3 Most Important Things?
 

Simple question. If you had to choose the 3 most important things you have learned about bowhunting (Whitetails), what would they be? (You can add how long it took for you to learn these things if you like. Could be some interesting answers here.)

Thanks, LT

RE: 3 Most Important Things?
 

1. Bucks don't like to hang out where a lot of does are (took me three years to believe this). It's true. Changed my view on hunting the does to kill a buck.

2. Playing the wind is NEVER over-rated. This took me 3 years to swallow, too.

3. Deer have to eat, drink, sleep and make little deer. Our only quest is to catch them going and coming between those things. I figured this one out on my own a long time ago. It can be over-analyzed....but it's true in its' simplest form.

RE: 3 Most Important Things?
 

1. Anchor Point
2. Anchor Point
3. Anchor Point :DIt took me three weeks to figure out my anchor point, that was back before I really had anyone to show me how to shoot. I figured out anchor point and havent looked back since

RE: 3 Most Important Things?
 

1. Patience- I figured this out 14 years ago when I started hunting with my recurve.

2. Bedding area's- Bucks do not bed In the same area/place that doe's do. It took me too long to figure this one out. I still catch myself thinking the old way every so often.

3. Walk In and walk out trail- Up until about 7 years ago I didn't pay enough attention to this. I sure do now!

RE: 3 Most Important Things?
 

Stand Placement

Playing the Wind

You can't kill them if you aren't hunting

RE: 3 Most Important Things?
 

What do you mean by this Steve? Not kiddin'. I seriously want to know.

Thanks, LT

RE: 3 Most Important Things?
 

[ol][*]Playing the Wind (and paying attention to what it does when it gets out there a ways)[*]PICK A SPOT[*]Funnels/Travel Routes[/ol]

RE: 3 Most Important Things?
 

Playing the wind by far the most important thing

RE: 3 Most Important Things?
 

ive got to really focus on SLOWING MY SELF DOWN at the time of a shoot.. i get in a big rush, dont pick a spot an blank out... just about half off everything the sticky says not to do... ill get it though with time an more misses

RE: 3 Most Important Things?
 

Practice, Persistence, and being able to be mobile and adapt to different situations.

RE: 3 Most Important Things?
 

Provided that you are already hunting where the animals that you're after live.....

1) Playing the wind.

2) Stand placement.

3) Learning all that you can about the animal you hunt.


I'm still learning.

RE: 3 Most Important Things?
 

patience
patience
patience

RE: 3 Most Important Things?
 

1. Stand placement and concealment. (all the patience in the world wont help you see deer in the wrong area)

2. Use the wind to your benefit and make the best stand entry/exit possible(even if it adds 15 minutes)

3. Since many of us hunt the rut religously, the does are not necessarily going to be where you have seen them all year long. I have seen big bucks time and time again pull the does into their core area to have their way with them. Find out where those core buck areas are and keep out unitl the time and windare perfect.

RE: 3 Most Important Things?
 

Stand placement

Wind

Entry route

RE: 3 Most Important Things?
 

Back In the day when I walked Into my stand I didn't pay much attention to what my wind was doing when walking In to hunt In the evenings. I walked upwind of bedding area's way to many times on my way In to my stands (multiple bedding area's). When going out Into my stand In the morning I'll walk In the woods as much as I can Instead of being visible to the deer feeding In the fields. In short I've learned to leave a tad earlier to go hunting and take the long/safe way to my stand Instead of the shorter/easier/not so smart way to my stand. Deer sightings Increased allot when i realized It, specially In the evenings. Funny things Is, dad always told me I was walking In wrong to some of the spots I was hunting. A guy never quits learning that's for sure.

RE: 3 Most Important Things?
 

Many to choose from. Hard to narrow it down to just 3.

But I'll go with.. in no particular order.

A good plan today is better than a perfect plan tomorrow.

There is a huge difference between waiting to kill and hanging to kill.

It does not matter if I see 10 deer today or 1,000... because there is only 1 I am interested in taking. And I only care to see him.

RE: 3 Most Important Things?
 

To kill big bucks you need three things.....

Location
Location
Location

In no particular order.

RE: 3 Most Important Things?
 

The last day on stand in IL Johnny and I had this discussion. Knowing what we do now about that property, we could have been a hell of a lot more agressive. Lesson learned.

RE: 3 Most Important Things?
 

Ain't that the truth.

RE: 3 Most Important Things?
 

I think we'll get the piece again.. no problem. Dude loves us.

We'll have a few stands pre-hung before the season begins.. and several more trees trimmed and ready for stands Dano.

We gonna drop the hammer on several great whitetail next season. All on film no less.

RE: 3 Most Important Things?
 

1. Burning a day scouting (bow in hand) can save you a week in the stand.
2. Go with your gut and don't second guess.
3. There are no absolutes.

RE: 3 Most Important Things?
 

1. Be prepared for anything, sometimes even what might seem to be ridiculous

2. Treat all deer the same when getting in and out of a stand. For example if its dark and deer are around, don't leave until you feel completely safe. Those same deer may avoid that area and in doing so may lead mature does and bucks away from that area also.

