ARKANSAS SPORTSMAN : Good decisions produce chance at trophy whitetail
Posted on Sunday, November 16, 2008
A successful hunt doesn’t always end in a kill. Sometimes, success means making the right decisions that put you in position to take a trophy whitetail.
I have one stand in a place where I can see a lot of deer, although that hasn’t been the case so far. Right now, deer seem to visit that spot mostly at night. However, that’s basically sitting in a fixed location and waiting for deer to arrive.
A couple of weeks ago, I passed a spot on a different piece of property in Hot Spring County, where three types of cover converge. On one side is a big cutover. Bordering it is an expanse of mature pines adjoining a large expanse of young pines. At the bottom is a small hardwood draw that stretches well into the young thicket. The ground in the draw is relatively clear and grassy.
I’ve driven past it many times, but a couple of weeks ago it seemed to call out to me. I stopped my truck and eased through the brush. I found a fresh scrape near the draw and realized the area is the kind of place where a buck could travel through a heavily hunted area without ever stepping into the open. The cover also discourages other hunters because it’s too thick and rough to navigate with an all-terrain vehicle, and the distance is farther than most hunters want to walk.
I found a big pine tree that gave me a good view down the border of the two pine plantations, as well as into the draw. I hung a Millenium stand and left it until Wednesday afternoon. The rain had stopped, and a slight breeze blew from the southeast. I hung a Scent Drifter from a tree near the scrape attached to a bottle of Code Blue doe scent and waited fruitlessly. When I was finally out of shooting light, I returned to the ground, packed up the Scent Drifter and started walking back to my truck.
At that time, I heard heavy footfalls in the thicket, about 50 yards from the scrape. It was most certainly a buck coming to tend the scrape. It didn’t run, and a favorable wind kept it from spooking. It just tramped a few yards back into the thick cover and stopped. The only surprise was that it didn’t come from the mature pines. The fact that he’s still tending his scrape leads me to believe he’s still in pre-rut, and obviously, he only visits it in the dark. This leads me to believe it’s a mature buck in his prime, one that’s been around long enough to know to stay out of sight. I won’t visit that stand again for at least another week, when the rut is a little closer. It’s a great spot that, with the right timing, could produce the buck of a lifetime. That’s the essence of hunting.
PRODUCT REVIEWS This season has given me a lot of opportunities to field test a number of products, and most have been satisfactory.
First is the Millenium hanging stand. Unlike most hangers, the Millenium uses a proprietary collar that cams against a tree for a secure, stable bite. The stand has a tooth that fits solidly into a slot in the collar, making it the most stable hanging stand I have ever used. It has a folddown seat that allows you to sit comfortably all day. I bought five Millenium collars at the Arkansas Big Buck Classic and have them on different trees. When I want to hunt a different tree, the collar is already in place. I just move the platform.
I’ve used every kind of ladder there is, but the best by far is the traditional sectional square ladder. It costs about $ 50, and you can buy it at most retailers and sporting goods stores.
The Scent Drifter is made by Housley Outdoors in Searcy. It has an integrated heater and fan and comes with two wicks. Insert a wick into a bottle of doe scent, screw it into the unit and turn it on. It heats the scent, and the fan distributes it.
I love flashlights, but one I’ve been using lately is called the Marine Lamp. I’ve left it in the bed of my pickup for days in the rain. I’ve dropped it from my treestand, and I’ve dropped it from my garage attic onto a brick floor. I can’t break it. It’s available for $ 10. 99, plus $ 4. 99 shipping on Amazon. com.
My favorite is still the MagLite I’ve had since 1991. I recently replaced its original krypton bulb with a modern LED from Walmart. It puts out a brighter, blue light than the yellow Krypton light, giving new life to a dependable old product.
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