« March 2007 | Main | May 2007 »

April 30, 2007 09:59 PM

From No Bucks to Monster Bucks

Marty,

 

I deer hunt with a party of six.

 

Before I came into the picture 7 years ago, the guys had the theory "if it's brown, it's down". 

 

It didn't matter what size the buck was they saw, they would still shoot it. 

 

Almost 10 years ago there was a buck that all the guys wanted. They named him the “Oh Shit Buck.”

 

This buck was a monster and extremely smart. He was always one step ahead of us hunters.

 

Every time one of us saw him we simply said, “Oh shit” as we watched from the distance.

 

This buck was so smart he didn't die by a hunter’s gun; rather, he died from old age.

 

Thankfully, before he died, the old buck produced a few monster buck offspring.

 

But, unfortunately, the deer he had sired have all been taken, by not just our group of deer hunters, but other deer hunters in the area. 

 

Now 2007, we rarely see any bucks with any kind of rack, and as a result we all hunt the does.

 

I will spread the word to the hunters in my party and around our hunting area about Quality Deer Management. If we all practice good Quality Deer Management, maybe in a few years, we can get some good bucks back.

 

Now, since I am still learning about deer hunting, how can I tell the age of a deer while I am sitting in my deer hunting tree stand?

 

Thanks!

 

Alyssa

  

Alyssa,

 

Thanks for your comment. I totally understand not seeing any nice bucks due to too much deer hunting pressure and not enough Quality Deer Management.

 

When I purchased my deer hunting land here in northern Wisconsin, my deer hunting experience was much like what you shared. I would see countless does during deer hunting season and few, if any, bucks.

 

My second year deer hunting here, I learned the reason why I was seeing so few bucks.

 

The properties surrounding my own deer hunting land had huge groups of deer hunters.

 

I spoke with a few of the deer hunters from those groups. The deer hunters said they were deer hunting for any deer with a legal rack. It was in those conversations where I learned why I was not seeing any big bucks, or even small bucks, on my deer hunting land. The bucks were being harvested before they could cross the fence lines.

 

 From No Bucks to Monster Bucks by Marty Prokop

I wanted to see the number of and size bucks increase in my deer hunting area; not only for me, but for all the deer hunters on surrounding properties also.

 

I began sharing my thoughts of how to increase the numbers and sizes of the bucks in our deer hunting area.  

 

I developed a friendship with some neighbors and told them my plans of wanting to start Quality Deer Management here on my deer hunting land. We talked about how, decades ago when they were kids, there were so many more large bucks. They wanted to see those big, beautiful, breath-taking bucks again.

 

We knew the gene pool existed in the does who were the offspring of the monster bucks. We hoped if the pressure was off the bucks, we might be able to help bring monster bucks back to our deer hunting area.

 

 How Quick Monster Bucks Came Back by Marty Prokop 

Even though my deer hunting land appeared to have little or no large bucks in 2003, after just one and a half years of Quality Deer Management, I started seeing more bucks by 2005.

 

Although the 2006 season was slow for seeing a decent number of bucks during deer hunting season, I photographed a good number of individual bucks prior to deer hunting opener.

 

After deer hunting season, in the winter of 2006 through spring thaw of 2007, I counted fifteen individual bucks one night on my deer hunting land. That’s ONE NIGHT!

 

I had bucks with racks ranging from spikes, forks, six-pointers, eight pointers and two really nice 10-point bucks.

 Marty Prokop says, “Quality Deer Management Really Works!”

Share your plans of wanting to start a Quality Deer Management program with other deer hunters and with your own deer hunting party. You could see an increase in numbers and sizes of future deer.

 How to Judge a Deer’s Age in the Field by Marty Prokop 

In my opinion, it is best to let the younger bucks grow until they reach full maturity.

 

Judging how old a deer in the wild is can be tough. It can become increasingly difficult when coupled with the sheer excitement and adrenaline rush experienced when you see a buck while deer hunting.

 

One of the best ways to be able to judge a deer’s age is to study as many deer as you can.

 

Look through the Deer Cam Pictures at www.free-deer-hunting-tips.com. Study pictures of deer. Watch deer hunting videos. These are great ways to learn differences between mature deer and young deer.

 

The easiest way to judge deer age is by the overall size. Most generally, a spike buck or fork-horn buck is probably sporting his first set of antlers. This usually happens when the buck reaches 1½ years.

