im fine with scents and camo ...but i think baiting takes away from the sport...i think deer hunting should be a challange ....as for high powered rifles im not sure..... they are nessesary in places with wide open ranges such as the mid west but when people hunt in their box blinds in plain cloths and talk normal right before harvesting a deer i dont get....wheres the challange?

Wally83,

Different strokes for different folks... to me, each person defines what their challenge is, what a trophy is etc... all comes down to the individual. To be fair you really shouldn't judge others on their hunting methods as long as it is legal. Maintain your own standards and at the end of the day you can walk proud.

Good luck,
MD Piney

I hear you...... but I think you watch too many hunting videos. I've been posting on this site, mostly in this forum only, for over three years - and this is the first post I've read where anyone even mentioned a "Box Blind" on a food plot - or over bait for that matter. I'm not saying some people don't hunt that way - I'd just say its not very common - or even very productive in most areas.

We all enjoy a challenge, and I'd imagine most of us hunt in a manner similar to you.

That said - we are building a 15ft box tower this year - mostly for filming and observing deer feeding in the summer. We are building it on our largest field - so that we can access and leave it through planted corn strips, and eventually 5 rows of planted pines when they grow up - without tipping off the deer that we are around. I look forward to taking my young children next summer - and maybe I'll hunt a rainy day out of it here and there next fall.

I hunt with a rifle. I am 71 yrs. old, shoulder surgery 2 yrs. ago, can't pull a bow. Just what would you have me hunt with, a hunting knife??
You like to bowhunt? Or do you hunt with a spear? Sometimes it's not what you like, it's what you can do. If you're in your 20's, good physical condition, don't knock the rest of us. You might be in my position sometime down the road.

Russ

It is illegal to bait in Mississippi.

You could always use a crossbow. Im not saying there is nothing wrong with rifle hunting i just dont like the people who go out once a year opening weekend and dont have a clue of what they are doing. Thats why i like bowhunting, there arnt that many people like that in the woods.

Did you ever try and cock a crossbow with a bum shoulder? Oh, I forgot. According to your profile you are 100 yrs old. Sorry.

Russ

Everybody uses the word "challenge" a lot to describe what deer hunting should be. I had a bow hunter give me fits one time about how my hunting wasn't challenging because I used a rifle. I noticed he uses scents, camo, charcoal liners, and treestands. The deer can't see him or smell him, so where exactly does the challenge arise? He said, "Well, you still have to outsmart the deer." A deer has a brain the size of a large marble. If your brain is the size of a marble, then I'll make an exception for you, pat you on the back, and admit you've made hunting a challenge.

Back to food plots.How come most guys miss the big point for food plots in these discussions ? It is basically for the health of the deer , yes to promote better antlers ,but also nutrition for the pregnant does.To supplement over the winter in tough times. If you ever tried to hunt a deer in a field in Bow you know once they come out they seem to go to far in to the field for a shot. I hunt a 8 acre alphalfa field.Took me 22 days to be at the right spot when they entered.Everytime they entered the field it was at a differnt spot.I played checkers with them deer for 22 days.

The only thing predictable thing about deer is; They are unpredictable.

Russ