3. Always carry your bow and have the release on, even when just moving a stand, or doing a little after hunt scouting. Two or three times I missed very possible opportunities to shoot at a big buck because I became complacent, never thinking I'd stumble upon a nice buck at the time.

RE: 3 Most Important Things?
 

Yep, JZ sent me a text right after he talked to the land owner.

We'll plan a weekend this winter to do down and look around some more andmaybe find a little bone.

RE: 3 Most Important Things?
 

1. ALWAYS hunt the Wind
2. Take scent control to the MAX
3. Never over hunt a property or stand (I think I have only hunted 3 stands more than once and None more than 5 times.
4. Do whatever you have to, to prevent spooking ANY deer coming or going to your stand.
5. Hunt ALL day.

Yeah I know that's 5, but I'll quit.

Dan

RE: 3 Most Important Things?
 

Hunt the wind
Stand placement
Make your own "luck";)

RE: 3 Most Important Things?
 

Greg, I know you have hunted many years and have been quite successful, but I Agree! If you are not still learning then you are not trying very hard.

I learn something every year.;)

Dan

RE: 3 Most Important Things?
 

1. Stand placement (I was so clueless about this when I started)
2. Playing the wind (took me awhile to understand how important this is)
3. Understanding the daily routines of deer during different times of season (eating, bedding, breeding)

RE: 3 Most Important Things?
 

1. NEVER hunt a stand where the wind is in the wrong direction. NEVER. And I MEAN NEVER. Carbon clothing and all of the gimmicks in the world can't fool a whitetails nose.

2. Proper stand placement/location. It took me MANY years to be able to look at a piece of ground and know where and how deer will move through the given piece of timber. I only learned this by many hours sitting in the wrong stand locations and not knowing deers' habits.

3. Best hunting equipment you can afford and being proficient with it. I missed several huge bucks over the years, that wouldn't stand a chance now that I havemodern equipment like myBowtech Guardian, a release, a Lone Wolf treestand that doesn't squeak, broadheads like my Slick Tricks that fly true, etc. The extreme letoff that these modern compounds have, make for an easy to shoot bow compared to my old compounds that I shot with fingers 20-30 years ago. If I had one of these modern bows w- a releaseyears ago..well I can only imagine. I have had the best hunting season in my life this year, partially responsible I believe, is thatI learned that a 60# bow is better for whitetail than a 70# or higher poundage bow, as it shoots quieter, easier to draw in an awkward or sitting position, or with a cold, tired frozen muscles and body, easier to hold on full draw for EXTENDED periods of time while waiting for the deer to make that final step.. My arrows still get complete passthrus on all of my kills, including an elk this year.

RE: 3 Most Important Things?
 

1. wind
2. patience
3. taking more thought to my shot-aim small, miss small
4. walking in and out of stand down-wind

RE: 3 Most Important Things?
 

Preparation
Preparation
Preparation

And all there is left to do is sit there....

RE: 3 Most Important Things?
 

weather, placement, set up
exact same thing for me!!

RE: 3 Most Important Things?
 

oh and one of the most absolute important things........BLOOD TRAILING!!!!!!

learn how to read the reaction of the deer, types of hair on ground, color of blood, condition of blood, etc.

RE: 3 Most Important Things?
 

1.ALWAS, andI mean ALWAYS have the wind in your favor.2.Use ariel photos and topo maps when hunting a new area. 3. If possible alwaysstand upwhile in your stand especially during times of day when the deer are more likely to be on the move.

RE: 3 Most Important Things?
 

1. Hunt with the wind mostly in your favor, but at such a direction that the deer you are hunting feel like it is in their favor. If you have to bail out at 9 in the morning and let the wind finish shifting...do it! This exact thing happened to us a couple weeks ago (we knew it would by the forecast). We left the stand just as it switched enough to hurt us even though we were seeing deer every 10 mins or so still. Got down at 915, came back and sat the opposite side of the area at 1115 and killed one at 1125.

2. Be willing to hunt in the middle of the day. From Nov 4 to Nov 12 this year, every shooter I saw (at least one per day) was between 10 and 3. None seen morning or eves.

3. Choose a stand that allows easy access. Easy in, easy out with minimal disturbance from visual, scent, and noise standpoints. Getting "way back in" ain't all it's cracked up to be. But...don't confuse "easy" with "short walks".

Bonus 4. Shoot some does so you can learn how to shoot deer. I feel it is very important for me to make sure to get that feeling, that real life shot sequence back in my head every year. I know my success on killing bucks would go down if I only shot at shooter bucks each year (or once every two years, etc.). There is no substitute for actual kills when it comes to experience.

RE: 3 Most Important Things?
 

1. Wind direction and thermals
2.Hunt all you can
3.Make a good shot!

RE: 3 Most Important Things?
 

1. Find food
2. find fresh sign
3. get lucky

RE: 3 Most Important Things?
 

1. Don't over hunt an area.
2. Don't guess at what a wounded deer will do or go. They don't read books, follow the sign if you have it, and look EVERYWHERE if you don't.
3. Don't get complacent with your hunting.

RE: 3 Most Important Things?
 

This is a great piece of advice that you don't hear often enough.

Entry/Exit strategy importance is often under rated also.

There is no substitute for time in the stand.

RE: 3 Most Important Things?
 

1. Patience
2. Confidence
3. Practice