 

But judging by antler size alone is not always accurate. Antler growth depends on many factors. Age, genetics, nutrition and stress all play key roles in antler development.

 

 

Marty Prokop Reveals a Simple Measurement to Help Age a Deer 

Here is one of the best tools I use to age a deer in the field.

 

I focus on a simple measurement beginning at the inside corner of a deer’s eye and running to the tip of its nose.

 

A mature deer’s head, be it a buck or a doe, will be considerably larger than a young deer’s head. 

 

Generally, mature deer will measure between six and seven inches in length from the inside corner of the deer’s eye to the tip of the deer’s nose.

 

You may ask, “How can I measure the length of a live deer standing in front of my deer hunting tree stand?”

 

 Marty Prokop Shows…Become a Master of How to Age a Deer

Try this tip to help you better judge the size of a deer standing in front of you.

 

Find a life size photograph of a mature deer’s head. You could do this by measuring the deer from inside corner of the eye to the top of the nose. It should measure six to seven inches.

 

Take this photograph to the gun range or you can do this in your yard at your home.

 

Place the life-size picture of the deer head at different ranges. Look at the life-size photograph through your deer hunting gun scope or binoculars.

 

Pay attention to how the corner of the deer’s eye and the tip of its nose fill your lens. Make a mental note of what this looks like.

 

The next time you are out in your deer hunting tree stand and a deer walks in front of you, remember what you saw looking through your deer hunting gun scope or binoculars when you were viewing the photograph.

 

This has helped me target only the mature animals here on my deer hunting land.

 

Good Luck and Great Hunting!

 

Marty Prokop

http://www.free-deer-hunting-tips.com

Posted by Marty Prokop at 9:59 PM | Comments (0)

April 29, 2007 05:43 PM

How To Attract Deer Using Food Plots

Marty,

 

Can you tell me how to get the deer to cross the brook at my place?

 

The brook is 200 feet from the house, there are deer tracks and deer droppings everywhere, but they don’t want to cross the brook.

 

The brook is, in some places, 20 feet wide and the water is only 12 inches deep.

 

I don’t want to hunt them; I just want them around the house.

 

One of my brothers lives six houses from me and across the road.

He also has a brook. Another brother lives across the road from me.

 

They both have deer on their land. They each own 2 acres. The brother who lives six houses from me has deer eating right by his door steps.

 

Last week I went to buy a salt lick, oat seed, alfalfa seed and beef mash Atlantic deer food.

 

I walked across the brook and laid little piles of beef mash food in a little trail back on my land. Then put about one gallon of beef mash in one pile on my side of the brook.

 

So far the deer have not crossed the brook.

 

I have to wait for warmer weather to seed the oats and alfalfa.

 

For two weeks I called three to four times a day with a lost fawn deer call trying to entice the deer to come in. The deer still do not come in.

 

What am I doing wrong?

 

We did not have any snow on the ground for two weeks. The weather was actually nice.

 

Two days ago we had six-inches of fresh snow.

 

Last night I went for a walk across the brook for about a half mile and did not see a single deer track. What is up with that?

 

Thanks.

 

Marcel

 

 

 

 

Marcel,

 

Getting deer to do something they normally would not do can be difficult.

 

I think you are on the right track using corn to attract them. Also, putting in small food plots on your side of the brook may help the deer decide to cross the brook.

 

Food plots will work exceptionally well when the deer’s normal food sources are low. For example, a drought period causing the normal grasses and forage deer usually eat to dry and not grow, will force deer to seek out different food sources.

 

In the summer and early fall, deer prefer to eat green vegetation as it is usually high in protein and other nutrients deer need. This is where your food plot comes to play.

 

If your area experiences drought, make sure you water the food plot regularly. This will keep the oats and alfalfa green and lush. Seeing the green vegetation, deer may decide to cross onto your side of the brook.

 

With any food plot, it is also important to keep the protein level as high as possible by regularly mowing the food plot.

 

Every six to eight weeks mow the food plot to a height of four inches. This is especially important with alfalfa and clovers. Mowing keeps the stems smaller and promotes thicker growth of the plants.

 

Deer generally do not eat the stems of oat plants. The exception to this is when the oats are still very young and range in size from 1 inch shoots to six inch tall plants. If the oats are allowed to grow to full maturity, the plants will dry and brown. Deer love the dried oats and will clean the oats off the stems.

 

 Food Plot Secret 

Here is what I would do in your situation. It is a secret to help steer deer to a specific location using a food plot.

