Picking your positions or "Hide"

[*WyoWhisper*]

Len had a good idea so I'll bite...Hopefully others will chime in too...

I have spent alot of time doing this as of late and I'll go into some description of how and what I do. Not much talk of it on the board and now is the time to start preparing for the up coming seasons!!

I have a little advantage as the areas I hunt are pretty much right our my back door..

Early morning and just before dark ( when time permits ) In the off season, I sneak to the hills and just watch. I watch for anything, could be Elk, mostly Mulies and all kinds of other stuff and take notes mental and/or scratched in a book. I'll read wind conditions, temps. etc. over a couple weeks time you notice patterns. Once I have patterns established I'll start to try to find knobs or high spots to watch those patterned areas. Once in some of these higher spots I'll take notes of how the wind reacts how the rising or setting of the sun will effect vision, shadows, wind currents. There are some areas where I like to have 360 degree viewing and others where all I need is a window. In hunting mulies you always want to hunt from on top of them ( looking down ) So I will keep watching and keep looking for newer and better spots. I must have 15 to 20 on the areas behind the ranch. Some spots are "connected" I can sneak from one to the othere with little or no detection. I like to find spots where I can move around without being noticed. Some even afford me the opportunity to build small hand warming fires. Others all I can do is lie prone. All of them have opportunities for shots from 100 to 1500 yards.

When hunting pd's or varmints.. find a town or a good area and find a small hill and wind is the only limiting factor !!!

Like have mentioned many times... All are welcome to join me.. I'm new .. and I have things to share and I always want to lean!!

How do you guys pick yours???

Hope this is what ya wanted Len,!!

[ 05-28-2002: Message edited by: *WyoWhisper* ]

 

[Tim Behle]

You've hit the nail on the head when it comes to hunting big game. If you want to know where the animals are, you have to be out there looking for them. As often as possible.

I've been a trapper as long as I can remember. I think that in turn made me extremely successful in deer hunting.

By the time deer season opened, I had scouted for areas to trap and run traps daily for several months. I knew where the deer would be, because I had seen them there time and time again. Filling deer tags was merely something to do in my spare time

I want to shoot a bear this fall, at long range. I've already started scouting places to hunt so I will be ready when season opens in September.

 

[No Fear in Accuracy]

I hunt Canadian moose which is 16 hours drive away from my home. My brother and I usually get there 2-3 days before moose season opens and try to find a good spot. I tend to find a spot between two or more small swamps and sit where there are full of pine trees behind me. My brother ride on his ATV all over the place, especially on the skidder trails or narrow paved trails. Ironically, he saw more moose than I did.

When I get new ULR rifle, I'll set up in the middle of the clear-cut trees around me. I don't want to sit motionless too long so ultra long range will let me stand up and minor movement.

-Denny
300 Tomahawkallthewaay

 

[*WyoWhisper*]

Only 3 people on this board pick positions???

Common guys .. how do you do it ????

 

[Darryl Cassel]

Hello Ric

setting up for longrange and ultra longrange shooting spots.

My longrange spots for deer In Pennsylvania and West Virginia have been chosen from past hunting done on smaller species such as Turkey and squrrel and my compass. You can find some great places while walking the mountains.

I always like to set up facing the north so I have the sun at my back at all times and the far mountain is bright which makes for easier viewing and glassing. I don't like to have the sun hitting me in the face or the side of my face if I can help it.

There are places (that don't face north) we have that are early morning and late evening hunting spots because of the sun factor.

In Colorado we use topos to know
exactly where the public and private land is which is VERY important to know.
Early scouting helps most of all if your going into a new area.

You can find very good spots by the use of topos in about any State. Look for the steep areas and deep valleys and try to set up as high as possible looking down into the far mountain side. Again try to face the North if possible. It will make for a more comfortable day of glassing.

Once you have found your favorite place and it produces year after year, you really don't have to leave the area unless your bored with the spot.

Friends who live in the area where you intend to hunt can be a great help because it saves you the leg work.

Even before I bought our 100 acres in PA and 300 acres in West Virginia, I used a compass and made sure I was facing the North on the far mountain and hills. I have also noticed that, Deer seem to like the sourthern facing slopes because it stays warmer and seems to produce more food for them. Even timber grows more rapid and with better quality on the Southern slopes.

This is some of the tricks we use that have been successful.

