This method of deer scouting has helped us out a ton! We use it so we can print out our areas and so we can study deer patterns and update the maps as deer patterns change. What do you think about this method? Do any of you use a similar method?
I use USA photomaps now. I can connect my GPS and upload tracks and waypoints to the program. It is a free program but one thing is the aerial photos are old and B&W but it can toggle to topo maps. In the past I used a program called BUCKSPY that was really great with maps and loading GPS but it went out of business. I do use SCOUTLOOK on my phone that locates stands and can watch wind and other forecasts.
Another thing about Google Earth is that you can directly import GPS data from GPS to Google Earth. In the menu bar under "Tools" is a GPS tool. Connect your GPS to the PC and select GPS under Tools and import waypoints and tracks. It is faster than manually inputting Lat/Long and drawing approximate routes.
Yeah, that's what I was thinking. Why in the world is this guy imputing individual way points when all he had to do was plug in the gps and import them direct into Google Earth.
I haven't done it in a while but, when I first started hunting one of my properties I would use scout look and screen shot the areas I was hunting and open them in paint. Once I saved the file every time I found a travel corridor I would mark them on the picture.i learned this property extremely well and now have very few sits when I don't see deer. It helped me learn how to use topo maps and I used that knowledge to map another property this past season. Mapped it, scouted only the area I thought would be good the evening before I hunted it and killed a doe the next morning in the exact spot I picked on the topo. I have also used this method to help my brother hunt a property I have never scouted. He hung a stand in the area I told him to and killed a deer the next day also. I think once a hunter gets the hang of scouting this way, they will never scout any different. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
haha, yeah that would have been way easier! I should have poked around more with the Google Earth functions! Thanks for the input, will save a bunch of time!
My brother in law and I are using Acme Mapper to get an idea for the topography if the land and getting an idea on where to scout after we see draw results around Memorial Day Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I will have to check that out. Land is pretty flat around us, so topo doesn't tell us much, but when we go get some hills it helps!
Acme Mapper is an amazing tool! You can change between satellite (road view) Imagery and Topographic. And it gives you coordinates, which will work awesome for us, because we're likely going to hike in.
Yeah. That's cool. I'm sure it would take some time but what a valuable knowledge to have mapped out on your hunting areas.
I like HUNTTERRA HUNTERRA maps - I can take them with me into the woods and actually just mark down key points on the map as I walk through the woods. The map is durable - I can reference my GPS or my phone to see the exact location I am at on my property and then just make my marking on my map. If you your state/county has winter GIS imagery then you can really see the hills, creeks, ditches on your property. You can look at a TERRAMAP and get a pretty good idea how the deer move throughout your property without actually stepping foot on it. Everyone has a different way of scouting - no one way is more effective than the other. Find something that works for you. Some people spend a great deal of time looking at topo maps, others Google Earth, others GPS devices that show elevation... I don't think one way is better than the other.
Yes it does take a bit, but thanks to Smokey's tip on loading the tracks from the GPS it goes way faster. I still hand draw them because the tracks that are imported can be a little messy if you don't save them off each time, but it just takes a few clicks now! Lots of folks are mentioning Topo on here, but our land is flat so there isn't a whole lot to gain from a topo map, we are already seeing major patterns and areas where multiple trails come together that we wouldn't have seen unless we were boots on the ground. Like sycamoretwitch said, there are many methods and depending on the land you will have success with all of them! The key is putting in the time doing something!
