Hey all im jake i have a few questions to get out of the way.

1. In early season where is the best spot to hunt i got some spots near food plots others just on the edge of open field one or two in oak river bottoms?

2. What kind of calls should i take with me during early season and would sent be helpful early in october. keep in mind im in Iowa and not much cool weather yet.

3. Im not fond of heights am i taking a big risk only putting up 8 and ten food stands instead of 15 and 20?

4. I have qualified for a hunt inside a state park for does would i be wise to save that for closer to the rut or get out there during early season and tag them?

Thanks if you want respond to all or just one but it is my 5th year and i have missed a doe and an 8 pointer so far in my bow hunting career this is my most dedicated season to date please help.

Jake, First off, how I envy you for living in Iowa...BIG BUCKS...anyways, I live in Michigan and have been bowhunting for 20 years...If I were you I would hunt that state park right away and shoot a doe as they are more relaxed in early season tending to their fawns and not being chased by bucks yet...not to mention getting some practice at shooting a deer and experimenting with your broadheads and yardage. I do not do much calling in the early season because deer are not very vocal that time of year...Just pick a spot downwind of the heaviest deer trail you can find in the state park [The heaviest trails are almost always made by does...Buck trails are hard to see...they usually look like rabbitt trails...very faint with not many tracks]...In early season, does are looking for food for their young and tend to move around 9:00 to 9:30 in the morning...stay on stand till 10:30 or so if you can....although, evening hunts are most productive in the first few weeks of bowseason....As far as whether to hunt your food plots or river bottom acorns, It depends on what is growing in those food plots....If I were you, I would hunt half way up the ridge that runs between the river bottom and the food plot if possible....If this is not possible, than hunt the river bottom acorns most of the way up the hill watching the river bottom....In the past 8-10 years, I have killed most of my bucks from ground blinds believe it or not...you have to be as scent free as possible and must find the perfect location to build these blinds...natural stick blinds I mean....First off, pick a tree wider than you about 2-3 feet wide and build up dead logs and branches from the base of that tree in about a 4 by 6 foot circle or square high enough that when you sit on your stool or chair it comes up to your chest or neck level....that way when deer approach, you are concealed up to your neck with only your head showing which allows you to move around freely during your hunt as long as you dont move your head....a headnet or facepaint is a must....then when your deer is moving into range, you can draw your bow back while sitting without being seen...and slowly rise up to take the shot....The big tree trunk should be in front of you so you can draw and stand up without being seen....when the deer walks out from the other side of the tree trunk, you are already drawn and ready....dead deer. It is not necessary to hunt from a treestand and be successful if you play the wind and are pretty scent free.....hope this helps you this season...It should.

1. Find out what the major food source is in your area. Is it a corn field, apple trees. a dropping white oak? Try to find out how the deer are going to and from this food source. If you know where they bed you can set up in a funnel area to intercept them.
Remember, that deer will most likely be heading to the food source in late afternoon and headed to bedding area in the morning. Hunt accordingly.

2. You could take a grunt call but I wouldn't use it a whole lot right now by calling blind. If you do happen to spot a buck out of range, and it is heading away from you, you have nothing to lose, so give it a try. Some othersmay have a different opinion on this.
You should try to be as scent free as possible, yourself. A curiosity type scent would be good early in the season but I wouldn't be using rut type scents just yet.

3. When hunting in a low tree stand, or any tree stand for that matter, you need to have something around you for your camo to blend in with. You don't want to be smack dab out in the open where you will stick out. Even if you need to lash some branches around your tree stand to give you cover. Look at what is behind you too. Look at it from the deer's point of view. Are you skylined or do you have some kind of back drop top blend into? You want something behind you if at all possible. If you are right handed, set your tree stand up so that expected shots will be on your left. It is almost impossible to draw a bow at a target on your right side, unless you stand up and turn around. Being right handed myself, I like to have limbs or cover on my right side for my came to work with.

4. I like hunting early in the season. I feel deer are more predictable, especially if I know what they are feeding on. Although during the rut they are traveling all day long. Just realize that evrything changes quickly in the deer's world in the fall. Acorns drop and soon they are all gone. Corn field are being cut and apples are falling too. Hunters are spending more time in the woods and deer sense the danger. the rut is coming on and bucks are on the move. All this happens, and things change almost daily in the deer's world. Preseason scouting will help you find out what deer are doing. For the most part, deer will still be in these patterns in the early part of the season. To me, it is easier. Soon though, all the things mentioned above will start happening and things change. If you huntn the same areas for several years, you can usually know where deer will be during these changes.


Good Luck!