prepping for the season

hey fellas

as most of you know im still very new to bowhunting. and i have been thinking alot latley about how exactly do you prep a stand properly? Im going out there next weekend to hopefully get everything finished

i know i have to cut some shooting lanes, thats a givin. but what else.
i realized walking out to my licks, it is hard to get in there quietly, how can i help cut down the noise when walking into my stand?

should i cut out a trail to get in there? im guessing i should wear sent cover out there right?

(note) that all my areas are new and have never been hunted, so there is quite a bit of underbrush

so what im asking is...when you guys are in this type of situation. What are the major things you look at and make sure you have finished by season opener?

any help or littlereminder will greatly help

 

I would cut the path to your stand now and wait til the fall to cut lanes. The woods will look totally different when the foliage is gone and you want to cut as little as possible. If you cut lanes now, you may cut too much and be way too open when to foliage comes off.

 

Make sure to wear goves when doing all your cutting. Try to avoid touching your skin on an foliage, it leaves more human scent.

 

how much should i cut for my trail.? and how do you reduce noise when walking on it?

 

Just enough for you to slip through without touching leaves, branches, etc. As far as the ground goes, depends on your hike, but I have raked paths in the preseason down to the dirt to quiet an approach. Due to crop rotation, I will be coming in from a different access this year and will need to be quick and quiet, I'll be raking in a month or two. If you have a long hike, maybe just rake the last 75 yards or so?

 

well i basically only have a hundred yard hike at the most. so it really doesnt matter if you have a noticable trail, the deer are gonna adapt to it right?

 

Shoot, the deer might start using it!!

 

'

That's the other benifit of it.


But be careful it makes them silent too.:d

 

How about a trailcam to see what is walking past your stand?

 

You should really do your trimming of trails and shooting lanes after hunting season before the spring green up. Seeing as how you are already past that time I would do your trimming ASAP or wait until after deer season and hope you have a couple of natural shooting lanes.I just trimmed a trail in one of my spots so I can sneak through the thick brush and come in the back way through the woods so I don't have to walk across wide open fields in the pre-dawn.I cut that trail in April so the deer had plenty of time to get used to it. I would wait till spring if I were you.If you do all of your trimming now you might be OK but you might not be either. I don't know if its worth the risk.You might just bump a bachelor group of bucks out of your area and they may not return.