Darryl Cassel

 

[Nodak7mm]

Okay Boy's, this is from a "Flat-lander's perspective (NW MN & E Dakota). Three primary factors must be considered when picking a "hide".
#1 WIND direction, I want that breeze in my face as much as possible.
#2 COVER, What is available, what is natural to the setting. Hay bales are awesome, but not always available. Rockpiles, overgrown fenclines, old farm machinery are all considered. The key is to fit in to your surroundings and sometimes the 1/2 the battle is getting there.
#3 Food sources and bedding areas, this is where scouting is the rule. I have not much experience hunting out west, but whitetails can be a creature of habit.
#4 Travel routes, how do these critters get to & from there bedding grounds and food sources. I am here to tell ya critters know when season is open and adapt to the pressure. You have to think like a critter to be consistant.

Guys I could go on, but must leave room for others so I'll close with this one last cardinal rule. Keep an open mind, the moment you think you got it figured out and ol mossy horns pegged, he'll change the game. How many times have you said theres no way there is a deer there, case your gun and there he is??? Learn from your mistakes, adapt to your surroundings and always respect your critter..

Good Hunt'n
Nodak7mm

 

[littletoes]

Scout, scout, scout,. Find preferred foods, bedding areas, escape cover, and areas to water. AND MOST OF ALL, FIND IT ALL FAR ENOUGH AWAY THAT OTHER HUNTERS WONT INTERUPT! And if you can't do that, try and use 'em to your advantage.

 

[Nicholas]

When you find a good hide how do you guys get there on the big day without spooking the game. I try to sneek to my hide before daylight but have spooked the game on several different occasions, (I think my flashlight gave me away).

What time of day is best to occupy your hide, I noticed during the day the deer are usually bedded down?

I am going to do some major scouting this year.

 

[*WyoWhisper*]

If you scouted your hide well, you should have a good idea where the deer ( animals ) will be.. I go in very early to my morning hides I will be settled in at least an hour before light. I use a RED lens on all my flash lights. This I have found to not spook as much game. In my afternoon hides I will "still hunt" to them just to be sure....

 

[Nicholas]

The Red flashlight sounds great.

My hunting spot is three hours away so I haven't gotten much scouting in in the past.

I hunt in the desert, very flat with lots of sagebrush. There are a lot of raveans (spelling?) that the deer hide in.

I am somewhat new to hunting (last two years are my first) so this tread is very informative for me. I am going to try to find a high spot to make a hide, which will likely just be a small hill. There are a few good really good high spots but they are on private property.

The best thing about my area though is it's easy to drag game out because it's flat.

 

[littletoes]

Well, i don't pick a spot for its ease for me, but if it works out, all the better! I try and get to a favorite spot very,very early. If you scout sufficiently then the patterns of local animals will be your ultimate goal. Try and think like an escaped "convict". There are "day" trails and "night" trails. Large older bucks that have surrvived a few years know all the tricks of survival. They will travel earlier, and later. Watch for heavily used trails in your area. Also watch for areas that funnel the animals through a "gap" or such other natural features. Somtimes your best spot might just be out in the open where you can watch all the good trails. Somewhere the deer just wont notice you. Don't wait for just a few weeks before hunting season to do scouting, then you might alert the animals of your presence at a crucial time. If you find such a spot, don't move around a lot, just watch whats going on around you. Its said that for every buck that a hunter sees, there are 4 that he doesn't see. the nice thing about scouting, you don't have to wear hunter orange, easier to blend in. littletoes.

 

[Nicholas]

Thanks for the great info. By the way what does "still hunt" mean???

 

[littletoes]

Walking very,very,very slow. hell, even slower than that! Take a step, look around for about 3min., take another step, get it?

 

[Nodak7mm]

Definatley a question you will get many varying opinions, but basically it is the art of observing far more than moving and blending into the landscape. Your terrain will dictate your movement. An example of my style would be when in thick timber I'll get in an hr or so before light and sit tight for an hour or so after first lite just observing and enjoying. Pick my next vantage point, work towards it at a rate of about 2-3 steps, hang/hunker for appx 5 minutes while looking and listening and repeat till I get where I am going. There are scenarios where at the above speed I am moving too fast and others where I can move swiftly to my next vantage point. I gues you can compare it to trying to stalk a critter you expect to be there, but am unsure where it is while expecting it to be watching for you.

I hope this makes sense to you.. Good luck and I wish you the best.

Nodak7mm

Ric, great idea for a thread.....

[ 05-29-2002: Message edited by: Nodak7mm ]