Need White tail help!

[Don2005]

Hey guys I'm in need of a quick lesson in whitetail bow hunting I'll be in Emo Ontario on a hunt for 2 deer one buck and one doe, one problem never hunted deer before and need some advice calling, setups, scents, attractants, decoys this is going down between Nov. 20 and Nov.26. My buddies are all gun hunters and I would like to at least get my first buck with my bow. :-?

[Grunter]

Can't help you much on this one... I've never had any issues with Whitetail - evreywhere I've been they're always running around like crazy. You can hear them stepping all over the place and talking to each other. Your best bet might be to monopolize efforts of other hunters in the area and let them push the deer towards you.

Did use some deer estrus once while walking in on a trail and had a nice 4x4 walk within 20 yards of us in between the trees, just kept following us until we swung around and let him get peppered with bullets.

[brotherjack]

I've had the best luck doing the following:


SCENT CONTROL: very important, but thankfully, not all that hard to do.

Wash your hunting clothes in baking soda (no soap, or anything else). I let mine air dry outside, and then leave them out there overnight, but I live in the woods; I wouldn't leave them outside if they're going to soak up smog and city-smells.

Even if I don't wash my clothes every day (which I usually don't, unless I've sweated them up), I always leave them outside overnight.

Use whatever scent-free deodorant you can find that's designed for hunting purposes. Wildlife Research makes stuff I like, but as far as I know, they'll all work. I also use some kind of scent-control spray on my boots and boot bottoms, armpits, hat, and other sweaty areas.

Doing all this, I've had deer walk through my downwind as close as 15 yards and not spook, and I even had one doe that got suspicious of me walk up and sniff my right shoulder from so close I could have punched her in the nose if I was fast enough (she didn't like me, but she only hopped off about 20 yards before she settled down to feed). Don't misunderstand me - it is NOT possible to be scent free (at least I don't think so), but with the effort I've outlined here, you won't smell like something that makes the deer vanish the second it wind's you.


CALLS/SOUND:

I never had much luck with them as far as actually getting deer to come to me. However, a buck grunter is great to get a deer to stop and turn broadside when you've got one walking away from you. Even spooked deer will often stop and have a look when you give them a grunt or two from the call.

Otherwise, I don't like to make any noise. I prefer to find someplace where the deer are traveling a lot (look for areas with lots of tracks and poo), and then setup someplace about 15 yards from where I expect them to pass through and wait. I try to make no movement whatsoever other than blinking until I'm ready to put an arrow in something. I've seen way more deer within bow range while doing this stealthy-ambush technique than any other method I've ever tried. Be patient though; you may have to sit there for many hours before you see the first deer - don't get figidity and move around just because the deer are slow in showing up; if you're on a well used travel route, you WILL see deer sooner or later, as long as you don't scare them away.


PICKING SPOTS:

If you've got a huge area with nobody to show you the good spots, I find the fastest way to be on some deer is to find water on the map, and then scout the water looking for the areas with the most fresh tracks and poo. If you can get a topo map, natural land formations that cause deer to funnel through between them are good spots to start scouting too.



Best of luck to you!

[Don2005]

Thanks for the info I just bought a decoy from montana decoys I'll try what you said but with a decoy 20 yards of a path and from me. I never hunted whitetail before so thats why I asked for some help. ;)