HuntingNet.com Forums - Rookie needs advice

I second the practice and warm clothes routine. Shoot lots of arrows. If it' s a guided hunt then you obviously don' t have to find the deer, but if you are on your own, I would be looking real hard at topo maps and aerial photos of the area to be hunted. When going in cold to a new place these two items can help you to quickly eliminate a lot of real estate and key in on potentially productive sites. I would make looking for funnels a top priority. At least in these spots the deer get necked down when moving from one place to another. Strips of woods between two fields, saddles along a ridgeline, adacent field corners with large blocks of woods to either side are some places I would initially investigate. I could go on and on about this, because this is the type of thing I have employed in the past. Going in cold doesn' t have to be overwhelming if you already have an idea of the lay of the land. Another tactic would be to locate food sources that does are frequenting and just set up there. I know that sounds simplified, but at the time of year you are going to be in the woods, sometimes that' s all it takes. If you find the does, the bucks will be sniffing around for receptive does even though the rut probably won' t be in full swing yet. My two (ten ;)) cents worth. By the way Doc...My bills in the mail.:D Good luck.