Hunting Hot Sign Criticism Needed

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G-Patt
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Re: Hunting Hot Sign Criticism Needed

Unread postby G-Patt » Fri Nov 19, 2021 4:07 am

I'm struggling to find what you did wrong. You found the sign and the deer, and you were within shooting distance. Not having the deer behave the way you want or not getting that perfect shot is not doing anything wrong. That's how the cookie crumbled that time around. Keep at it. Great suggestion on hunting on the ground too which is actually my # 1 go-to after the leaves are off. I get picked off more in the tree than I do on the ground and it doesn't matter what part of the season I'm hunting.


On my deathbed, I will receive total consciousness. So I have that going for me, which is nice!
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Ognennyy
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Re: Hunting Hot Sign Criticism Needed

Unread postby Ognennyy » Fri Nov 19, 2021 4:59 am

I choose a tree based almost entirely on one that will give me shots to multiple locations around me. If I'm close to a little marsh / small body of water, or a huge blowdow, dead or fallen tree, I take those into consideration with respect to predicated path of deer movement. But by and large hunting in the big woods up in the mountains trying to guess exactly where deer will come from or the path they will take is a fool's errand (or I'm just not good enough at it, pick one. Either way result is the same.)

I often used to set up in trees with good cover but then realize I had no shot. After experiencing that frustration you're feeling right now a few times I decided to sacrifice cover if necessary and just get in a location where I can potentially shoot.

Good luck man I hope you get one of the bucks.
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WIswampdweller20
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Re: Hunting Hot Sign Criticism Needed

Unread postby WIswampdweller20 » Fri Nov 19, 2021 5:31 am

Raptorman wrote:Alright here is my issue. I scout with my stand on my back just skirting the areas that I have scouted in the winter/spring. Friday I got into an area early found scrapes and trails in the leaves that appeared fresh on the edge of a bedding area. I found a fresh scrape and a scrape that had leaves in it. I set up with them about 10 yards from my tree. Last 30 min I have 2 does come out but by the time they are in view and before I can hear them they are on top of me. ( No shot). Was blown out by the does.

Fast forward to last night. I let the area cool off over the weekend with the rain and poor weather. I snuck back in and hunted the down wind side of the same bedding area. From the opposite direction a 8 or 10 point came in which I could not hear due to wind and they are sneaky. It was the last 10 minutes of legal(less visibility) This deer came right up to my tree but again with under growth and limbs I had not shot.

My questions??? How do you go about picking the correct tree so this does not occur. Do you hunt within the sign or slightly off of the sign?

As far as the tree I like to have some cover around me so I am not easily seen but that cover becomes hard to shoot around. I was 3 sticks with aiders up in the tree.

Positives I took away! I can find deer. I set up quiet enough for them to not be disturbed. My confidence in my area selection is improving and I am seeing deer on purpose.


Had to go back and reread. It’s funny, because I had the gumption to offer advice on this and actually had to relearn another key component of stand selection this year the hard way myself. Sometimes as we get older all the information we’ve absorbed gets blurred I guess. Anyway, long story short, my big mistake was not reading the traffic flow, which resulted in head on approaches toward my set from multiple directions. No bueno. Especially in marsh with open skyline. It’s simple, yet can be easy to miss, particularly when your trying to keep your scent off your prime shooting area. I guess this falls among the many challenges of run and gun mobile hunting. Interested in any pointers on this- not to hijack the thread, but I think it ties in. What I’ve learned from my mistake is to study trails closer from the ground, short of trampling all over, but more importantly, when I get up in the tree, to confirm it’s not doomed based on the direction of trails, and if need be, pull out and move.
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NorthStar
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Re: Hunting Hot Sign Criticism Needed

Unread postby NorthStar » Sat Nov 20, 2021 8:01 am

I am not saying this applies to this exact situation but having a stand on my back does not guarantee that I am getting in a tree and does not always mean when I decide to be in a tree, that it has to be 18+ feet high. And it wasn’t too long ago where I believed these things to be absolutes!!
“The lazy do not roast any game, but the diligent feed on the riches of the hunt.”
‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭12:27‬ ‭NIV‬‬


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