Lets talk hunting spots

So many other, controversial or edgy topics-lets return to hunting.

Please describe Your best spot, where You consistently see deer-harvest deer, and keep it in very high regard. Why?

Like-what makes that spot special. Describe lay of the land-what wind works for it and why-why You think it is great to consistently hunt it ,year after year-or else.
Why You think deer uses it the way they do-and when they use it. Early season-mid season-end of the season.
Morning, or afternoon or else..........
Cheers

I find my spots change based on closest ag fields (whats planted that year greatly affected if the spot is good OR the timing of when the spots get hot)
The majority of my spots that are good have a combination of dense cover and are hard to access.....

GBK do you find that to be the case with your good spots too? I think youre one of those guys on this forum that flies under the radar but is consistently killing nice deer and on pressured public land!! hats off to you..

My deer-hunting style has evolved over the years. I went from trail watching, to hunting field edges, to sitting in tree stands near fields, then to sitting in tree stands in the big woods, and finally to still-hunting the big woods.

When hunting the woods, wether it’s the big woods or in agricultural areas, I’m drawn to funnels as it increases my odds at seeing deer. While still hunting, I like to hunt upland mixedwood forests with good visibility. I also like to hunt rocky ridges with pine growing on them as you can walk quietly.

Well my best hunting spot is a tree stand overlooking an old settlers farm field of about 2 acres. The field has some old heritage apple tree's that attract deer and I have planted another 15 or so dwarf apple trees to supplement the old original one's.
As I grow potatoes and other vegetables in a garden in the middle of the field, once the crop is out I plant turnips and parsnips for the hunt.

Now the field is smack dab in the middle of the two hundred acres, but my main road runs through the field and the main township road also runs to the south of that field. So my problem is that after 20 years the deer have me figured out pretty well in respect to the field. They have me patterned and know they must sneak in just before dark. My other problem is no matter where else I hunt I have to pass into that field on the way in at night.

But its been a great stand and I think I am up to 12 deer taken off that one stand, I have never hunted it after the rifle hunt in November but would really like to get in there for the December hunt but I have to buy a muzzle loader or cross bow for that to happen.

The stand has been productive because its on the south side of the field and in such a position that only a south wind gives me away.

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Originally Posted by Sam Menard

I went from trail watching, to hunting field edges, to sitting in tree stands near fields, then to sitting in tree stands in the big woods, and finally to still-hunting the big woods.

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I followed the same path..the past few years I've ended up sitting in the bush on my Turkey chair a lot. Still have few treestands and pop-ups over looking choke points and common trails, but have really enjoyed just sitting on the ground shooting over a dead log. :)

One of our newest best spots, natural funnel along the side of a swamp with well worn deer trail.
Attachment 42946

I live in the country so I basically hunt in my backyard - at the end of my property the land slopes down a bank to a creek and beyond that is a hight mountain - all around my place are fields that farmers mostly plant corn and soybeans - the deer come off the mountain after laying down up there during the day and feed on the corn and soybeans - I have a number of ladder tree stands positioned around the property for archery season - so I can get close to the deer as they come off the mountain - for rifle season I have a small hut built on a platform half way down the bank above the creek - the deer don't have much choice if they want to get to the field they have to come through my property - I have lived at this place for over 45 years and we probably got a 100 deer over the years - the only problems is the deer come off the mountain after dark and eat everything I try to grow unless I put a high fence around it with electric wires on top of it - they eat everything - even potatoes, cucumbers and tomatoes - they are nice to see but can become pests at times - I get even with them during hunting season

I have around 150 acres. Bush pasture,deep ravine some is just pines
My best spot box blind deer or turkey is about 200yd from the house but sometimes deer bed down between house and my blind kinda sucks they see me before I can see them I hear the ugh of them getting to their feet than white tails

My blind over looks pasture between two bush areas pasture is 50yd wide blind sits at 50yd line of my range
So during bow I just watch 50yd semi circle during gun week I watch left and right further but always wait till they move into 50yd semi circle

Across from blind is wild rose bushes and crazy raspberry bushes swampy ground eats a man alive kinda crap but deer move through it a lot I had one go into this mess once 30yd it tried to jump through a Y shape tree died half way through took me a hour just to recover it and left a lot of blood behind

I’ve walked out of my blind not seeing a deer to see 6 standing 60’ from the house kinda stuff that warms your heart lol

Thank You guys for the replies.
Interesting scenarios.

Kokes-appreciate your kind words.

