i always said forget the rut, scents and calls...get out there and find a good funnel deep from the road...the other 1 million pumpkins in the patch generally hunt near the road, dont stand long, and many arent truely hunters and will spook more deer than they will ever see. as the deer flee from them and come through your funnel, you will have easy pickins if your funnel is a good one.

for years dad and i had an awesome setup in a maturing timber cut. thick enough to provide thickness and cover and make the deer feel semi-safe...but open enough for them to run easily and easy enough shootin. boy did we have some fun in there...really wasnt a true funnel, im sure it is for one reason or another i just never noticed, but the deer traveled it hard core.

another thing that often works is setting up in a thicket..somewhere you can see some heavily used trails or just outside a thicket where deer will enter as they are spooked...

hunt smart...let the other hunters do the work for you. if you are hunting an area that you will not be the only one hunting, forget food sources, calls, scents etc...

thats why after the opener, the success rate plumits...less and less people out there to move the deer, and the deer are scared out of their hides after being chased, spooked and blazed out by pumpkins...so food sources, scents, calls etc just dont work all too often unless you get really lucky...

ive never hunted anywhere opening day that didnt have piles of other guys around...

good luck...shoot straight and be safe!

first opener i wont be taking stand somewhere opening morning...gunna be awkward....hope my new chaps are home to break in this weekend..gotta get them broke in before next monday...i'll be home at noon to be a deer dog for the crew...