What were you thinking !

[DaveHawk]

Reminds me of Gibb's smacking Dinoso upside the back of the head.

What's on you mind walking in?

1. got to be quite.... newbe term
2. which stand should I hunt?....... need that solved quick
3. do I have everything I need....... rookie again
4. I'm late, man I screwed up
5. boy I hope I get a shot at a doe.
6. hope that buck comes through,
what if someone shot him already?

You turn the corner, round a tree , walk up a creek bank, blow your nose, that was not me blowing my noise it was that big buck watching me stumble in, in my feeble way, what was I thinking? DOOOO!!!

come on guys the season is just around the corner. Hunt to your stand and back if you have day light. Get your ducks in a row now. It to late when you hear the buck BLOW.

[Wismon]

That's a good word. Now's the time to get ready, like you said. We hereby have no excuse to be unprepared.

[GF.]

I've kinda got the whities on the back burner for a coupla weeks now :D

But what do you guys think about raking out bit of a trail to your stand? Is it already a little late for that, or will the semi-suburban deer get used to it in no time flat?

Since I have to get outside the fence to get to where the deer are, I'm pretty sure I can get away with cleaning things up a bit at least leading out to the gates that I use, anyway, but those are really my only access points, so I guess I need to spray down the pant legs, wear the rubber-soled boots, and touch as little brush as possible while getting to the stands... But coming in around the back so as not to traipse through a funnel? Forget it! Best answer is to use the paths that the owner's family uses for walks in the woods, so that any lingering scent will hopefully be where they're used to noticing a little something anyway, and then use the shortest possible route from the main tracks to the stand so that by the time an animal can tell that I'm not where the people usually ought to be, it'll be in range anyway....

I think..... :D

[ncboman]

quick check;

flashlight
bow n arras
release
climber
saw
camera

all I really need. :)

Been a while since I raked a trail but nearly every hunt I scrape up some fresh dirt where I want the deer to stand, the fresher the better. They just HAVE to come stand in it. :D

[DaveHawk]

GF I have been known to use a leaf blower.

[Wismon]

NCBowman, what type of climber do you use?

[dave-t.]

If you have to do some work around the stand, it's better to make a big loud obnoxious disturbance, than to sneak around and hope you pull one over on them.

Case in point, I was chunking up some firewood and moving a couple stands over the weekend. Carrying that saw and some equipment, wearing blue jeans, leather boots, and a white t-shirt, I walked within 25yrds of 4 deer going in, two fawn/doe combo's, and two mature does on the way out, while I was smelly as a gym sock and not being at all sneaky. Hell I was running a chainsaw for over an hour, and busting brush dragging a 15' ladder stand, cutting lanes, etc.

When I run into deer like that, I change course to not head right at them, and start talking/whistling. I'm no threat being obnixiously loud and obvious. Those last two does hopped the fence and didn't go more than 70yrds into the woods, they stopped and listened to me work my way down the trail. Maybe it was my rendition of 'Jimmy cracked corn' that had them in awe.;)

Don't be sneaky if you have loud work to do anyway. Loud work doesn't spook 'em like the sneaky stuff does. They can move off at their own pace with loud work.

I do recommend doing the loud work well before you hunt anyway, just to let the patterns get back to normal.

[ncboman]

If you have to do some work around the stand, it's better to make a big loud obnoxious disturbance, than to sneak around and hope you pull one over on them.

Case in point, I was chunking up some firewood and moving a couple stands over the weekend. Carrying that saw and some equipment, wearing blue jeans, leather boots, and a white t-shirt, I walked within 25yrds of 4 deer going in, two fawn/doe combo's, and two mature does on the way out, while I was smelly as a gym sock and not being at all sneaky. Hell I was running a chainsaw for over an hour, and busting brush dragging a 15' ladder stand, cutting lanes, etc.

When I run into deer like that, I change course to not head right at them, and start talking/whistling. I'm no threat being obnixiously loud and obvious. Those last two does hopped the fence and didn't go more than 70yrds into the woods, they stopped and listened to me work my way down the trail. Maybe it was my rendition of 'Jimmy cracked corn' that had them in awe.;)

Don't be sneaky if you have loud work to do anyway. Loud work doesn't spook 'em like the sneaky stuff does. They can move off at their own pace with loud work.

I do recommend doing the loud work well before you hunt anyway, just to let the patterns get back to normal.

+1

The deer can tell if someone is being sneaky and doan like it. Someone doin a job and ignoring the animals doan bother them hardly at all.

--------

wismon,
I use a 26yr old prototype of the Buckshot Bigshot.

Mine's slightly larger than the production models ... but good luck finding one. They stopped making them and most that have one won't let it go. Couple of years ago I bought a production model for an extra and it took me almost a year to find it. There is no climber made as rock solid up the tree for the relatively light weight, right at 20lbs the way I have mine rigged.

[GF.]

Just like when a lion walks across the African plains in plain view and all the prey species stand there watching - act like a stalker, and they'll act like they're being stalked. Act like you haven't got a clue, and they'll act like they haven't got a clue.


Hmmmmm.... Maybe that's why that doe never bolted last year when she walked by as I was scrabbling up my tree. :rolleyes:

[Sidekick]

Plus one on the loud and obvious. I walked out of the woods and across a field once right onto a couple of does. I just kept tromping on and they put their heads up and watched me walking a little nervously. They should have been nervous because while I was walking I was unslinging my rifle and taking aim....the instant my right foot touched the ground and stopped I already had a sight picture and that was that.

[Wismon]

I use a 26yr old prototype of the Buckshot Bigshot.

Mine's slightly larger than the production models ... but good luck finding one. They stopped making them and most that have one won't let it go. Couple of years ago I bought a production model for an extra and it took me almost a year to find it. There is no climber made as rock solid up the tree for the relatively light weight, right at 20lbs the way I have mine rigged.

NCBowman,

You're not going to be able to kill a deer using that thing. Now if you modify (http://eastcoasthunter.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=products&action=display&thread=2350) it a bit you might have a chance.

[Twanger]

Hmmmmm.... Maybe that's why that doe never bolted last year when she walked by as I was scrabbling up my tree. :rolleyes:

I killed a doe last year that hung around watching me climb up a tree with my climber, and I'm none too quiet... even when I wanna be. She wandered off a ways, maybe 70 yards, wandered back in 10 minutes later and whack! She was pie. :D

[ncboman]

NCBowman,

You're not going to be able to kill a deer using that thing. Now if you modify (http://eastcoasthunter.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=products&action=display&thread=2350) it a bit you might have a chance.

Now THAT GUY knows what he's talkin about. :D

[Wismon]

Yeah he does but don't tell him that; we've got to keep him humble.