Hunting New Deer Country

This big buck came close but not close enough for a shot
photo courtesy Dave Richey Outdoors ©2012

A first-time deer hunter in new terrain is at a major disadvantage if he doesn't have someone to help him locate a good spot to hunt. They don't know the country, and have little clue where deer travel.

Coming into new deer country is always somewhat exciting. Those of us who have been involved in bow hunting for many years, always study the lay of the land. We note the thick cover, obvious funnels, saddles or low spots between two high hills, and we start check out everything about the land.

We know that the normal morning travel cycle is from feeding areas to bedding zones, and in the evening, deer leave normal thick bedding cover and work their way toward farm fields, oak flats, food plots or big corn fields.

Looking around, and checking for deer sign and travel, is required

Given an hour of looking around, most hunters with several years experience will have found deer trails, and they've separate the well traveled routes from other seldom used trails.

They pay particular note of the wind direction, and how that wind would carry human scent to the deer. This may be of the utmost importance because once winded, a hunter is not likely to see anything more than the south end of a deer heading north.

But sizing up a hotspot involves considerably more investigation. Given time, we can locate the bedding and feeding areas, and from there draw on our knowledge of deer travel habits to find key spots to ambush the animal. It's easy to be a bit off on the first night, but careful study often can predict the most likely route for deer to take.

A buddy once hunted Tara, an island in the middle of the Mississippi River, in the great deer state of Mississippi, and he hadn't been there 15 minutes before he spotted the ideal tree within 100 yards of a thick palmetto swamp. He had a self-climbing stand, and the tree was straight with no low branches. Up he went, forearms leaning on the handles, and he quietly lifted his feet. Up and up he went to a height of about 20 feet.

Once he found the best spot, he used a self-climbing stand

He made very little noise, and since he was hunting during the rut, he felt the soft noise of climbing the tree might sound like two bucks banging their antlers together. He got into position, fastened his full-body harness to the tree, and sat down after pulling his bow up into the stand.

He nocked an arrow, pulled down his face mask, and sat without movement. The tree had little cover, but it offered a panoramic view of the bedding area and trails leading out of the palmettos toward an open green field.

Two hours later as the sun began dipping toward the western horizon he spotted a doe moving fast out of the palmettos. It crossed a tiny nearby creek with one splash, and then came the unmistakable sound of a tending buck grunt.

His bow was up and ready and his body was positioned so he could draw and shoot with the bow limb outside of his left leg. The first doe squirted out on a dead run, and then came another mature doe being tended by a big 10-point buck. If they followed the same trail as the first doe, the other doe and the buck would cross at a quartering-away angle at 15 yards.

His set-up was absolutely perfect, but as is true with many hunts, Mr. Murphy of Murphy's Law raised his ugly head. This law states that if anything can go wrong, it will.

Murph was in the saddle that night. The doe and big buck passed within an easy 15 yards of his stand, and they had to pass a big magnolia tree. When they did, and he was screened from their sight, he made a silent draw.

The only problem was the doe was on the side closest to the bow hunter. He was at full draw but the buck, oblivious to any danger, was perfectly screened by the doe. They marched quickly off in lock-step, and the episode passed without a clean shot.

Common sense is important when hunting an area the first time

He had never hunted that island before, had little clue of anything but the bedding area and where the food plot was located. He was downwind of the deer, and he had done everything according to the rules of common sense, but there is no predicting how deer will line up when they walk past a hunter.

Each new area requires study, and the same attention to detail should be noted if someone places you in a stand. Note possible travel routes, the wind, and if you play your cards properly, the buck will walk past and not be screened by a doe or heavy brush.

But, it's just the luck of the draw. That's why they call this hunting rather than killing.

Looking for shed antlers

The author found two shed antlers the other day. It’s a fun winter thing to do.

We've been picking up shed antlers lately, and most of them are being found near food sites. We've found shed antlers up until this past heavy snowfall. but as the snow starts to settle more with slightly warming temperatures, we’ll be going again soon.

Areas where tree limbs fall along the edge of our food plots are good places to look. Last fall and early winter the bucks would stick their heads in under overhanging branches or under limbs laying on the ground to get at the forage. Depending on how advanced the stage is of antler separation from the skull, any quick move or a brushing of a loose antler against a branch can knock it off.

Antlers often fall off, but it's somewhat like a kid with a loose baby tooth, the buck can tell how loose it is. Often they will intentionally hook a branch or hit it against a tree trunk, and off it comes.

Shed hunting is a fun way to spend a late-winter weekend.

It doesn't always happen but seldom will both antlers be found near each other. Often they are some distance apart, and in some cases, the two antlers may be a quarter- or half-mile from each other. It makes it difficult to tell if the two sheds came from the same animal unless you have some great trail camera photos.

