Here is my latest write up, many of you may not care to read it but just thought I would share it. Thanks for looking!
Anyone that knows my style of hunting knows I feel strongly about entry. Getting into position and keeping your quarry on their normal movement pattern is essential to consistently harvesting mature bucks. In a previous article titled “Road Less Traveled”, I explained how I often use terrain features to conceal my entry. When this is not possible I rely on stealth!. Here are a few methods I use to avoid detection to some of my favorite tree stands.
1) Mark Your Way
Back in 2002, I gained access to a new property near a Metro park in central Ohio. This property had it all including some monster bucks! I scouted the property in early in October and hung a tree stand in what I considered the best spot. The stand was just off a logging road that fell off a ridge top and into a pine bottom. Being the stand was just off a logging road, I figured I could find my way in the dark with no problem. Big mistake! A couple weeks later in the pre-dawn light I made my way down the logging road and descended off the ridge towards the stand. When I descended the approximate elevation, I could not locate my stand. It took several trips up and down the ridge to finally discover I went down the wrong logging trail and after going back up the ridge and walking another 30 yards farther down the road and, again, descending down the ridge…. I found my stand. A few hours later, I had a giant 8-point work across the hillside and cut my premature entry trail. He buck turned on a dime and never offered me a shot. If I had not made that totally avoidable error, I know that buck would have followed his morning course and offered me a 20 yard chip shot. To this day I regret not marking the entry to that stand!
Today I use many methods for marking my way to a stand. For morning stands my preferred method is to use glow tacks but also rely on fire fly markers and natural debris markers (Logs that indicate travel direction).
When using glow tacks remember to stay consistent, keeping tacks around the same height each time placed on a tree, clear all leaves that could obstruct view and place them every 10 yards or less. These tips will keep you confident your always headed in the right direction.
2) Clear Debris
Use a leaf blower, rake or shovel to blaze a trail to the base of your stand. Yeah a lot of the trail will get covered again by falling October leaves, but by removing years of leaf litter the ground will be much less noisy. This includes removing sticks, branches and briars that could snag, snap and make additional noise. Where applicable, I have also used a lawn mower to mow a trail straight to my stand. This method works great in urban areas!
3) Go Early
I contribute a lot of the successful in the hunt for Shorty, my 2011 Halloween Buck, to getting into my stand extra early. On that morning, I arrived in my stand a full hour before legal shooting light. During the walk to my stand that morning, I remember hearing a buck grunt and what I think was a chase. I also remember sitting in the tree and hearing deer walk around me in the pre-dawn light. If I had arrived later that morning and walked in during pre-dawn light….I may have bumped those deer. I’ll admit that I’m not the best at getting out of bed in most days but come late October and early November…. I’m bright eyed and bushy tailed as soon as that alarm clock goes off. So set it those clocks early and rely on adrenaline keep you awake!
4) Limit Flash Light Usage
Many hunters will argue weather to use or not use a flashlight. For me in the rolling hills of Ohio I use a flashlight and encourage my hunters to do so as well.
For starters, using a flashlight adds a sense of security and lessons the likelihood a trespasser or another hunter could mistake you for game.
Secondly, a flashlight helps you avoid breaking sticks, making additional noise, getting lost. All animals make the shuffle of leaves while walking, but breaking sticks and branches raises alarm. Having a flashlight will help you avoid these sticks and keep you on trail. Just remember to keep the flashlight low, use as little of the beam as possible (cover the beam with your hand or use a very small light) and consider using a colored dimmer (I prefer red).
As a final note, I suggest that any prep work for entry should be done well in advance of hunting. I am currently making final adjustments to stands that clients will be placed in this fall. A couple weeks from now, cruising bucks will pay no attention to glow tacks, a few snipped branches or a faint dirt trail that leads your way to a deadly perch 20 foot in a tree. Perpetration is the key to success! So make those preparations now and have a silent, deadly entry come primetime.
