Deer stand thoughts....

[Saddlebag Preacher]

My season is over, but was finally a successful one . I was just thinking about deer stands and deer stuff, and the things I bought over the years trying to be successful. I think I'm learning most of the scent killers, camo and all that, turns out to be more for me than the deer.

My dad hunted in brown canvas pants and jacket with orange on for years and almost always tagged out. He would always try to find a tree stump and stand on it for hours (he had more fortitude than me).

My neighbor's wife get's in a tree stand and smokes and drinks coffee all day, and usually get's her deer. This year, a member of the church down the road is 80 and went out on his 4 wheeler to a chair by a woods path and killed a monster 18 pointer non typical. He wears bib overalls, no camo.

This year I left my pop-up ground blind overlooking my deer attractants, mineral blocks and sent cover spray, to set next to an open field under a tree. And this is where I got my buck.

Next year, I think I'm going to rethink these new fangled products and just go hunt.

Whadayathink?

 

[Fine Figure of a Man]

I think you're on the right track.

 

[Milt1]

I think you have a valid point. It's amazing when and where deer show up!

 

[Stevenvalleyky]

Some of those products can really help when you have a cross wind or swirling wind. I try to stay as scent free as possible, however, if a deer is directly downwind from you and close enough, it is going to smell you no matter how scent free you think you are. So far, they have not come up with a way to 100% eliminate the odor from the breath that leaves your lungs every couple seconds. If you are directly downwind of a deer with a good steady breeze, it won't really matter how bad you stink, if your smoking cigars, etc. It's those crosswinds and swirling winds that those products can help.
For the record, I wash my clothes, body and hair in unscented soaps and I might spray my boots and lower pant legs with scent eliminator before I walk in the woods but thats as far as I go with it. Not going to fool a deers nose if they get downwind anyway. Just my $.02

 

[Axis II]

I used to buy the tinks, rattle bags, grunt calls, scent sprays, etc. Now I wash clothes in baking soda, air dry outside for a few days and into a waterproof stuff sack and sealed tight with baking soda in the bottom and don't have any issues seeing deer. play the wind, don't move a lot and you will be okay.

 

[Patocazador]

A very good deer hunter told me long ago, "Don't overthink it, people are smarter than deer. They aren't Einsteins."

I followed his advice and kept it simple. It resulted in many more deer in the freezer.

 

[Armored farmer]

I remember when deer hunting was new to our part of the world. Upland hunting clothes, briar faced canvas pants, upland vest, plastic blaze orange safety vest that only lasted one season.......

The older I get, the more I like my permanent blind.
If you have your own propery, it's the best advice I could give you. Especially when the weather is bad. p

 

[Saddlebag Preacher]

Thanks Armored farmer. I'm actually thinking about 2 different ones on my farm, one overlooking one of my fields and one in the bottoms to switch up with when they move around. Great idea!

 

[horsey300]

I've never worn camo, I avoid loose flapping clothes, use the terrain to break up my silhouette when possible, and can stalk to muzzy range of an antelope herd.......last year I guided my better half to just under 50 yds of her muley buck, my buddy to 30 yds of his wt doe, and his 16 y/o brother to 35 yds of a muley doe, I no longer hunt deer for lack of challenges. I've toyed with tinks on occasion depending on the location, but I use it more to stop the deer rather than lure them closer. Never not tagged out. Too many critters are too used to man smell to care most the time. Still I applaud those who take the extra efforts as I'm sure per their background and locale they have their reasons. We all do what we can.

 

[hq]

Of the three available senses, vision, hearing and smell, triggering one isn't usually enough to result in game fleeing or avoiding the area altogether, providing that the signal isn't overwhelming. Two is often a different story, one sense to alert the animal that something may be wrong and another to confirm its doubts. Their actions are driven by senses rather than any deeper reasoning.