Hunting sheds is great fun but if the weather is moderate like it was a week ago, and most of the snow is gone, wandering porcupines are quick to find antlers and begin gnawing on them for the calcium and other trace minerals they contain. Mice also nibble on antlers, and it's one reason why many hunters start looking for sheds during the so-called January thaw. In this case, a February or early March thaw with little snow is an excellent time to look.

The two hotspots to check are bedding areas and feeding areas. Some sheds can and will be found along trails that connect the two sites, but we find many sheds in those two primary locations. Field edges are another good bet as well as thick cedar swamps.

The trick is to walk slowly through these areas, and look for a light-colored object that looks out of place. Shed hunters very seldom will see the entire antler: often just one tine or even the base will be found sticking up out of the forest or grassy duff.

It if is light-colored, check it out. It may be a tiny patch of lingering snow or it could be a large antler shed. I've found many in the spring, but these midwinter thaws allow hunters to spot antlers much easier.

I've found a few sheds near old rubs on a tree, but not very often. Look  in heavy cover, look near old food plots, check out areas near the tops of cut or fallen trees, bedding areas and along heavily traveled trails. Don't rush the process, but take your time looking.

Shed hunting is somewhat similar to hunting morel mushrooms. Travel and look in just one direction, and you'll miss many sheds.

Don’t look for a whole antler. Instead, look for a piece sticking up out of the snow.

Instead, walk 20 feet, stop, look around, and then do a 180-degree turn, and look back and to both sides. Often a shed antler that cannot be seen from one direction, can be spotted when viewed from a different direction.

Shed antlers are indicative of the quality of animals found in your area. Often, the small sheds are quite easily found if your area produces predominantly small bucks. However, if an occasional big buck is seen frequenting croplands or woodland bait sites, that deer may live in the nearby area and may drop his antlers where they can be found.

Most bucks have shed their antlers already although there always are a few bucks around the state still wearing their headgear now. Shed hunting is fun, and if a hunter does it at the right time and in the right place, they may find a buck's antlers of an animal they didn't know existed.

Give it a try. It's much more fun that cleaning the basement or garage on weekends.

Posted via email from Dave Richey Outdoors

Looking for shed antlers

The author found two shed antlers the other day. It’s a fun winter thing to do.

We've been picking up shed antlers lately, and most of them are being found near food sites. We've found shed antlers up until this past heavy snowfall. but as the snow starts to settle more with slightly warming temperatures, we’ll be going again soon.

Areas where tree limbs fall along the edge of our food plots are good places to look. Last fall and early winter the bucks would stick their heads in under overhanging branches pr under limbs laying on the ground to get at the forage. Depending on how advanced the stage is of antler separation from the skull, any quick move or a brushing of a loose antler against a branch can knock it off.

Antlers often fall off, but it's somewhat like a kid with a loose baby tooth, the buck can tell how loose it is. Often they will intentionally hook a branch or hit it against a tree trunk, and off it comes.

Shed hunting is a fun way to spend a late-winter weekend.

It doesn't always happen but seldom will both antlers be found near each other. Often they are some distance apart, and in some cases, the two antlers may be a quarter- or half-mile from each other. It makes it difficult to tell if the two sheds came from the same animal unless you have some great trail camera photos.

Hunting sheds is great fun but if the weather is moderate like it was a week ago, and most of the snow is gone, wandering porcupines are quick to find antlers and begin gnawing on them for the calcium and other trace minerals they contain. Mice also nibble on antlers, and it's one reason why many hunters start looking for sheds during the so-called January thaw. In this case, a February or early March thaw with little snow is an excellent time to look.

The two hotspots to check are bedding areas and feeding areas. Some sheds can and will be found along trails that connect the two sites, but we find many sheds in those two primary locations. Field edges are another good bet as well as thick cedar swamps.

The trick is to walk slowly through these areas, and look for a light-colored object that looks out of place. Shed hunters very seldom will see the entire antler: often just one tine or even the base will be found sticking up out of the forest or grassy duff.

It if is light-colored, check it out. It may be a tiny patch of lingering snow or it could be a large antler shed. I've found many in the spring, but these midwinter thaws allow hunters to spot antlers much easier.

I've found a few sheds near old rubs on a tree, but not very often. Look  in heavy cover, look near old food plots, check out areas near the tops of cut or fallen trees, bedding areas and along heavily traveled trails. Don't rush the process, but take your time looking.

Shed hunting is somewhat similar to hunting morel mushrooms. Travel and look in just one direction, and you'll miss many sheds.

Don’t look for a whole antler. Instead, look for a piece sticking up out of the snow.

Instead, walk 20 feet, stop, look around, and then do a 180-degree turn, and look back and to both sides. Often a shed antler that cannot be seen from one direction, can be spotted when viewed from a different direction.

