# What am I doing Wrong?



## HOO'S NEXT

Hey folks, this is my first year bow hunting and I am experiencing dificulties that I have not encoutered in my last 20+ years of rifle hunting. My problem is, that the deer just are not coming in. I have deer all over the game cam pics when I am not there but as soon as I show up....Boom...nothing. I get to the blind the first morning after being gone a 4 or 5 days and no corn on the ground with obvious sign of deer movement. As soon as I get there the corn starts piling up. To be clear this is not only while I am in the blind but the whole time I am there, derr will be showing up on the cams like clockwork and then nothing until I am gone. I am at a loss and don't have a clue at this point. As far as what I am doing here it is: Primos ground blind set up just shy of 30yds and brushed in, all of my clothes as well as myself are washed in Hunter's Specialties detergent and soap including the towel I dry off with. My clothes are dried with Hunter's Specialties dryer sheets after I thouroughly clean the lent trap from previous loads. My clothes and towels are stored in a large rubber made container with some local foliage and a scent waffer inside, I wear rubber boots to and from the blind only and they are put on and taken off outside the house as are my hunting clothes. I spray myself and all my equipment, bow included with Hunter's Specialties scent away just after I get dressed outside and before heading to the blind. I walk to my blind slowly and hit myself again with spray upon arrival. I wear dark clothes and/or dark cammo inside the blind and have only the front middle and front left windows open as that is all I need for a good view and want to minimize light intrusion and sent escape. I have dirt piled up around the bottom of the blind so that my scent doesn't get carried that way. I also hang a waffer of the same scent used for my clothes inside the blind. I think that pretty much covers it. All that being said, again I am at a loss. If someone spots something I am doing wrong or something I need to be doing that I'm not please let me know. I will be headed back up on Thursday for my last chance until after Christmas due to a crappy work schedule so any help is appreciated. Thanks and good luck to everyone this weekend..............Eric


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## fishingcowboy

Are you leaving you windows open when your gone.


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## HOO'S NEXT

Yes, the blind never changes state wether I'm there or not. Good thought though. Thanks........Eric


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## Trouthunter

Man you gave a lot of information but where is the stand in relation to your feeder? Is the wind carrying your scent to the deer?

Are you quiet? Not 100 yards away quiet as in hunting from a box blind with a rifle but church mouse quiet?

Where are you hunting and how many acres? Is anyone else there when you're there? How do you get to your blind?

TH


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## HOO'S NEXT

Trouthunter said:


> Man you gave a lot of information but where is the stand in relation to your feeder? Is the wind carrying your scent to the deer?
> 
> Are you quiet? Not 100 yards away quiet as in hunting from a box blind with a rifle but church mouse quiet?
> 
> Where are you hunting and how many acres? Is anyone else there when you're there? How do you get to your blind?
> 
> TH


My blind is due east of the feeder, with prodominately either south or SE or N winds most of the deer aproach from the SW or NW so I don't think they should be able to smell me but could be wrong. Hunting the hill country off of Devils Backbone on 30 acres owned by my in-laws. Sometimes other folks are there when I am others I am solo about half and half. I walk to the blind. I should also note that I hunted this same piece of property last year with a rifle from a tripod stand set up about 80 yds away and saw deer everytime in the stand and often had them walk within 25 feet of me and that is not even trying to be scent free. The deer are there just not showing themselves when I'm in the stand. Thanks for the help................Eric


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## Sgrem

Consider where you travel to and set up. Think of your own house. If something in your living room or bed room is out of place you are going to notice immediately and be on red alert. Whereas you might have a picture in your hallway out of place or moved you probably wouldnt even notice....
Wild animals are the same way...if you set up right on top of their favorite spots they are going to bust you every time. Hunt their travel or escape routes and they will walk right by you.

would have to scout where you hunt to know why! .....then i can help you drag em....


