I'm from the country where EVERYBODY hunted, the school I went to even had "deer days" where you could take a couple days off during the season and it didn't count against your absences. Unfortunately though, My dad never was into it so I never had any mentoring. I'm in my mid 20s now, it's my third season hunting (hard too, not just a day here and there), I bowhunt, I can't afford to lease land, and I don't want to leave cams/blinds/stands on public land.  I took 2 weeks off for this season, which ends monday. This whole time I've  only had 1 doe in range, but she had 2 yearlings with her...neither had spots so I'm having an internal arguement about letting her walk since I'm 99% sure some jackhole will put her down before they even see the babies during gun season. ..

Anybody else start out this way but eventually mastered the art of spot and stalk? I've scouted hard, hunted hard, go unbelievably far to cover my scent, but nothing seems to be paying off. It's frustrating, I love being out in the woods especially when everything seems to come alive (which I always imagine is because there is a monster buck about to pass through my range lol) but it would be infinitely better having something to show for it.

Couple things:

Success is what you make it.  If you're not comfortable with a shot, don't take the shot.  If the animal isn't what you think to be the right animal - leave it alone.  I believe hunting ethics is a very personal thing, what works for me might not work for you.

Public land hunting is difficult hunting.  

I've hunted for many years and really have not killed that many animals.  I don't really care for venison, so I spent a lot of time chasing elk.  I've passed up a lot of deer, and have not killed many elk (successful elk hunting is difficult using weekend warrior tactics - on foot, weekends and day hunts, etc.)  I've really enjoyed my time in the woods and consider that to be success.

Experience takes time and opportunity.  Keep at it, read and watch as much as you can, and you will get better.

What both of you said is exactly what I tell myself. I'm usually frustrated by it a few hours after I've left. While I'm in the woods I always feel like I'm learning more and more and gaining something from it, so it's never a total failure lol

Edit: I also feel like the more I read and research into it, the more distracted I am out there... Constantly thinking about what this article said or what happened in that video. My best trips are when I take a little bit the day before to plan which area I'm going to go to, which route I'm going to take, what time I'm going to wake up etc etc... Even when things don't go according to the plan those days are almost always better experiences than days that I just go out and wing it.

#1 you're wasting your time if you are hunting where there are no deer. Dont laugh - lots of people have no clue how to scout and find deer, and just climb up a tree and sit there with their thumb up their butt. Pre-season scout early and scout often. Find Bambi's area then set up ambush on opening day.

#2 Bambi didnt get old with big antlers by being stupid. Most large buck deer East of the MS are nocturnal. Try going out at 3 pm instead of staying out all day and getting tired and frustrated. Last 5 deer I killed with antlers was in that half hour right before pitch dark without fail.

#3 Bambi aint going to walk out in broad daylight and commit suicide to nip at some clover; he's looking for carbs. Hunt over corn, mast, etc

#4 The above 3 become bullsh!t during the rut! Pu$$y drives them insane - they are running around all over the place at all times of the day in the rut. During the rut you want to be up in your stand 24-7 if you want big antlers. So, when the rut hits, find a scrape and crawl up in a tree 50 yds out and wait.

+1 that's pretty well it in a nutshell. He left a lot out lol, but the formula is there

The area I'm hunting has tons of sign, more then I've ever seen, and like I said I had a doe in range so I know there are deer out there... Before sunset is the only time I haven't tried yet, heading out for that today (which is why I'm posting instead of hunting right now lol) I'm not worried about bucks... It would be cool to get a nice mount but I would rather have some meat! There is a good size plot and an apple orchard out there, but like you said the deer read the regs and know the hunting hours! That's what it seems like anyway

Spot and stalk on whitetail is an exercise in futility....abandon that technique. All you are doing with that is chasing deer you never get close enough to see, and blowing up your woods so the deer are always on high alert.

