Posted: 9/14/2011 12:23:54 PM EDT
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How does it play into hunting Deer? I've started a new spot. Unfortunately the only place I really have to hunt is in a semi-suburban environment. I'm about 300 yards from a trailer and much further from others. I'm on a hardwoods tree line and a defunct nursery is to my right. Tons of high brush in there and plenty of space to hide. I have a long shooting lane in front of me that opens to a large field with a beaver pond on the far end of it. There are tons of tracks out at my stand and fresh piles of scat there for the last few days. I've had plenty of pictures up till 0600 but nothing before or after. All the corn I've put down has been eaten. I'm just not seeing anything. Wind has been in my favor for the last 4-5 days that I've been hitting it up. I've been showing up at 0615 and shooting light begins half an hour after that. Am I showing up too late? Last year I would show up over an hour early and just listen to the owls. Seemed that I got busted more on my walk to my stand early though. What am I doing wrong?! I'm new to bow hunting and am starting to get frustrated. So, is it just the moon cycle or am I making every newb mistake in the books? Thanks guys. |
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Are you going to the same spot every day? If you are, then they may be on to your spot. It is either time to relocate or give it a break for a little while.
Also, you didnt mention if you 'scented up....If your not, that could be key as to why your not seeing anything. |
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Try hunting the afternoon/evening if you can. Chances are you are walking right through or near their bedding area in the morning and spooking them before you see them. If you wait till they bed down, sneak in and wait for them to get up and feed you might have better luck. I don't care much for afternoon/evening hunts simply because I don't like tracking or dressing a animal in the dark but sometimes it's the best option.
I'm not entirely convinced the moon affects them that much. Sometimes I see tons of deer during a moon and sometimes I don't. The most bucks I've seen in one day was the day after the lunar eclipse last year. If there is a lot of human traffic they can be totally nocturnal too. I see this along some of the roads I drive into and from work in the very early hours of the morning around 2400-0400 yet never see deer during daylight. |
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Quoted: Try hunting the afternoon/evening if you can. Chances are you are walking right through or near their bedding area in the morning and spooking them before you see them. If you wait till they bed down, sneak in and wait for them to get up and feed you might have better luck. I don't care much for afternoon/evening hunts simply because I don't like tracking or dressing a animal in the dark but sometimes it's the best option. I'm not entirely convinced the moon affects them that much. Sometimes I see tons of deer during a moon and sometimes I don't. The most bucks I've seen in one day was the day after the lunar eclipse last year. If there is a lot of human traffic they can be totally nocturnal too. I see this along some of the roads I drive into and from work in the very early hours of the morning around 2400-0400 yet never see deer during daylight. I'm starting to think that they are completely nocturnal. However, I shot two Deer about 500 yards from my current location last year. I have been going to the same spot every day for about 4-5 days now so they could be on to me. I was there two days ago and had one crunching it's dinner right under me. After 30 minutes of that going on (during non shooting light) it just stopped all of a sudden. I did not hear it crash through the woods. No snort, wheez or anything, it just stopped and I presume, walked away. I have not scented up due to it being pre-rut. I was going to wait a few more weeks before starting using scents. Thanks for the tips guys. I'll try to stick to afternoon hunting. I do know that I ran off one on Sunday morning. I heard it take off. No snorting though, just took off. I'll give it a rest for a little bit and resume using the spot. Thanks for all the advice. |
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www.moontimes.com
A friend turned me on to using phases of the moon a couple years ago. I'm not sure how but I'm now convinced there's something to it. These little hand held calculators are helpful, but not the panacea. If weather and conditions are good + this moon clock says conditions are optimal based on the phase of the moon, I've had great luck seeing lots of deer. |