First off, I would like to welcome you to our online hunting sanctuary. We hope that you enjoy the write-ups and pictures that we post on here, and follow us for years to come! I would like to start off giving you some background on the property that we will be hunting this year and hopefully for years to come. It is a very special place to me and will grow to be that for the guys I hunt with, as well as our families.
The property is a 40 acre parcel of land, located just north of the Twin Cities. There is a very large spectrum of hunting opportunities on this land, which is the reason that we have made it one of our top hunting destinations. To illustrate some of the land and cover we will be hunting, I will cover some of the permanent stands that we have for this year and why we have chosen them.
1. E’s stand – My stand is built on the crest of a small hill that runs down into a valley overlooking a small run off stream. This stream helps produce very green vegetation, as well as some pretty dense cover for the deer to travel through. It is located almost directly in the middle of the property, and in the past has produced large deer harvested by my grandfather and father. At the bottom of this area we have decided to try and plant some forage for the deer, to not only help draw them into the area, but provide them with a solid food source to continue to grow and maintain their health.
2. Matt’s stand – Matt sits in the middle of the “swamp”. For the most part, come hunting season the ground in this area is very moist, with little standing water, but during the summer tends to hold at least ankle deep standing water. 3 years ago when we decided to make a quick hunt on this property, Matt was able to harvest a very nice doe out of this stand. This stand is located on the edge of the largest bedding area on the property and gets deer both coming and going from this area.
3. Dennis’ stand – Dennis is located in the opposite corner of the property from the camping location. He is overlooking a ridge line that runs the back edge of the property. The ridge runs down into another swampy area, which from years past and current scouting, has proven to be a bedding area and high traffic area for the deer. 3 years ago Dennis was fortunate enough to see many deer from this stand, as well as harvest himself a very nice doe. During that hunt 3 years ago, a very large buck, as well as smaller ones were spotted from this stand, and could prove to be a hot spot again this year. Aside from needing a compass, GPS and honing beacon to find this stand (it is a long walk, and in some very dense cover), it has to be a favorite going into this season to produce.
4. Eye in the sky – On this property, we have the fortune of having many different types of terrain to hunt. This stand overlooks a natural clearing that is located on the northern edge of the property. The stand gets its name from the fact that without a lot of other large trees around, sitting in it makes you feel like you are up in the clouds. Knee high grass covers this area, and it is surrounded by dense tree cover that makes a natural tree line in the shape of a circle. This stand will be a work in progress. We are still searching for a real good plan on how to hunt this area. We have considered using the field as a food plot or just installing a mineral site. When my father hunted this area, it was a great stand for the night hunt portion of the season, and we are planning on using it accordingly.
5. Trail leading to nowhere – When we leave the camping area, there is one main trail that leads from the camping area, all the way to the back edge of the property. This stand is located at the VERY end of the trail. This is a transition stand. Deer trails in this area are abundant and lead from a bedding area, to the dense cover and food areas. We are hoping that this stand will produce deer as they travel to and from those areas.
These are the 5 permanent stands that we have put in place right now, and will for sure be using this year for our deer hunting season. Currently there are 3 or 4 more spots that we are scouting, and will be placing more mobile ladder stands in; until we decide if those areas produce enough deer to place a permanent stand in. We label all of our stands based on whom hunts out of them the most, whom chose the location of them, or a significant description/marker that helps us know what each other is talking about. Through the hunting season we do rotate and move to different stands as guys are able to harvest a deer, or if someone just needs a change in scenery.
In two weeks we are planning another scouting/work trip. Updates will follow, check back to keep track of our progress! Also, we have some additional members of our hunting party that we will introduce, as well as cover their hunting exploits in future posts.
No comments:
Post a Comment