Picking a setup location

[TN_boy]

For those of us still learning, walk us through your public land decision tree to hunt a specific spot.
Start with scouting (aerial and boots on ground), what you look for, what you saw, how and why did you pick the specific tree. Was the wind a factor? General wind or were you checking wind while walking into the area?
How do you mitigate scent on long walk-ins?

Looking for step by step layout
Pictures help

Let's start this season off by helping each other understand what made each person successful.

I am really good at finding bucks, big bucks, on public but never can capitalize. Growing up I wasn't taught about wind and most of our success was luck, not skill. Now that I am becoming a better "finder of sign" I believe my chances of scoring increase each year.

Please put thought into each post and let's help teach skills to one another.

[TXOUTLAW]

Good post
1.For me mine starts when I get a permit. Start combing the internet and the green screen for comments or videos. I may ask a few people a handful of questions in PM to those that are helpful. Rarely ever ask for specific spots, but will gladly look at those offered if I get the chance.

2.Next is aerial photos from google earth of general terrain, tree lines, open areas, water etc. some of which may get marked on OnX. On grid but download off grid maps as well.

3.Next is more detail after I get my compartment. See what marks I have and what else there is to look at.

4. Talk with the ranger about my compartment and note suggestions

5. Once turned loose, don’t rush. Check areas I’m interested in looking for signs along the way. Notice any private land close by and consider effects on movement. Narrow down to one of two spots I feel confident in

6. Corn the **** out of it and wait. If there’s no movement in 2 hunts, move.

I look at these hunts as meat hunts so legal game normally hits the ground before they are out of sight. I may pass some on an E/S hunt but not many. That increases my odds of success instead of waiting to the last day to harvest something.

Also a few prayers and lots of luck go a long way.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[SFAbowhunter]

I'll play.

This is what I did on my H hunt from last season.

1. E-scouting - google earth, google maps.
- Made a google map marking property lines, parking areas, private property feeders, deer sightings, areas of interest, and oaks.

2. Messaged a few members about really specific locations of burr oaks and white oaks. Didn't get much and didn't hunt any of the places members suggested.

3. Boots on the ground. I didn't spend a ton of time with this, but I waited until early to mid October to get in and look around. Marked every bit of deer sign I could. Rubs, scrapes, bedding, oaks that were dropping, deer sightings, ect. It was more of a speed scout or speed tour if you will. In and out marking every bit of hot sign I could.

4. Had a handful of spots picked out with the hottest sign that was either really hard to get to or what I thought would be overlooked by other hunters.

5. Checked the sign in sheet to see what unit everyone was going to and decided on BM as the unit I would hunt. (I saw a 200" in another unit, but there were more than half of my pages sign in sheet going to that unit).

6. Hung stand and waited for the first day to hunt.

7. Hunt and killed the biggest buck I've ever killed at 10:45 am.

This coming season I will be hunting more public land and hunting out of a saddle. Planning to get some boots on the ground and using HuntStand to mark maps, use aerials, topos, ect. Been listening to a lot of podcasts with John Eberhart, Dan Infalt, and the Hunting Public boys. Have learned a lot in a short period of time. Been hunting public land for a long time and have only taken 2 bucks, but I enjoy the challenge.

[jds247]

On public I try to scout in January and February . There's still visible sign and I can also tell if a bunch of people have been using the area. I always hunt the wind and rarely set up in the same spot twice.. I try to use other people to my advantage if possible meaning I sit all day or hunt mid day as much as possible.. For western hunts you can't beat onx and Google maps..I'm researching a new unit for Elk season now. I wish I had the time to go scout but its not feasible. I'm gonna get to Colorado 3 days before season and spend the first 2 days truck scouting the unit.. then I'll set up camp and give it a shot..

[HighwayHunter]

I'll play.

This is what I did on my H hunt from last season.

1. E-scouting - google earth, google maps.
- Made a google map marking property lines, parking areas, private property feeders, deer sightings, areas of interest, and oaks.

2. Messaged a few members about really specific locations of burr oaks and white oaks. Didn't get much and didn't hunt any of the places members suggested.

3. Boots on the ground. I didn't spend a ton of time with this, but I waited until early to mid October to get in and look around. Marked every bit of deer sign I could. Rubs, scrapes, bedding, oaks that were dropping, deer sightings, ect. It was more of a speed scout or speed tour if you will. In and out marking every bit of hot sign I could.

4. Had a handful of spots picked out with the hottest sign that was either really hard to get to or what I thought would be overlooked by other hunters.

5. Checked the sign in sheet to see what unit everyone was going to and decided on BM as the unit I would hunt. (I saw a 200" in another unit, but there were more than half of my pages sign in sheet going to that unit).

6. Hung stand and waited for the first day to hunt.

7. Hunt and killed the biggest buck I've ever killed at 10:45 am.

This coming season I will be hunting more public land and hunting out of a saddle. Planning to get some boots on the ground and using HuntStand to mark maps, use aerials, topos, ect. Been listening to a lot of podcasts with John Eberhart, Dan Infalt, and the Hunting Public boys. Have learned a lot in a short period of time. Been hunting public land for a long time and have only taken 2 bucks, but I enjoy the challenge.

