Deer stands

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Mayday_

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When do you guys put up your deer stands? When is it "too late" to do it?

I have a forest I've been looking at. Lots of signs of deer there but nothing on the cameras yet. Fresh bedding areas in the field beside it (which I do not have permisission to hunt) The field on the other side is a corn field and in the forest there are lots of old eaten corn on the ground.
I assume they are bedding on the one side and eating on the other side when the corn is ready and I can set up in the middle somewhere but I'm not sure where they travel. There are not a lot of open areas in the forest to get a good shot either so I'd like to wait until I can figure out where the deer are traveling before I set up a stand.

I also don't want to be in the forest too much checking the cameras and spooking the deer or does that matter right now? Also the field they are bedding in now might get cut in the fall and they bed somewhere else.

What's the right strategy? Where should I set it up? Can I wait?

I will be bow hunting
 
We usually try and be 2 weeks of being out of the bush before the hunt, but i really feel people are over thinking it.

Unless you are truly in the middle of nowhere deer are used to seeing the odd person now and then. If they ran across country ever time, they all be dead by now!

Ive lost count of how many times we have run ATV's and chain saws and seen deer less than 15 min later.

Id say 3-4 days is cutting it close but if you set up at least the weekend before i wouldn't be too stressed. Just don't take a wizz while setting up :)
 
we have shot many bucks during and shortly after setting up the stand but mine is a 4 hr drive away in a little draw on the side of a mountain so visibility is low until the deer are in the vicinity. It's not convenient to put much planning into the hunts so seting up weeks ahead of time isn't an option.
Ideally I would want to set up ealier but usually time is short and when I arrive in camp I head in and set up the stand and start hunting.
 
There really isn't a definitive answer OP. It all depends on how much pedestrian traffic goes through where you hunt.

One of my best stands is within 500 yards of a highway with lots of traffic. Only one direction to shoot, which away from the traffic. The blind is on the edge of a corn field, in a wash gully, where I can get a 120 degree view of the field and the trail right on the edge, beside the brush growing along it. Max distance is appx 200 meters in the view zone. That being said, the furthest shot I've taken from this blind (made up of detritus natural to the area) has been under 30 yards.

The animals bed just inside the brush beside the trail. No more than 20 yards off the trail.

Set your blind up as close to the corn field as you can, in decent cover that is made from local bits to blend in. Sounds more to me like wind is going to be your biggest worry. Locations such as those in your pic often have changing wind directions.

I assume you're hunting White Tails?? White Tails can hear coins rattling in your pocket from an incredible distance. Same goes for scents. As far as when to set up, I've found that the Deer are often very curious when anything new shows up and will come in close to take a look. This only lasts until they've satisfied their interest, normally the first few hours after set up or after they've noticed it.
 
Not much pedestrian traffic, just the farmers doing work.
Yes white tail.

So I should set up on the corn field side? Any concern with a shot deer running into the corn and not being able to find him?
 
Corn might be off by then?
Otherwise yes it can happen.

Be patient and don’t take high risk shots, wait for good double lung shot.
 
Tracks of a wounded deer in a corn field sounds easy. Unless, as there sometimes are, there's a million tracks! Make sure you don't take an iffy shot is the best answer to that I figure. Before I retired, I was asked by a farmer what was flattening his corn. In that case, it was bucks fighting. They had flattened a wide area charging around in the corn. Deer tracks everywhere. A good blood trail is your friend!.
Once the corn is harvested, deer may still wander out in the open, but mostly they will be along the perimeter where they can quickly vanish in the bush. I'd be looking for a spot where I can see down the side of the field as well as into it.
As to when it will be harvested, that will depend on what the farmer wants the corn for, and it's moisture content.
 
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