 

Plant a food plot in the shape of a funnel. The food plot edge that is closest to the brook will become the narrow end of the funnel, or point. As you move back closer to your house, the funnel shape will widen.

 

Once deer cross and begin feeding at the point end of your funnel they will, in most cases, follow the funnel back and feed in the wider section.

 

 Deer Patterns Change with the Seasons 

One possible reason you are not seeing deer tracks now is that the deer in your area may be moving into their spring/summer patterns.

 

I have watched deer on my deer hunting land. They have different areas for each season.

 

In the spring of the year, deer on my deer hunting land seek the thick undergrowth near swamps.

 

As summer heat increases, deer will search for the coolest part of the forest to escape the heat. This area is usually near a good water source.

 

In the early fall I see deer frequenting the wood edges and more open terrain. Their bedding areas are closer to good food sources this time of the year.

 

In winter months deer seek yarding areas. A yarding area is a place where many deer congregate at one time.

 

Yarding areas are usually found in very dense forest or areas offering deer protection from winter winds. Often times, yarding areas are close to good winter food sources.

 

Although deer patterns change with the seasons, the areas deer occupy year long may overlap. The main difference is that the areas deer bed and spend the majority of their time will be different with each season.  

 Calling Deer 

Calling deer too much or with calls which are “out of season” may confuse the deer.

 

You’ve called in early spring with a lost fawn call. In early spring, does are pregnant and her fawns from last spring are nearly grown.

 

As does become closer to having their new fawns, usually end of May to mid-June, they seek thickets or heathers to deliver. As delivery time grows closer, does will also chase their year old fawns away.

 

It could be does are not responding to the lost fawn call because they are actually kicking their last year fawns away to give birth shortly.

 

I think you are moving in the right direction to get the deer to cross your brook. Using corn and food plots is a great idea. For now while does are delivering, put your deer calls away.

 

After you start seeing newborn fawns, try to use the lost fawn bleat again. You may get a more positive reaction from the deer in your area.

 

Good Luck and Great Hunting!

 

Marty Prokop

www.free-deer-hunting-tips.com

Posted by Marty Prokop at 5:43 PM | Comments (2)

April 19, 2007 12:43 PM

Free Venison Recipe

Below is a slow cooked barbeque venison recipe I received from Fred Vorassi in New York.

Thanks for sending in your recipe Fred.

If you have a venison recipe you would like to share with the Free Deer Hunting Tips Community, make sure to send it to me, or if you prefer, you can scroll down to the end of this blog post and click on the questions and comments link and type your recipe there.

Good Luck and Great Hunting!

Marty Prokop

www.free-deer-hunting-tips.com

Slow Cooked BBQ Venison

Posted by Marty Prokop at 12:43 PM | Comments (1)

April 14, 2007 01:51 PM

Why do Deer Grunt?

Marty, What does a deer grunt mean exactly? I've heard deer grunt and then take off running. Last season I had a typical 8-pointer coming in from behind me. I didn't hear it, see it or anything. Then I heard it grunt, and it ran past me and scared me to death. The buck was only about 4 feet from me when it went by, but I don't think it had seen me because I was standing up against a big red-oak and my body was completely hidden from behind. One more question. Do deer travel more during the full moon period or the new moon period? I've heard my grandfather and his brother's argue about it during rifle season every year. Good Luck and Thanks Again Zachary

