trimming shooting lanes?

[bigbob]

I understand that some on here only sit a spot one time. Dan talks about walking in with a stand setting up and moving on. I do quite a few single sets too and am wondering if you guys have lanes trimmed? Do you trim lanes before in the post-season and come back, when you arrive, or not at all? I shoot a trad bow so its pretty easy for me to trim only a few branches from the ground and tree in a few min to have good shooting lanes for my effective range. Walking around, trimming and leaving scent on the ground concerns me even though I wear gloves and try to keep it to a minimum etc. What do you guys think?

[headgear]

I pick my tree/trees and do a little trimming when I scout. Some stuff grows back over the summer but I can usually get are arrow through. Some spots I don't trim at all if I don't have the time, there I just look for the natural opens and make sure I have shots to the trail/trails I need to. In these situations you have to be extremely prepared for the shot because you might only get one chance. Whatever you do don't walk around and trim before the hunt, you will likely mess up any chance at a mature buck.

[Zap]

Alot depends on the situation.

I kind of hate to not have at least one shooting lane.
But if you are trying to get close then you really cannot trim.

It definately helps to go find a tree set your stand and shoot some arrows at a 18/1 or other target.
Doing that can be benifical on a few different things.

[Stanley]

It has been along time since I sat in a tree without shooting lanes. If I do a run and gun set up I look for natural openings. You gotta have a shot, or you have accomplished what?

[Milk Weed Seed]

On private I trim lanes. On public it is illegal to even posses a saw or pruners. (so I have been told), never checked if it's true because it's illegal to trim anyway. Most of the time I just work around it, trimming should be done in the off season IMO.

[ Post made via iPhone ]

[metropig]

I normally try to pick a tree that has natural shooting lanes. If I have to trim some branches high in the tree to open my shot I try to take the trimmed branch and stick it in a tree next to me out of the way, or drop it onto the top of a smaller tree below me so my scent is at least still up high.

[Edcyclopedia]

I'm a fan of shooting lanes dictated by my bad experiences.
At least I learned from my mistakes and stopped helping one particular friend track wounded deer!!!
Still Pssiss me off to this day thinking his arrow and setup are stronger/pwerful than mine - or something...

The wavering light or dark spots (swamps) altogether reek the need to have lanes trimmed unless you shoot in less than 10 yards.
You cannot see a pinky sized branch much past that at the golden hour!!!


I will usually trim my known stand locations, selectively, about 1-2 feet wide in spring.
Along with sometimes trimming all the way out to 30-35 yards or until my selected lane should end naturally. (I will range find these lanes for mental notes)
I also take the least amount posiible when setting/picking my lanes across a trail to reduce trimming (if trimming is not allowed I will zip tie branches)
Depending on the setup and known bedding, food, etc. I will trim anywhere from 2-6 lanes as deer meander feeding/ browsing.
(Many of my stand locations are multiple trail intersections hence the reasoning for multiple lanes).

[NatureBoy]

I pick my tree/trees and do a little trimming when I scout. Some stuff grows back over the summer but I can usually get are arrow through. Some spots I don't trim at all if I don't have the time, there I just look for the natural opens and make sure I have shots to the trail/trails I need to. In these situations you have to be extremely prepared for the shot because you might only get one chance. Whatever you do don't walk around and trim before the hunt, you will likely mess up any chance at a mature buck.

X2.

[GRFox]

It really depends. I bring a hand saw and try to trim as much as I can, when I can reach. I have tried tying my wicked saw to a sapling but it doesnt work well.

Unless I am in a real thicket I can usually find plenty of shooting lanes in most trees I climb, we dont have much undergrowth because of high deer densities.

[ Post made via Android ]

[MOBIGBUCKS]

Man, it really depends on the situation. If it is one of my known good areas I trim in February and never come back until I hunt the stand. However, if I'm on the move I try to let the canopy and available shooting lanes dictate how high I hunt in the tree. Like Stanley said, if you can't get the shot what have we accomplished. I did buy one of those Hooyman extendible saws for last season and it worked out great. However, the saw itself is a piece of crap and I'm waiting for Todd from WKP to come out with one that is built better.