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Where in the heck to begin. I wrote a big deal and then it crashed. I'll try again. A couple of things. You have to be breaking a few laws with your hunting until 11 PM, sitting on stand an hour after dark etc etc. Most any place you hunt you can only hunt 1/2 hour before/after. SEcondly, sounds like you've watched too many dang videos, commercials, and "EXPert" professing this or that new stinky sensation. Forget the junk in your dryers, stinky this and stinky that. To become a HUNTER... you should be worrying about the wind. I never met
to many people that really knew what 40 feet up looks like. You don't need it by the way. 20-25 gives you better shot angles and a safer hunt.

You're hunting(SITTING) too much in one spot. Hunt a place a couple days and move on. Change trees every time out is really the best. I don't care if you only move 40 or 50 yards. MOVE. After a couple days on a ridge or in this area....move somewhere else.

Some have already told you about the piles of corn etc. In my opinion it generally screws your hunting up. If a deer knows there's a pile of corn that keeps getting replentished and there is hunting pressure .... he doesn't have to come searching for food in the daylight. He can wait until dark and gallop to the dinner. Also, a pile of corn is an invitation to all that wander by to hunt your spot...and they will. The may be nice enough to use their own climber or stand, or worse yet they may sit on the ground next to the gold mine. At any rate, your area, cover and hunt are busted. You're now just spending time, learning nothing, loosing time with the family and becoming a BIG WANNABEE.

Get rid of the gimmicks, hunt the wind, move... and when you think you've found the hot spot and hunted it...MOVE AGAIN. You can come back in a couple weeks, but don't ruin it by being impatient.

A walking commercial from CAbelas or Jackie Bushwhacker will not kill you deer. Forget everything you think you know, because obviously it doesn't work or isn't. That guy trying to sell you the latest witch oil doesn't really care if you're a good hunter. Only you can do that.

Sometimes it just takes a little common sense. All these commercial stinkys do not smell like the real deal to a deer. Plain old common sense is best.



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u say your 40ft. up and you say they can see you?? i say bull, one of my dads friends was huntin about 30 or 35 ft. up and there was a doe that came in on him and looked right up at him, then busted, just bad luck, maybe, but just cause your that high dont mean they can see you, especially if you hunt the same spot. i sorta had that problem this year, my stand is only about 10ft off the ground, but anyways i had this doe come in on my about 30min till dark and she come in on the other side of the field and she would always look over towards me, so she new something was up, but that was only cause i spooked her, she never came back over unless i wasnt on stand and was sittin somewheres else, just my .10

I would go with saltflats suggestion if you are going once a week and if its int eh same day each week than they definatly might have patterernd you.

Deer don't pattern on 7 day intervals. Once every 7 days would probably be fine. It's the 6 guys that hunt the same spot the other 6 days of the week you have to worry about. Deer are smart.... but they don't know when Saturday comes.

You also want to watch how you are entering, exiting your stand. You may be jumping deer you don't even know are there.

Shane

i would suggest not using the earth scent. just use plain scetn free scent killer. ill only use the fresh earth if its raining or the day after. if dirt is dry, or frozen it doesnt smell. im guessing deer know that.

I think the guys have this one pegged. Hunt deer not bait. The deer use the bait at night when people aren't around. They avoid your area because you or someone frequent it. The scent thing is very important, but even if you did way way way less scent control you will still get plenty of deer inside of 20 yards and they'll never know you're there.

Good Luck!

I would do some scouting and hang another stand based on deer sightings(jump some if you have to - ONCE usually will not make a big deal.twice will kill you)and ultra fresh sign. Hang that stand to be hunted on a north wind. The assumption is that a cold front may get them moving. It's been so warm where I live the deer do not move much in daylight. Remember, they have their winter coats, so warm sunny days will shut them down. But a cold front following several warm days is a prime time to catch deer using an area that has not been disturbed. Good Luck!

It's breaking the law by sitting in his stand til 11:00? Since when? You can sit in your stand for 48 hrs straight and not break a single law...it's only by SHOOTING after/before legal times...at least where I hunt.

Ditch the earth scent. I used it one year didnt see any deer. Its to bad I didnt realize till the season was over what I changed. The next year changed back to no scent,pine or acorn cover and guess what, started to see deer again. You have to match the scent to the area your hunting area, dont wear pine in the middle of an oak ridge or acorn in pine rows. I use scent blocker clothes, scent eliminator spray and a cover scent. I see deer. On the other hand my uncle smokes in the tree, wears tennis shoes instead of rubber boots and he sees deer.