Shed antlers are indicative of the quality of animals found in your area. Often, the small sheds are quite easily found if your area produces predominantly small bucks. However, if an occasional big buck is seen frequenting croplands or woodland bait sites, that deer may live in the nearby area and may drop his antlers where they can be found.

Most bucks have shed their antlers already although there always are a few bucks around the state still wearing their headgear now. Shed hunting is fun, and if a hunter does it at the right time and in the right place, they may find a buck's antlers of an animal they didn't know existed.

Give it a try. It's much more fun that cleaning the basement or garage on weekends.

Posted via email from Dave Richey Outdoors

All puzzle pieces must mesh properly

Don’t shoot just yet! Wait for a quartering-away shot.

After hunting whitetail deer for more than 50 years, this time in the field has given me many thoughts about hunting these critters. Those experiences can be confidence builders.

Whenever I encounter a specific wind or weather situation, my mind slips back through the years to when a similar situation occurred. The next step is to analyze that experience, and if it worked once, we try it again.

Fortunately, we tend to remember those times when things work and forget those times when they didn't. Usually that allows us to make the proper decision based on important  previous experiences.

Wise decision are needed when choosing where to hunt.

I always have, and probably always will, play hunches. A person's gut instincts are normally correct, and over many years of studying deer and why they do the things they do, it gives me an insight on choosing the proper stands to hunt on a particular day.

Deer move around a good bit, and sometimes move more than many hunters believe. This is especially true now, during the rut. Deer also move from one food source to another. We all grow tired of eating corn, sugar beets or whatever.

There are few oaks on my land but there are many food sources. Over the years I've planted Imperial Whitetail Clover, countless other types of clover, alfalfa, brassica, purple-top turnips and many other truck crops. Some of these food sources are planted near ground blinds and tree stands.

Corn and soy beans are wonderful truck crops, and everything I plant is left for the deer, turkeys and other birds and animals. That means that I know when deer switch from one food source to another. Turnips often produce well once we've gone through one or two hard frosts, and they become more sugary.

Know all natural and planted food sources, and how deer travel to them.

Choosing which stand to sit in is a matter of knowing where the deer happen to be traveling, and which food source is present in that area. Obviously, wind direction plays one of the most important roles in choosing a hunting stand.

I haven't counted the number of stands on my land, but there is probably at leas would guess there is probably at least a dozen although some are seldom used anymore. Certain stands remain good year after year while other locations go flat, and I'm inclined to think that hunting pressure is the main reason why deer change their travel patterns.

Each year I look at my stands, whether they are tree stands, elevated coops,, pit blinds, tent blinds or whatever, and determine their relattionship to the closest food sources. I seldom place stands extremely close to food plots but prefer them to be near trails that lead from one food plot to another or from my land to a neighbor’s food plot.

Know why some deer stands suddenly go dead.

Study and learn why deer come to one area, and why that location suddently goes dead. In most cases, it is hunted too often and deer may spot the hunting moving to or from the stand. Once a deer patterns a hunter, they seldom return to that spot except long after dark

Food plots, bedding areas and travel trails are an important part of the whitetail equation. Each part of the puzzle must fall into place. If it doesn’t, whitetail wind up going somewhere else and your hunting spots dry up.

Posted via email from Dave Richey Outdoors

Rain & cooler weather can make deer move

It could be felt in the air. The air felt cold and heavy with moisture this morning while retrieving the local newspaper, and I muttered to myself that it was soon going to rain.

Birds and animals feel a falling barometric pressure better than most humans, but those who have suffered broken bones, nerve damage, and assorted and sundry little problem as we slip and slide through life will usually be able to predict such weather changes.

I awoke today, and it felt as if Ringling Brother or Barnum & Bailey's circus elephants had used my spine as s place to practice their soft-shoe routine as I tried to sleep. I broke my back 40 years ago, had surgery to fuse two vertebrae together and repair a severely damaged sciatic nerve in my left leg.

Three months after surgery, and during my recovery period, I fell and broke the vertebrae above the first two breaks. The surgery, and the second break, set me up for four decades of back and leg pain.

An autumn storm with a falling barometer and rain in the air always seems to settle in my low back. It throbs and my left leg hurts. Neuropathy om both feet now makes long walks painful.

Watching the local weather has becomes more of an issue with me. I rarely watch the Weather Channel because its forecasts cover too broad of an area. A few minutes outside will often tell me more about what I need to know.

If birds are perched on the power lines, it forecasts a low pressure center that will often spin the wind and may bring rain. For me, that is not a good enough excuse to not go hunting.

Of primary importance is a steady or reasonably steady wind direction. Swirling winds make hunting difficult unless you are in an elevated or ground-level coop with closed windows.

For me, a soft rain like we experienced a week ago is perfect for deer hunting providing the wind doesn't get squirrelly. Of course, we had two or three periods today when it looked like rain but it never materialized.  We may bet some needed rainfall tonight. Anyone sitting outside in it, even with good rainwear, might get wet but that's part of hunting.