What the above poster said is all true, except the scouting in early/pre season. This is the time you want to stay away from the deer. After the season ends is the time to scout where the deer are going, bedding areas, then use that information for the next season. Scouting in early season is a great way to spook the deer and run them out to the next chunk of woods/farm/ect. If you don't have a grasp on where the mast trees are, and where the deer movement is before season.......go in as little as possible to get that info before season starts, and stay out of potential bedding areas which is usually the thickest nastiest stuff around. Still though, I HATE going in at all before season, mature deer catch on to the program way too quick.

If you haven't done your homework in that regard, find the food. Mast is the hot ticket right now. As is soybeans. White oak acorns is better than red oak acorns. Sit on the downwind side of the trails heading to all this food, and you should be successful.

Don't hesitate one bit about shooting a doe with fawns. At this time of the year, those fawns are 100% able to do just fine without mama. She will be chasing them off soon anyways.

Get up in a tree! You will see deer you never could see on the ground, and learn a lot about their movement you wouldn't otherwise notice.

Go in early, and get out late. An hour before shooting time in the morning, and after it's WAY too dark to shoot to leave. Going in late and coming out early busts deer out of the area, its about the worst thing one can do.

Hunt the drizzly rainy and foggy days, deer movement is always best when it's not sunny out. Basically, imagine them as vampires that hate the sun.

I've shot a P&Y whitetail the last 6  years in a row, and live by all of the above religiously

Your learning something from all that fruitless hunting. Its one of the skills you need to be a good hunter,patience! Keep working at it, asking questions,trying new things and i have no doubt you will fine success.i know a few thing about hunting from my years of practice.go early,go often and stay late.

Not much to add to this except to be mindful of the wind direction and how it will change as the air warms and cools on low wind days. Have a few different approaches to your stand or better yet, stands in different locations for different winds. When I can, I stay in the stand all day. If time doesn't allow a full day I will be in the stand at daybreak and stay until early afternoon. I have taken several nice deer between 10 AM and 3 PM, especially on the bracket moon days (that is the few days before and after a new moon), and on unusually warm days prior to a front coming in. I know my property like the back of my hand since I live on it and know which days will be more likely to be productive and when I may as well stay in bed, for example, winds from the south at my place shuts the movement down completely.

Since you have located the mast look for staging areas in slightly thicker cover a short distance away from the food source. Often the deer will mill around in a less prime feeding spot with better cover until it is dark and will sometimes rest in those areas after feeding before moving to their bedding grounds.

Thanks for all of the info guys, I should mention that these are blacktails I'm chasing... From what I have heard/read that the only difference between them and whitetails are that they don't have set patterns they follow.

I figured the fawns would be fine, I just couldn't bring myself to do it because they were following her every move and to me that meant they are still depending on her. If I don't see any this evening I'll probably get her before I go back to work next week...

Hunting is not always about killing. I have spent many days in the woods and didn't shoot when I could because I didn't want to.

Where are you at that you are hunting Blacktail?

I'm curious too. I assumed whitetail since it appears you are from North Carolina.

Sometimes  a little success helps with my patience. Go shoot some doves or get your buddies to go on a hog hunt.
The first 3 or 4 years of my 32 years of hunting were fun but not very productive. They did teach me what hunts I was willing to invest my time in.
Our archery  deer season starts October 1st. I wait until the last October or the first November weekend to start.
Some of the best hunts I have been on didn't involve me shooting anything.
Being in my 50's I now  really GROOVE on hunts enjoying every minute sitting dark to dark weather permitting.

Hunting isn't easy. Do not allow your mind to go negative, ruined hunts for me in the early years.

Always keep it fun!
Good luck.

OP- you are being too hard on yourself.  I  know lack of "tagging and bagging" can get you down.

All those other "successful" guys have eaten tag soup many times I guarantee but they are not going to gloat about that.  Hunters tend only to give the highlight reel from the big games and I'm sure they never exaggerate!

Also- while you are out spending time in the woods, 99% of the rest of the world is sitting on their ass or doing something that hate.  You are WINNING!