I usually wear basic camo & blaze orange, try to get at least six feet above the ground to reduce scent being carried by wind at ground level, keep still and quiet (a given) and... smoke a cigar, enjoy the nature/scenery, keep my eyes and ears open and kill time while waiting for something to show up. The difference clothing makes in a tree stand is small, it's motion that gives you away, especially if you've made noise or stink of aftershave, giving the deer a reason to look for something out of the ordinary and be alert. It's not rocket science and even though you can affect the odds by your own behavior, there's no way to predict what really happens. I've spent many evenings in a treestand prepared to the hilt and seen nothing, and shot my own personal record buck, a 320lb+ 10-pointer, wearing coveralls, sitting in a camp chair in the midst of playing Angry Birds.

Get comfortable, enjoy the hunt and don't take it too seriously.

 

[Skoghund]

I've never worn camo clothing for deer hunting. I do wear blaze camo for driven boar shooting. When i live in England, i hunted wearing a green wool Swandri jacket and a pair of cotton moleskin trouser. I used to shoot a lot of deer. Because its a lot colder here in Sweden i like the modern fleece clothing from Swazi in New Zealand and a Gore Tex jacket.
I'm not known for washing hunting cloths very often and they do tend to take on their own patina.
I've built several gavanised metal lean too high seat on my ground plus a enclosed hunting tower over looking my boar feeding place.
I only take the bare minimum of gear with me when i hunt.

 

[Sav .250]

Back in the day , my hunting clothes was what ever would keep me warm. Didn`t always work though.
Never had camo. Scent control...What? The list goes on.
Over the years I finally got with the program. Now, I have much better clothing. Camo and the like.
Looking back, I shot a lot of deer with my wrong stuff. No doubt there are times when concealment counts.
but I had a very good run not knowing anything. That being dressing properly.

 

[Fine Figure of a Man]

Having comfortable deer stand or blind you're likely to hunt longer and sit still.
For me a seat with a good back rest makes a big difference.
Like Mr. Farmer I'm enjoying permanent blinds more each year.
Building a new one in my shop now.

 

[huntsman]

I’m a low tech hunter especially for deer, I guess partly because being out in my woods and seeing is just as important as killing to me.

Opening morning about an hour into it I had a yearling doe walk by, since then I logged close to 30 hours on stand with nothing.

This weekend is it and I’m not going out becauseof the weather.

 

[Armored farmer]

Thanks Armored farmer. I'm actually thinking about 2 different ones on my farm, one overlooking one of my fields and one in the bottoms to switch up with when they move around. Great idea!

I am planning to build one on wagon gears. That way I can move it to different areas . We have multiple farms in three counties with hunting property in all three. I figure I can use it for a turkey blind as well.
Our elevated blind is 6x6. That is a good size. Big enough for two, yet small enough a lone hunter can cover all the windows.
Spend your money on Windows. They are the most important part. Google deer blind windows and get good ones. My windows are just sliding Plexiglas. Too big, and too noisy. This has cost us some deer.

Sitting in the blind is a great time to catch up on some reading.

 

[Armored farmer]

Building a new one in my shop no

That's where I build mine.

And set with a tractor.

 

[eastbank]

my favorite deer blind on a deer trail to a large bedding area and has provided many nice buck and doe over the years. and it cost nothing but about a hour to build and up keep is maybe 10-15 minutes a year. I think your location is 90 percent of deer hunting. eastbank.

 

[xXxplosive]

Once I started using a "Flinter" 27 yrs. ago, I never looked back....whether it be one of my smoothbores for small game or a smoothbore or rifle for big game my hunting methods also changed....no more gadgets or tree stands. Look for ambush points, blow downs to sit or stand in...use your natural cover and the deer will be literally on top of you....dress to disappear in the woods....dark colors, black, brown, grays....usually have them feeding on the limbs of the blow downs I'm in... a few I could even touch with the muzzle of my gun if you play the wind correctly......way more fun than just sitting in a stand.

 

[Armored farmer]

no more gadgets o

I despise being loaded down with unnecessary gear.
My boys have it all, backpacks full.
All I carry is gun, ammo, binos, knife, water, permit....pocket Bible, flashlight, cellphone, granola bar......compass, surveyors tape, TP,.... bic lighter, hand sanitizer, permanent marker, Gerber multi-tool......see I'm doing it too....zip ties, chapstick,....

