I'm on the edge!

[deerminator]

for the early part of bow season on this farm I have permission to hunt. Been hunting the outlying areas of bedding and cover next to ag fields (beans and corn) and been seeing lots of does with some buck sign. I've been purposefully staying out of the main cover section, an old abandoned farmstead where the house is caving in and a creek running through the whole piece. There are deer highways and bed everywhere but I havent wanted to disturb or pressure it. However, as we get closer to the rut, I'm thinking about going on the inside and setting up some a stand and blind in the middle of it all? Any tips on this? I'm used to hunting the edges of woods off ag land and the forest, not scrub trees and grassland where deer bed. I'm thinking of trying to do some all day sits the first week of November and guessing I'm going to need to get in plenty early while the deer are in the fields.

[Archerysniper]

Sounds like you got it figured out. Wait for a rainy day and get in and out as fast as possible with the least amount of disturbance. Spots like that you got to have the right wind and I like to get in sometimes as early as 2 hours before shooting time.

[Bear55]

I like your patience deerminator, way to wait for the prime time to make your move. Most people would have gone in early and possibly pushed the deer out of there. Going in blind to a totally new area can be tricky, the darkness can make it even harder.

Is there anywhere you can setup and overlook this entire area? You would burn a night of hunting but you might be able to get a good look at the area and see how the deer are using. It sure beats going in and setting up 50 yards away from where you really want to be.

If that doesn't work I say you just go in and try an all day hunt early Nov and see what happens. Maybe hunt one area for a day or two and if you don't have much luck try to go in a little deeper or try hunting the other side of the bedding area. Jump around a little and keep those deer guessing. Good luck.

[james_walleye]

I'm in a similiar situation on a new chunk of land. I have left it alone and will hunt it next week when I have 9 days off. I opted to set up an observation stand about 50 yards from where I think a lot of action will be. But from this stand I can also see a bunch of other runways. Looks like at this point ill get my south wind right away this weekend so I'm going to hang back and see where the deer move. Nice thing about my location now though is its very visible from a couple of funnels so I will be trying my luck with a decoy.

[Bear55]

This is really a great thred to talk about timing and pressure. My very best spots are only hunted once or twice a year in late Oct or Early Nov. It is not easy holding back and waiting for the timing to be right but it is a must do if you don't want to tip off the deer you are hunting them.

[james_walleye]

For me its been tough resisting the urge to go in and put 2 more stands up. The spot is in town Rochester here and I think the deer are probably used to human presence more. My plan is to wait til I get a west wind next week and hang the stand the day I will hunt it. I will do the same if any east wind comes during the week. I've heard great things about working a decoy so I'm going to see if hanging back just a tad and not going in right on top of them works. I think it will also help on not overhunting the area and not tipping off the deer as easily as the area is not available to gun hunters and unpressured deer will be available all season.

[deerminator]

Thanks for the tips guys. I appreciate the insight and experience. I started the hunting the edges approach last year after reading several articles over the Summer. You can’t kill them if you’re not in the stand. But you can’t do so either if you spook them out of the woods and cover. I think I will move in closer after next week a bit if and when the timing and conditions are right. I would take an evening to scout but the only real high point around is right in the middle of the cover. Still, I might just up a blind on that hill and do one evening.

[Archerysniper]

My very best spots are only hunted once or twice a year in late Oct or Early Nov. It is not easy holding back and waiting for the timing to be right.

I do the same thing, I have a over grown 20 acre grave yard that is the primary bedding area. Every year the bucks run in and out of there checking for does. Their has been a scrape line on the east edge of it for 2 weeks now, however I'm waiting to go in till around Nov 1st for a all day sit if I can get a NW wind. You gotta be patient but it can really pay off.