This and where in NC did the season open 2 weeks ago.  Bow season started TODAY as I'm sitting in a tree as I write this.

I'm not sure I ever had to eat tag soup, at least that wasn't self imposed just waiting for a trophy class animal. However, my Grandfather was a hell of a teacher, and I had the basics down by the time I was 8yo or so.

If I had to try to learn all that on my own, Gheesh.........It prolly would have taken YEARS to even get close to figuring things out every year and I'm almost 40!!!  So yeah, don't be hard on yourself!!

Prolly the best advice I can still hear him yelling at me:

1. Pick your damn feet up!!!
2. Hold Still!!
3  Be quiet!!!
4. You in a hurry?
5. You won't ever fool a deer's nose
6. There aint nothing out there in the dark that's not out there in the day
7. Aim small miss small

And really, it's all bout the most important advice one can get!!!

Thanks for all the info guys! Had a great day out in the woods Friday, had 6 does within range and got a shot off at a buck (missed though ). And I'm in WA,  not NC... Thought I changed that lol

FWIW, I grew up in a hunting family.  Started deer hunting when I was 12.  Didn't shoot my first deer until I was 19.

That was gun hunting on public land, bucks only.

You also mention you are hunting by stalking deer.  That is very difficult way to bow hunt.  Try a tree stand.

OP, I was in the same boat. I didn't grow up in a hunting family. I wanted to learn to hunt and teach my kids the same.



I read every book I could get my hands on. Started reading a lot of different bow hunting forums and watched a few good tv shows.

What I learned early on was that every day was a great learning experience. Each day I saw something new, learned something new and started trying new things. Like what movements I could get away with. I found that in general move no faster than what the winds moves vegetation around you. (for the most part) If you are spotted, don't move at all and a lot of the time they will return to what ever it is that they were doing.



For the first couple years I didn't expect to fill a tag. I thought of each season as a training season and enjoy the time in the field. It wasn't long until I was able to come up with better plans, better tracking, better scouting.. etc.

Bow hunting is a LOT harder than rifle season. All your skills need to come together.

You'll get there, just take the time to learn it as you go....   it's worth it.

Interesting read OP. I'm in a similar boat. Wasn't taught how to hunt. I'm 29 now and literally just passed the Hunter Ed course today so I can get my first hunting license. I will be bow hunting from the ground , sitting or stalking. You aren't the only newbie.

Not doing a tree stand. I cannot stomach it. I get vertigo cause I'm a wuss lol. I can guarantee id fall

Get a blind. Stalking is a real pain even to experienced hunters. Some game isn't too bad because they are not a sensitive.. IE Elk they tend to not care all that much about noise especially during the rut.  

White tail and other deer types are very skittish and pay attention to every noise and movement. Stalking is a lot of fun but can get really frustrating really fast.



 

Treestands are awesome, give them a try. You will get used to them fast, and with the fall restraints they have nowadays, it's prolly safer than sitting on your sofa at home.

I used to be skittish about them a long time ago, but I'll climb just about anything now. Crooked, shag bark hickory, whatever it takes to be in the right spot. I have no issues sleeping away half the morning in my climber, but I still hate using a ladder to clean my gutters, lol.  I've been near 50ft up a tree before on a steep bank just so I'd be 20 feet above the trail I was hunting. Aint nothing to it!!

Don't want to ruin your day, but elk and deer are both venison.

I'm considering the ladder type tree stand. I can't do the climbers. Example of my vertigo: stayed at the GM building once in Detroit on 44th floor. First time I was ever at that altitude. Yaknow how the elevator shoots up real fast so it can transport you all those floors quickly? I have a stupid reoccurring nightmare about that from 10 years ago! I'm not ashamed to admit my fear of heights to myself because it'll keep me safe by not trying one of those climber stands and breaking my dumb neck

I will try that other posters suggestion about a blind. What about natural brush cover while watching a feeding area from a treeline? How do you present the bow to shoot from your blind? I'll have a 68" longbow

The more I read and listen to suggestions, seems a good choice for me to sit in a type of blind or natural concealment and watch a feeding area or trail. Yes?