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## Sgrem

Next wildlife associate danger. So if there are farmers i bet they talk loud, slam their car doors etc ..... the wildlife dismiss it because they know there is no threat. Just like at your house....you probably dont pay much attention to the mail truck or garbage truck or normal traffic or mosquito truck going by etc. But a squeeky car, or someone idling down the street stealthily, or go fast bike racing down the street or the tiniest noise in the night will put you on red alert. 

Loud farmers/locals in the deers territory he dismisses easily.....things sneaking around his woods and making tiny little sounds puts them on red alert.


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## Sgrem

traveling to your stand...try to walk like a squirrel...step step step pause....step step....step step......step...pause etc.
I know it sounds stupid but nothing in nature walks with the rhythmic steps like us humans. They can hear that and immediately go on red alert vacating the area not coming back. try that pitter patter too and from your stand....and/or like a hog....make little hog noises and walk noisily....they will dismiss you quickly.

Hope that helps...thanks for reading.


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## Mr. Saltwater

Maybe try a different scent killer, or just plain old baking soda. Last year I used an "earth scented" spray and they smelled me every time. Changed to a different type and all was good.


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## wet dreams

??? maybe you need to get with Elvira....


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## Trouthunter

Maybe just dispense with all the scent blocking techniques that you are using and simply us Scent Away on your body and clothing. 

Are you getting to your blind at least 45 minutes to an hour before daylight?

TH


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## Chunky

My own opinion is that all that scent free stuff helps, and I do some of that....but if the wind is wrong, it doesn't matter, they still can smell you. Breath or whatever.

If they are not smelling you, either in the blind or on the way in. They must be in a position to know that you have gone to the blind. They either see or hear you on the way in to the blind. I can think of nothing else that it could be.


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## HOO'S NEXT

Thanks for all the advice guys I will give it heck again this weekend ........ Eric


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## Capt. Chris

*Walk further*

Park your vehicle further away. Mind the wind when you are walking in. You may need to take a different route to your stand. I have different routes that I take depending on the wind. They could be smelling you before you ever get to your blind. Take the long way around if you have to. I also have different stands to use depending on the wind. If you hunt a stand or blind when the wind is wrong your chances go way down. Look at your property on google maps and visualize how the different wind directions will disperse your scent as you walk to your blind (this alone has helped me to see more animals). Also your route to your stand could be to close to their staging area and they are actually seeing you walking in. Hope this helps.


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## Sgrem

Your best chances are the first or second time you hunt a stand location....after that you have left a lot of scent and disturbance and they will simply avoid the area. If the wind is wrong getting to or hunting your stand then it is not an option that day period. Dont mess up a good set on bad wind.


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## Mr. Saltwater

Chunky said:


> My own opinion is that all that scent free stuff helps, and I do some of that....but if the wind is wrong, it doesn't matter, they still can smell you. Breath or whatever.


This^^^

We have a box blind on our lease that appears to be in an ideal location. Sits in a bottom overlooking a creek with shooting lanes in 5 directions and lots of deer trails. Plenty of tracks and pictures on cameras. The only problem is that almost any wind direction will create a swirling current. 99% of the time the deer will smell us and snort from 50 yards away no matter the wind direction. Could also be your problem.


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## ML56

Could be getting there to late, arrive at least an hour to 1 1/2 hours before the camera time shows them showing up. Only approach set up from down wind, pay attention if you are busting them off beds while driving in, or walking in. Get off the ground if at all possible, you mentioned a tripod, use it. Place it in thick cover with only a small shooting window cut in trees/brush. Do not hunt as if your tree stand is hanging from a telephone pole, get covered up. Get a scent lock suit and use it. I still get busted with scent lock suit, but it's rare.You mentioned it being a small tract, you may be moving all of them out for the day with vehicles/your arrival. Use the tripod at a distance(100 yds or more) to see how the deer react when they come in. If they are flipping out, they will show you, you may well see each of them circle downwind of your blind to see if your "home" before they come in. If the deer are keying in on your blind you've already been busted, and need to change set up. I like to be at least 16' or more off the ground, in a large diameter tree with plenty of cover around me. If it's hard for me to see them, it's hard for them to see me too. Many variables, really hard to troubleshoot someone else's problem without seeing layout of place and approaches. Your scent covers, and scent wafers may be hurting you more than they are helping, try it without them, just be clean/showered. First thing I'd do is sacrifice a hunt, and watch things from a distance, might give you all the info you need to set an ambush point a little ways off the feeder, but on the trails they approach on. Hope something helps/works out for you.-Mike