Zachary, Thanks for your questions. In this blog post I will answer your question concerning the deer vocalization. I will answer your moon phase question in an upcoming post, so I can dedicate the space needed to that great question which is often the subject of deer camp banter. Why Do Deer Grunt? The deer grunt is made by both bucks and does and could have several meanings. A buck will grunt to express dominance, to threaten another deer and as a means of locating other deer. A soft or low grunt is used by both bucks and does as a first act of aggression. When a dominant deer uses the soft grunt and the less dominant deer does not move, the dominant deer will either charge or hit the less dominant deer with a fore leg. During the early spring or while deer hunting in the fall, especially when food was involved, I heard and observed this increased aggression. Bucks approached food sources and grunted softly at does and fawns. If the does and fawns did not clear for bucks so they could eat, the bucks slammed their front hooves onto the backs of the other deer and forced them to move. Marty Prokop Says, “More Than Just Bucks” During the spring, I have seen does act similarly towards fawns around food sources. If the yearlings don’t move, the does actually rise on their hind legs and flail their front hooves striking the yearlings until they move away. Many Deer Grunt Patterns Bucks have several grunt patterns throughout the year. One of the vocalizations is referred to as the “tending grunt.” The tending grunt is used by bucks when they are on the trail of estrus does and to display dominance in hopes of keeping other bucks away. The tending grunt can also be used to attract does. The tending grunt can be a series of several grunts or a long, drawn-out grunt or even a short, single grunt. Calling a Deer using a Deer Grunt Tube When deer hunting, one of the most common ways deer hunters mimic natural deer calls is by using grunt tubes. Deer make grunt vocalizations to contact or locate other deer that they may not see. When a deer hears a grunt, often times they walk towards the sound attempting to locate the deer making it. When you see a buck moving past your deer hunting tree stand, you may opt to use a grunt call to stop the buck and get him to come towards your location. The Deer Snort I have been in similar deer hunting situations like you have described. I am sitting next to a big tree looking in the direction I expect a deer to come from. Then, from out of nowhere, I hear a deer snort and run past me at full speed. After I changed my shorts and composed myself, I watched the deer disappear into the brush. Notice I said the deer snorted. From what you described, I would say, the sound you heard might have been a snort. Here is the reason why. Even though you didn’t see the deer approaching, it could have heard you. When a deer is alarmed and can see or hear something, but cannot smell the source of potential danger, it will snort loudly and run. A deer snort is a sound a deer makes by blowing air through its nostrils. Generally, when a deer sees or hears something it cannot understand, it will snort consecutively two to three times while stomping the ground with a fore foot. Other body movements a deer can make while snorting include bobbling its head and flicking its tail. Deer snorts help alert other deer in the area of potential danger. A deer’s body movements — like stomping, head bobbing and tail flicking — can be used by the deer to get the source of the disturbance to move or show itself more plainly to the deer. Marty Prokop on How to Stop a Running Deer In most cases, a deer that snorts is one that bolts shortly after snorting. But, by using a deer call, you could stop a deer that snorts and starts to run off. I tested this during the archery season on my deer hunting land. One afternoon, I was walking out to my deer hunting tree stand. On the way to my tree stand I encountered two does feeding in the field. When I saw the deer I dropped down and began to crawl to some tall grasses to my left. The larger of the two does looked up, snorted loudly and stomped her foot. After a couple minutes she took off running. I grabbed my deer call, grunted twice and followed up with a fawn bleat. The doe stopped in her tracks. I used the fawn bleat two more times, and the doe began to walk towards me. She walked to within 30 feet. The young bucks, in the nub buck to two year range, have stopped and walked towards the combination grunt and fawn bleat. The older bucks are similar but with two big differences. They respond to the grunt, but not as readily to the fawn bleat. In addition, they stop but may not come in as close as the younger deer. Using a grunt call, I stopped two nice bucks that snorted and ran. Unlike the young bucks and the doe, they did not come to within bow range for me. They stopped at about 60 yards and would not come in closer. I believe since they could not see the deer calling, they eventually just moved on. Deer have many different vocalizations. Make sure you bring your grunt tube the next time you hit the deer hunting woods. You could stop a big buck in his tracks if he snorts at you and starts to run off. Good Luck and Great Hunting! Marty Prokop www.free-deer-hunting-tips.comhttp://

Posted by Marty Prokop at 1:51 PM | Comments (4)

April 12, 2007 09:13 PM

What was the biggest buck you harvested?

Below is a question I received from Dakota.

So what was the biggest buck you ever shot? My first buck was 140, that was this years.

Dakota

Dakota,

Thanks for your email.

Congrats on your 140 class buck.

That is a very nice deer.

The largest buck I have taken is in the 160 class.

The largest bodied buck deer I harvested weighed 250 pounds field dressed and sported a 130-inch set of antlers. He was approximately 5 1/2 years of age.

The largest doe I harvested weighed in at 225 pounds dressed and was estimated to be 8 years old.

I have harvested many white tail deer over the years.

For many years I was hunting public hunting land and, on that particular area, deer were over-pressured. If we saw a rack, we were considered lucky. I learned a lot deer hunting in an area where it was tough.

And now I have two questions for you and everyone else in the Free Deer Hunting Tips Community. You might think they are weird, but I have a reason for asking.

“Should a deer hunter always shoot the biggest buck?”

“What size buck is the “right size” to harvest?”

Here are my thoughts.

Then I want to hear from everyone.

