MIDDLE SEASON HUNTING TIPS
The typical deer hunter
leaves for their stand about
an hour before sunup, hunts
a few of hours, and heads
back to camp for breakfast.
Once they've eaten, taken a
nap, or done some chores;
they’ll head back to the
woods about 3:00 pm and hunt
until dark. The majority of
younger bucks harvested each
year died because they never
had the opportunity learn
this pattern. But most of
bucks that survived their
first hunting season have
seen the pattern before. It
seems like the best bucks
are the ones that adapt the
quickest. These bucks are
the ones that get the chance
to grow old and large. Most
whitetail deer hunters could
significantly improve their
deer hunting odds, and
chances of harvesting a
trophy Ontario whitetail
buck, by simply altering
their daily routines during
the season. Just as the best
bucks have learned to alter
their patterns, it always
seems the best whitetail
hunters have learned to do
the same. One trick a deer
hunting guide in Dryden,
Ontario taught me was to use
the daily “hunter migration”
to your advantage.
By the middle of the deer
hunting season, most mature
whitetail bucks have learned
to link predawn intrusions
with hunters. This is a good
time to wait until well
after sunup before entering
the woods. The delay allows
the resident deer an
opportunity to bed down
without feeling pressured.
Hunters using this method
should try to be on their
stands around 8:30 am. This
gives the woods a chance to
settle down before the
“hunter migration” starts.
The key to using this
technique is to realize that
once you’ve reached your
deer stand, you’ve committed
yourself to staying there
for the rest of the day.
Since deer didn’t feel
pressured when you entered
the woods, most are still
likely to still be bedded
somewhere nearby. But now
when the other hunters start
heading back in, you’ll be
ready to take advantage of
their movement. The noise
you created entering the
woods was minimal, but when
the other deer hunters
leave, it'll be like a mass
exodus. This migration of
hunters can push deer over
great distances; once in the
morning, when the hunters
exit the woods, and then
once again in the afternoon,
when they return to their
stands. This Dryden deer
hunting guide told me that most deer
hunters will never see the
deer they’re pushing. But if
you've been waiting
patiently on your stand, you
might just have the chance
of a lifetime to harvest a
trophy Ontario buck.
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Dryden, Ontario
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