Find the Feed and Find the Bucks

Photo courtesy of Apple Creek Whitetails

Some areas look deer-ish, but if the food is absent, the deer will be too. Mast is a key to fall hunting.

Acorns, berries, and other mast corps will draw the deer.  .  Later in the fall deer often turn towards browse and feed heavily on leaves and stems from such ash, maple, wild rose, and snow berry. Remember deer food doesn’t always look like food to you. Learning which native plants the deer prefer in your area will improve your odds for success. A tell-tale sign deer are feeding in an area is the presence of fresh droppings.

Jim

http://jimcollyer.com/

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Feeding Patterns

Apple Creek Whitetails Photo

Ambushing deer on their way to a primary food source is one of the best ways to harvest trophy animals. However, a hunter who understands a deer's feeding pattern during the middle of the day will be more successful year in and year out. Take time to find out what plants the deer feed on during the day and plan to hunt those areas this fall. If left undisturbed the deer will bed right in the middle of these spots. It’s always best to play in front of the deer and getting into these spots before the deer do is essential.

Jim
http://jimcollyer.com/

Stand Placement

                                                        Apple Creek Whitetails Picture

Morning stands are generally more productive than evening stands. With the exception of early-season hunting in mountainous terrain. In those instances an evening stand at the base of the mountain is for more productive since it utilizes the evening air thermal direction.

For the rest of the season morning stands rule. I try to keep my stand on the highest ground possible. There is more deer activity in the bottom lands during daylight hours, but the danger of the daytime air thermals lifting your scent and spreading it for several hundred yards in all directions is just too great. Always opt for a stand high on the ridge.

Throughout most of the United States the prevailing wind direction comes out of the southwest. Approaching from the east keeps us from stinking the whole place up before we even start to hunt. I like to keep my stand, whether it’s a tree stand or a ground blind, on the eastern side of the funnel for the same reasons.

It’s hard to find a perfect set up, but the basic principles of wind direction, undetected approach and concealment hold true no matter where you hunt. Having the prevailing wind in your face and an undetected approach to the stand are crucial for consistent success.

Good Luck and Good Hunting,

Jim

http://jimcollyer.com/