There is something about a low-pressure center that puts some deer on the prod, especially if the present weather is being chased by something much more severe. I look for those days each fall when a storm is predicted late in the afternoon, and I try to get out two hours earlier than normal so I'll be on hand when the animals move ahead of the upcoming storm.

If the weather appears it often will settle in with high winds and buckets of rain about noon, unless the weatherman calls for clearing skies in the late afternoon or early evening as the storm pushes through. I may set out the morning hunt or crawl into an elevated coop to look for those few deer that always seems to move in nasty weather.

Predicting deer movements during rainy weather is fraught with problems. Often the storm starts and ends at an inconvenient time, and sometimes the animals move well after a storm blows through and sometimes they do not. A key factor to look for is a temperature drop.

I've sat out in rain storms, and hunted in rainy weather, for over 50 years. What has all those years taught me?

The only thing I can swear to is that hunting in the rain can be productive on some days and unproductive on others. It also has taught me that an achy-breaky back is my signal to find a spot, crawl into it and set out and hope for the best.

Sitting out doesn't give my sore back any relief, but on some occasions, a nice buck at the beginning of a dramatic temperature change will walk within bow range and for 10 or 15 minutes as I watch the animal, it takes my mind off my aches and pains.

I let the buck walk most of the time, and in some small way that makes me feel better. It means I've fooled the animal, could have made a killing shot, and chose not to. That's what makes me feel really good.
It could be felt in the air. The air felt cold and heavy with moisture this morning while retrieving the local newspaper, and I muttered to myself that it was soon going to rain.

Birds and animals feel a falling barometric pressure better than most humans, but those who have suffered broken bones, nerve damage, and assorted and sundry little problem as we slip and slide through life will usually be able to predict such weather changes.

I awoke today, and it felt as if Ringling Brother or Barnum & Bailey's circus elephants had used my spine as s place to practice their soft-shoe routine as I tried to sleep. I broke my back 40 years ago, had surgery to fuse two vertebrae together and repair a severely damaged sciatic nerve in my left leg.

Old bone injuries help in forecasting weather changes.

Three months after surgery, and during my recovery period, I fell and broke the vertebrae above the first two breaks. The surgery, and the second break, set me up for four decades of back and leg pain.

An autumn storm with a falling barometer and rain in the air always seems to settle in my low back. It throbs and my left leg hurts. Neuropathy om both feet now makes long walks painful.

Watching the local weather has becomes more of an issue with me. I rarely watch the Weather Channel because its forecasts cover too broad of an area. A few minutes outside will often tell me more about what I need to know.

If birds are perched on the power lines, it forecasts a low pressure center that will often spin the wind and may bring rain. For me, that is not a good enough excuse to not go hunting.

Of primary importance is a steady or reasonably steady wind direction. Swirling winds make hunting difficult unless you are in an elevated or ground-level coop with closed windows.

For me, a soft rain like we experienced a week or 10 days ago is perfect for deer hunting providing the wind doesn't get squirrelly. Of course, we had two or three periods today when it looked like rain but it never materialized.  We may bet some needed rainfall tonight. Anyone sitting outside in it, even with good rainwear, might get wet but that's part of hunting.

We won’t melt in rain but pick sites along trails leading to food or bedding cover.

There is something about a low-pressure center that puts some deer on the prod, especially if the present weather is being chased by something much more severe. I look for those days each fall when a storm is predicted late in the afternoon, and I try to get out two hours earlier than normal so I'll be on hand when the animals move ahead of the upcoming storm.

If the weather appears it often will settle in with high winds and buckets of rain about noon, unless the weatherman calls for clearing skies in the late afternoon or early evening as the storm pushes through. I may set out the morning hunt or crawl into an elevated coop to look for those few deer that always seems to move in nasty weather.

Predicting deer movements during rainy weather is fraught with problems. Often the storm starts and ends at an inconvenient time, and sometimes the animals move well after a storm blows through and sometimes they do not. A key factor to look for is a temperature drop.

I've sat out in rain storms, and hunted in rainy weather, for over 50 years. What has all those years taught me?

It’s hard to shoot deer while sitting out a rainstorm indoors.

The only thing I can swear to is that hunting in the rain can be productive on some days and unproductive on others. It also has taught me that an achy-breaky back is my signal to find a spot, crawl into it and set out and hope for the best.

Sitting out doesn't give my sore back any relief, but on some occasions, a nice buck at the beginning of a dramatic temperature change will walk within bow range and for 10 or 15 minutes as I watch the animal, it takes my mind off my aches and pains.

I let the buck walk most of the time, and in some small way that makes me feel better. It means I've fooled the animal, could have made a killing shot, and chose not to. That's what makes me feel really good.

Posted via email from Dave Richey Outdoors