A few days ago, I posted that I am going to be a new bow hunter during the deer season this upcoming year (2015 season). I also have come to the realization that with my financial circumstances and budget, I will not be able to afford a good deer stand (unless someone is getting rid of theirs). I write all of that to ask for advice on stalking deer instead of using a stand. Have people done it successfully? What are some of the tricks? I currently wash all of my clothes in Tide Free and Gentle (also for my 4 month old son, love the double benefit). Also, I am looking for pictures of deer in general. Whether they are in the brush or in the open. I would like to see as many as possible so that I can study the background environment as well as distinguishing features of the deer that might make them easier to spot. Thanks in advance.
I have hunted deer in Ohio for 40 years. Bows, guns smoke poles, in all seasons. In the mid 1970's, There was much more agriculture around me. Deer almost Never looked up. As archery has grown in deer hunting , so has the white tail in my woods. With more and more deer hunters in the woods with a bow in a tree stand, the deer have busted enough hunters that they have learned to look up. I have found that in most cases, once a deer busts me in a stand, I have to let it cool down a l o n g time or move it. Natural cover like others have mentioned all work well too. Of course, "still hunting" down a wood lot or other such land scape is the most rewarding. (and intense).
Point being, (ya. i'm finally getting to a point) is to vary your options. During any given season, I will use all of em. A couple of blinds built in a two or three sided wall made of sticks and brush or hacking out nest in a blow-down at the end of season based on primary wind direction but if I find a funnel that looks like a cow trail, I'll build a wall or two of anything I can blend into or hide my ass behind. Even if it looks a little out of place now, they have half a year to get use to it. One of my favorite ladder stands is under a 4 story pine. I go to it when its snowing or raining and can keep dry for hours. Use a loc On type stand for mobility or isolated use on escape routes. And on those rair occasions the woods allow you to still hunt during a soft rain into the wind and take a deer... Glorious! All my stands are based on wind. Where I hunt on any given day is dictated by the wind. For me, its mostly coming from the wnw and bad weather comes from the nw-nnw. Hunting before a big weather front when the wind is actually being sucked towards the storm... (Ya. towards Michigan.)
in the opposite direction, allows me to hunt the woods in the opposite direction. I have learned more about deer behavure by trying different forms of "hide and seek" than sitting high in a tree. There is a time for each during a season and I encourage you to experiment. Using multiple type forms of hunting will make you a better woodsman TOO. Many good men here believe in "Smoking Up" before hunts as well as for storage of hunting clothing.
As far as the pictures go, all you need to study is a deer. Front on, side, top, quartering away, all angles. Once you get to the woods, you look for PIECES of a deer. Not a whole or half deer. Look for a tail swish, a ear twitch or the eye and cheek area of its face. A leg or the back end. Look for parts of a deer. Some decent binoculars will really help when looking down the woods of at a blow-down for the ear or eye part.
And fer gawds sake, go to Walmart and spend the $10.00 on some hunters laundry soap. Good Luck this year. Start a thread and keep us posted!
