Posted: 8/26/2012 4:42:08 PM EDT
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Hi ladies. I have a question. Well, several questions actually.
We are a household of proud shooters. I want to deer hunt this year, but I don't remember where to start. I don't know about what soap to use or NOT use, which rifle to take, which stand to use. I hunted when I was a teenager with my brother, but I've never gone alone. I like deer meat, and prefer to use it over store bought beef. Last year we made donations to local deer cleaning places and got a good bit of deer, but we ran out. (I'm the only female in a house full of men!! Hubs, his 17 year old boy and our 12 and 10 year old boys. Even the dog is male. **HELP!!!*) My husband does not hunt, and the only other alternative I have is to ask our neighbor...who gives me the creeps and doesn't smell good either. Can anyone help me out on the basic guidelines? I DO know I have to get my Hunter's Safety Class under my belt, because I was born in '81. Just a few years shy of the rule. Thanks in advance! It may be tomorrow morning before I can reply, but I really appreciate any help you guys can give me. c PS. I have noticed a lot of people misunderstand my screen name here. It's Mrs. Andy as opposed to Mr. Sandy. |
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Quoted: I don't know about what soap to use or NOT use, Don't use any scented soaps (or shampoo), other than some of those made specifically for hunting. I use the Fresh Earth soap, body wash, and laundry detergent made by HS Scents; http://www.hunterspec.com/content/scent-wayr-fresh-earth-basic-scent-control-kit Besides not adding scent to your body and hair, you don't want it on your hunting clothes. Deer supposedly see UV better than we do, so I never use the normal detergent on my hunting clothes because of the UV brighteners. There is also a UV Killer, to help eliminate the brighteners from clothes that were already washed with standard detergents. which rifle to take, That depends on what you have, what you're familiar with, what you're comfortable (and accurate) shooting, and what your state allows. Too many variables in that one for a blanket reply. which stand to use. Again, it depends on what you have, what you're comfortable using, and where/how you'll be using it. If you're hunting a small fence row between bean fields you may want a pop-up blind (or simply lean back against the fence), but if you're hunting hardwoods and have a good mast crop this year, you may want a ladder stand or climber so you can look down on deer trails leading to/from White Oaks. Can anyone help me out on the basic guidelines? If you're going alone, make sure someone knows where you're going, and when you're expected back. If you were to get injured, you want someone to realize there's a problem as soon as is reasonably possible. Make sure you have a sharp knife, and know how to gut a deer before you go. Once the deer is gutted, cut or break a stick top prop the chest cavity open so that the meat can cool. I do the same with the hind legs, because a lot of heat is held there too. The faster you can cool the meat, the less chance it'll spoil. This is even more vital if you hunt like I do, getting into the blind well before daylight, and staying there until after dark. If the weather is too warm, you won't be able to do that without ruining the meat. Here's an example;  I hope you don't mind replies from a guy, but I'm giving you the best answers I can with the info provided.  |
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I wouldn't go it alone starting out, maybe ask around for someone in your area to go with and show you the ropes. Is it possible to go out and shoot a deer on your own? Yeah. Is it a good idea? Nope, not in my opinion unless you're experienced. I've hunted several times and even gone by myself but when you consider everything that can go wrong or even right (bagging a big deer) it's much safer and easier with a buddy. I'd be screwed on my own if I bagged a big deer and I'm not tiny but there's tracking, gutting, dragging and loading all to consider and I've watched big strong guys break down on a long drag out, there's no way I could do it on my own.
I agree about venison vs beef. I much prefer venison and I wish I was going hunting this year to fill the freezer. |
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I don't mind replies from a guy at all. I appreciate the help.
Where do I find the special soap? We have a Whole Foods nearby. They sell pretty much everything organic. (I swear there is even a plain ole' grass soap) We also have several stores with hunting gear-but they are all over sports stores. As far as a rifle, I'm right on with my AR, but I don't think people in my area hunt with those too much. I will be hunting on my own land, which means I can either sit on the ground or climb up a tree and I will be hunting alone. I will take my cell phone (And keep it on silent) in case of an emergency. I'm not very comfortable climbing a tree on my own. I have never heard of anyone gutting a deer out in the field. My dad and brother always bring theirs up out of the woods, (With a 4 wheeler) hang it then gut it before taking it to have it processed. I'm pretty sure I remember the drill there. Other than our neighbor, I don't know anyone else that deer hunts. I will ask my husband if there is anyone from his work that wouldn't mind showing me the ropes. There are a lot of people that come to our range to shoot, so maybe one of them is a hunter as well as a shooter. Thank you for the help so far! |
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First. Get a hunters safety class under your wings.
