tglaser

got a bunch of limbs in shooting lanes where we put new stand. have to open lanes but they are limited. should I cut down with an extension saw before hunt, will it make a difference for my hunt, as far as scaring deer away

NavyDeerHunter

Cut them if you must, but cut as few as is necessary to accomplish your goals. Always better to do this type of work prior to the season, but I have been in your shoes many times and cut what I thought needed to be cut. Last time I did it I had a young 6 point come in and start licking and nibbling on the holly branch/leaves that I had cut down a couple of hours earlier.

TreednNC

I would worry more about the scent associated with cutting limbs than the lack of limbs themselves...limbs fall all the time, but I think we leave more scent behind cutting/grabbing/removing than we think, and I think that is what gets us.

Edcyclopedia

Chancey shots through limbs is never good!
Without seeing what your talking about, you need to ask yourself...
If you can't make an ethical shot through the limb openings, then you need to open your shooting lane.

Just remember they are arrows and not bullets, along with, the wee hours of light never seem to show the limbs / branches / twigs.

To answer your last question about scaring the deer away, who really knows?
Each deer is different, some may be curious, some possibly want to eat the leaves.
I know of a few loggers that carry a gun in their rig and have shot deer coming into the logging yards, go figure?
However, I would caution that any change will put the deer on alert, so be selective.

hunter25

Yeah, any change in a core ares will bring deer on alert...but you have to cut those limbs down in order to get an arrow to the deer.

Just cut the limbs down and see what happens.