READ THIS:

http://books.google.com/books?id=0HUV9cNPuY4C&pg=PA44&lpg=PA44&dq=the+man+who+touches+deer&source=bl&ots=Bz2X3IVEO_&sig=q9EaWIJLNlEVXf3IscT6w3F5i9s&hl=en&sa=X&ei=eCAXVNT1G6a28wGBtoDoDw&ved=0CCcQ6AEwAQ#v=onepage&q=the%20man%20who%20touches%20deer&f=false

TRG

I'm sure it's been said, but spot and stalk with a bow is not the way to go for a new hunter.  If you don't want to deal with a treestand, I shot my first deer with a bow while sitting on a 3 legged folding hunting stool.  No blind, just camo and sitting up against a tree.  Treestands are even better, but bring their own baggage.

And shoot the doe, the yearlings will get along fine.  Or shoot the yearlings...

My dad told me he hunted for 10 years before he actually took his first buck. As I was growing up he instilled in my brother and I that it wasn't about going out and killing a big buck or even killing a deer at all. It was about being out in the woods in god's creations enjoying his art work.

I have been hunting myself for about 8 years and have yet to take a buck myself. A few does but no bucks even close to take. I have the privilege of hunting one of the best counties for big bucks here in Indiana and just haven't been able to get one close enough to take a crack at. They always seem to be just out of range.

Pre season scouting is key to a great hunt. Finding where they bed down, where they eat / drink can make the difference. If you can put out game cameras this helps you cover a lot more ground with less disturbances.

If you are hunting public land then  a big ground bind is or can be a real pain. I would probably look at something like the Ghost blind.  http://www.ghostblind.com/

I just picked one up for turkey season and have been playing with it around the house in different locations and such. Looks like a good option.



 

If by PRE SEASON, you mean anytime in the month or two before season, I couldn't disagree with you more. Those are the times you need to stay out of the woods. Wading through bedding areas and putting your scent all through the woods, is the last thing you need to be doing before season. If you bump a mature buck off it's bed, it's a guarantee you wont see that deer there again.

Do your scouting in the spring and right after season ends.

Pre season as in around shed hunting time



 

I used to be all nature lovin nut hunter.. smell the dirt kinda bullshit..
Id typically hunt the whole season and bag one doe at a mininum, I never once cleared all three tags in a season.
that was before the Army..

Now Ill plant trail cams, talk to the land owner about leaving an acre crop up and pay him for it. take a thermal out and track deer at night watching movement and habits. IE using every advantage possible..

I now will often fill both doe tags in my first day, pass over bucks I know arent the alphas in the area.. and down a decent one before season ends. every year..

find like minded hunters. ( just had to do this since moving to TN) and organize. track, and prepare as much as possible and legal.

that whole bullshit about enjoying the nature. Ill do that the rest of the year, while im hunting im there for one thing, to fill the freezer.

declare war on bambi... its not a fair fight, dont dumb down to make it so..

Except with this difference.   For this year I have kept my feeder full of corn.   Right now I have more deer in the area than I ever had.  Last year I had two does and a small spike.  I took one of the does.   This year I am watching a nice six point, two 4 pointers a prong horn spike and a bunch of does.   I will proberly take the spike and a couple of does.   Now when season comes around they may all disappear who knows.

Wolf

This.   I am a very ethical hunter as well.  Been hunting for four years this season, have only taken pigs.  Had opportunities my first two seasons -
Once it was so dark I could not tell if doe or buck
Once a large group of does w wife in tow
Once had a buck but couldnt draw for spookin him.  

That was all 2yrs ago.  Have t seen deer last year.  Hoping this year will improve.

I got really lucky my 1st year hunting.  I was in college and took a beautiful buck.  I missed when he was 5 feet from me but got him at 100 yards.
I have been in the woods EVERY year since.  It is what defines me and I use opening days as the marker for my passage through life.  Not
Birthdays, anniversaries, Christmas dinner, New Years etc.  My time on earth is marked by opening day sunrises.