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## fishnfowler2

Lots of good information shared here, suggest read it all and digest most of it. To me it sound like your presence is know before you are settled in your blind. Personally I prefer local cover scents, pine needles ,goat weed, grass weed tops ground up in your hands and rubbed over your body, always have alternate routes in, and use the wind to your advantage. I prefer stalking my blind, quiet as possible and avoid touching anything, I mean anything going in, even the sound of spraying cover scent at your blind is a foreign sound, and they can and will hear it. The sound of a blind zipper is another out of the ordinary sound, avoid it if possible. Keep with it, it will come together! Good luck !


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## fishtails75

get elevated!!! A must in my opinion. I am very experienced in bow hunting, as well as experienced in many diff types of land. by far the ground blind is hardest cause any slight movement a deer will bust you even when you dont even know its there. I use a gorilla portable and have very good success with this setup. I can usually see alot better and dont have to be as still but yet still as possible. higher the better but then you have to remember to compensate for that shot if extreme angle or elevation? bowhunting is very very hard and takes lots of hrs in stand and lots of mistakes to learn the pointers, stay with it, these challenges is what keeps us doing it!! Good luck and you will get one soon.


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## nhampton

Don't know about your lease but ours is loaded with acorns. We have had similar experience with lots of pics, but don't see many. One thing I think I've noticed is the pics are of the same deer. Same bucks and similar doe groups. One answer I've considered is that the deer are traveling short distances so they are beded down around the feeder. When you move in they move out. Also I too have had better luck up than at ground level. We don't have anything in the way of tall straight trees but I've found a tripod in a cedar thicket works well. Just don't get it above your cover.


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## Baffin Bay

We know when they can smell us because we leave come back after eating breakfast and all the corn is gone. I think you are putting on too much perfume. We use rubber boots and scent away. We use to chew certs to cover our breath but they are too hard to find so now we chew gum. Also check your hat. I only wear my camo hat that I leave at the RV because my everyday hat smells.


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## Bankin' On It

I agree to get off the ground if at all possible and they could be hearing you when you arrive at camp. I hunt a little 100 acre plot sometimes and we are very careful to stay inside the camp house, never slam a door and keep conversations to a minimum while outside. No camp fires either.


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## Huntnfish

Yelp this. All of our blinds are elevated. No problem with deer coming in. Bow hunting is a whole different ball game.



fishtails75 said:


> get elevated!!! A must in my opinion. I am very experienced in bow hunting, as well as experienced in many diff types of land. by far the ground blind is hardest cause any slight movement a deer will bust you even when you dont even know its there. I use a gorilla portable and have very good success with this setup. I can usually see alot better and dont have to be as still but yet still as possible. higher the better but then you have to remember to compensate for that shot if extreme angle or elevation? bowhunting is very very hard and takes lots of hrs in stand and lots of mistakes to learn the pointers, stay with it, these challenges is what keeps us doing it!! Good luck and you will get one soon.


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## Whitebassfisher

I have not read all the replies, so excuse me if I am repeating something here. Do you touch any brush on the way to your stand? I would trim bushes on my entry trail with limb loppers before the season so I would not have to touch anything. Are you walking through tall grass? *You just can't beat a deer's nose.* My success turned around 180 Â° when I started wearing boots like attached pic, and tucked my pants inside them. If the boots got bloody from cleaning a deer, I rinsed them in the cattle trough. Also, I would be clean and scent free, but had better luck using no additional scent of any kind.


