Help a noob bag some meat..

Beer_drinker

Beer_drinker

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I'm already thinking about next deer/moose season, it will be my second try at big game and I wanna see something this time.

There are plenty of deer in the area but they all stay on private land just out of our reach, they all feed on the farms or eat handouts from the neighbours and don't bother roaming the bush in our area. Is it possible to derail them from their routine and lure them deeper into the bush? Would they pick up the scent of a pile of apples from far away and go after the fruit even if they have a steady supply of food?


I could also go after a moose that's been leaving tracks. My hunting instructor mentioned that moose roam in big circles and can take up to a week for it to return to where it left off. How precise is this circle? do they follow the same paths each time? I was thinking of purchasing a trail-cam and setting it next to the tracks to see if he returns at a predictable time, this way I know when to wait for him... should I pick up a trailcam and do exactly that? convince me I need a new toy :D

Any ideas & tips are more than welcome and greatly appreciated.
 
Apples are great for deer, as the rot they release a sweet smell that draws deer from along ways away. Have you looked at getting permisson to hunt the private land? Also put out blue livestock salt, the game love it. If can get a trial cam and put it up on the trail that moose was using and keep track of its routine.
 
I think the trail cam is an excellent idea. I've had one up for 5 years and it helped me see what quality of animals were using a scrape and at what intervals. It also aided me in getting to mature tom turkeys this spring, knowing when and where they had their strutting grounds. If you do get a trail cam make sure you find one with a fast trigger speed or you'll miss an animal who just walks past. If you can afford it I would
get a couple of cameras and set them up at various points of interest just so you aren't focusing on one area when they are using the next. (foodplot vs. scrape etc.)

Never heard about a moose walking in a big circle before but hey they are animals anything is possible. Try to get yourself as close as you can to the bedding area without disturbing them this way you have a better chance to see them before its too dark. Make sure if you are using apples for the deer that it is legal to do so, I've heard as long as there are apples in the area its ok to feed them, but if there isn't then thats baiting.

Hope this helps a little, if anything its fun looking at the pics every 2 weeks or so when you retrieve the card. Have fun and good luck!
 
I have a similar problem with deer. The property beside where I hunt have hunters there that bait. I can't afford to bait as heavily as they do. What bothers me is that they bait to get the does there so they can shoot a nice buck. I have nothing against shooting only big bucks but I want any deer for the meat and all the does are at their bait, so I don't know how to bring some of the does to my side.
 
Logan_Lamothe said:
Apples are great for deer, as the rot they release a sweet smell that draws deer from along ways away. Have you looked at getting permisson to hunt the private land? Also put out blue livestock salt, the game love it. If can get a trial cam and put it up on the trail that moose was using and keep track of its routine.
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I already am hunting on private property but the deer don't want to cross the property line and visit us!


The old man actually set up a bunch of stands, salt blocks and hunted the grounds a few times but another hunter paid the property owner off (not sure if it's true) and bought the "rights" to hunt the spot... so we got booted and now have to hunt on his uncles land :(

That moose crosses both properties, I NEED to get him before the other hunter does :D
 
Cameras will help find out when and where they are going. Don't visit the camera too frequently as you leave scent behind.

I have heard that moose travel within a circular area, but I think its more that they roam through all areas of a given territory, but not really a precise trail.

Deer on the the other hand can be fairly easy to pattern, but they will be sensitive to too much human intrusion. If you tromp through a good deer area 2 or 3 days in a row, they are on to you big time and will likely change their routine. Watch where your scent is going. They can smell incredibly well.

One of the successful tactics I use is too still hunt in the swamp when the weather is bad. Rain and snow are great days, even heavy winds will work. I carefully and VERY slowly comb through the swamp. It can take an hour to cover 100 meters sometimes. I watch my wind direction and hunt during rain, snow, wind, etc. As a result, I shoot a lot of them at very close ranges. I once walked up to a buck and shot him as he ran by and nearly knocked me over. He couldn't have been 2 feet from the barrel when I hit him. He had no idea I was there until the last few seconds and nearly ran me over.

