stand or blind or just on the ground ?

[Augustus McCrea]

So this being my first year hunting in ma in general , i found myself sitting in one of my three treestands today from 4-730 pm just observing and im going back at 5 am in hopes of seeing better activity. Its hard to see kind of through all the leaves seeing as they are all still strong and green. Then i started to wonder , am i going about this wrong, am i just being over zealous? or is this doing the due diligence?Is it too early in the season to be doing this , is it better to wait till the cold snaps are more frequent ? Am i better off in a tree , on the ground or stalking ? the stand i was in is about 15 yards into the woods off a ten acre field in a HUGE HUGE grove of oak under a stone wall AND a horse/mountain bike trail ( friends private property ) . I figured i couldnt buy a better spot .
Any input anyone ? Thanks in advance

 

[kjm1022]

Get a trail cam to do the scouting for you. That way you arent being as intrusive to the area. Tree stands are better from a scent perspective but a nicely brushed up tent blind will work too. I ve taken deer from both, it depends on the area you're hunting which will be more effective. Id highly recommend a trail cam and move it around instead of keeping the area hot with your scent.

 

[reveille]

I agree with the trail camera. I started to scout a piece of woods i thaught would be good with my camera starting in june. I moved it about 10 times and i always baited it and always got pictures. I had to decide where to put my treestand.that was the hard part i wanted it in a spot that would be a guarentee. I would not limit youself to one or another, treestand,blind or just sitting on the ground, try em all you will be successful. hunt with friends try some pushes where there is a pinch point the deer will come right to you. I took a buck last season 10 yards infront of me with a shotgun i was on the ground and could spit on it.
You have the right idea start early and good things will come, Ive made mistakes going back to the same spot over and over and drove the deer out but you learn from your mistakes.
If you are going to sit in that tree stand for archary, I would bait em ever so often, not to much and you should get a deer from that stand this season. At least that what every hunter hopes.The spot you are talking about on friends land sounds like its a sweet spot. always cover up you scent as best as possible.
Thats all i got, Good luck this season.

 

[HorizontalHunter]

Baiting is illegal in Massachusetts and in most of Connecticut as well for hunting.

Is it a good spot. It depends on what the deer are eating at that time. Just because there are oak trees there doesn't mean that they are producing and if they are producing is it what the deer want to eat. Trail cams help but you need to burn some shoe leather as well.

I hunt on the ground all the time and I shoot deer. find the deer, pick a likely spot, pay attention to your scent and the wind and you will shoot a deer. It is easier in a tree stand.

Bob

 

[dhuze]

If the deer are moving within shooting range you are all set. You should clear a couple shooting lanes before you get too close to the hunting season. Don't clear away too much, just a couple openings where the deer are likely to pass. For whitetails your best bet around here is a tree stand. Ground blinds work if you have a good place to set them up. You do need to set them up now so the deer will be used to it being there. New changes make deer weary so you need to clear lanes and set up stands/blinds in advance. Sitting on your stand is ok as long as you don't over do it and don't let the deer see you getting in or out of it. Also don't let them see you in it.
Stalking whitetails is very difficult. They do not like humans getting too close.

Another thing to remember is when the rut occurs deer will tend to hang out in a different area so you need to know when you will be hunting and when the rut occurs in your area. Here in the northeast it is somewhere around November.

 

[Augustus McCrea]

Thanks guys , ya i thought about a trail cam. I have a stand up as i described and i also have a 2 man stand on the very edge of that same 10 acre field i spoke of, its hard for me to decide which could be more promising, i see foot traffic EVERWHERE and was back out there his am at around 545, and spooked 2 deer on my way into the field itself, but it sounds like maybe putting up a cam by each ? i didnt think about scouting TOO much, that had not occurred to me. Is there better times to be over looking fields as to being in oak groves ? times of days that is ?

 

[reveille]

Horizontalhunter. Yes baiting is illigal (Within) 10days of season. So bait and go get some nice pictures. Most deer will venture into the field when they are comfortable not scared. they may use the grove as a staging area and when safe enough venture into the field usually early morning or evening, but that can all change during the Rut.

 

[boxerjake77]

Hung a few cameras 3 weeks ago, waited a week to check them. Got a bunch of deer moving through trails. Mostly late at night, but the does have been early morning. When I checked them I brought in some corn. It's now 2 weeks, and I'll
check tomorrow. I will bait again,making deer crack, hang my last stand, and make a few mock scrapes.

Look into mock scrapes, they can be productive.

 

[Augustus McCrea]

again , THANK YOU , i really cant believe how great everyone is on this site, i have almost no one elses brains to pick and this is all great advise, since iv started this venture ... its all i can think about ... im trying to get into fall turkey but i feel like deer season is literally all consuming, im obsessed ... in a good way . @ boxerjake ... i like the corn idea , i thought about buying a 50 lbs bag and spreading it arond my stand and what not and maybe in view on the edge of the field iv been working, but i didnt know the usefulness of it , glad some one else is doing it. Id like to become more knowledgeable about deer habits. One more question before i think of another ... i have a 3rd treestand and was considering putting it in a WMA that i know had activity for sure , but its in another town ... is that spreading myself (A novice ) too thin.. should i just keep it simple ?

 

[Augustus McCrea]

any preference to sent masking products / methods ? give me 5 mins and ill think of another question

 

[reveille]

I just got done looking at a different spot on the WMA property, and i gotta say its a Big deer haven. I already have a tree stand on one piece on WMA land. Your doing the right thing by exploring other areas, if you dont see any deer in one spot in the morning, move to the next spot you scouted for the evening hunt.

You wanna wash your camo gloves, hat and whatever your gonna wear and wash it in a scent free detergent, dry outside and finally put in giant ziplock bag. you can also get scent waffers that have different scents to pin on your camo, I use hickory scent. and before you go in the woods spray some more scent free spray all over your clothes boots, ect. I also like to put brown dry leaves in my bag to have the clothes soak up the odor.

there are several different ways to do it,this is just the way i do it.

 

[Augustus McCrea]

@ reveille , thanks .. i dunno if your referring to the westboro WMA , but i been walking that place since i was a boy and the foot traffic of deer there in one spot is incredible , and the other day my dog and i spooked one in mid afternoon, there was a stand there last year but its gone now ..i dont want to step on any ones feet. I did go out and get some sent spray today to souche my gear in .. i was gonna stuff them in a huge tupperware bin after. i also just bought a one seat chair blind thing at dicks on sale for turkey my wifes gonna string ME up !

 

[reveille]

No I havent been in that piece of woods, Ill stay out of there. I;ve been in the watershed areas sterling/holden. check it out. you have to apply for a special permit to hunt those woods but its good for 5 years. and they give you a nice outdated map too, but it shows all the areas you can only hunt with that special permit.

But sounds to me like your on the right track. as for a wife excuse The wife wont have to worry about shopping for meat this winter, you'll be stocked.

 

[Augustus McCrea]

ahmen