The Bow stand Log thread.

[tunrevir]

Went out tonight for a couple hours, saw three deer. Thought I was gonna get a shot at a nice doe but she hung up and then turned and walked out of range. Saw one off in the distance but just from the back and jumped three from some brush on the way out of the woods. Had a doe standing in my driveway when I got home. Gonna give it a go tomorrow morning and again tomorrow night and see what happens.

Tunrevir~

[deerminator]

Great work and story slopmaster. I made it out tonight just after I got home from work. I switched over to the cold weather camo, strapped on my safety vest, grabbed my bow and release and was out the door. I had a walk about 300 yards down our gravel driveway to one of my stands about 40 yards into our woods which borders a township road and nice soybean field on the other side. The snow flakes were light but coming down like crazy and nice and wet. Climbed into stand about an hour before dark and battled the snow and very cold intermittent wind gusts for the next 45 minutes with no action in sight.

I started to think being out in this wind and cold is nuts when the first doe came out of the woods kitty corner from our's. Then another and another until about a dozen made their way out. They skirted the edge of the bean field near the road and our woods as I strategized the possible shots. They never did come in, though, and just kept feeding in the bean field about 50 yards away. I let it get very dark before I decided I needed to get down. I spent about five minutes lowering my bow and literally crawling down the tree at a snail's pace. Not sure they saw me coming down the tree because it was so dark, I was moving so slow and in the woods aways back. But they took off when I started moving on the ground. Could see their outlines bound away without blowing, which is good.

I walked back to the house and could barely feel my fingers which had gotten wet and cold in my gloves which I realized were the warm weather ones. Not smart. Got back to the house and recapped the night with my wife and kids, helping her put them to bed. No deer tonight but a great hunt and warm house and wonderful family to come home to. Doesn't get much better than that.

[Archerysniper]

When you are hunting so close to the house if you have a very understanding spouse what I do is call the wife or text and tell her I am pinned in the tree and drive the truck out to spook the deer from the field this will keep them from picking your stand off and get you a ride home it has been very helpful to my hunting bag of tricks

[tracker x-2]

This morning was a windy one in the stand. sat till around nine thirty with only two roosters spoted and zero deer. There is a lot more activity showing up and hopefully the wind will die and show me some more deer.

[tunrevir]

2 does 720 at 35 yards but no shot, came 3-4 minutes after a few soft grunts. 730 10 point comes in following the same trail, I grunt softly and he holds up in the brush and surveys the area, eventually comes out into an area where I can get a shot ans stops standing near some tall grass. 30 yard shot, I let fly and about 5 feet before the arrow reaches the deer twank, I see the arrow deflect low and under him, missed seeing the twig due to the tall grass. He takes 2 hops at the sound stands and looks around a bit and meanders off after the does. I nock another arrow and sit, 10 minutes later a 6 comes in following the same trail and stops in the same spot as the 10 then meanders off following the other three deer. I got down at 9 and found my arrow without any hair, blood or tallow on it, clean miss but I followed the deer trail out into the woods a ways just to make sure and there wasn't any hint of a hit. So now I am waiting to get back out in another area and try my luck. Good morning but not the desired result.

Tunrevir~

[DonBo]

Saw 2 different good bucks last night, neither close enough for a shot. Too windy for them to hear my grunt tube.

[96trigger]

No bucks this morning. Still not seeing the sign of the rut I thought I would. Saw a doe still with her fawn, and another one bedded down took off when I went to check out a scrape as I was leaving.

Interesting note. Was reading in a hunting mag the other day that the little red squirrels that chatter at you, will chatter at deer also. It was very windy this morning, but about 8:00 this red squirrel starts chattering away. So, I think hey, there might be a deer, I better stand and get ready, After a minute or two, I make out the doe and her fawn coming from the direction of the squirrel. VERY COOL. Had I not listened for the squirrel, I never would have known they were coming.

[mudslinger64]

it seems like where i am at they never shut up,i hear them all around me.maybe i got the hot spot.....

heading out in a few minutes hope the snow gets them moving.

[james_walleye]

I sat til 10 this morning and didnt see a deer. I have found that to be normal when hunting in strong winds. My plan is to pull an all-dayer tomorrow. The south winds predicted is perfect for my favorite stand so i figure i better make the most of it. I have my buds packed so i can listen to the big game while on stand.

[Archerysniper]

Went out this morning laid a scent darg down from the truck to the tree got in the tree at about 6:00 at 6:30 I could hear deer coming down the scent trail to the stand too early yet to see but heard at least 3 go by at 10 yards at 7:05 hear another one coming this time I could see it was a small 6 or 8 he hit the scent trail and followed it like a bird dog right to one of my scent canisters let him pass. Once it was light enough too see one of the deer that passed in the dark had knocked my other scent canister with golden estrus off of the branch I had hooked it to. Great morning and lots of activity even with the gail force wind.

[deerminator]

When you are hunting so close to the house if you have a very understanding spouse what I do is call the wife or text and tell her I am pinned in the tree and drive the truck out to spook the deer from the field this will keep them from picking your stand off and get you a ride home it has been very helpful to my hunting bag of tricks

Good tip. Wouldn't have worked last night though as wife was in the house with kids recovering from viruses, not sure if the flu or not. They don't even test for H1N1 anymore, just give you medicine to treat it just in case. I was home with them the day before so I "earned" my time in stand. Some of you will find that less than humorous - my having to earn it.

I have spooked deer before on the ground and had them come back to that spot the next day or even an hour later or so after I got into my stand. Again, the deer in our neck of the woods are used to people walking or jogging down the road, etc. They're not going to stand there and let you arrow them. But they'll take off and come back so long as they don't feel threatened - i.e., someone shooting slugs at them. That changes everything.

