Jake,

Ihunt alot of small farms (100 acres or less). Over the last 3 yeas bowhunting, i have worked on my tactics alot, but i have never had a full season to devote to hunting (school the first year, last year i worked and girlfriend surgery this year). Because of this i havnt done alot of "rut" hunting. That is an area i need to work on.

The way i hunt though is this; Early season , i like to set up on field edges to see where deer are coming out, and what they prefer to feed on. I do alot of video-taping during this time since the weather is usually beautiful. I have never shot a deer during the early season though. I find field hunting great for seeing deer, but shot opportunities are few because of how spread out the layout is.

Once the seasons has been going for awhile and the rut is starting to kick in, i migrate deeper into the woods and find scrape/rub lines. Last year and this year i saw a good number of bucks using this tactic, but most were in the 1.5 and 2.5 year old range. Once again, this is the tactic i want to refine for next year.

Late season, i like to find good trails in between bedding and feeding areas. Thats how i harvested my doe this year.

I dont always stick to this plan though, sometimes i will go deep into the forest early in the year and stay out near the fields during the rut. Their are alot of factors. During the rut, i like to do alot of rattling.

Also this year i want to try food plots. That is something i have never done. I do have 17 acres of hayfields (clover) availible this year that wasnt matured last year. Im excited for that.