quiksilver

Do any of you guys have any new stand sites picked out that you absolutely CANT WAIT to hunt?

Describe it. Tell us why it's gonna produce.

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This spring, I took the occasion to tromp around a bunch of new public areas, and further investigate the place where I killed my bucks last year - and seek out a few new stand sites.

I've got three new ones that I absolutely am chomping the bit to sit in:

#1 is an early-season hunt. This stand sitewill be decent early, but will peak when the hard mast is coming off hot & heavy. It's an isolated bench of oaks on a west-facing slope, bordered to the north by a thick bedding area. The bench rolls around to the southright into a saddle that is criss-crossed with trails, leading into alternative bedding zones.There are a fair amount of rubs scattered around,in no particularpattern, telling me that there are some bucks spending time just feeding in the area once the mast starts to fall.

Morning thermals will carry my scent straight up the hill, into a rocky outcropping that no deer would ever wander into. Another bonus is that since it's not on the morning-sun side of the hill, it will stay a little cooler for a little longer in the morning. That matters when you're battling warmer temps in early October. It's fairly scent-safe, and I have a really solid ingress/egress route. Fair walk, but it will be worth it.

Even once the mast is off, this stand will continue to generate plenty of quality sightings, just based strictly on the lay of the land.

#2 is a rut hunt. There's a steep ridge, running north and south. Prevailing winds come out of the west. The western slope is a steep man-made cliff (strip mine), with a long lake running the entire length of the ridge, serving as a massive natural barrier. Both ends of this ridge corridor into other feeding/bedding areas. The Eastern slope is steep, rugged and thick.From what I saw this spring, it housesa fair amount of bedded deer.

This is gonna be a dynamite sit to wait out a cruising buck. This is by far the easiest, most common-sense travel route around this elongated body of water, and it is rotten with deer trails and droppings. Adding fuel to the fire, a calm morning thermal will carry all the scent from the eastern slope uphill to the ridge, making it beneficial for a cruising buck to hug the eastern edge of the ridge, scent-checking the hillside below. That same thermal will push my scent up out of the treetops, and out of harm's way.

#3 is another rut hunt. This time, a huge coal strip has removed all the earth and timber between two fairly large sections of brushy woodland, leaving one narrow bottleneck of woods connecting the two larger parcels. There's a nicely formed bench that pulls all the traveling deer into a single pinchpoint. The trails converge in this area like veins carrying blood back into the heart.

Oh man.

November can't get here fast enough.

GMMAT

I shot my first 8 pointer out of this tree and damned near the one from last year (had him at 9 yds and couldn't get the shot off....but shot him 3 days later not 30yds from this tree). It's a funnel/break line with a horse pasture fence leading up to the corner (outside corner). My tree is about 25yds off the corner of the fence. To my right is thick trees. In front of me and to my left is a transition area with big, mast producing trees.

I like this spot for 2 really good reasons (see photo). I'll be back in there around Halloween, this year. I have no reason to hunt it until then.



I took this photo of the deer over my left shoulder (see photo) the week after I shot the one over my right shoulder (sitting in the same tree). He walked by me on the last day of the season .....and I had no tag for him. It all worked out, though.....just had to wait a year.

Sliverflicker

Yes! My new stand is in Kansas.

recurver167

I have a spot that is about 50 yds off the road that I found a large shed in.It's pretty thick and the deer bed in it.I'm waiting for the perfect morning with a NW wind around Nov 6.But I may get trapped it the tree if he don't show in the AM. No sense screwing it up befor then.

Ben / PA

I have one spot at a piece that I have hunted for years that I am excited about. I couldn't make the adjustment last year due to the amount of trimming envolved, but I will this year soon.
I also have gained a nice 57 acre peice to hunt with seemingly all the signs of a great time.

TexasBowHunter

I did find a live spring at the end of last year that I hung a stand within 25 yds of. I believe it will produce as bow season in that part of Texas is hot and we don't get much rain there, I think the live spring will prove to be a good spot.

buttonbuckmaster

Much like Jeff, I have one stand that has produced bucks for me the past 2 seasons. Always love hunting that stand, but the action there can be slow. I've hunted that stand near the rut in 2006 & 07, and have seen a grand total of 4 deer from it. All bucks, all shooters. 2 came into range, 2 didn't.

I am hanging a stand next week based on the past 2 seasonsshed hunting and scouting. Itsa propertythat I have hunted a long time, but always stayed on theobvious trails/logging roads and away from what looks to now be a hot bedding area. This year I'm going in and going for broke.

Double Creek

I located the only 4 oak trees on about 1,200 acres of 15 yr CRP. The best looking one is about 1 mile from the nearest road. I'll be in there early November when it starts dropping... The other 3 will be decent hunting early but will probably receive the most pressure as they are much easier to access.

I also joined a 640 acre lease that is directly across a bean field from approx. 3,000 owned by Will Primos. I look forward to learning that property over the next few years.

Then I've got my 500 acres that has one or two really good funnels between cutover and old growth mast trees..

It should be a good season if and when I get to hunt (baby #3 due in late August)

heo kyle

I found a dynamite trail that cuts through an old pine plantation. On either side of the pines is either marsh or thick growth. I picked out a pine that is a deadly set up, just curious as to what's walking down this trail and when.
Also, I improved a spot I just started at last year. I moved my stand to cover two trails instead of one and plan on taking a different route in as I spooked deer coming in there way too many times last year. This spot is also a pine funnel between marshes.

peakrut

I just cant stand the wait right now to hunt any stand.

T