I do hunt for 25 years or so.At start i tried to get permisssions,to no avail. New Canadian,not much english,no one knows who the heck i am,so why let me in -just because i asked nicely?...
Even tried to ask permissions with my(at the time 5-6 year old daughter)to show that i am a caring family man.Did not matter.

By now i got used to hunt public(mainly pay for use public).Everyone and their brother can be there-do the same thing i do,or anything they like.
I have a small bush to hunt too, from my coworker-but in 20 years hard hunting there i managed only 4 deer to take .Hard area,narrow,no feature,no destination,and the deer can and do move thru it just about everywhere ,willy -nilly.I "know" their ways,but there is so many ways-i would need 5 -10 hunters per sit to cover all possibilities.

Anyhow- i have developed 40-50 spots over the time.
Still use maybe 8-10 of them.Some for like 15-20 years.Every year i make few new ones,and let few old ones go.
Have set and ready 12-18 spots every season.

I literally work a lot on my spots-tree preparation,shooting lanes,clearing obstacles etc.
Being public-i am not using any bait,or highly visible tree stand(box ,blind,home made blind,ladder stand)
I use Tree Saddle- few hang on stands,and a climber.Other then sitting 20 % of the time on a low low beach chair.
All depends on location,availability ,activities,wind-and my whim.
I take great care of making my spots hardly visible to others(stealth hunting)just so others do not develop ideas.

Since great majority of Public land here in my area are plantations,or mix woods,with pine/spruce plantation mixed in,or cedar swamps, I do not actually have much(almost zero)chance to hunt field edges ,overlook feeding areas or bait,at least in the areas,i hunt on regular bases.
I am away from a farm field in almost every case ,at least 100 yards,up to a km.Mostly 200-500 m.
Therefore,i am not so much impacted with crop rotation-to a great degree.
I am ,on certain spots(deer move east to west on some spots,just because to the FAF FAR west,there is a field-lets say non harvested soy field )but generally i am somehow moslty smack dab in between bedding and feeding opportunities.
I also can not know (by design) all the fields /crops surrounding the public.
My most productive spots offer sort of a funnel, or pinch points ,where deer generally need to go thru,to access their feeding destinations,or coming back to bedding.Some "funnels"can not be deciphered easily to be a funnel,because of the lay of the land,or vegetation,but they do "concentrate"deer ,if i can say so.
I tend to set up on deer trails(intersections close buy are prime)trails with repeating rub marks, or active perennial scrape areas.Close enough,but never on the spot or trail.

Being"deep"and set up along travel corridors/destinations of bucks,or travel zones of does(they are bringing in the bucks late Oct-mid Nov)i have had reasonable success .

I am not a bragger or a show off(not just in hunting,but else in my life),so i keep it low.I am quite happy with what good luck,lots of work,lots of time in the woods-and the love of hunting brought to me.
If i would recovered those few deer i hit but did not recover,the ones i missed to hit,and would have harvested those i let walk(for many different reasons)...hmmmm

Oh -one more thing-the HUNTING pressure does changes many things in most of "my" areas,where some areas slow down,some totally dry up by the end of November.
I have one area - by the arrival of 10 inches of snow -the deer disappears ,to return after snowmelt .This spot does not offer thermal protection,snow is always deep-so no surprise ,they move out.
I have another spot-cherish it a lot(great potentials, big woods, big area, kind of wilderness feeling)but by mid Nov is "ruined" year after year by hunters.
Even thought the area is a quasi deer yard, and the deer can be plentiful there by mid Dec(if lots of snow in the area)they move at the first sight of danger ,or move very late ,and very little.
Hope this helps.

Killed a whack of deer at this spot. I just sit on the ground in snow camo when it's white out or in a ghillie suit when no snow. Through the pines it opens into a small meadow that has half a dozen apple trees that hold apples every year and for whatever reason the trees hold some apples right into December.

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...b5d287a2_k.jpg

I am very fortunate as I hunt a good friends farm (actually 3 seperate 100 acre farms on the same road near Smithville), and I have permission on 4 other farms I can turkey hunt on from Binbrook to Dunnville. My main 3 farms hold a good deer and turkey population and from my house I am a 40 min drive to the laneway.

My main farm is two 100 acre farms located beside each other. The one farm has a large poultry operation on it, cash crops and a wood lot and the other the other farm he uses for cash crop, grain bins and implement storage barn and he rents the house out. His 3rd 100 acre property is about 800m down the road and it 1/2 bean field and 1/2 woodlot that holds a nice turkey population.

We have a small group of guys that hunt this property 4 of us including the property owner. On this property we have 8 ladder tree stands, one double elevated blind and one single evaluated blind as well as 3 cell game cameras. At the end of each turkey season we put out salt/mineral licks at various spots throughout the property and at the end of each summer we clear the trails of blow downs, clear shooting lanes and then run a bush hog through to clean the trails up.

