In-Season Scouting

Discuss deer hunting tactics, Deer behavior. Post your Hunting Stories, Pictures, and Questions/Answers.
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Zap
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Re: In-Season Scouting

Unread postby Zap » Wed Sep 14, 2011 11:05 pm

Nothing beats SEEING what you are looking for, either meat or bone.

When/where/what/direction of travel/wind and thermal direction at that time.....etc. :mrgreen:

Second best would be multiple syncronized camera pics.


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Schultzy
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Re: In-Season Scouting

Unread postby Schultzy » Thu Sep 15, 2011 1:53 am

Good stuff there Zap!! Agree. If I'm hunting opener or early season most of my In season scouting/setting other stands up Is done on my trips out of other stand sights after a morning hunt.

Up till about 5 years ago I wouldn't step foot Into my woods come the 3rd week of October or the 1st week of November. I always thought and still think It's a good thing to do If you don't want to hunt early season. Less messing with the woods the better. I'd then do a walk through In the woods with a couple stands and place them up according to the rut sign. I no longer wait till the prime of the rut to hunt. I absolutely love hunting the pre rut time In the middle of October. It's became one of my favorite times In the woods. I do hunt some In the early season (3rd week of September, our opener) but haven't had as much luck seeing older bucks. If we have beans Instead of corn on our fields that we rent out to a dairy farmer then I'll for surely hunt early. The years we have corn my early season hunts never amount to much. I think they bed In the corn most of the time. The years we have beans my sightings are much better. This year we have corn again but I may throw up a stand In a staging area where acorns are dropping. Their really starting to drop right now.
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Re: In-Season Scouting

Unread postby bowhunter15 » Fri Sep 16, 2011 11:20 am

Most of my inseason scouting takes place during the second weekend of firearms season. By this time, daytime deer movement is pretty much non-existent anyways for me. Put on a lot of miles, have found great spots that have produced both later that same season and the following year. Have also had opportunities for shooting deer that I've jumped up.
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Re: In-Season Scouting

Unread postby cwoods » Sun Sep 18, 2011 2:33 am

Thanks for all the replies fellas! Lots of good and helpful info.
Question for you guys? I found some very impressive tracks in a bean field yesterday afternoon. I thought about following them but I already had a another spot picked out near a bed that held a nice buck on it two years ago. Plus the wind would have played right into buck had I followed those sets of tracks. How would you go about setting up on this sign? From glassing this area Im not seeing any mature bucks in during daylight hours. Any thoughts?
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Re: In-Season Scouting

Unread postby cwoods » Sun Sep 18, 2011 2:26 pm

Set up on a known buck bed this pm. I assumed that w/ the wind and given the direction of the tracks that the buck left I set up of his favorable wind. It worked! A bachlor group came in w/ a 8 and a none typical in velvet @ 15yds. The oldest buck would not quite come out of the shadows. His body was bigger than the other two but I couldnt see all of his head gear. The non typ in velvet would prob went around 110. He needs another year and I really hope he makes it threw. Im just thrilled seeing my scouting and following hot sign lead to sucess.
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Zap
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Re: In-Season Scouting

Unread postby Zap » Sun Sep 18, 2011 2:33 pm

cwoods wrote:Set up on a known buck bed this pm. I assumed that w/ the wind and given the direction of the tracks that the buck left I set up of his favorable wind. It worked! A bachlor group came in w/ a 8 and a none typical in velvet @ 15yds. The oldest buck would not quite come out of the shadows. His body was bigger than the other two but I couldnt see all of his head gear. The non typ in velvet would prob went around 110. He needs another year and I really hope he makes it threw. Im just thrilled seeing my scouting and following hot sign lead to sucess.



8-)

Very cool.......

Good luck this season.

:mrgreen:
"Forged in fire lit long ago. Stand next to me and you will never stand alone".
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Re: In-Season Scouting

Unread postby cwoods » Sun Sep 18, 2011 2:43 pm

Zap wrote:
cwoods wrote:Set up on a known buck bed this pm. I assumed that w/ the wind and given the direction of the tracks that the buck left I set up of his favorable wind. It worked! A bachlor group came in w/ a 8 and a none typical in velvet @ 15yds. The oldest buck would not quite come out of the shadows. His body was bigger than the other two but I couldnt see all of his head gear. The non typ in velvet would prob went around 110. He needs another year and I really hope he makes it threw. Im just thrilled seeing my scouting and following hot sign lead to sucess.



8-)

Very cool.......

Good luck this season.

:mrgreen:


Thanks Marty! You too.
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Re: In-Season Scouting

Unread postby headgear » Sun Sep 18, 2011 3:29 pm

Cool cwoods, way to get on them early.
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Re: In-Season Scouting

Unread postby RaisedByWolves » Sun Sep 18, 2011 3:39 pm

cwoods wrote:Thanks for all the replies fellas! Lots of good and helpful info.
Question for you guys? I found some very impressive tracks in a bean field yesterday afternoon. I thought about following them but I already had a another spot picked out near a bed that held a nice buck on it two years ago. Plus the wind would have played right into buck had I followed those sets of tracks. How would you go about setting up on this sign? From glassing this area Im not seeing any mature bucks in during daylight hours. Any thoughts?


I would wait for the right wind to follow the tracks and see if they are still fresh.....if so I would follow them very slowly and look up ahead for possible bedding areas but most of all a staging area. I would then set up just off wind so he would have the false sense of security coming into the staging.

Way to start the season with seeing those bucks! great to hear when someone else's work is paying off :D
When better is possible, good is never good enough
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Re: In-Season Scouting

Unread postby cwoods » Mon Sep 19, 2011 1:37 am

RaisedByWolves wrote:
cwoods wrote:Thanks for all the replies fellas! Lots of good and helpful info.
Question for you guys? I found some very impressive tracks in a bean field yesterday afternoon. I thought about following them but I already had a another spot picked out near a bed that held a nice buck on it two years ago. Plus the wind would have played right into buck had I followed those sets of tracks. How would you go about setting up on this sign? From glassing this area Im not seeing any mature bucks in during daylight hours. Any thoughts?


I would wait for the right wind to follow the tracks and see if they are still fresh.....if so I would follow them very slowly and look up ahead for possible bedding areas but most of all a staging area. I would then set up just off wind so he would have the false sense of security coming into the staging.

Way to start the season with seeing those bucks! great to hear when someone else's work is paying off :D


The bucks I seen I found from following those tracks with a wind that was 90% in the bucks favor and 10% in mine. I took advantage of the 10% and their false sense of securtiy. It worked out well just wish the mature buck would have stepped all the way out. But it was great having sucess and being in there core area.

Thanks for the congrads and advice.


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