Q: How important is pre-season scouting?
A: Extremely important. You get chances to see the animals in your area, patterns of travel, foraging, and possible hunting set up locations.
Q: How do you go about scouting in the early season before the bucks are making scrapes?
A: Use of trail cameras is a must. And by just plain getting in the woods and exploring your hunting area.
Q: Do you prefer hunting in the woods or along agricultural fields?
A: I would much rather hunt in the deep woods – heavy timber. I’m not much of an open space hunter. I like getting up high in a river bottom and concealing with good camo.
Q: How high should hunters hang their treestand?
A: There has been a lot of mixed opinions of this. With my trials and errors of hanging stands in my deer containment areas, I have found that the higher the better. Each time I have hung them at 8 to 10 feet, my deer have always spotted me by looking up. I try to hang stands the higher the better with some canopy cover to help concealment. Deer will look up and if something is out of the ordinary with the background of the canopy, you’re busted, scent protection or not.
Q: Can you have success hunting from the ground?
A: I honestly believe so. Hunting from a blind is great. I honestly haven’t harvested a nice buck from the ground, just does. But it is a rush, nonetheless, to have a whitetail less than 5 to 10 feet from your blind on ground level.
Q: Are doe or buck decoys effective?
A: I have used them on a limited basis and have had a lot of fun with them. I have found that the curiosity of the deer will bring them to you almost every time. Add a grunt or bleat and it rises exponentially. I say if you have access to one or are thinking of purchasing one, go for it. Folks just need to remember to have caution carrying and setting it up.
Q: Is scent control important when hunting from a treestand?
A: It is extremely important. A deer travels through their nose and ears. Maintaining proper scent control of body odors is a must for any serious hunter
Q: What calls do you carry?
A: I always have a grunt and a doe bleat in my pack. I use the Primos multi call grunt and a doe can bleat. You never know when they are out of shooting range walking another trail, and you need to bring them to you.
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