No Deer :(

[usmc0411]

Subject says it all. After this mornings hunt, I have spent a total of 23 hours in the stand and haven't even as much HEARD a deer let alone seen one. It is frustrating to say the least since all my pre season scouting indicated heavy traffic and high volumes of deer, granted it was on a WMA so it get some pressure but after all this time... Nothing. I know, I need to keep at it, stay paitent and it will pay off, but do any of the pros out there have any pointers or suggestions? Been hunting thickets mostly adjacent to corn fields and water source both morning and evenings.

I don't want this to sound like a rant because this is my first time back in the whitetail woods after 6 years of living on the West Coast and a few deployments, and it awesome every time I get out and sit in a stand, seeing a deer would be encouraging though.

[Rippinlip]

Not knowing the area you hunt, but get as far away from all traffic as possible.

Might be a long walk, but just an opinion.

[Bear55]

If you are scouting the summer you are really missing out on the fall patterns, a lot of things are changing when the season gets fired up. Pressure is probably your biggest problem right now, a lot of people have been in the woods lately. The rut is just around the corner so the deer will be out and about soon, in the mean time I would hug some thick or wet bedding areas, if they are close to acorns or other food sources all the better.

[96trigger]

Don't get too discouraged, deer have a tendency to disappear before the rut, then come back full force. Stay on that corn field, get into as remote an area as you can. The further away from any people the better. They are likely moving at night and bedding a ways away. You need to try and get closer to their beds. I have hunted.public land and it can be difficult. Stay at it, good times are just around the corner.

[mainbutter]

I've seen relatively few deer (compared to my first time hunting, firearms season last year)on my outings lately, about 8-12 hours in my stand each week for the past 3 weeks.

I finally saw a "shooter" doe yesterday morning, for all of about 30 seconds as she trotted at a good speed coming no closer than 50 yards. As she disappeared I gave a fawn bleat to see if she'd get curious, to no avail. I've bleated in a few young mommas that were too small for me to want to shoot, but as we get later in the season my standards will go down Yesterday it was just the one big momma with her two fawns, in late morning, when my other outings always had at least two separate sightings of deer. It was weird because it seems usually like clockwork I see deer between 6-8AM, and this time none until 10 or 11.

With the overcast day and lack of wind here, I'm kicking myself for not getting up early and going out, but I was too exhausted, and we have the family up here so it's a 'recreation' day and not a hunting day for me. It looks so much more like a deer morning right now than yesterday did.

[mabr]

Dont over look water this year. As dry as it has been it is a factor to consider while hunting this year.

I would also recommend some mid day scouting after your morning set. If you had sign pre season there still around but due to pressure they have changed it up some.

[mainbutter]

One thing I look for is deer droppings (srsly, a non-vulgar four letter word for that is censored here??).

Sure enough, I find a dozen or so piles about 50 feet from the house on this property, and that's all the fresh stuff I've seen this weekend.

I've often ignored hunting super close by, because I assume the dog smell from him being around would keep them away, even at night. However, last night/this morning they sure had to have been where el poocho spent 90% of the yesterday afternoon and evening running around and then sleeping.

Deer sure are funny sometimes.

[eyeguy 54]

hang in there grasshopper.....

[nbadger23]

USMC, I had a similar experience two years ago. I went over 40 hours of stand time and only saw one deer. This was unusual because it is the same area I have always hunted and was used to seeing a couple of deer every other sit or so. In my case, things kind of "broke" right around this time of year and deer sightings went up considerably. However, I knew the deer were there as the sign indicated it, I just had to wait them out.

In your case, it sounds like this area may be new to you so you may have to reposition yourself in case they are simply travelling in different patterns than your pre season scouting showed. I would take mabr's advice and get out and do some mid day scouting, especially if u got rain yesterday and can be quiet on wet leaves. Check your water sources for fresh tracks or even the ag fields for fresh tracks to see where/if they are entering the fields and adjust accordingly. If the sign still points to your stand being in a good spot then stick tight and they will soon start showing up. If it doesn't, make a move. Good luck !

[Powerstroke]

You said you're hunting thickets near the corn. 2 things about that. #1, if you're hunting the thicket, you may be hunting in the bedding area, which means you may be pushing the deer out on your way in. If there is a lot of sign in the thicket, this would be what I am thinking. Try to hunt on the outside of the thicket or find other entrances to the corn.

On the places I hunt, the deer are only heading to the corn at dusk and dawn. They are bedding elsewhere.

[usmc0411]

Thanks fellas for all the feedback, and as luck would have it, my next, and probably last time in the woods this year with a bow will be at Camp Ripley 27-28 Oct. Unfortunately my job requires a lot of "short notice vacations".

I will take all advice into consideration and if I can't get back out this year, there's always next year. (Unless that Mayan calendar thing is true)

[pikehunter]

+1 for PowerStroke's advice. Seems extremely likely that's what your battling here. And it's a tough nut to crack. I hunt only public land and find that deer bed ridiculously close to their food and water sources, because they like to cover as little ground as possible in daylight hours.

Also: Try to devise a way to use the pressure of this parcel of public land to your advantage. Are there portions others aren't willing to hike to? If you can slip into an area that others won't touch, you'll find the deer know this too. You've got to work harder, hike farther and sit longer on public land, IMO, but the success feels just as good.

One more public land tip: If you know you're sharing the woods, always be the last guy out of your stand. You would be surprised how many deer get pushed TOO you.