HOW CLOSE IS TOO CLOSE
How close should you set up on a deer trail. I had set my ladder stand up this weekend and the best tree for cover is 10 yards off of a heavily used deer trail. I feel that with the cover i should be able to move and have a good shot at my shooting lane. I am surrounded by 3 pieces of a maple tree that spit as it was growing. Each riser is about 18" in diameter.
I think if i let the deer pass me i will have a 15 yard quarting away shot. If i shoot directly through a shooting window it will be less than 10 yards. I always try to set a little bit off of the trail but this tree was too good to pass up and the only one that would offer cover once the leaves fall.
I think if i let the deer pass me i will have a 15 yard quarting away shot. If i shoot directly through a shooting window it will be less than 10 yards. I always try to set a little bit off of the trail but this tree was too good to pass up and the only one that would offer cover once the leaves fall.
Comments
Zack Doyle
I think you'll be just fine Mike. Your best bet is to let them pass by like you said, and wait for the quartering shot. Less chance of them seeing you draw your bow.Mike Richardson
i am just a little nervous with the killzone shrinkage on that close of a shot but at 10 yards it would be more about anatomy and shooting for the exit hole. Lets hope i get that p&y buck i have on cam.Zack Doyle
Killzone shrinkage? You won't need to worry about that. Like you said, just aim for the exit hole. I like to try and shoot the center of the off leg, a third up the body from a treestand. Usually that puts the entrance hole just above center mass, even at 10 yards. I killed my buck last year at 8 yards, from 20 ft up. You saw the arrow through the heart. You'll have no trouble.Larry Landers II
That setup sounds good to me too! Good luck!Tim Maxim
sometimes we gotta do what we gotta do. But it is a good idea to wait and let em pass before taking a shot. I was in the same position a few years ago, I got too antsy and didn't wait and missed a great looking 10 pointer because of it. shooting almost straight down is a little trickier than it seems.nate bryant
10 to 20 out not to high up if your in a tree stand or the shot might be on backstrap and that wont work to wellkale kohring
theres never a too closedavid stillo
mike i am a ground hunter,i have had 10 point bucks(185 class) snorting at me from 10 feet away because of the doe in heat scent/dripper i was using,i like to get really close ,never shot a deer past 50 feet..just make sure you got the scent down,reading the land,deer travel during bad weather,pre rut and rut,bedding areas,food plots,,you get that down and you will be able to pet the deer as they walk by you or come running up to you,lol,,scent is the biggest thing,i never use deer stands,i have stalked deer even in cornfields and gotten really close to them but that takes some patience/time and very quiet steps,i never am concerned about wind direction because i got the scent thing down and can grunt like a deer without a deer call...if you want the deer to stop at a certain distance from you mike hang a dripper /wicks along the trail or put out a scent trail across the heavyily used trail where you want your buck to stop,use that scent to your advantage that buck will never see it coming..good luck..and hope you get him..:):)