My goal was to not let them really notice me until I was on the ground or at least most of the way down the tree. Hopefully that was achieved. If not, I could have been a big (donkey) racoon moseying down the tree in the darkness. They just kind of casually bounded off.

Here's another tip for a hard to get to stand site in the morning that you probably already know. I may try a ground blind on my neighbor's property tomorrow morning. It's only a hundered yards or so from a prime bedding spot so instead of trapsing through the leaves and woods and scaring everything away, the wife and kids will likely drive me to my spot down the neighbor's driveway, waiting for a minute or so and then driving off once I'm situated in my blind. I've head deer trickle by minutes afterward with no idea I'm in the blind.

[mudslinger64]

sat from 2 until dark saw nothing.in the morning i am going to head back to the stand where i saw the big 10 pointer a while back.it sounds like it should be a good day to be in a tree,but i am only able to hunt until noon tomorrow...

[archerystud]

I pheasant hunted SD Wed-Fri, so it's time to bowhunt again.

I saw 3 while walking in tonight(probably a doe and 2 fawns). I had a small buck in at 3 yards right a quitting time. Wow, is there still a ton of corn to be picked!!!

[mudslinger64]

heading out in a few....

[tunrevir]

Went out last night with fellow fm'er FLSniper. Moved my stand about 20 yards from where it was and wouldn't you know it a doe walks right under that tree at about 430 About 25 minutes later a spork came through at 10 yards and that was it for me. Flsniper saw four does but wasn't able to let fly on them. Will try again this afternoon. Good luck out there guys.

Tunrevir~

[Wanderer]

Finally back in the stand last night.

The wind was wrong for where I wanted to be so I tried another angle. On the way there I came to a tree I'd been in before. There were three deer there already but not for long.

I decide to set up and give it another try. After hanging the stand I decide to put out some scent wicks. While I'm hanging a wick a deer trots up behind me in the brush. Geez! I'm caught in the open! I have my bow but it bolts as I try to turn and see it. Didn't figure I could get out of that situation anyway. Score 1 for not using scent. I would have been in my stand by that time had I not played with it.

Thinking the deer were really on the move now I had high hopes for the next 3 hours.

Tick, tock, tick, tock.... I finally give in to the fading light and hook my bow to my string to lower it. Sure enough, CRACK, schick, schick, schick, here's comes another on the same fast pace the other one came in on. Right to the bottom of my tree. A large lone doe. Too late.

5 deer, no shots. We'll see how it goes tonight. Too much other stuff to do to be out this morning.

Good luck!

[tracker x-2]

Another chilly morning with no deer. Although a scrape appeared 10 yards from my stand since yesterday morning makes me wonder why i cant seem to see any of deer during the light hours. maybe tonight!

[DonBo]

Saw 8 last night. Most yet. Two big does still with fawns. One nice buck just out of range. He had no interest in my grunt call.

[Code-Man]

Went last night...Not a dang thing unless you count the 30 squirels around my stand feeding like no tomorrow. Roommate got one back home 4x4 about 120's his first bow kill. Missed first shot shot over his back second one went straight through the boiler maker. Guess I have a project for the week...European mount

[james_walleye]

I hit this morning what has quickly become my new favorite stand. I put it up a couple weeks ago in what i thought should be a good "cruising" area. Everything seemed like it funneled right to me. It seems i was right. I saw 9 different bucks this morning and 5 of them were at 15 yards. All of them were just cruising along. Every one of them was a 1 1/2 old. But its a great sign. I like my odds of seeing a big guy in that stand when i have this thursday and friday off of work.

[archerystud]

Went out this morning and had a lot of action. One busts me as I walk in. After about 20 minutes in the stand a fawn walks by me at about 15 yards but no mom so that's a good sign.

A little while later I see a buck going by to my left so I give him a couple grunts. He slowly circles and at one point even snorts at me but he was not down wind so I grunted again and he keeps coming in. He's a little smaller than what I'd normally shoot but I haven't had much time to hunt so I decide I'm going to take him.

I get a quartering away shot at 25 yards and I hit the deer although I thought it was a little too far back. I thought I heard him fall but I decide to hold tight for a while. After about 20 minutes I hear a grunt from his direction and out comes a small buck running a doe. This buck does not appear to be hit but now I'm really nervous. I decide to get down and check this bucks trail to make sure there is no blood. I'm releived to find no blood on his trail and a nice blood trail on the way back to my stand. I still back out.

My dad and I return about 2.5 hours after I hit the deer. At first blood is hard to find but I thought the deer went further to the right so I'm looking on the wrong trail. After restarting the search I get back onto some blood, after following blood for about 40 yards I looked up and I can see him through the brush. The buck only made it about 100 yards. The arrow entered between the last two ribs and went forward. Not my biggest buck but I'm happy with him.

Also saw another buck when my dad and I came back to look for mine.

[LOTWSvirgin]

Good story archerystud and congrats got some pics for us??

[archerystud]

I'll post some pics later. I'm on my dad's PC and the USB port is broke so I can't get pics uploaded to it.

[mudslinger64]

sat from 6 until noon,i didn't see anything.i don't know what is going on,after i got out of my stand i got in the truck and took a cruise down the road looking for fresh tracks crossing and only saw a few.not long ago deer were crossing this road steady i have been hunting different stands all the time so i don't think i spooked them.maybe the weather?i am going to try and get out for a little while tonight,if i can i am going to hunt in the stand i hung for my bro in law on the trail crossing the road.he hasn't been able to get out and doubt he will anymore this year before gun season,so i will hunt it.

[DonBo]

Congrats archerystud! With the gun season just a few days away my standards are getting lower by the day.