Michiganbowhunter_SQ2 Posted January 1, 2009 Report Share Posted January 1, 2009 ...your scouting for next season? We were kind of lazy in doing our preseason scouting this year. Wasn't really looking forward to hunting state land, mostly because I don't like running into other hunters and was afraid it would be crowded. Well talking with my cousins husband last night, I was telling him about where we were hunting, which is out by where they live, and he started giving me tips and some locations of some good areas. He has hunted there in the past and has taken a few nice deer from there. He assured me that during bow season there isn't really many people that go out and hunt this area, but gun season is when it get really crowded, but we hunt in the UP for gun season so that won't be a problem. Out of everyone I know that hunts, this guy is the one I would want giving me advice. He always finds the prime areas, hunts darn near every day of the year (think he said he only missed 4 or 5 days of hunting this year), and fills every tag just about every year. He has 6 deer this year and we are allowed 7 tags, he shot an 8 point, and then a week later a 10, which is at the taxidermist right now. there rest were doe's. He is also an honest guy and wouldn't B.S. me about any of these spots, especially since he no longer hunts this area (has tons of private land to hunt). So when should we get out and start looking around, and what should we look for? I have one area in mind, it is in a pretty good ways, but I think early season it might pay off. Looking at an Aeriel photo, I found an area that has 3 different fields, I know one was had corn and another had beans, planted by the DNR, but there is a strip of woods way back that separates the fields and a large pond. I think this may be a good early season spot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RangerClay Posted January 1, 2009 Report Share Posted January 1, 2009 I started during deer season. I always go for walks into new places and examine the tracks in the snow. Snow really gives a better indication if you don't have a trail cam available. I look for how deer move once the pressure is on them. My next scouting will be in early April. A day or two after the snow is all gone. You can really see the trails this time of year. Next is May and turkey season. I am always scouting when I am chasing the birds. Then I start putting out my trail cams in my food plots. In late August I move the trail cams into the woods to monitor movement. I have two new locations picked out already and I can hardly wait till August to hang stands. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tominator Posted January 1, 2009 Report Share Posted January 1, 2009 I don't really do any scouting per se. I look for sheds in the late winter, early spring and make mental notes of where sign is. I also tend to remember trends of crop rotation and how that affects deer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BBHPETE Posted January 1, 2009 Report Share Posted January 1, 2009 Already started. Put my trail camera out last week to see what made it through the season. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unioncountyslayer Posted January 2, 2009 Report Share Posted January 2, 2009 Tomorrow. The season ended today, and with all the leaves down, it's easier to scout around now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buckbuster11 Posted January 2, 2009 Report Share Posted January 2, 2009 I never stop. It's year round for me. I especially like this his time of year because you can scout around without really worrying about bumping deer since deer season is 9 months away. Plus, I like to look things over while events from this past season are fresh in my mind and while I can see potential setups with leaves on the ground so I know what they will look like during the rut and in late season. Since you hunt pressured ground like I do, finding deer right now lets you know where they are hiding and what they like to do when the pressure is on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doc Posted January 2, 2009 Report Share Posted January 2, 2009 I seldom do any scouting just for the sake of scouting. For me scouting amounts to simple observations while doing other activities in the woods. I take almost daily walks on the hill, mostly for health reasons. That puts me in deer hunting territory on almost a daily basis. By the time deer season rolls around, there is little that I don't know about our local deer population. Doc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m gardner Posted January 2, 2009 Report Share Posted January 2, 2009 We scout all year long. Your continued interest and presence in the woods will also help deter poaching. Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Straight Shooter Posted January 4, 2009 Report Share Posted January 4, 2009 Started last week on the last four days of our season here in NC. It's very beneficial to scout with all the leaves off the trees. You can get a totally new perspective of the lay of the land. I figured out this past week I was hunting the area I was in, all wrong. I will not be making that mistake agian this season. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michiganbowhunter_SQ2 Posted January 4, 2009 Author Report Share Posted January 4, 2009 Well shoot...looks like I need to get out and look around a bit. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SuperMn106 Posted January 5, 2009 Report Share Posted January 5, 2009 Well shoot...looks like I need to get out and look around a bit. :D That is a good idea. I like to scout right after the season for a week or two so I know where they will be late season next year. Then while I am shed hunting in march or april I do a little scouting. As far as scouting right before the season, I usually like to do that about a month or two before seasons opens so I have an idea where they are at and then about 2 weeks before the opener just to make sure that they are still in that area that I think they are in. Hope this helps, good luck! Where abouts is this land in Michigan? I used to live there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ruttinbuc Posted January 5, 2009 Report Share Posted January 5, 2009 The deer where I hunt usually use the same bedding ,same runs, same food sources from year to year. Not much scouting except for a trail camera or two here and there. I am still hunting and the deer are still in the same place they were all year....Somewhere else.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dbHunterNY Posted January 8, 2009 Report Share Posted January 8, 2009 Next season I'll have another hunting spot to try out. I'm going to be scouting it for next season this weekend. I can find trail intersections, travel corridors, and terrain features that are funneling deer. The scouting that is most important though is probably right around the first of November. If the deer are there then I have a good chance at seeing them. If I saw a buck over the summer and he's disappeared chances are he's out of my area, maybe not returning until the peak of the rut which is around gun season here. I'd rather get a chance at a good buck before all my cousins, uncles, and relatives invading the woods with guns try. - Dan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest shorty785 Posted January 8, 2009 Report Share Posted January 8, 2009 i scout as im looking for sheds squrrel hunting and rabbit hunting all winter long Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
layin on the smackdown Posted January 8, 2009 Report Share Posted January 8, 2009 my next years season begins the day after this years season ends. If you get snow where you live, scout after it snows and you will get a lot of input. Do this through the remainder of the winter, as you shed hunt and into early spring. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cinch314 Posted January 8, 2009 Report Share Posted January 8, 2009 Im always scouting, even when Im hunting. Trying to see where they are changing their routes to. Looking for new rubs or bedding areas, maybe even some new food areas. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
goodnottygy Posted January 8, 2009 Report Share Posted January 8, 2009 I do the bulk of my scouting about February / March. It is easy to see what happened the last season, if there is no snow on. Look for antler drops then also. After selecting trees for next season, I put them up well in advance of the upcoming season and NEVER go back until I am hunting them. An old buck will only need to smell where you have been once or twice to move on to another area. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Widowmaker Posted January 8, 2009 Report Share Posted January 8, 2009 I already have. I have made it a year long sport! Can't wait to check out my trail cam that I put out two weeks ago. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tecumseh Posted January 9, 2009 Report Share Posted January 9, 2009 At the end of August early September. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevebeilgard Posted January 11, 2009 Report Share Posted January 11, 2009 i never stop. i'm always looking Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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