From: ny yankee
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Date: 28-Mar-18 |
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How would you hunt a side-hill woods with mostly hardwoods, some scrub/brush in one top corner, and one bottom corner fairly flat? The woods boarder a few cattle pastures which are heavily fenced with electric fence. There is one creek running down hill through the middle of the hardwoods turning into a deep gully. I have permission to go wherever I want.
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From: Longcruise
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Date: 28-Mar-18 |
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Well, one of my legs is longer than the other so I just cruise along with the short leg on the uphill side. Once at the top just start winding back down.
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From: hawkeye in PA
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Date: 28-Mar-18 |
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First thing is remembering thermals let alone breeze/wind direction. I've had real good luck hunting near the top that of the creek if possible.
One of the heavily hunted area's I hunt the wise bucks move right in with the cattle when pressured. They will also bed almost up against the electric fence.
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From: Muskrat
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Date: 28-Mar-18 |
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I've always had better results hunting up than down in these situations, in that I have been winded a whole lot more in a stand or when 'still hunting' when I'm sitting or stalking in the low places, versus half way up or at the top....regardless of which way I thought the wind was blowing.
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From: George D. Stout
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Date: 28-Mar-18 |
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Go to googleearth.com/ find your spot and look it over really well for pinch points...bedding areas, trails that may to to that creek, etc. Then get out there and look it over well. Not even seeing a picture of the area is like trying to herd squirrels. Ain't gonna happen. )))
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From: Bentstick54
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Date: 28-Mar-18 |
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Now is the best time to get out and look for last falls sign, trails etc. Unless there is a major change to cause it, the deer will use the same travel patterns next fall. Once you have their trails etc identified, then you can determine the best location and way to hunt them. Get out before spring vegetation starts growing and things will be a lot clearer. Then you can look at stand locations, high or low on the side hill, wind direction, etc. It will save you moving stands to fine tune locations during the season. I hunt a similar situation, and have stands at the lower level and upper level to take advantage of wind direction. All have been productive. I have to drop in from the top without exception, so I go in as straight of a line as I can to any given stand.
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From: Mpdh
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Date: 28-Mar-18 |
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Look for a saddle or low spot that goes down the hill.
MP
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From: Wild Bill
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Date: 28-Mar-18 |
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Hunt above the gully, which I doubt they will step into to cross the creek.
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From: blind squirrel
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Date: 28-Mar-18 |
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I’d stay up top I’m sure there’s a ton of sign on the bottoms but you’ll make alot of noise getting there and then get busted every time for sure . Take a wind indicator with you find the sweet spot and hope it has a good tree with cover
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From: Mountain Man
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Date: 29-Mar-18 |
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Theres alot of variables Hunt the wind All i hunt is hills and mountains,,,first thing i would do is try to find where the animals are and get there routines down At my place they go down hill to water in the evening and up hill in the morning away from water Some spots they go up and down at 90 degree angle some at 45,,find where they travel and when they travel then get a couple plans of attack and hunt the weather on a given day as in a choice of blinds or stands etc
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From: woodsman
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Date: 29-Mar-18 |
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All good advise. Boots on the ground and as much scouting as possible early on. Approach to your stand will be important and it usually takes 2 years maybe 3 of hunting to figure deer movement out. Good news is once you figure it out things become much easier.
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From: Iwander
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Date: 29-Mar-18 |
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Find a spot where the wind's just right and sit still
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From: Iwander
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Date: 29-Mar-18 |
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Preferably with a view and some good cover
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From: Will tell
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Date: 29-Mar-18 |
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The most important thing to remember when hunting a hillside is it hunt up and drag down.lol
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From: ny yankee
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Date: 29-Mar-18 |
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Sounds like all good advice. I've got some walking to do for sure. That creek sounds interesting to me.
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From: throwback
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Date: 29-Mar-18 |
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I'm with George, look it over on one of the online maps and go from there. I use "my online topo maps". They have both satellite and topographic maps. Then like you said, time to do some walking. Good luck and have fun.
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From: Bowmania
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Date: 29-Mar-18 |
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You don't say which side of the side-hill your hunting. How that wind hit the hill is the most important question. AND don't think that animals that are upwind can't smell you. Depending on how steep the hill the wind can go up and fall back on itself.
If you're hunting the side learn the thermals. You may only want to hunt in the AM or PM, but not both. Probably two stands are a must.
Of course the top is a different story.
Bowmania
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From: Fuzzy
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Date: 29-Mar-18 |
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off season scouting, find the trails and identify projected likely food sources and bedding areas for the fall season.
Depending on the weather air flow will often be off the grassy pastures and up the ridge in the mornings, and will reverse in the evenings. You'll need to know prevailing wind directions in the fall, given rising/falling barometer and warm/sunny, cold/sunny, warm/overcast, cold/overcast, warm/falling weather, cold/falling weather conditions.
Plan setups on bedding area approaches for the falling barometer and feeding area approaches for rising barometer, and likewise for the other conditions.
The short version. Spend time on the property in the off season and pay attention to the wind.
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From: RymanCat
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Date: 29-Mar-18 |
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The whole idea is cover and if you stick out like a pop-sickle that tells you right there its no good. If your in a 3 truck tree it should have some cover.
Don't want to be skyline.
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From: ahunter55
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Date: 29-Mar-18 |
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I've hunted a place similar several years now. The middle/bottom is a small creek & valley 50/60 yards wide & the wooded ridges are maybe 60 yds wide on each side & outside of that is corn or bean fields. There are cow paths going up from the bottom in several places & the Deer tend to follow the easy paths that have been made. I have always had my most sightings & best hunting on the top. A walk through the property should show you where the Deer travel. This is one going up & I have a stand at the top of the ridge. I have hunted the bottoms too but lots less sightings.
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From: Hal9000
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Date: 29-Mar-18 |
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I have set up on a hill side near where the deer were crossing a creek, massive buck was coming in, got busted by the thermals :(
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From: sir misalots
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Date: 29-Mar-18 |
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i have that setup behind the house two hills (pretty step) going down to a creek bed. Very hard to hunt because of thermals Busting deer trying to get in Getting picked off in a stand.
I still hunt it, but its tough
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From: Buckdancer
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Date: 29-Mar-18 |
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The best way to hunt it is let me hunt with you . Lol. Lol.
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From: GF
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Date: 29-Mar-18 |
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Also depends on steepness and height of the rise... When hunting from the ground, I like to stay low enough on the hill-side that a deer/Elk looking up from below won't see my head sky-lined.
When there are thermals rising and the prevailing breeze is from the opposite side of the ridge-top, there will be a big back- eddy. Elk seem to like to bed where the thermals tell them what's below them and the back-eddy tells them what's going on on the back-side of the ridge. Same most likely holds true even if the other side of the top is basically flat.
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From: 4t5
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Date: 29-Mar-18 |
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Walk the property yourself, and likely you will find a couple of ways(routes) easier than others, so will the deer most likely,start hunting near those routes.
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