Marty Prokop on Busting a Deer Hunting Myth

Years ago, deer hunters said, “Once a spike, always a spike.” As a result, deer hunters would try to cull out all spike bucks from the herd.

Not long ago, a study was done on captive deer in which a spike buck and a fork buck, both the same age, were tracked for three years. At the end of the three year study, the spike buck had grown a very nice 142-inch 5x5 or 10-point rack.

Deer hunting has changed since then.

Now, more and more deer hunters are practicing Quality Deer Management or QMD. The basic principal in QMD is to let the young deer walk and focus on harvesting mature bucks and does at least 5 1/2 years old.

Marty Prokop Asks, “Should You Always Harvest the Biggest Buck?”

Starting six years ago, I began practicing QMD on my deer hunting land. My neighbors are all starting to follow suit.

I have several big bucks on my deer hunting land that I’ve been watching for a few years. I’ve had nice shots but have chosen to let them walk. Why?

I let them walk so they can continue to create offspring and increase the chances of more great racks in the years to come.

By this year, their racks may be incredible. My goal is to let these bucks continue to pass on their genes for several seasons and harvest them in the future at the end of their peak but while they still have great racks.

Hopefully, this year, a few of them will walk past the new trail cameras. If they do, you can see them when I post those pictures of these big bucks with incredible racks to the blog.

Again, this is on the land I deer hunt every year. I want my deer herd to increase now and for years to come.

What do you do on your own land?

What do you do on public land?

I’d love to hear. You can email me or click on the link below that says “questions and comments” and type in your response.

Good Luck and Great Hunting!

Marty Prokop
www.free-deer-hunting-tips.com

Posted by Marty Prokop at 9:13 PM | Comments (4)

April 7, 2007 10:59 PM

Fred Vorrasi's Opening Day

Here is a story sent in by Fred Vorassi

My opening Day 2006

I have hunted opening day with my childhood friends at my father’s cabin. Located in the foot hills of the Allegany Mountains, I hunt the southern part of New York State in Allegany County. For over thirty years this is where I have been hunting on opening day. This is sixteen miles away from where I live.

But to keep up the tradition I only return to be with my friends on opening day. I have always been lucky hunting along a side hill that over looks a swamp and a goldenrod field.

The night before the deer hunting season, I placed my tree stand in my favorite tree. I got in place a half hour before sun rise opening day.

In the first hour of day light I saw a buck coming towards me. He was walking in low hung ever green trees.

I picked my shot, it was forty yards.

I got him. He ran fifty yards then dropped. Now the work started for me. It was too early in the morning to call on my friends for help. So I started to drag the buck myself.

I dragged the buck down the hill, up a large gully and across a field. 4 1/2 hours later I was spotted by my friends and they helped me drag the last ten minutes. I was back at camp with my 7 point buck that had a 17 1/2 inch spread.

I was exhausted but, happy. He was not a monster buck, but a nice buck at that. Being a taxidermist, I plan to mount this buck and add him to my collection of white tail trophy bucks.

Thank you

Fred Vorrasi

Posted by Marty Prokop at 10:59 PM | Comments (1)

April 5, 2007 09:00 AM

“Do High Priced Deer Scents Really Work?” by Marty Prokop

I am frequently asked, “Which works better, deer scent collected and made from a single deer or deer scents collected from multiple deer?”

In other words, when it comes to deer scents, is there a difference that results in more deer or bigger deer?

A deer hunter could spend a small fortune on deer scents. I wanted to know what kind of deer scents are worth my money.

I decided to field test this.

Deer scents collected and made from one deer are often much more expensive than deer scent collected and made from multiple deer. Is the higher price worth it?

I purchased two different brands of deer scent. One was collected and made from many deer and bottled. The other brand stated it was collected from a single deer.

So off to the deer hunting woods I went to test.

The results actually surprised me.

I tested these two types of deer scent, at the exact same time, during the peak of the rut on my deer hunting land in Wisconsin. I used natural deer scrapes as my testing sites. I set up my trail cameras to monitor results.

Marty Prokop Reveals Results from Multiple Deer Attractant Scent

So how were the results of attractant scent from multiple deer?

At the first site, over a natural deer scrape, I placed a scent wick saturated with doe-in-heat scent made from several deer.

What did the camera catch?

In one week, it photographed one small spike buck on the third day, and the same spike buck several times after. That was it.