Go get your licensing from a local. Do you have land? If your state has rifle season in national forests, find one you like terrain wise, and figure on walking in to the forest at 5am to get to your spot. Sit on a tarp until sunrise. Hunt still sitting for the first three hours. Then you can prowl. Have a plan to be able to drag/wheel the animal out. |
| As a hunter ed. instructor I find it very compelling that you're taking this on yourself. First and foremost, take the class. Do they have an adult class or are you going to take it with a bunch of 11 - 16 year olds? If they have an adult class you'll be much more comfortable, but take any class you can get, and ask questions. If they don't cover it well in class, you might also look for a video on how to field dress your deer. I know there are a couple out there and most folks find it easier to learn watching someone do it rather than reading about it. As for scent free soaps and detergents, I've seen those at our local WalMart sporting goods section. I'm not a big fan of hunting alone. Despite the best laid plans things can go wrong and even experienced hunters have accidents. Work on finding someone to hunt with. |
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Quoted: Where do I find the special soap? I get mine at Walmart, but you can also get it from other places. See links below. As far as a rifle, I'm right on with my AR, but I don't think people in my area hunt with those too much. Bullet placement is the key, so use a good, expanding bullet and that will work fine. I will be hunting on my own land, which means I can either sit on the ground or climb up a tree and I will be hunting alone. I will take my cell phone (And keep it on silent) in case of an emergency. I'm not very comfortable climbing a tree on my own. Then you'd do best to find a tree or fence post to lean back against, or get one of the pop-up blinds (..or go out there in advance and build a small blind with brush). If you fall, the phone may break, etc. It's great to have it with you, but you shouldn't rely only on that. I have never heard of anyone gutting a deer out in the field. My dad and brother always bring theirs up out of the woods, (With a 4 wheeler) hang it then gut it before taking it to have it processed. I'm pretty sure I remember the drill there. Sounds like you have a system in place already, and that's good. Most of my hunting has been anywhere from a thirty minute drive to a four hour drive from home, often on public land, so none of what you do has been possible. We gut them right where they fall, and then take them home. I do my own processing, to save money and to make sure I get my own deer back. I've seen how some people handle their deer, and I'd be nervous that the meat was bad. I have one of these camo burlap sheets, that I prop or clip up to hide my movement on the ground. I put it so that I can see over it, but it hides my hands and legs. http://www.amazon.com/Hunters-Specialties-Burlap-Material-Realtree/dp/B0016S77YW/ref=sr_1_8?s=sporting-goods&ie=UTF8&qid=1346093000&sr=1-8&keywords=Hunters+Specialties I use this liquid soap to wash with, including my hair. http://www.amazon.com/Hunters-Specialties-Scent-A-Way-Odorless-12-Ounce/dp/B002L9DRLM/ref=sr_1_6?s=sporting-goods&ie=UTF8&qid=1346093347&sr=1-6&keywords=soap This is the detergent I use for my hunting clothes. http://www.amazon.com/Hunters-Specialties-Scent-A-Way-Odorless-Detergent/dp/B0026KEF12/ref=sr_1_2?s=sporting-goods&ie=UTF8&qid=1346095345&sr=1-2&keywords=Hunters-Specialties-Scent-A-Way-Odorless-Detergent Just before I go into the woods, I spray my clothes, and the soles of my boots, with Fresh Earth cover scent. http://www.amazon.com/H-S-Scents-Scent-Fresh-Earth/dp/B00014X2PK/ref=sr_1_15?s=sporting-goods&ie=UTF8&qid=1346093724&sr=1-15&keywords=Fresh+Earth –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– I also know guys who come home from work, grab a rifle (while still wearing their work clothes), and walk into the woods with a cigarette hanging out of their mouths, and they still shoot deer.  I'm big on scent control, as you can see, but you don't have to do all of that. I always like seeing new hunters. Edit - To fix a link |
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Thank you all so much. Let me see if I can answer some of the questions to see if I can learn anything else. Thank you for your information so far.
I will be hunting on my land. We have 17 acres with over half of it being field grass and trees. I like the idea of being on the ground as opposed to climbing a tree. I'm just not comfortable doing that by myself just yet. The scent part is something I will have to work on...my 2 vices are the "good shampoo" and nice smelling lotion. I don't remember the rest of the things you posted, but I will have more time to look over them in the morning. I'm keeping a little notebook-kind of like a check list so I don't screw something up. I do still have a few questions. *What is the difference between shooting from ground level and up in a stand in a tree? *Do I need to get a different shampoo made for hunting? *Is there maybe a spray I can use to mask my human scent? *Should I put out a few salt licks before deer season starts? (I know you can't bait them during the season. I'll check the laws here.) *When scouting out where I want to be, are there signs I need to look for? *I see deer occasionally in the fields when I look out across the patio. I will load pictures tomorrow. If the deer regularly eat from the same place, will they get gun shy during season? Oh––here we can take the online safety course and then go to a class that lasts an hour to get certification. I'm not sure I want to do that, because I would like to take our 3 boys (17, 12 and 10) to the class. They're all pretty gun savvy, but when it comes to guns, I am a firm believer in taking advantage of any opportunity you can to keep your skills up to par. My 12 year old is a friggin natural with a rifle. The boy doesn't even have to aim.  (I had to brag just a little...and I should mention he does not get that skill from me. I learned from experience.)
