone I have been hunting for a few years now but this year will be my first year bow hunting. I have dear hunted but only with slugs otherwise I duck hunt alot. But back to the advise I need I have land to hunt on but my question is when do I start looking for my spot to bow hunt and how do I find the correct spot to set-up at. with a slug it does not matter as much because you can reach way out there I guess what I am saying is I need help I do not want to waste my time in the woods well I guess I should not say waste because there is no such thing as wasting time in the woods but I would like my hunt to be successful. All advice is greatly apreciated. If any one needs advise on duck hunting let me know.   TJ Bauer

[MASTERGUIDE]

Home in on them, get up next to trails, within bow range, select the right tree, and throw your stand up, or blind whatever method you want.  use calls, in the early season and rut especially.  you need to start scouting now, be careful though because where you scout now, their patterns will change, but really scouting is an all year round type of thing, the more you know about the deer you are hunting the better, just get close in on them, for bow range, and get to know their patterns, the more you hunt them, the better you will do.  There is too much to tell you, but i fyou read read read (bowhunting books, etc.), and practice practice practice, and hunt, hunt, hunt, you will soon be successful.

MASTERGUIDE 

[TJ Bauer]

Thank you very much for the advise I just want to be less lost when i get in the woods. But I suppose it is just like everything else get out there screw up once and you wont do it again.

[fastribs85]

hey get out and scout get your stand hung and trim away extra linds from shooting lanes here in pa we start first sat. of october so im settin up my spots this week i look for multiple trails buck will follow them during the rut also look for spots that will force deer into a small are ie stream crossing or a draw hope this helps also play the wind while you scout so take some notes and after the season scout even spring and summer ive been lookin since season ended last year

[tk10fire]

Just some of the things I have noticed heard and read, not professing to know a whole lot, but here in Manitoba the bucks have similar patterns now and into the first week of bow season. They seem to stay away from getting wacked in the soft horns and seem to stay in less thick cover to relative open, so if you scout now you will have similar pattern until they harden up and then they duck and cover making it more difficult to find them until the rut.
The beautiful WT is amazing and always difficult to us bow hunters but any tid bit of knowledge is useful and I love these forums to get any little bit I can.

[MASTERGUIDE]

The thing is, bucks hang out in little groups in the summer, feeding, etc.  then in early fall, sept. to early oct. they are on nearly the same pattern for a little while, then they start going out on their own, and establish little territories, and get ready for the rut and winter.  then when the rut comes, you know what happens.  I am not saying your wrong, but I don't think its because of the antlers being hard, their change in habit due to weather and hormones, just occurs at the same time.

MASTERGUIDE

[fly-in]

From my experience, I found that it is better to be alittle ways into the bush (if you are hunting a field). The bucks will more sooner, before dark.

[tk10fire]

I have just noticed there is a distinct change in pattern right after the first week of bow season or should I say after the first week of Sept. and then another change come the rut.

[MASTERGUIDE]

transition time, bucks spend less and less time together

MASTERGUIDE

[TJ Bauer]

thanks for all of the knowlegde share I hope to have a good season.

[MASTERGUIDE]

Dwayne, I agree with you about sign, and slopes and things, but scouting requires time in the woods at all times of the year, patterns change from season to season and month to month.  Where you might find deer in the early season in the fall, they will be in completly different areas in the winter.  Even the trails will change.  I have one stand that is good until about the 7th of october and then it completely shuts off.  The deer in the area have changed patterns, and will no longer be there hardly at all.  Gun season is ok becuase of deer being pushed around from other areas sometimes draws them through there becuase it is a natural "funnel" sort of. deer just prefer it because its the only high ground with browse and the whole thing is swamp around it.  Entering the woods before season will not affect deer.  If you go in alot, and you are only hunting deer there, try to keep your movement directed toward the middle of the day when you probably won't be hunting, and if you go in in the evening, even if you spook the deer, they will not be bothered by it, they have a home range and they won't be leaving it.  With a large mature buck, if you spook him a couple of times, he might shy away from that particular spot  at that time that he was spooked, but he won't leave.  If deer are feeding in a particular spot and you spook them, regular non big bucks you can get away with it for as much as 7-10 times, before they might be concerned alot before they enter a particular area.  for example between me and my hunting partners, off of one stand we killed a deer every night and soemtimes two a night, and what deer were left, just kept coming, there were less of them becuase we killed alot of them, but they just kept coming, usually the same deer that were spooked why shooting the other deer.  Thats what I know from my experiences, deer aren't as easily spooked as people think.  They stick to their home range for a reason, they have protection, becuase they know all the hiding spots, food, cover, water, everything they need.  Granted they may range out from time to time, but they still stick to their home range most of the time.  Its just like coon hunting, everybody thinks coon hunting will ruin deer hunting, not so.  read my other posts about it, I have the proof, studies have been done, and it was a longer post than this, so I don't want to type it all up again, but thats what I know.

MASTERGUIDE

[MASTERGUIDE]

Dwayne, I agree with you about sign, and slopes and things, but scouting requires time in the woods at all times of the year, patterns change from season to season and month to month.  Where you might find deer in the early season in the fall, they will be in completly different areas in the winter.  Even the trails will change.  I have one stand that is good until about the 7th of october and then it completely shuts off.  The deer in the area have changed patterns, and will no longer be there hardly at all.  Gun season is ok becuase of deer being pushed around from other areas sometimes draws them through there becuase it is a natural "funnel" sort of. deer just prefer it because its the only high ground with browse and the whole thing is swamp around it.  Entering the woods before season will not affect deer.  If you go in alot, and you are only hunting deer there, try to keep your movement directed toward the middle of the day when you probably won't be hunting, and if you go in in the evening, even if you spook the deer, they will not be bothered by it, they have a home range and they won't be leaving it.  With a large mature buck, if you spook him a couple of times, he might shy away from that particular spot  at that time that he was spooked, but he won't leave.  If deer are feeding in a particular spot and you spook them, regular non big bucks you can get away with it for as much as 7-10 times, before they might be concerned alot before they enter a particular area.  for example between me and my hunting partners, off of one stand we killed a deer every night and soemtimes two a night, and what deer were left, just kept coming, there were less of them becuase we killed alot of them, but they just kept coming, usually the same deer that were spooked why shooting the other deer.  Thats what I know from my experiences, deer aren't as easily spooked as people think.  They stick to their home range for a reason, they have protection, becuase they know all the hiding spots, food, cover, water, everything they need.  Granted they may range out from time to time, but they still stick to their home range most of the time.  Its just like coon hunting, everybody thinks coon hunting will ruin deer hunting, not so.  read my other posts about it, I have the proof, studies have been done, and it was a longer post than this, so I don't want to type it all up again, but thats what I know.

MASTERGUIDE

[MASTERGUIDE]

I have no idea why it posted twice, I think I had some connection problems, they are the same thing sorry, just to save you some reading

MASTERGUIDE

[archbishop]

a little off subject but dwayne you saying how deer act differently, did anyone see that show on animal planet or discovery about the head hunting deer? apparently these deer somewhere kill birds and eat there heads due to a lack of phosphorus? or something, and there skulls being rich in it. had video of the deer doing it and everything. weird

[smokepole]

I saw something similar - I think it was deer on an island, and they had to eat fish to get nutrients they were not getting from natural food.  don't remember where i heard it...