Marty Prokop Reveals Results from Single Deer Attractant Scent

At site number two, over a natural deer scrape, I placed a scent wick saturated with a doe estrus scent collected from a single doe.

What did the camera catch?

The first night, four hours after I placed the scent wick, it photographed three bucks at the scrape. One buck was a nice 8-pointer. Another was a fork buck. And, yet, another was a spike buck.

On day four, a heavy racked six-pointer also visited the scrape.

There were 15 different bucks photographed in a week at site number two. The sizes ranged from a spike buck to a very respectable 10-pointer.

The Bottom Line from Marty Prokop

Here are the one week results:

The trail camera at the site of the single doe estrus scent captured 15 bucks.

The trail camera at the site of the multiple doe estrus scent captured the one spike buck on several different days. So the camera was working during the entire time.

Is it a coincidence?

Possibly.

But based on what I saw, I chose to use the deer scent collected and bottled from a single deer for the rest of the deer hunting season.

Marty Prokop Tests Again

I began to think maybe I had placed the single doe estrus scent in a better location than the other. So this year I will be carrying out the same test with one modification.

The only change will be that I will place the multiple doe scent where the single doe scent was last year and the single where the multiple was. If the bucks move to the new location, then I know it is the scent.

The Results So Far…

I’ll report the results of my new test as soon as it is completed.

Deer hunters in our community would love to hear your experiences and thoughts. You can comment, share your experiences and read more at the Free Deer Hunting Tips blog at www.marty-prokop.com .

Good Luck and Great Hunting!

Marty Prokop

Find Deer Games and Hunting Fun at: www.Free-Deer-Hunting-Tips.com
Great Pictures and Deer Hunting Secrets Blog at: www.Marty-Prokop.com

Posted by Marty Prokop at 9:00 AM | Comments (4)

April 4, 2007 09:00 AM

Attract Deer to Your Deer Hunting Tree Stand by Marty Prokop

On April 3rd I talked about how to get deer, and even big bucks, to follow you out to your deer hunting tree stand or deer hunting blind.

Today I am going to talk about how to attract more deer and bigger deer to your deer hunting tree stand or deer hunting blind.

Marty Prokop asks, “How Many Times Has This Happened to You?”

You are sitting in your deer hunting tree stand or deer hunting blind. You see a big buck walking in front of you, just out of range.

Suddenly, the big buck stops and begins to circle your tree stand or blind location. As you sit in your deer hunting tree stand or deer hunting blind watching the buck, you notice the wind direction has changed slightly and is now blowing your human odor in the direction of the big buck.

No worries, you figure, he will keep coming towards you, because you have sprayed cover scent all over your deer hunting gear and deer hunting clothing.

Then it happens.

The buck stops in his tracks, throws his head into the air and snorts loudly as he catches your human odor. The big buck turns and runs deeper into the woods, not once offering you a clean shot.

Your deer hunt doesn’t have to end this way.

In order to attract more deer and big bucks for a clean shot from your deer hunting tree stand or deer hunting blind, you must keep your human odor as minimal as possible.

Marty Prokop Reveals Using Deer Attractant Scents to Lure Deer Closer

In addition to my cover scent, I hang multiple scent wicks around my deer hunting tree stand or deer hunting blind location.

During the pre-rut, I used doe urine and buck urine scents. During the rut, I use doe estrus and dominate buck scents.

Here is how I make handling these scent wicks less messy to make and quicker to hang in the field.

The scent wicks I hang in the field around my deer hunting tree stand or deer hunting blind are saturated with the same scents as my drag lines. (We talked about this in a prior newsletter and blog post.)

The day before I go deer hunting, while preparing my deer scent drag lines, I saturate six additional scent wicks and place them into the zip-top bags with the drag lines.

One bag contains three additional scent wicks saturated with buck urine during the pre-rut and dominant buck scent during the rut.

The second bag contains three additional scent wicks saturated with doe urine during the pre-rut and doe estrus during the rut.

In The Field with Marty Prokop

In a shooting lane directly in front of my deer hunting tree stand or deer hunting blind, about 20 yards out, I hang one doe-based attractant scent wick and one buck-based attractant scent wick. I make sure all scent wicks are four to five feet off the ground so wind can help disperse the deer scent.

Then, I walk twenty yards to the right of my deer hunting tree stand or deer hunting blind and do the same. I move twenty yards to the left of my deer hunting tree stand or deer hunting blind and hang the remaining buck and doe scent wicks.

