kind of a spin off to the thread posted about changing your ways. (Sorry for the length of the post) i just started bow hunting this past year and i feel in love. i have always hunting with dogs, while it is fun it does not compare to the enjoyment of bow hunting. this year i had stands set up with very little scouting, they were in places that deer are known, and seen, during the gun season and summer time. but i could not give up hunting the corn/soybean fields. i saw more deer than anyone person would count but wouldnt get close enough, but i was able to see things that ive never seen before with my own eyes, small bucks fighting, the movement patterns of small bucks, deer trying to mate, and deer just being deer, these alone made it a great experience. while i know these deer will be in the same areas next year things will change. first to change is the stands i hunt in the morning. the field stands were unproductive becuase i believe i was pushing the deer out on my way to the stands and i am going to start scouting next weekend to find better locations for these morning hunts (hopefully). second, and the main reason for this post, is i think i may begin to use a decoy for my field stands to help draw them in closer, and i will also adjust those stands in different spots. i am very lucky to have a great friend to hunt with on his lands, over a 1000 acres, and next year we should have around 12 or 13 stands set up. i dont think i can give up the experiences i had in those field stands, would a decoy, having never used one, be a good way to draw them in?
Good to see you had an enjoyable season. A decoy can be productive in the right situations at the right time of year... the majority of the time it's probably another thing to carry into the woods and another thing to harbor human scent. While the field sits are enjoyable, IMO your best bet is to move off the food source on a travel route that the deer use to get from bed to food...