My fav stand is what we call the creek stand. Great view of water, field edge and game trail.
https://i.imgur.com/8L9IUDj.jpg

I also like hunting along the creek in my climber
https://i.imgur.com/xHOZYx8.jpg

The huts
https://i.imgur.com/RCJ4i0h.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/lKzNA7n.jpg

The game camera pics
https://i.imgur.com/p9gHM2A.jpg?1
https://i.imgur.com/1j8HLGv.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/4SwUQSf.jpg

Very nice John, I like those properties and those stands are pretty nice.

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Originally Posted by Gilroy

Very nice John, I like those properties and those stands are pretty nice.

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Thanks Terry. Unfortunately, the wet fall swelled the creek and cut us off from the one blind and a couple of good ladder stands this year. This summer we have plans for a TV antenna bridge to get across it for the fall deer season.

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Originally Posted by 410001661

Thanks Terry. Unfortunately, the wet fall swelled the creek and cut us off from the one blind and a couple of good ladder stands this year. This summer we have plans for a TV antenna bridge to get across it for the fall deer season.

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Oh don't feel bad I have about 100 yards of approach to my dock under water this year, it normally dries up down there by end of June but this year between rain and invasion of beavers she it wet. When you got to wear waders to get to your boat things are bad. LOL

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Originally Posted by MikePal

I followed the same path..the past few years I've ended up sitting in the bush on my Turkey chair a lot. Still have few treestands and pop-ups over looking choke points and common trails, but have really enjoyed just sitting on the ground shooting over a dead log. :)

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Are you hunting with a bow or a gun? I love turkey hunting using that approach but I really wonder if I can sit still enough to shoot a deer with a crossbow while sitting on the ground.

I usually sit behind a log or screen of some sort to give you some cover while you raise the x-bow or Muzzel loader. If you can set up so your shot is set to be broadside and hopefully there is a tree to two between you and the deer. Wait till their heads are behind the tree to raise it up.

I still haven't found a spot that consistently produces deer year after year. I am lucky enough to be able to hunt a certain private parcel in 64A that I just love going to. I've been hunting it for close to 20 years now (man, time flies!), but even after all this time, I haven't found the "spot on the spot", meaning the one spot on the property that I can always go to and expect to see and shoot the deer of my dreams. This property is about 240 acres, and I like it so much because it has a real great variety of habitat types.

There are two pretty big hardwood forests at the back of the property, which usually provide a fair amount of deer sightings each year. They are filled with maple and red oak. I have yet to find any white oaks in there, which the deer apparently prefer to red oak. I try to stick to the edges of these hardwood bushes, and set up portable stands in different spots each year in an effort to find the optimal spot. I also have a few ladder stands in these hardwood bushes that I move every couple of years when I find that the sightings have dropped off.
The hardwood bushes are surrounded by swamps that are really difficult to access unless they are frozen. The deer use these swamps as escape routes, but also likely for bedding areas. There are a couple of "islands" in these swamps that I have ventured into on occasion. They have a mix of old cedars, spruce and firs, along with young spruce and firs. I usually see a lot of deer sign on these islands, but they are pretty remote and would be very difficult to access in the dark without making tons of noise, so I haven't figured out a way to hunt them effectively.
The middle of the property has some really thick cedar bushes that join up with the swamps on the back side and a huge clearing on the front side, closest to the road. Up the east side is a mix of dense red pine bushes, more open white pines, another relatively small clearing, all mixed with open hardwood, and beside a huge clearing on the neighbour's property. There is no agriculture anywhere near this property, so it is closer to big woods hunting. Because of this, I find that the deer don't use the same areas of the property every year. I have to stay on my toes to make sure I am still in the action. This keeps it interesting I guess. Also, the deer population seems to fluctuate quite a bit on the property. When I first started hunting it with a group, there was an insane amount of deer. I would see nice bucks almost every time out. Then the population crashed in the mid to late 2000s, and there were a few years of dismal hunting. Lately the population has been pretty stable, but it doesn't compare to the populations in southern Ontario.
Even after all this time. I still find it a challenge to consistently find bucks on this property. Actually, I should say I find it hard to shoot bucks on this property because I know where the bucks are, but I can't consistently find them during daylight. This year, with the help of trail cameras, I was able to confirm that a certain area where I always find fresh buck sign is only used at night, which is what I always suspected.

Anyway, that's a description of my favorite hunting property. I hope to be able to hunt it for many more years to come.