Attracting Deer during hunting season

[greatwhite]

Thought I would ask this question for myself and for new hunters (I know we have talked about it before but there are new people on here)

So Deer hunting season is almost upon us Oct - Dec if Bow and Nov + if shotgun / Rifle (Depends on where you are)

What do you use for attracting Deer if anything? I have tried calling but never found it successful. I do mostly hunt from a stand (Occasionally still hunt but not much). I have used the Tinks All season Smokin sticks, I think they might be somewhat successful but my son disagrees. Since we hunt over bait pile it might be hard to be sure.

I don't bother masking my scent as we hunt near farms and most likely we don't smell any different then what the deer smell all day.

Hunting this area we have done OK I guess 2 deer in 2 years could have been 3 but I messed up and spooked my son's deer. We see lot's of Deer before Nov but at the beginning of Nov they seem to disappear (Which is why we decide to bow hunt this year).

So what does everyone else do or use.

[Species8472]

I do the opposite of whatever my brother-in-law does. Always works.

Seriously though better to go where the deer are than try to bring them in. Requires copious amounts of scouting. Locate their bedding areas. There will be numerous areas and the ones in use will fluctuate based on weather, seasonal food sources (and this can change week to week) and the rut will also affect things. You also need to determine the primary food sources associated with the bedding areas. Based on your scouting hunt the runs and pinch points between the two. For instance in years when there is good Beech nut mast it does not matter what you use for bait when the nuts are dropping - the deer will be among the Beech trees no matter what you try to lure them with.

Although I have built a few permanent stands over the years i typically prefer a mobile approach with a climber - far more flexibility to account for seasonal changes, wind direction, weather etc..

You can add bait, scents, rattling, calling etc to the above approach but 90% of the success comes from the scouting and than consequently being in the right place at the right time.

[js4fn]

Sugar.
Strawberry jello powder throw it out your blind. It will give you the munches tho lol
If desperate one thing that works here sugar beet crush about $16.00 small bag
3 deer 1 turkey out of same blind last year crossbow I’m going to say 2020 was my lucky year period

[Bowjob]

Depends where you are, if you're hunting farms with fields you dont need to do much. The guys in my group like poping their tents in the middle of the field looking at the bush line waiting for them.

I on the other hand like to find a little open patch inside the bush. Either that or find alot of tracks near the field edge line and set up in there Somewhere.

Salt lick and some deer scents when I go in every morning

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[diverduck]

Bags of corn and a bit of molasses on top works well if you want to attract deer to a location on the regular. As far as scents go, I only have faith in one, and that’s because I’ve seen deer follow my tracks with their nose on a couple of occasions during the peak of breeding season when I’ve sprayed it on my boots, and that is tinks 69 doe in heat. Otherwise, location will do it every time.

[MikePal]

but 90% of the success comes from the scouting and than consequently being in the right place at the right time.

and lets not forget pure unadulterated 'luck'

[MikePal]

I on the other hand like to find a little open patch inside the bush. Either that or find alot of tracks near the field edge line and set up in there Somewhere.

I hunt back in the bush on transition trails, never had much luck sitting on tree lines.

I feed the does, nothing better than having 4-6 Does hanging around your property year round. Make them feel comfortable and get them used to your scent being in the bush. They eventually relate your scent with food.

Come the rut , all the local boys come to calling...

[blasted_saber]

I hunt on the shield in the bush. No agriculture anywhere near us.

The only definitive attractant Ive seen work is food (corn feeders, food plots). Salt licks too, but they tend to have less use in the fall, more of a spring/summer thing.

Last year I did use a grunt tube about every 30 minutes on my stand, with my last call sequence maybe 5 minutes before shooting a doe. Did it bring her in? I have no idea. Did it sacre her away? Probaly not?

[Deer Hunter]

I do the opposite of whatever my brother-in-law does. Always works.

Seriously though better to go where the deer are than try to bring them in.

What he said!
The biggest things for hunters not being successful is hunting where there's no deer.
The other is making mistakes like moving too much, setting up upwind of deer travel, making too much noise, not hunting at the right time, not hunting all day etc

[MikePal]

The biggest things for hunters not being successful is hunting where there's no deer.

no truer words have ever been spoken HaHa..