Plans for season setups?

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Tennhunter3
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Plans for season setups?

Unread postby Tennhunter3 » Mon Aug 02, 2021 4:11 pm

Over the course of my beast hunting I've definitely evolved alot. My first two years I found myself hunting mostly the wrong spots and tried to keep up with over 50 spots. I was a fish out of water. Year 3 I began getting on some good stuff and started doing some things right.

Years 4 was rough i got onto a giant early season and hunted him too much. Then the election happened and family issues pulled me away.

Coming into this year 5 I'm only hunting 7 stands I have previously hunted.

Hunting a new kentucky wma this year in early September.

My total planned stand count for Tennessee is 34 at this current time.
Some are am, pm,rut, early season ect.
I'm sure I'll get onto something also and will throw sits at certain other spots. I want enough to have a idea but not so many I get confused or don't seek hot areas during the year so its a balance.



Its really amazing how we evolve as beast.
This year I have done the most scouting and worked the hardest of any year yet I'm confident in my setups and areas.


Pretty crazy to have 27 new planned stand locations that I have never sat before.

What do you guys have drawn up for season?


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Tennhunter3
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Re: Plans for season setups?

Unread postby Tennhunter3 » Mon Aug 02, 2021 4:12 pm

No idea why it made triple threads sorry can a mod move it to one thank you.
Never give up Freedom for imagined safety.
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Re: Plans for season setups?

Unread postby Deerkins » Mon Aug 02, 2021 10:05 pm

Work and life is getting in the way, but I will move some cameras around in areas that have been good in the past and keep scouting out some newer areas, when time permits.
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brancher147
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Re: Plans for season setups?

Unread postby brancher147 » Mon Aug 02, 2021 10:11 pm

Too early to say for me. Still have some cams to get out and scouting to do. Depends mostly on mast conditions and where the sign starts popping up early season.
Some do. Some don't. I just might...
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Re: Plans for season setups?

Unread postby RatMe » Mon Aug 02, 2021 10:38 pm

27 new set ups! You have been working hard.

I’ve got a bunch of new and exciting ones as well this year after a tremendous amount of hard work this spring and summer( work that I love).

What I find the most interesting for me, is how often I “lose” spots each year. Without this approach I would have such limited hunting opportunities. I’ve had to learn how to not fall in love with a spot as they will become developments, new trails, someone else’s stand Location, or posted properly.

The hope and excitement that a new spot can bring is addicting.
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Re: Plans for season setups?

Unread postby Thesouthpaw » Mon Aug 02, 2021 11:01 pm

I plan to do the same thing I've been doing. Hunt the deer where they are by using a mobile system. As the season progresses, it seems like they move around a lot, therefor I need to as well in order to stay in the game.
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Tennhunter3
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Re: Plans for season setups?

Unread postby Tennhunter3 » Tue Aug 03, 2021 6:45 am

RatMe wrote:27 new set ups! You have been working hard.

I’ve got a bunch of new and exciting ones as well this year after a tremendous amount of hard work this spring and summer( work that I love).

What I find the most interesting for me, is how often I “lose” spots each year. Without this approach I would have such limited hunting opportunities. I’ve had to learn how to not fall in love with a spot as they will become developments, new trails, someone else’s stand Location, or posted properly.

The hope and excitement that a new spot can bring is addicting.


I know the feeling logging and pressure have really impacted my areas also. Most of the areas I hunted from years 1 -3 are now gone and are a wasteland.
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Re: Plans for season setups?

Unread postby KPillinois » Tue Aug 03, 2021 5:56 pm

This will be my first year being truly "mobile".... been hunting 7 years now, public land only and i always get a deer every year, but it is a lot of work mixed with luck. Scouted this spring for the very first time ever out of season and I found a bunch of new promising spots, but they all have stands already up ("still" up from last year i'd say). I plan to pay a lot more attention to detail with browse and such, just like the last video posted up by Mario and Rick Kimball. And figuring how the deer will avoid all these hunters and then will try and capitalize on how the deer will get around them. I am more determined than ever, so however hard i gotta work then I'm gonna do it... Also gonna try and film this year with a tactacam on a headstrap similar to what Dan has and document my year (and deer) on video. Missed a really big buck at less than 15 yards on Halloween last year because i coudn't get my camcorder started and it got me flustered, learned a hard lesson that day. Would have been my only big buck to my name, all i got so far for bucks is a spike and filmed that one at least. Also rewatched Dan's old video "Does camo really matter???" gonna work on better concealment and less movement. Gonna do my darndest to get me a nice buck this year.
I've changed my ways, I'm now looking for big bucks on public land.
A5BLASTER
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Re: Plans for season setups?

Unread postby A5BLASTER » Wed Aug 04, 2021 1:18 am

With the amount of logging they have/are doing on a wma I hunt, I have just written it off completely this year. Not a big peice of ground just over 7600 acres but they have logged close too 5200 acres of it according too the logging service tracker.

So now I'm down to 2 wma's that I have intel for, still plenty other wma's for me to hunt but will be going in blind if I go hunt them. Not really a problem for me as I will just scout hunt my way in.
Tennhunter3
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Re: Plans for season setups?

Unread postby Tennhunter3 » Wed Aug 04, 2021 2:52 am

KPillinois wrote:This will be my first year being truly "mobile".... been hunting 7 years now, public land only and i always get a deer every year, but it is a lot of work mixed with luck. Scouted this spring for the very first time ever out of season and I found a bunch of new promising spots, but they all have stands already up ("still" up from last year i'd say). I plan to pay a lot more attention to detail with browse and such, just like the last video posted up by Mario and Rick Kimball. And figuring how the deer will avoid all these hunters and then will try and capitalize on how the deer will get around them. I am more determined than ever, so however hard i gotta work then I'm gonna do it... Also gonna try and film this year with a tactacam on a headstrap similar to what Dan has and document my year (and deer) on video. Missed a really big buck at less than 15 yards on Halloween last year because i coudn't get my camcorder started and it got me flustered, learned a hard lesson that day. Would have been my only big buck to my name, all i got so far for bucks is a spike and filmed that one at least. Also rewatched Dan's old video "Does camo really matter???" gonna work on better concealment and less movement. Gonna do my darndest to get me a nice buck this year.



