I think I made a statement at the beginning of the thread like: So, Jeff, to elaborate on why I said this, it's because I thought it needed to be said. No way am I envious of your post count or the amount of responses you have gotten. There were a lot of good responses in there. Too bad they were not taken to heart. I wanted this to remain a helpful, resourceful post, not a trainwreck like most of yours.So far, it has been. Those who have something to share on this subject will chime in. I'm sure.

Thank You, and good day.

LouisianaTomkat

[8D]

Well, I know my response a few posts back didn't really pertain to the original question, it was just something that kind of jumped out at me from the comments on scouting. But in regards to the original question...

1. entry and egress routes
2. wind. It is a huge factor up here on the plains, especailly since there aren't that many trees for tree stands.
3. choke points on travel corridors
4. not in particular certain events, like the rut, but specifically the timing of those events. What I mean is, not necessarily just the right place, but the right place at the right time.

Thses things are general, I know, but they change so much according to the situation.

I don't think I'm smart enough to add much but if I know I have a deer that might be something special I try to intrude a lot less. One of my faults is I probably scout and hit the woods too much just because I love to be doing something.

I've already pretty much decided where my 6 stands are going. I change that of course if I learn something new but mainly I try to put myself in the best place to kill him as early as I can. I also do my best to not hunt one stand too many times in a row.

shed hunting...

It isthe time to find outwhich "known " bigbucks, unkown bigbucks and up and coming bucks survived hunting season. With the known bigbucks... we get a jump start to our summer scouting since we already know where to look. Same applies for up and coming bucks we know.

It is a great time to explore our hunting areas. Since it is open here... getting in and out of spots can be tough without letting the bucks know. I want to knowevery ditch ( natural or made made ), rockpile, draw and etc. I also look for pinch points orother terrain features that may funnel the deer.

Summer scouting...

The time for finding bucks, their bedding areas and to see what crops are plantedwhere.Knowing what crop is planted where aides us in knowing where to look for the bucks nowto see what haunts an area. It also tells us where the bucks will be feeding when bowhunting starts since the are not feeding on the samecrop as in the summer.

Since they don't feed on the same crop in the fall as they do in the summer...weneed tofigure out how they will access or leave their fall feeding areawith the bedding area being the key factor.

WE scout a lot of areaslookingfor stand sites for evey possible wind dierction. If I get time off from harvest to hunt, I want to hunt and not waste my limited time looking for a spot to hunt if the wind isn't blowing in the right dierction for a couple spots. I want to know where I am going to hunt and I needto know a lotof different areas long before hunting season starts !!

Rut finds the rifle blasting.We've tried bowhunting this open area several times in the past. " Hiding "in a slough where the deer are gets real unsafe with bowsince a lot of other hunters have access to our bowhunting spots. We relearned that lesson again last yearwhen we tried it.[:@] Just not worth it and the deer are " driven " to death by drives. It is the one time I wished we had a lot of trees here. To hopefully not be seen by the deer but hopefully be seen by the other hunters.

Once the rifles get put away it is back to scouting since everything is messed up. While the deer are pressured to death, it is myfavorite time to hunt. You don't see any hunters anymore so if you do find a good buck... you don't have to worry about someone else screwing it up.

Tim

I should have added that while my firstpost does have the basic feeding and bedding... it is more then that since we are trying tofactor in the changes the deer make as the year progesses to capitalize on our hunts. Nothing is constant here with the deer. We need to know when they make the change so we aren't hunting old sign that was good a week before but worthlessthat week.

Also from September 4th - 8th... I will actually hunt the few trees we have if very close to a bedding area. About the only time you will find a buck in the trees during daylight hours... he isrubbing his velvet off.

There is more but this is getting long.

Tim

Well, there are several things that I do that are "different".

First, Ilook for hunter sign... old hunter sign. My best-friend and I did this when we got permission to a new large chunk of property that borders his uncles. We spent hours just walking the woods looking for very old permanent wooden stands. Some of them looked to be in horrible spots, one in particular was just on a hillside with no really travel routes, major trails, sign, or terrain qualities, just a think hillside. We set-up in that area and were amazed at how many deer we saw. Sometimes finding the sign from the oldtimers who used the land years ago is the best sign to find.

Second, I look for stand areas that typically look for areas that help add a little extra cushion for the hunt, areas with lots of background noise, lots of cover, ect. The cover is kind of the norm, but having extra background noise, like getting near a highway or a factory that always has workers making alot of noise really helps cover up the sound of a bow being drawn back, ect.

When selecting stand sites on hillsides, I usually try to envision where the deer will be coming from and where they will be looking and I will set up on the up-hill side so that I am that much above their line of sight.

As far as there only being three true reasons why deer move, that isn't true at all. In alot of areas, cold weather forces deer to get up and move. They aren't moving from a bedding area to a feeding area or vice versa, they are/have to simply move in order to stay alive! This doesn't fall into any of the 3 "reasons" why deer move.

one other thing...

When scouting...if we find a good bedding area of does witha few buck and nothing big... I know where to go to fill my doe tags. I will not shot a doe in the good buck area. The last thing I want to do is wreck a good buck area by busting bucks or stinking up the place while finding and dealing with a dead doe.

Tim

Personally I look for the 3 things a whitetail needs.. food.. cover.. water. (I've stated this before.) I don't bother with the does til its time.

From those 3 things I look into the details of what I know.. and then what I want to know.

Then I use the terrain as my guide to put answers to my questions.

I hang based on highest probabilty of a success.. whether through bino's or a peep.

All while staying very low key.. with low education to the deer.. and a low profile.

Keeping good common sense.. and a vivid imagination are vital for me personally. I see the hunt before it happens.. and execute when its time.

I don't go into the woods thinking about which tree to hunt.. rather which spot (be it ground or tree) will put me into position to be successful.

The moment I exit my vehicle I begin the hunt.. not when I reach my destination.

My methods.

Duke if you don't mind me asking, when using the binos method, do you set up to monitor late summer or fall patterns?

LT