Hunting is about failing so many times - repeatedly, that when it happens it is cause for celebration.  Ive taken 35 or so deer in my life.  Some bruisers
some fawns.  Ive passed up 100's of shots and taken some Im not proud of.  I have been blessed with great friends and great places to hunt from Wyoming to Maine.  It realy is about the quest.  Not the shot.

Spend enough time in the woods and one will walk by you......

I don't know what happened but it's like something "clicked" since starting this thread... I almost think the amount of frustration turning into downright determination to get good at this but almost every day since I've stalked within 100yds of tons of does. A lot of blacktail hunting is reading the wind and being a ghost in the field. The evening I got the shot at that buck it was taking me 30 minutes it seemed to move 15yds. I'm going to fight work tooth and nail tomorrow afternoon to get my boy out and start teaching him before the bird hunters flood the forest.

ETA: To everybody also needing the advice from this thread *obviously I'm not an expert* remember everyday (write it down if you have to) the temperature, wind direction/speed, amount of cloud cover, and time of day that you hunt. Be a ninja as soon as your feet touch the ground, and stop every few steps to really look hard at every single thing close enough to see.

If you have a Android phone (looks like they have a Apple version as well) look up the app HuntStand. It's a free app were you can select your hunting area and it will generate a map for that area, with temperatures through out the week, wind speeds and directions. Moon phases, sun rise and set times. Also gives minor and major AM/PM game movement times for that area. So far its been pretty spot on.

You can add markers to the maps as well. Like game locations, stand / blind locations... awesome all around good app. A must have for me.







http://www.huntstand.com/

 





 

Yearlings taste good.

I'm jus sayin

It takes time... The first deer is the hardest, but once you kill one, and look back and reflect on the hunt, you can hone your skills... I took me years to kill my first deer, must have missed 15 or so.. Once I stared killing them, its rare that I miss.. Stalking with a bow is about useless, you need to ambush them. Even that is hard, there is a lot of movement involved drawing a bow.. If your not using a tree stand, set up down wind of a heavily used trail, and set up in thick location and leave your self just a small area to shoot out of.. Bow hunting is hard, ground hunting with a bow makes it even harder, do not let your self get discouraged, just keep at it.. One day youll look back and miss the challenge of killing a deer, while you sit and watch deer pass you by thinking to your self, not big enough. Good luck, and keep at it, Hunting is one of the most rewarding hobbies you will ever have...

I used to think everyone stalked and hunted, until I knew real hunters. Shooting a rifle from level ground is also dangerous. I guess there are areas, mostly out west, where that's how it's done but in these parts we use stand. You can do your scouting by walking to see where the deer travel but their eyesight is very in tune to movement. Plus you are spreading your scent.



even a stand required some sitting time but the success rate should be much higher.

I have to agree with that. I am in my 3rd year hunting deer. Year 1 I got a small 4 point just by walking down the trail to the field where it was feeding by itself on a warm windy afternoon, he must have been retarded because I missed him twice before shooting him in the head.  Spooked a couple other doe the rest of the season but that was it.

Year 2...last season I never saw a thing, Tried from a blind, stalking etc. Trails everywhere and I know there are deer back there but saw nothing.

This season, I got a yearling last week with my muzzleloader. I honestly didn't realize she was that small I was just so happy to see a deer I took her down. The wife and I processed her ourselves and I had a few pieces already and she was very tender. Last night I spooked another deer. So far this year is already way better then last.

My problems are I don't like heights, I tried a couple of tree stands and they are not for me. Also I have restless leg syndrome, so many times when I do choose to sit ,I just plain cannot without twitching so damn bad. So walking around while not recommended is really the only way I can hunt most times.

I am thinking of trying to build a  6 foot high tower I can put my blind on top of to get me up in the air some. I know I should have did it in the off season so they would be used to it by now.