new2shooting

Hey everyone, I'm new to deer hunting this year. I can't seem to find deer trails. I've seen deer but I can't find any trails or area's that seem like a good ambush point for a treestand. I need help I pretty much go into the woods find a place I've seen deer before and set up my stand. I know this isn't the right way to do things, but I can't for the life of me find a well used trail or anything similar. I've spent lots of time in the woods squirrel hunting/scouting for deer season, but I still haven't found any places that seemed right. Can someone please share what they look for when scouting and which types of areas(thickets, bottoms, planted pines ect.?)seem to hold the most deer? I''ve been hunting alot and have been close but no cigar so far, mostly by random luckI think. Thanks for your time and help, Chris

amayerican

Welcome to the sport Chris. When I look for deer trails I look between the bedding area and there feeding area. Deer where I hunt; typically bed on top of the hills during the day, and feed in the fields below at night. Deer tails look like a single lane bike trail. But not so beat down. You can see a U shape of the trail. Some trails could be used so heavy that they do look like a bike trail. Look for hoof prints or droppings. Look for intersection and and flat spots, or saddles in the area you hunt. Fence lines and steep banks are some. Deer are lazy and will go the extra 100 yards to go around obstacles to save energy. Buck sign should help to such as rub and scrapes are on or near trails. I hope this helps. Good luck!

kevin1

You sound like you need a mentor , where are you located ? Maybe one of us lives near enough to show you a couple of things .

Amayerican's description of them is accurate , although sometimes newer ones may be harder to spot , especially buck's. I usually find them just inside the treeline a few yards , deer are creatures of edges and stay under cover as much as possible. Look along fence lines or other obstacles , be sure to check any low point on a barbed wire fence for belly hair, creek bottoms and ditches are sometimes used if they afford the deer some cover . Windbreak lines can also be productive , so can gullies and ridge fingers . If possible take a look at the property from above with an aerial photo and topo map , this can narrow down funnels where you're most likely to find game trails quickly .Crop field edges bordered by cover will undoubtedly have more than their share , as will oak flats or browse areas. Water is always a good feature to look for .

new2shooting

Hello, thanks for the responses, I'm located in north west florida. LoL a mentor would be awsome. I'm kind or in the mind set that if i keep going often enough sooner or later I'll start to figure some of it out. Thanks alot for your replies and I'll let you know if I eventually get one. Thanks again, Chris

Hunter_59

new2shooting, I'm sure the terrain is different down there and the deer trails will be more subdued. I know there are some guys on here from Florida, it wouldn't be asking much for one of them to show you a few things. Come on Florida, this new hunter needs a little help!

C. Davis

Hey Chris,
Finding trails is kind of a knack. After a while, it will come as second nature to you. Where I hunt, even the nice hardwoods are pretty thick and can be kind of hard to walk through. I have found that if I can walk through a part of the woods pretty easily, it is more than likely a deer trail. Deer will usually take the easy way.

If there are any hardwoods bordering pine cutouts, you can usually find a rub line about 10 or 15 yards inside of the woods that run about parallel with the cutout.

Walking a fence line is an easy way to find a trail also. I have seen a lot of deer walk along a brushy fence line, but if you find a trail that runs directly into a fence that is usually a very good one. Especially if it is at the bottom of a hill. There is a trail in Llano County Texas that fits that description, and I bet I could kill a deer just about any day of the year at that fence crossing.

Another thing I have found is that if you have skid trails through the woods you hunt, if you find an S curve in the road, you will often find a trail in the middle of the S. Especially if the curve is sharp enough to block the road up ahead of you.

These are just some things I look for. There are many others.

Good Luck

C. Davis

bassfisherman711

look also for deer tracks and poop

new2shooting

Thanks, again to everyone. The help is much appretiated. Take care and good hunting to everyone, Chris

CamoCop

hey new2shooting, i'm also in florida. are you hunting private land or management area's? if your hunting management area's, which ones? if your hunting private land, give me a better location than "north west florida". i live and currently do most of my hunting in central florida but i have been known to head to north florida for hunts, especially inmid jan. through mid feb. when our season is closed here.

new2shooting

Hey Camocop, I'm hunting WMA's strictly, not private land for me. I've been hunting the appalachicola national forest, talquin and Joe budd. These are all around tallahassee. I would really appretiate it if you'd let me tag allong sometime. I'm willing to drive as long as school isn't in the way. Thanks again, Chris