Whitetail advice, please

[Hubertus]

#6322

I’m hoping that some hunters of greater experience can advise me.
This fall I hope to harvest my first whitetail in North-Western Ontario.
Here’s my first dilema:
This is not an agricultural area so daily movement can not be clearly defined; food and shelter for my quary are everywhere. I’m dealing with thick woods broken by rocky clearings. Has anyone had some experience in a similar situation? I’ve located some higher-traffic areas and set up some blinds, but any advice would be helpful.
My second question is more specific:
One of my blind locations has 2 options for access. One is a noisy crash from the nearest path through the bush, the other is quiet but right along the deer’s trail. Which is the lesser of the 2 evils?
Thanx in advance!

[Chris Shelton]

#50914

First off I will tell you that I am a young gun, with that said however I will also inform you that I have been hunting for the last 8 years of my life in some of the roughest and harshest climates and terrains in the “great” state of Maryland. I hunt in the part of maryland that the Department of Nartural Resources does not care about! It is mountains covered in some of the thickest brush and other parts are wide open old woods! I can tell you from experience that if you set up on these “superhighways” it can turn out succesful it is that way that my dad has basically harvested every single one of his deer. He is a still hunter, it works for him but he is a ex-marine and cold weather doesnt bother him, he can sit completely still all day in a blizard in 16 below temps, actually he scored on the biggest buck of his life before one of our biggest blizards back in like 63′, that was before the National Gaurd made them go home.
My favorite way to hunt is a method that I kinda taught myself. I like to slowly and quietly move through the bush and do what I call stalk and spot. What I do is move along one of those deer trails and spot the animals moving around, and move to intercept them. I will warn you that this method is very fun and you will see alot of game, however they will most likely see you too depending on how quiet you are! Some times though you just are moving through a area where you cant be quiet, so that is why when I do this I have the grunt tube around my neck. Even if you are spotted then it could arouse curiosity. I hunt public land almost 95 percent of the time and we cant bait, and if we want to use a stand or a blind we have to carry it in and out every day and these are the strategies we have chosen, however like alot of other things in our great sport we all are pretty different! But that is what makes the world go round!
As far as getting to your blinds, I would not choose the quiet path as long as you get there before light, Most experts will tell you that deer will sit still most of the time and wait untill you pass if it is pitch black! Again this is a preference thing, that is what I prefer though is getting there quickly no matter how noisy it is? Hope this helps, I know I wrote like a novel!:)

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