I see more deer than stand hunting and when it happens, it happens fast. Just be ready for a shot at all times, have your rifle in your hands, not over your shoulder, etc. and make sure you get some range practice in on quick shots at shorter ranges (50 yards and less). Practice like you would hunt - coat, safety on, unshouldered, etc.

Good luck!
 
Beer_drinker said:
yeah but deer aint gona smell salt.. will they? lol


I need to lure em in, from far
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Put the salt out and they will find it. I tested this theory by moving my salt block around and using my trail cam, and the deer always found the block. In fact, after moving the block, the deer would still visit the original spot and lick the grass where the block used to be.
 
thanks dave, solid advice and funny story. I dont think these deer are too sensitive to our odors as they are pretty much handfed in a backyard but i'll keep that in mind with the moose. Maybe I should just weld a thick bumper on my ride and wait on the road! ;)

That swamp hunting sounds fun and exciting, much better than freezing my ass off in a tree stand :D shame there isn't much of a swamp on the property...
 
The easiest way to get deer to you is to hit horns during the rut as well as grunt. Started doing this in Sask here the past number of years and its incredible how many big bucks come in looking for a fight. If your after does I suggest a fawn bawl, its deadly and can bring them within feet of you if you do your part. Good luck!!
 
food plot or clover patch .you can plant some on a lane way that is in the sun .sometimes this is all thats is needed .a bigger plot will bring deer to your area and can be done with out a lot of cost .you do need a chain saw and if you can borrow a small tractor with a disc you are all set good luck DUTCH ps get a camara for sure
 
Beer_drinker said:
clover eh? that stuff is gona stay alive in the cold fall?? i'll look into it
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Clover will freeze but the deer will eat the plant and next season it will regrow from the roots, the planting should last 3 to 5 years. Let the plot grow the first season (to esablish the plot), but the following seasons cut or mow the the plot around the first week in august so the plants regrow nice and tender for the deer in the fall.

I use second cut alfalfa bails for my deer bait, after the first cut the alfalfa regrows a bit then is cut and bailed again giving smaller yield but more tender plants.
 
Patterning deer or moose before the hunting season, is not going to help you out a lot, if there are a hundred guys walking into that area on opening day, changing the way they behave or where they roam.

It will give you a pretty good idea of the routes that they use when they cross areas you do have access to, though, so there is value in that.

Food plots and salt or minerals, if you are allowed to put them out, may be a good bet for keeping the deer in your area, or at least, attracting them back, once they are no longer on the fixed schedule they are used to before all the hunters start walking through 'their' turf. They may or may not use the same trails, but they will remember where a good meal or some salt can be got from, and will return if they can.

Moose. On your own, there. Seen some videos of love-sick bulls doing life shortening walks towards all sorts of noises, but can't say that it worked for me all that well, calling.

Cheers
Trev
 
steve-o1979 said:
Around here we have been using carrots for the last few years. The deer love them and they don't seem to lure in quite as many bears as apples do.
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I tried the carrot idea twice. There is a place not far from me that will fill up your trailer for $15 with all the funny looking carrots they cannot sell. My experience in my area was that the carrots would rot unless there was no other food around, or after it snowed and the carrots were easy pickings.
 
The big bucks will be on your property. They will live in thick bush only venturing out to feed in farmers fields at night. Wait til fall, they should be travelling threw your property like crazy. Find some good deer trails this summer leading from your property to the feed area, set up a trail cam and see what you see.
 
DVXDUDE said:
The big bucks will be on your property. They will live in thick bush only venturing out to feed in farmers fields at night. Wait til fall, they should be travelling threw your property like crazy. Find some good deer trails this summer leading from your property to the feed area, set up a trail cam and see what you see.
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sure about that? I havent seen any deer tracks in the area...only moose. They all seem to ignore our property because it offers no food. They are pretty tame, the land owner often sees them casually walking on the road, not sure how many bucks were in the groups he saw...
 
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