I spend a great deal of time planning my hunting spots AND how to reach them prior to the hunt. For example, I hunt a ridge top where I face west (usually the prevailing wind) toward a staging area and then several fields. Behind me is a steep wooded hillside down to another field. I know that the deer may approach from behind (downwind), but the steep ridge seems to help keep my scent above them. Other deer approach from the left or right field edges in front of me.

The trick is to get into my stand before daylight without disturbing the deer that may be bedded in the field below the ridge. I have to choose the road where I will drive into the area, where I will park and get dressed, and then which route I will take to get to my stand. This is all part of the planning that takes place long before I leave for the day's hunt.

One mistake that I made this year was in assuming I could thread my way through the woods in the dark to my stand without any markings. There was far too much unnecessary stumbling and crashing through the woods: next year I plan to carefully mark a clear path.

I also plan to stand as soon as I see a deer approach the area: I failed to get a shot one early morning hunt because I tried to awkwardly draw on a doe approximately 15 feet in front of the stand from a sitting position: she heard or saw just enough to cause her to scamper a few yards away, but that was enough to ruin any shot.

The planning and strategy is one of the things I love about bowhunting: while a certain amount may be necessary for those 100 - 200 yard rifle shots, getting within 25 yards is a lot trickier.