Again thanks for reading,
Corey
Anyone that knows my style of hunting knows I feel strongly about entry. Getting into position and keeping your quarry on their normal movement pattern is essential to consistently harvesting mature bucks. In a previous article titled “Road Less Traveled”, I explained how I often use terrain features to conceal my entry. When this is not possible I rely on stealth!. Here are a few methods I use to avoid detection to some of my favorite tree stands.
1) Mark Your Way
Back in 2002, I gained access to a new property near a Metro park in central Ohio. This property had it all including some monster bucks! I scouted the property in early in October and hung a tree stand in what I considered the best spot. The stand was just off a logging road that fell off a ridge top and into a pine bottom. Being the stand was just off a logging road, I figured I could find my way in the dark with no problem. Big mistake! A couple weeks later in the pre-dawn light I made my way down the logging road and descended off the ridge towards the stand. When I descended the approximate elevation, I could not locate my stand. It took several trips up and down the ridge to finally discover I went down the wrong logging trail and after going back up the ridge and walking another 30 yards farther down the road and, again, descending down the ridge…. I found my stand. A few hours later, I had a giant 8-point work across the hillside and cut my premature entry trail. He buck turned on a dime and never offered me a shot. If I had not made that totally avoidable error, I know that buck would have followed his morning course and offered me a 20 yard chip shot. To this day I regret not marking the entry to that stand!
Today I use many methods for marking my way to a stand. For morning stands my preferred method is to use glow tacks but also rely on fire fly markers and natural debris markers (Logs that indicate travel direction).
When using glow tacks remember to stay consistent, keeping tacks around the same height each time placed on a tree, clear all leaves that could obstruct view and place them every 10 yards or less. These tips will keep you confident your always headed in the right direction.
2) Clear Debris
Use a leaf blower, rake or shovel to blaze a trail to the base of your stand. Yeah a lot of the trail will get covered again by falling October leaves, but by removing years of leaf litter the ground will be much less noisy. This includes removing sticks, branches and briars that could snag, snap and make additional noise. Where applicable, I have also used a lawn mower to mow a trail straight to my stand. This method works great in urban areas!
3) Go Early
I contribute a lot of the successful in the hunt for Shorty, my 2011 Halloween Buck, to getting into my stand extra early. On that morning, I arrived in my stand a full hour before legal shooting light. During the walk to my stand that morning, I remember hearing a buck grunt and what I think was a chase. I also remember sitting in the tree and hearing deer walk around me in the pre-dawn light. If I had arrived later that morning and walked in during pre-dawn light….I may have bumped those deer. I’ll admit that I’m not the best at getting out of bed in most days but come late October and early November…. I’m bright eyed and bushy tailed as soon as that alarm clock goes off. So set it those clocks early and rely on adrenaline keep you awake!
4) Limit Flash Light Usage
Many hunters will argue weather to use or not use a flashlight. For me in the rolling hills of Ohio I use a flashlight and encourage my hunters to do so as well.
For starters, using a flashlight adds a sense of security and lessons the likelihood a trespasser or another hunter could mistake you for game.
Secondly, a flashlight helps you avoid breaking sticks, making additional noise, getting lost. All animals make the shuffle of leaves while walking, but breaking sticks and branches raises alarm. Having a flashlight will help you avoid these sticks and keep you on trail. Just remember to keep the flashlight low, use as little of the beam as possible (cover the beam with your hand or use a very small light) and consider using a colored dimmer (I prefer red).
As a final note, I suggest that any prep work for entry should be done well in advance of hunting. I am currently making final adjustments to stands that clients will be placed in this fall. A couple weeks from now, cruising bucks will pay no attention to glow tacks, a few snipped branches or a faint dirt trail that leads your way to a deadly perch 20 foot in a tree. Perpetration is the key to success! So make those preparations now and have a silent, deadly entry come primetime.
Again thanks for reading,
Corey
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