jaredkh85

This fall will be my first deer hunt, and I wanted to know how early and how much I need to scout before season. Is it possible to scout too much? Also, what do I need to pay attention to when I scout?

Russ otten

The first thing I w ould think you should do is, get familiar with the area you plan to hunt. Topo maps if you can find and afford them. If not draw your own maps of the area, even if it is a crude map. Use this map to mark any spots, items related to the deer; trails, rubs, scrapes, etc. Tho not apparent this early in the year, Noting trails, beds, etc. might be some of the things that may come to mind. The deer live in the woods & fields year ' round. Without a little scouting, even if it is to just getting familiar of the area. You can do a lot scouting this eaarly without changing the deer' s habits which you might do if you wait until immediately before the season. As the season approaches, make your scouting trips in such a manner to not to disturb the animals any more than neccessary. If you squirrel hunt, that is another good time to watch for signs. Example: Seeing 2 does crossing a trail, I knew where they were heading. Taking a round-a-bout trail, I beat them to an open area they would have to cross. When they came out, I had one of them at 40 yds. If I hadn' t gotten familiar with the timber, my chance would have been lost. I drew a map in my Paint program and use it to mark rubs, scrapes and trails on. The rubs and scrapes started to form their own trails through the woods, giving me a good idea of where the bucks were traveling.
Russ

huntnma

i try to scout all year, i learn the land in the process and the food , hammocks, water......i do look on topo. to help me as well......i know that they will change thier routines during the year, but it helps to be out there as much as possible.....

Tazman

Not sure where you are at or when your season opens, but at this time of year you need to find out where they are bedding and go from there. If your season opens and there are still crops they are feeding on you will need to set up a stand close to their bedding areas along their travel lanes to the crops. If acorns will be falling when your season comes in you will need to set up between the oaks and the bedding area. Always pay attention to the prevailing wind when setting your best stand, but have other stands set in case the wind shifts.

kevin1

I scout all year , after a fashion . I use TerraServer and Maptech to get an overview of interesting properties , this helps me to understand the terrain and spot potential funnels . You can download free topo maps and aerial photos from both sites , although the aerials are usually out of date . This is handy on public land because you can find the most likely entry points that other hunters will probably use , then get in ahead of them and let them drive game your way . Once I decide where I want to go I' ll scout the land on foot early in the year to find water sources and mast areas . After correlating the data I figure out which spots will give the highest percentage chance to get a deer . [8D]