Check out the southern outdoorsman. They’re all about southern Public hunting tactics


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[troy_w_7]

I've been bow hunting public land exclusively for 6 years now and through my learning from real life experiences and Dan Infalt/John Eberhart/THP videos and podcasts, here is my stab at your questions. I'm generally hunting public, walk-in land that I can scout year round. If I were going on a draw hunt or permit only hunt, my scouting efforts my be limited. But the below is generally my thought process.



While map scouting, I'll look at overall acreage size, access points (easy or hard), water sources (creeks, rivers, isolated water holes in the timber), pinch points, funnels, staging areas, and habitat transition lines. These are going to be places I think deer activity will occur most frequently. I will mark all of these spots on the OnX app so I can visit them in person. If the place has a lot of easily accessible points, I can assume a lot of other hunters will hunt that piece, which would discourage me from hunting there. So I'll either try to find creative access to that piece or find a new piece all together.

When I get boots on the ground, I'm hitting the marked places first and will fan out from there, if need be (If I find what I'm looking for in the suspected spots, that may be enough). I'll be looking for rubs, scrapes (specifically 3-4 cluster of scrapes in the timber, not on field edges), brows sign, hidden water holes in the timber or close to it, other hunters' sign, tracks, trails, and some specific trees to hang in. In my opinion, in season or post season scouting is by far the best time for this since all the foliage is gone and the sign is super obvious. If you mark all rubs and scrapes you find, then look at OnX later on, it'll basically show you the deer's highways. I found some really good primary scrape areas in December last year that were getting hit hard all the way through January, day and night time activity. Because of that, I have specific trees setup in those areas with entry routes in mind, with certain wind types. Some spots I can't hunt on certain winds because there's no way to access from upwind, that's why having multiple spots preped and ready are important. But I'm always trying to approach my spots with the wind in my face or some sort of cross wind form the direction I think deer will be coming from.

I don't really do anything with scent elimination; just try to play the wind the best I can. There's a lot of talk now about the science of 'thermals' which I'm still trying to wrap my head around. But I know that could come into play in terms of lifting you scent up and out of an area to where deer won't catch a whiff.

[troy_w_7]

Here's an example of a spot I plan to hunt this year. I found a primary scrape area in a small open area in the middle of the timber. Put cameras on it during December and even have one there now and bucks and does both are coming into this spot, mostly using the trail that runs east and west into the staging area. The wind for this area is predominantly south, so I'll plan most of the time to access from the north parking area. If the wind is out of the north, I'll approach from the south parking area. Hope this visual helps (excuse my 5 year old drawing skills).

[SFAbowhunter]

Here's an example of a spot I plan to hunt this year. I found a primary scrape area in a small open area in the middle of the timber. Put cameras on it during December and even have one there now and bucks and does both are coming into this spot, mostly using the trail that runs east and west into the staging area. The wind for this area is predominantly south, so I'll plan most of the time to access from the north parking area. If the wind is out of the north, I'll approach from the south parking area. Hope this visual helps (excuse my 5 year old drawing skills).

In this location is your entrance and exit route different?

[HighwayHunter]

In this location is your entrance and exit route different?

I think it’s best to come in and out of these areas the same way. If wind is blowing from the north then come in and leave south. Opposite if wind is coming from the south.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Razorback01]

Good info here, SFA- entirely too much!

[lovemylegacy]

Maps, terrain features are your friend, both computer based maps and the fold up topo maps are invaluable.
Best time to scout? First day the season is over.
Pinch points are your best bet, some type of terrain features that encourage deer to walk there.
If you are not busted, you can hunt these type of stands over and over, I had a couple on public that were almost bullet proof.
Hunt past noon. Some of the best deer hunting is after 10AM. Public bucks have a tendency to move in the midday.

[troy_w_7]

In this location is your entrance and exit route different?

I'm planning on them being the same.

[troy_w_7]

In this location is your entrance and exit route different?

And what a stud H buck last year by the way! You get that thing mounted?

[troy_w_7]

Maps, terrain features are your friend, both computer based maps and the fold up topo maps are invaluable.
Best time to scout? First day the season is over.
Pinch points are your best bet, some type of terrain features that encourage deer to walk there.
If you are not busted, you can hunt these type of stands over and over, I had a couple on public that were almost bullet proof.
Hunt past noon. Some of the best deer hunting is after 10AM. Public bucks have a tendency to move in the midday.

I've never been an all day sit guy until last year when I had a few buck encounters around 11am. I'm definitely trying it more this year!

[TN_boy]

Growing up we walked in 2 miles starting a 4am and walked out after dark. Starting at age 9 we hunted all day with just 1 sandwich and a 20oz Mtn Dew. We would walk to my spot and Dad would make sure I was settled then continue to where he was going to hunt. Our Cobra and Midland 2-way radios were texting method of choice in the 90's.