What is the purpose of hanging the scent wicks to either side of your deer hunting tree stand or deer hunting blind?

It is to help cover your human odor if the wind currents change and to stop deer from catching human odor and bolting when they circle behind you or are down wind of you.

I’ve had big bucks circle to the side of my deer hunting tree stand, catch the smell of the scent wick and turn back towards my tree stand. This allowed me good shots before I was winded by the deer.

The next time you head into the deer hunting woods let deer attractant scents and the wind currents do some of the work for you. Place your scent wicks in front and to the left and right of your deer hunting tree stand or deer hunting blind.

Do this and you could attract more deer to you, without them knowing you are even there.

Good Luck and Great Hunting!

Marty Prokop

Find Deer Games and Hunting Fun at: www.Free-Deer-Hunting-Tips.com
Great Pictures and Deer Hunting Secrets Blog at: www.Marty-Prokop.com

Posted by Marty Prokop at 9:00 AM | Comments (0)

April 3, 2007 10:31 AM

Get Deer to Follow You to Your Tree Stand by Marty Prokop

In yesterday’s blog post, I talked about cover scents. Today I am revealing how to use attractant scents to get deer to follow you to your deer hunting tree stand or deer hunting blind.

First, let’s talk about what scents to use when.

When deer hunting is open, I deer hunt as many seasons as possible.

This means I am archery hunting long before the deer rut begins. During pre-rut few, if any, does are in estrus.

Using deer urine or buck urine, I’ve had great success drawing in nice does for the freezer and big bucks during the pre-rut.

But I wondered about using doe-in-heat scents during the early pre-rut. So I field tested it.

During the pre-rut, the days I used a doe estrus scent, I saw zero bucks.

When I switched back to a plain buck urine or doe urine scent during the pre-rut, I saw more deer.

I feel the bucks were confused or turned off by doe estrus scent when used too early in the deer hunting season.

Marty Prokop Reveals How to Get Deer to Follow You

What is the secret to getting deer to follow you to your deer hunting tree stand or deer hunting blind?

Make sure deer can smell the deer attractant scents you are using. And how can you do that?

As you walk to your deer hunting tree stand or deer hunting blind use drag lines and multiple scent wicks to disperse the deer attractant scents.

I use scent wicks and drag lines with two different scents, one for each of my boots. I use a doe-based attractant scent tied to one boot. I use a buck-based attractant scent tied to the other.

Let me explain. First let’s make sure we are all on the same page by quickly talking basics.

What is a drag line?

A drag line is a three to four foot, fairly heavy-duty string with a scent wick tied on the end of it.

For the drag line, I choose string which is the thickness of bootlace.

Prior to using the string, I make sure it has not been exposed to smells that would be unnatural to deer. I would not use string that has been sitting in an area exposed to household or garage smells.

I purchase two coils of string specifically for drag lines.

When I get it home, I place the two coils of string into two zip-top bags.

I pour a different deer attractant scent into the two bags. In one bag I pour a buck-based deer attractant scent. In the other I pour a doe-based deer attractant scent.

Now another question…what is a scent wick?

It is a small piece of material usually made of cotton felt or wool felt with a hole in it. The hole is where it is tied to the string. They are pretty inexpensive. I purchase scent wicks from the store. But I bet you could also make them, if you desired.

Preparing Your Scent Wicks and Drag Lines

Prepare your scent wicks and your drag lines the day before you go deer hunting.

Cut a three to four foot string for your drag lines from each bag of scent…one from the doe-based attractant bag and one from the buck-based.

Tie one scent wick to one end of each of your strings.

You’ll need two additional, new zip-top bags.

Place the scent wick, now tied to your drag line with the doe-based attractant scent, over the top of one of the new, open zip-top bags.

Pour the doe-based attractant scent, enough to saturate, onto the scent wick that is attached to the drag line with doe-based attractant scent. Let the extra liquid fall into the open bag.

Place the scent wick and drag line into the zip-top bag. Make sure the scent wick is at the bottom of the zip-top bag.

I pour in enough matching deer attractant scent so there is a small amount of liquid remaining in the bottom of the bag around the scent wick.

Through the zip-top bag, hold the scent wick between your index fingers and thumbs. Place pressure and release on the scent wick to make sure you can see the scent wick sitting in and absorbing the remaining deer scent liquid. Seal the bag tightly.

Do the same with the buck-based attractant scent wick and buck-based drag line.

