Run your Cameras on the outside. STAY OUT OF THE WOODS. Drive a car or truck to them if possible. Buy a good set of HIP WADERS and NEVER check your cameras without them on.
Learn more from your mistakes than your success and I've made more mistakes than I've had success so I'm not sure what that says about my suggestions or my ability to learn from my mistakes... Here are a couple of mine: 1. PLAN YOUR HUNTS: If you can get to a thicker/deeper/more secluded piece of your property by entering via a creek or even a small paddle boat across a pond it can really cut down on noise and scent. I think that entry and exit into your tree stand is maybe the most critical thing a hunter can do. I will spend as much time this season cutting branches and limbs from creeks and lake docking areas as I do anything else. Imagine hunting a stand deep in the woods in which you can take a small paddle boat to, the entry and exit has to be the most non invasive entry and exit ever. 2. If you've got time to wait for a good shooting angle then wait - I think shot placement is really important. Even a marginal shot can be effective if you've got the deer at an optimal angle. Obviously not all situations allow for this. 3. When and if you harvest a deer, don't be afraid to back out for the night and don't think you can't have an effective hunt that next morning. This past season I backed out on a doe that I thought I made a below average shot on and hunted the next morning. Saw many deer that morning and found the doe just 70 yards from my stand after my morning hunt. 4. Cover scents are almost as effective a trying to have no scent. I have used Conquest Deer Heard Scent Stick the last several seasons and it seems to effectively mask my human scent while creating a comfortable scent for deer in the area. That said, I suggest introducing any cover scents early in the season so that you are not introducing something completely new when the season rolls around.
This is a simple little piece of advice, but could make a big difference. Have a pull up rope hanging in all your stands with a clear path to pull your things up into the tree. I also leave the pull up rope up in the tree with me after pulling my stuff up so that a deer doesn't catch any movement from it or come to investigate it.
One thing I am hoping pans out this year is I believe the big 10 point I have had on the hitlist last year moves nearly a mile away after his velvet comes off. I have found his sheds two years in a row in the corner of a cornfield almost a mile from where he spends the summers and I collects 1,000's of photos of him. I investigated the tiny (30x30 yard) patch of brush inside the field corner and found that literally 75% of the trees were rubbed. Hopefully he made it through the tough winter and my theory is correct.
I prefer to carry my bow rope in my pocket. I don't want a scent wick ( bow rope that I've touched with my bare hands) hanging from all my stands.
Shoot one broad head tipped arrow every day of the hunting season at varying distance. If I am not hitting kill zone with that one shot then I'm not hunting again until I fix the problem. To many guys shoot hundreds of arrows all summer long and once season rolls around they put the broad heads on and may never draw the bow again till crunch time... so many thing can change the point of impact of your arrow when a bow goes through the wear and tear of the hunting season. You got to know that shot is going to hit its mark when the opportunity presents itself..
Guess your pockets are scent free .. Kind of ironic you would rather pull a rope out of your pocket to use rather than on that has hung in the open air/rain and has less cent.. Me.. I always pull the rope up to my level in the stand and tie it off so my scent isn't down at ground level from touching the rope...
I think what Greg is saying is that he doesn't leave the rope out. He carries it with him. Pulls it out to use it. Then puts it away.
Might not be much of a secret, but use water. Access areas others don't with a canoe or boat. Walking creeks are also a great scent free way to approach stand sites.
I sprint to my treestand to gather as much steam and perspiration as possible, then I lather on Tink's 69. That is my only secret.
That's exactlly what I'm saying. I believe that most people handle their bow ropes with bare hands. After exiting a stand from an evening hunt, why would I want to leave a scented up bow rope (scent wick) hang there for all wildlife to discover? Doesn't make sense to me.
I just bought a canoe for this very purpose. I have a couple new spots that I can get to via river or stream. Really looking forward to using it this year
This is weak sauce but important. Put the phone away and hunt. How many deer's lives are saved every year because too many hunters are texting, or playing on the internet?
Deer do not care nearly as much about high wind, rain, heat, and other weather conditions as we like to think they do. They live outside 24/7/365, they really don't care. Those things are generally used as excuses by hunters who want to sleep in/skip hunting that day. Perfect conditions rarely happen, hunt when you can.
I hunt on public land and the deer are pressured before the season even starts due to small game season, and it only gets worse when pheasant/rabbit come in then it hits an all time high for gun season. So I concentrate on those little pockets of cover that no one even thinks about, they could be in the middle of a soybean field or something like that. Also on public land let the other hunters due the work for you, you become the stander/watcher and they due the driving. This method really works during the middle of the day when the deer are bedded down. Then as the evening starts to come near move to an area where the deer feel safe, with lots of intersecting deer trails and thick cover.
If I were to use my bare hands when handling my bow rope I would do the same. However, I always use my gloves when handling anything while I'm hunting. I keep all my gloves and clothing in carbon lined bags. This is by no means a cure all to scent control, but I try to get every little advantage I can. Nothing will ever trump having the wind in your favor though.