 

[Patocazador]

That's where I build mine.
View attachment 771387
And set with a tractor.
View attachment 771389

How do you anchor it so high winds (or cows) don't knock it over?

 

[Armored farmer]

How do you anchor it so high winds (or cows) don't knock it over?

No cows back there, but the river gets up on the third step!
Four T-posts and #9 wire does the trick.

 

[gspn]

You're on the right track. There are two things to remember about deer hunting:

1 - You need certain things to kill a deer.

2 - "Deer hunting" is now surrounded by marketing companies and salespeople trying to convince you to spend money on their products

Part of your job as a hunter is to figure which things you need, and which things are just sales hype. Some products can be helpful, some can be convenient, over time you'll figure out what you personally need (or just want) to kill deer in the manner you prefer.

The greatest thing you can spend on deer hunting is time. If you spend enough of that, you'll get more success than you could ever dream up.

 

[buck460XVR]

When it comes to success when hunting deer with a rifle, the most important thing is to have a good spot. While those hunters that bag a deer every year may be good hunters, they also have a spot that gives them multiple opportunities to harvest a deer. All the skill and technology in the world is not going to make for a successful hunt if there are no harvestable deer present. This is one thing many hunters do not realize. Years ago, my Grandpa told me once while fishing, that 90% of the fish in any given body of water lived in 10% of that body of water. IMHO, that is also true for deer. Under the cover of darkness, when not pressured and during periods of rutting activity, deer can be found almost anywhere. But put hunting pressure and daylight on them and most seek cover and sanctuary areas and use escape routes not generally used for normal movement. Thus trails that show heavy use during non-hunting periods may not have any or very little deer movement on them when hunting season begins. Heavier pressure drives deer deeper into those areas and makes them more nocturnal. Thus hunt in an pressured area where deer are not disturbed during the day in deer season and one will not see any natural deer movement. While camouflage can add greatly to hunter success during turkey and bow/handgun hunting for deer, normal rifle range is beyond those distances that camo has a significant effect. I always get a kick outta those hunting shows where the host is wearing full camo, complete with very macho camo stripes on his face, hunts from an elevated blind where he cannot be seen, and takes his buck at 200 yards with his .300 mag. I see many folks using full camo while hunting from tree stands after the leaves have fallen......when blue jeans and a white shirt would match their backdrop much better. Much of the time the camo is a confidence thing....sometimes folks just want us to know they are a hunter....sometimes it's just trying to identify with a group of peers. I really don't give a rat's behind. I use camo during the gun season because it is the same group of clothing I use for bow hunting and turkey hunting. I just put an orange vest over it. Since gun hunting is just a tiny bit of my hunting season, it makes no sense for me to have separate Gore-Tex/insulated clothing for it, when what I already have is very good. My Brown or Black Carhartts blend in with the woods at certain times of the year also. So somedays I look like a lumberjack instead of a hunter.

Folks jump on the newest gadget/device/cover scent/bullet every year in hopes it will increase their odds. Just human nature of trying to find a easy way to success. Sometimes these things can help, sometimes they are futile. Many times one would be better off to spend more time finding a better place of where to stand, than on what to wear while standing or what to stand in/on.

 

[Kingcreek]

spend more time hunting than shopping. hunt smart and be comfortable enough to stay out.
the more you hunt, the better you get.
I started deer hunting 35 years ago and mostly archery for 30+ years. Didn't even apply for firearm tags last couple seasons. I've killed somewhere north of 70 deer, mostly meat for the freezer but a few nice bucks. I'll quit when its no longer fun or exciting. I'm mentoring a young guy new to hunting for next season. Somebody has to take my place when I don't hunt anymore.

 

[eastbank]

the day these picures were taken I didn,t see a another hunter in the woods as it rained for most of the day. I saw many deer, but none I wanted to take. it was not real cold and my rain gear kept me pretty dry, but my rifle and four wheeled did get soaked. what I want to say is you have to be in the woods to hunt. eastbank.