Let both bags sit overnight. You can place both bags in your hunting pack. You’ll be using them in the morning on the way to your deer hunting tree stand or deer hunting blind.

Marty Prokop Reveals How to Attract Deer with Your Deer Scent Drag Lines

When you are about 150 to 200 yards from your deer hunting tree stand or deer hunting blind, open your zip-top bags. Tie the doe-based drag line to one of your boots with the scent wick trailing and the buck-based drag line to the other.

Let the saturated scent wicks drag behind you as you walk to your deer hunting tree stand or deer hunting blind.

This allows deer to smell both the buck urine and the doe urine scent as they walk on the trail. Deer passing by may be fooled into following the scent trail you left behind and walk right up to your deer hunting tree stand or deer hunting blind.

Marty Prokop is asked, “What Scent to Use When?”

During pre-rut, I use deer urine and buck urine.

After finding the first scrape of the deer hunting season, I switch from doe urine and buck urine to dominant buck scent and doe-in-heat scent, sometimes called doe estrus.

During the rut phase, follow the steps above using doe-in-heat scent and dominant buck scent as you would doe urine or buck urine during the pre-rut.

Once the rut has begun, using the smells of doe estrus and dominant buck scents just may help attract and hold bucks to your deer hunting area.

Put these deer scent strategies to work for you the next time you head out deer hunting. You could have the big buck of a lifetime walk right up to your deer hunting tree stand or deer hunting blind as he follows a scent trail you left behind.

Good Luck and Great Hunting!

Marty Prokop

Find Deer Games and Hunting Fun at: www.Free-Deer-Hunting-Tips.com
Great Pictures and Deer Hunting Secrets Blog at: www.Marty-Prokop.com

Posted by Marty Prokop at 10:31 AM | Comments (2)

April 2, 2007 10:51 AM

Making Sense of Deer Cover Scents

Making Sense of Deer Cover Scents by Marty Prokop

A deer hunter could spend thousands of dollars on the latest and greatest products. Over the past 24 years I have tried many…some worked great and others went directly to the trash can.

I have been asked by our www.free-deer-hunting-tips.com community about types and styles of deer hunting supplies I use for deer hunting.

So in the next few blog posts I’ll talk about deer cover scents, deer attractant scents and bust the myths around high priced and low priced deer scents.

In this blog post I’ll talk about deer cover scents.

In the April 3rd blog post, I’ll reveal a great, little-known secret for how to get deer to follow you to your deer hunting tree stand or deer hunting blind.

On April 4th, I will cover how to attract more deer and bigger deer to your deer hunting tree stand or deer hunting blind once you are there.

And make sure to read the April 5th blog post about the experiment I did in the field to see if deer attractant scent collected and made from multiple deer or single deer is better.

You’ll be amazed.

So let start uncovering the secret of deer scents.

We start with cover scents…

Marty Prokop is asked, “Do Cover Scents Really Make a Difference for Deer Hunters?”

I have been asked, and often wondered myself, if using deer cover scents really makes a difference to a deer hunter’s success.

Here is what I found…

I did field tests with and without deer cover scents.

For the first two weeks of bow hunting season, I bow hunted without the aid of cover scents or deer attractant scents. I saw plenty of deer, but none came into range.

The following week I applied a cover scent to all of my deer hunting gear and deer hunting clothing. I chose a cover scent that I felt would work no matter where in the country I was deer hunting.

The first morning, using cover scent, two does walk within 10 feet of me. Why? I believe it was because both deer smelled the cover scent I applied to my clothing and not my human odor.

I continued to apply the cover scent to my deer hunting clothes for the rest of the deer hunting season.

In my personal experience, cover scents work very well as long as you know this most important secret: Make sure the deer hunting cover scent you use matches the scents found naturally in your deer hunting habitat.

For example, if you deer hunt in a pine forest with no oak or acorn producing trees, acorn cover scents may actually alarm the deer in your area and keep them from coming to your deer hunting tree stand or deer hunting blind.

The same holds true if you hunt in an oak forest with no pine trees. A pine cover scent may not be the best choice to use.

Match your deer hunting cover scent to your deer hunting area.

Good Luck and Great Hunting!

Marty Prokop

Find Deer Games and Hunting Fun at: www.Free-Deer-Hunting-Tips.com
Great Pictures and Deer Hunting Secrets Blog at: www.Marty-Prokop.com

Posted by Marty Prokop at 10:51 AM | Comments (0)