Im so ready Im just getting depressed my buddy has both the cameras and I dont have time to put them out and he is too lazy. I swear I've been asking him for over two weeks and hes only working 4 10's. Thats why I havent decided on a morning spot yet. I dont know whats crossing there other than some nice tracks where my climber is still hanging from last year. I never did get that buck. There were two in that area one was a nice 8 last year and then there was a small 5 I'll get some pics of that this weekend too. Good luck to everybody going dove huntin this weekend.

Good luck this weekend SteveO. I used to do alot of dove hunting years ago. Until the farm we hunted got sold for development.

I'm going to try and relax this weekend. Last 2 weekends have been hectic for me with my wife making plans. At least I'll have the extra day off on Monday since it's a holiday. Going to start working on my list for my Cabelas trip this year. I usually go there the first or 2nd week of September. I need to get some top quality rainwear, boots and maybe a new tree stand.

Steve,looks like some good spots there.You said that in pic 1 you couldent get in without running deer off--lol--sounds like a well populated area to me.Are you running them off early in the morn or evening?
If it the morn why not try to get in on the opener around 9-10 while the deer are bedded down,get on stand and make it an all dayer.Try to find an opening in there as 2 trails intersect each other,hopefully giving you a 25 yard shot or closer.Any natural funnels in the area?

Pic 2 looks promising as well.Try placing a stand near the thicket.Big bucks like to use the thick stuff for security purposes.I wouldent worry about the corn,chances are the deer have a better feeding route to prime dinner-lol--find this route and where the deer are feeding heavily--field,transition zone etc and get in there an hour before first light,hopefully you will see the deer coming back as first light hits heading to the thicket to bed down.
A good trick I have found is if you have turkeys in the area and you make a little noise in the morn,just give a little "gobble" this will calm the deer down a little as you are getting settled in.

3----get in there,do some rattling and grunting later in the season,maybe place some scent bombs in the opening.Is there any opening behind the trees--trail,rub line etc.?
Make your stand accesible for front and back shots.

Remember,the deer in the early season are still together,on a feeding frenzy building up the fat reserve for the Winter and Rut,look for the feeding patterns,where they are coming and going and get into the transition zone,you will see them just after first light as they are going down to bed or early afternoon as they are off to feed.Be patient in the early season,never know where they will be.

Jeramy- Thanks Im going to need if Im going to be shooting like I think I will be. HAHA. Hope you get settled down with the long weekend.

Jason- Alright spot 1 I hunted last year and on the ridge behind me in the picture I saw a absolute monster during gun season but I didnt have a shot he uses that ridge and scrapes and rubs all around it and towards the center. I found I can hunt it in the afternoon when the deer arent there but I saw him using it in the morning. spot 2 is on the adjacent ridge to spot 3 (food plot). Very close together and yes in between those ridges is the god awefullest thicket you have ever seen. Im going to focus on hunting around it this year later in the season. Spot 2 (corn pile) I shot the six point I posted earlier from the spot its around 500-600 yards from spot 1 and 3. The thicketat all locationsis connected except for the food plot splitting it in between and the deer travel the East and West sides of it. Seriously talking this out really helps. Im starting to develope a plan. I cant really hunt the food plot in the morning either but Ive never seen a deer there in afternoon. I always spooked deer in the morning but thats the only time on stand that I actually saw them. They bed inside the thicket and a group of about 4 does bed on the west side between spots 2 and 3. Ive got some pretty good locations. I can get to 2 and three from the backside but I have to walk right by the does. Maybe with the newly cut fire break I can ease through there with minimum amount of noise. Spot 1 is totally inaccessible in the morning because I have to walk through the deer to get toany kind of stand locationand I cant go around because there is a hunting club. For some reason they are always there early I mean its ahuuuuuge cliff off that side. It must be the acrons, they are feeding on and they bed on top of that ridge also. Oh yes I try to get there early at least 30 minutes before day light. Ive got two other spots I havent revealed yet. The best is yet to come. Thanks guys.

SteveO....Out

Now teasing your teammates is not called for here--lol--Spill the beans man

Now we havent heard from MossyOak722,srss and RJPOUTDOORS in some time now[:-]Hopefully everything is all well with these guys.Would be nice to hear from them though EHWhere are YA'S

Ps--Jeramy--I am also looking for some new boots this year,something for the late season cold weather--Any suggestions?
I was looking at the Rocky Blizard Stalkers-1200 gram thinsulate and the Irish Setters 1600 Gram Thinsulate--Really like the Rockeys though--hmmmm

Jason Out

Jason, I am not familiar with either of those. But I know that both Rocky and Irish Setter make good boots. For late season I have a pair of Cabelas 1200 gram thinsulate boots. They sell for about $70. But to be honest I don't have alot of time with them in the woods under bad conditions. I couldn't tell you how they hold up in snow or heavy rain. But I can tell you that with a comfortable sock my feet stay warm, dry and toasty even when just sitting in my stand for hours on end.

I'm looking for an early-mid season boot like the Wolverine Whitetail or Danner Kestral.

Well the Kentucky archery season has opened today its 2 am and I'm getting ready to jump in the truck and head to the farm. We have a 2 1/2 drive ahead of us but it will be well worth it. Have three days to just hunt.

Good luck to all, good hunting.

Good to hear from ya RJP.Good luck on the hunt bud.Man I am really gettin pumped,got a guy hunting and I still got a month to wait.

Jeramy---LOL--$70,man,I cant find a pair for under $150-$200,maybe I'll have to get you to send some down my way-lol All kidding aside,Those Cabelas boots sound great but we have No Cabelas here in Canada and I dont have the Catalogue to do a mail order-Oh well,think I will go with the Rockies

RJP, good luck this weekend! Hope you have a great time out in the woods.

Jason, you can order them straight from their website. Only downside is that you obviously can't try them on before you buy them. But they will ship to Canada.

Cabelas 1200 grain boots

Couldn't let this fall to the 3rd page.

Hope you guys that are out hunting are having good luck. I spent today getting my yard work done and then I pulled out my treestand and gave it a good cleaning. Took off the pads and camo and tossed it all in a scent free wash. Now I have it all hanging out back under my pine trees. Going to clean all of my camo and base layers tomorrow and get them all ready. Only 12 more days till my early antlerless season starts.