Sitting on a Stand

[Abalone]

There has been a thread on Road hunting, one on Rattling and Calling but the hardest one to me is to sit on a stand all day and it is probably the most effective (especially with Blacktails) tactic to use.

Of course you might realize, I can't do it. I am good for up to an hour but after that I start to think, Gee maybe I am in a bad spot and a Buck will never show up here. It's funny ! I can sit and watch T.V. for hours but I can't sit in the woods for very long.

George Shurlof as I have mentioned before, has mastered it.

Sit is all he does and he has the record Blacktail and several other huge racks that I would be proud of.

One obvious place to pick for a stand is a Rub. But where else would you pick to sit all day and wait for a Buck ?



George tells me he can sit from an hour before Dayight until noon when he goes into camp for lunch and the returns for the rest of the day. He will do this as long as it takes until he makes his kill. He uses scent to attract Bucks.

[reeldick]

I have only hunted white tails in Minnesota and Wisconsin but did well for many years. Scout early and often to find the travel lanes they are using to go from bedding to feeding and back. Once you have these trails pegged look for the best spots and trees to put your stand in.
I had one area for mornings back in the oaks and another that was my favorite for evenings that was along the edge of a soy bean field.
It worked year after year.

[oregonoutdoors]

I will second travel routes between feeding and bedding areas. I like to read books while on stand. A good book book can add hours to your usual sit time. I read two books in three days while antelope hunting this year, but that was 8 hour sits. I also like to get my stand up real high like 20ft+ so that I can get away with a little extra movement. It is tough though, I can last about 6 hours max in a tree. Any more than that and I get burnt out and will out walking around the next day. If I am hunting for a few days straight I will sit on a stand only for one hunt a day (morning or afternoon) and hike for the other hunt. If you are out hiking hard in the morning an afternoon sit is just the ticket or visa versa.
Ian

[uhmw]

Hey that guy sold me my first bow about 10 years ago, He sure knew what he was selling. I gess I need to go in and get it autographed. He qualifys as a real old timer and has been featured in bow hunting mag recently too. I cant belive he can still get up into a stand let alone get to it.

[Abalone]

He's 90 now and doesn't sit in a tree stand. He sits on a ground stand.
Still bags them though....

I pay close attention to what he tells me.

[PGJPJ]

This is my first year hunting from a tree stand. I’m up to 5 ½ hours at a time now, but I’ve only been doing it in the mornings so far. My first day I struggled to sit up there for 4 hours.

I put it up a couple months ago after several days of scouting. It’s tough to find a trail you like, because there can be so many in the woods. I picked a place on a slope with heavy brush at the top, and a bit of a view down to the bottom (about 100 yards or so). So far, most days the wind has been blowing down the hill, there doesn’t seem to be much in the way of thermal winds after the sun rises, but it’s just a small hill. I’m trying to catch a buck as he moves into his bedding area, closer to the top of the hill.

Mediocre luck so far. I’ve had two does and a fawn go down the hill, and one small buck coming up (didn’t have a shot) for probably 15 hours of being up there so far this year. I’m taking vacation the last week of the season, and I’ll be up there every day that week. But at least I know deer are using that trail, which makes it a little easer.

Next time I’ll place my stand a little higher, it’s at about 12 feet now. I’d like to be up a little higher since I need to stretch every once in a while, and I’d like to be more hidden. I did leave some branches up to give me cover.

[Abalone]

Rub lines ! My stadegy might to find rub lines. Find a rub line and you have found a Bucks home. Now this isn't based on any experience but it's what makes sense to me and what I have learned from others that have had success. About a week from now Rub lines should start appearing.
Go to your area and look for rub lines. Mark them on your GPS. If I get my camera back in time I will try to get photos before 2 nd season. If 2 nd season passes go out and search for Rubs and make note of where they are. They will be there again next year.

There's your location for a stand.

Blacktails are nocturnal. Scouting before the season has limited potential.
But a trail cam might make the difference. I feel that If I can be confident that I am sitting in the right place " I can wait long enough to kill a buck"

Just randomly picking a spot in the forest doesn't work for me.