Does camo matter.

I would say definitely yes.
I doubt tbp would kill alot of the bucks on the ground with blue jeans like they do in gillie suits.

Sure Fred bear ,Dan and others have killed bucks without camo it can be done. At this point why would anyone want to try it.

As far as types of camo you can kill a buck with all.
I just prefer to not look like anything or have sharp detail to stick out. Sharp edges we notice so why wouldn't a deer notice. They are very good at seeing each others tails in distress so the other deer know the direction that a threat was spotted or smelled.

We can go into details about which camo patterns we prefer but thats a long thread in itself. As far as your question yes I truly believe camo does make a difference. Even if it is just a small difference such as giving us the hunter more confidence in the field.
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Lockdown
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Re: Plans for season setups?

Unread postby Lockdown » Wed Aug 04, 2021 5:34 am

I have roughly 17-18 new sets but chances are I will hunt maybe half of them.

The game plan will remain the same: hunt where Mr. Big tells me to. The more I plan things out ahead of time the less successful I am.

Strong chance I will end up hunting a bunch of impromptu ground sets as well. It’s hard to be prepared for everything...
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Re: Plans for season setups?

Unread postby Hookslinger » Wed Aug 04, 2021 11:37 am

Nice work TH3, sounds like your setting yourself up to have a great season.

I've done the most scouting and prep work this season than ever before. I have some where in the ballpark of 20 setups. Before the Beast I'd have maybe 5 preset stands at most. I know the cards are stacked against me as I'm new to mobile hunting and focusing on bedding areas, BUT I'm coming for blood this season thats for sure. One goal in mind and thats to put a good buck down.

One thing I struggled with is knowing how to find good morning setups. I find myself having a lot of mornings that I'm able to hunt, but most of the spots I have found seem to set up for evenings only.
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Re: Plans for season setups?

Unread postby PAbowhunter10 » Wed Aug 04, 2021 1:38 pm

Lockdown wrote:I have roughly 17-18 new sets but chances are I will hunt maybe half of them.

The game plan will remain the same: hunt where Mr. Big tells me to. The more I plan things out ahead of time the less successful I am.

Strong chance I will end up hunting a bunch of impromptu ground sets as well.
It’s hard to be prepared for everything...


Lockdown, It’s funny how much truth is in the first highlighted statement.
The past couple of years I have been really evolving as a hunter.
I have put in countless hours scouting in the off-season, prepping trees, hanging cams, spotting, and glassing. All that work and effort can put you in the right position to take a mature animal. But the truth is… no matter how much you plan and prep, at the end of the day you can’t control every aspect of the hunt. To make that statement more clear, I mean that successful hunters know how to adapt and change with their circumstances. That’s truly what makes them successful year after year.
If your target buck get bumped by other hunters or gets hit by a car… what’s your plan B?
If your go to hunting area that you scouted in the off-season gets logged a month before season starts… do you plan to speed scout the area or just move on?
If your work schedule changes and you suddenly you have to take on more work hours during season, limiting your hours afield… how does that change your game plan and hunting strategy for the season?
If you screw up on a once in a lifetime buck and he disappears… do you feel bad for yourself and then become complacent for the rest of the season… Or do you kick your but into gear and grind it out until the end.

The mind is a powerful thing and I truly believe the most consistent, successful hunters have a never give up attitude. A great hunter also knows how to fail and get back up until they succeed.
Evanszach7
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Re: Plans for season setups?

Unread postby Evanszach7 » Wed Aug 04, 2021 11:07 pm

The past 3 years I've had the same method... keep a handful of spots, scout, add more. But, being self employed work seems to get busy at the wrong times every year. Couldn't hunt last year from 11/2-11/18. Didnt hunt 1/2 the spots I wanted to.

2 years ago I started soaking 30 cameras from summer until February. It's definitely helped me refine when areas turn on, and what I'm missing when scouting... what's a good spot really look like, how a big track can trump a ton of sign for daylight movement.

Im basing this season on a week to week basis of annual movement. Hunt an area each available week where previous data says 1 or more mature bucks were within an hour of daylight. Get ahead of the movement. In season scout. Be aggressive.
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Re: Plans for season setups?

Unread postby PAbowhunter10 » Wed Aug 04, 2021 11:58 pm

Evanszach7 wrote:The past 3 years I've had the same method... keep a handful of spots, scout, add more. But, being self employed work seems to get busy at the wrong times every year. Couldn't hunt last year from 11/2-11/18. Didnt hunt 1/2 the spots I wanted to.

2 years ago I started soaking 30 cameras from summer until February. It's definitely helped me refine when areas turn on, and what I'm missing when scouting... what's a good spot really look like, how a big track can trump a ton of sign for daylight movement.

Im basing this season on a week to week basis of annual movement. Hunt an area each available week where previous data says 1 or more mature bucks were within an hour of daylight. Get ahead of the movement. In season scout. Be aggressive.


Are you using cell cams to collect this data or just regular cameras? If using regular cams, when you say soak does that mean not pulling the cards at all until you remove the cam or pulling cards on a monthly basis. Sounds like you have a pretty sound strategy. Is this mostly on public and have you had issues with theft while running that many cams?


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