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## vt_fish02

Although I have never killed a deer with a bow, I have had several deer within arms reach sitting on the ground (no blind). I wash my clothing in scent wash and put back in a rubbermaid container with several branches from a green cedar bush. I don't spray my clothing with anything else. I rewash my soiled clothing each week before returning to the ranch. 
Being elevated is always the best option but I grew up hunting on the ground in Virginia and used to take all the precautions you are with my scent management. I killed more deer in Virginia and Texas with what I have stated above. I have even had does sniff where I had peed on the ground and the toes of my leather boots. Also, I don't typically worry too much about walking in. I do try to keep from touching any brush with my hands and try not to kick too many rocks but that depends on how dark it is. I usually don't use a flash light unless I am close to the fence line since I hunt on family property. I've walked within 10 yards of deer and they just stand and watch me...trying to figure out what I am. Once I'm moved past them they usually continue on their merry way. Another option is to stomp around more during the off season so they get used to you being around. My fil has more success than I do but he is at the ranch every weekend working, feeding cattle, or killing yotes. I hope you can benefit from some of my suggestions and put some venison in the freezer.


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## jwales

30 acres? I used to have the same prob on my 55 acre farm. After a couple years we figured out the deer knew when we were there. We started parking the truck up against the front of the house, completely quit turning on the house lights at night and stopped BBQ'ing outside during season. We also quit using the golf cart and UTV. Once we did this we had no idea there were that many deer, especially mature. If your getting there at night time and advertising yourself you're wasting your time on 30 acres!


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## T_rout

Lose the cover scents from the store and your house. Elevation helps but if your wind is bad your wind is bad! My uncle bow hunted one of our "tame" high fenced deer for three years before he eventually got him with his rifle. They know when your there, they just have to be hungry enough or in love enough to mess up!!


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## texastkikker

sgrem said:


> traveling to your stand...try to walk like a squirrel...step step step pause....step step....step step......step...pause etc.
> I know it sounds stupid but nothing in nature walks with the rhythmic steps like us humans. They can hear that and immediately go on red alert vacating the area not coming back. try that pitter patter too and from your stand....and/or like a hog....make little hog noises and walk noisily....they will dismiss you quickly.
> 
> Hope that helps...thanks for reading.


what he said


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## txdukklr

its your route in and out is my bet.

change how your getting there. Is it possible you are going through their bedding area to get to the stand.

This week I had a road from the camp that was less then a mile straight in. To kill the deer I went about four miles around the perimeter fence, walked in from a half mile away through the wind. The result was a hunt that ended in 15 minutes.

Had I hunted the night before the poor wind would have probably blown them out of that area for a week.


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## pevotva

stand east of the feeder IMO is the worst place you can put it. Wind is always Se E or Ne. Move the pop up to the west of the feeder. You may have a really smart doe ruining it for ya also. Sit back a couple hundred yards one morning and see whats up. Good luck.


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## Spooley

It may be your diet. No matter how hard some try to mask their natural odor, some never do cover it entirely. Me for example, when I eat onions or garlic, it always emanates from my skin for several days to the point that I can smell myself. If that is the case, then others can certainly do the same, people or animals.


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## Big Guns 1971

I know I'm a little late on this but I do the following and kill deer on 30 acres hunting from a ground blind. I have deer walk within 3 feet from me while I'm in the blind. I always put a berry scented attractant in with my corn while filling the feeder. The deer love this scent and flavor in the corn. While hunting I sit in the blind with a bag of the scent opened up. This basically acts as a cover scent that the deer smell everyday. Not making noise while at camp and getting to the stand on time helps also.


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## DeerSlayerToo

I hunt in the approximate area you are hunting (26 acres) and I think the problem is the amount of acorns this year.This is the first time in the last 15 years that I actually seen corn stalks growing around the feeder.The white winged doves are eating most of the corn.I usually see @ 15 deer a hunt but this year maybe one or two


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