I have never heard of dressing a deer down in the woods. We always just haul them out then gut them at home. My neighbor has agreed to help me when I bag my first deer. I'm very fortunate to be able to just walk out my back door and head straight into the woods. Thank you all so much for your help. I am not busy tomorrow, so I will certainly look into the links you have been kind enough to provide. |
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The reason they "gut" or more commonly called "field dressing" (cause it's usually done out in the field) is for a couple reasons one of the most important is because removing the guts helps to cool the deer down very quickly. Waiting to gut the deer rapidly increases the chance of spoiled meat and disease plus it leaves all the unusable material out in the field where animals can chow down and not having to remove it from your house to dispose of it. Since you're hunting your own land and relatively close to home these rules are bendable in your case. However, I'd still consider field dressing your deer before packing out not only because it's better cool the carcass down, eliminates the need to dispose of later but also because it makes packing your deer out MUCH easier due to lightening the load, that gut material is really heavy.
I know it's hard to pass on the lotions and pretty smellum's but it's temporary so I would suggest washing your hunting clothes in scent killing detergent then storing it in a sealed bag like a plastic garbage bag and don't put them on until you're at your hunting area so you are scentless walking in. Wash body/hair with scent killer soaps (there are some new brands made for women that won't dry your hair and skin out as bad as others, i think it's called 'Just for Doe's' or similar. Buy some scent killer spray to use while hunting and maybe even an attractant scent to use on the hunt. I had good luck with acorn scented spray on my boots as I walk in. As long as the trees are producing acorns it can hide your scent and attract deer also. All of these sprays and soaps can be found at outdoor stores or even Walmart usually has a huge selection during the fall. Hunt the wind...if the wind is blowing your scent towards where you expect the deer to come from you need to change your spot to the opposite. This is especially important hunting on the ground. Good luck! |
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We hunt in SC a lot. We always dress, skin and quarter ours in the field when hunting private land. Then we process it ourselves - it tastes a lot better - no "gamey" test at all. In fact, today is our boy's birthday and he has requested venison shepherd's pie. Yum.
You can take the hunter ed course on line and take a pre-test for, I think, $15. When you pass it, print it out, sign it, and make an appointment to go sit for the actual test. Takes about an hour or a little more to do the real thing. Or, you can take a course if one is offered any time soon. Don't know where you are in SC but use of rifles on the ground in low relief coastal areas requires extra care to ensure unintended targets are not hit. Barnes TSX seems to be a pretty good bullet, as is Nosler partition. If it is real flat, I usually use a shotgun or a bow. I keep my clothes in a bag in the truck and don't usually put them on until I get to the field. |
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Quoted: I do still have a few questions. *What is the difference between shooting from ground level and up in a stand in a tree? With archery it would matter a lot more than with a rifle. I've never made any special allowance for shooting from an elevated position with a rifle. *Do I need to get a different shampoo made for hunting? *Is there maybe a spray I can use to mask my human scent? These two are in the links I posted, but you may want to Google search for the ones Brandi mentioned too. *Should I put out a few salt licks before deer season starts? (I know you can't bait them during the season. I'll check the laws here.) I think it's too late to do that, because I don't like to make too many changes this close to the season. On a farm, where they're used to human activity, it probably wouldn't hurt anything. Here in Missouri minerals aren't considered bait, so they can be left out all season, but any baits have to be completely removed ten days before the season starts. If you're going to put anything out there, read the regs carefully first to be sure you don't turn your place into one that can't legally be hunted. *When scouting out where I want to be, are there signs I need to look for? I like to find where they bed during the day, and feed during the night, then set up overlooking the trails in between. If you find a spot where several trails converge, that's even better. Set up off to the side, so that they aren't facing directly at you as they walk the trails, and try to have the wind in your face (blowing from the trail to you, so they don't smell you, and so you get a broadside shot). I suggest you do your scouting as soon as possible. The closer it gets to the season, the less disturbance you want in their areas (especially bedding areas). *I see deer occasionally in the fields when I look out across the patio. I will load pictures tomorrow. If the deer regularly eat from the same place, will they get gun shy during season? That depends on hunting pressure in your general area. On public land, where the woods suddenly fill with hunters and gun shots, after the first day it becomes increasingly hard to spot them casually wandering through. They become much more alert to any strange smells or movements, and many stay bedded more of the day/become almost entirely nocturnal. If you already know where/when they enter the fields, you may be able to set up so that you can shoot them there. If not, hunting the trails leading to/from the fields may be your best option. Knowing where/when they're normally at a certain spot, is a major part of determining where to intercept them. |
I got my soap/shampoo and cover scents out this morning, so you could see what I use, but I forgot to grab the detergent and UV Killer for the pic. I don't wear the boot pads though; I keep my hunting clothes in plastic totes, and those pads go in the totes to keep everything smelling like dirt.   |
