I don't recommend putting up a stand way ahead of time. I prefer climbers because there is no prep time, you don't have to worry about others messing with your stuff (I pack mine out every day) and it leaves very little trace for other hunters to detect that you might be hunting an area. If you are using a hang-on, find where you want to set up, get everything ready like you are going to hunt, sit in the stand, make sure you have shooting lanes and can see where you want to hunt, make reference marks on the tree (not obvious to anyone waling by) and take all your gear out until you are ready to hunt. As far as leaving salt, it is too late in the year for that and it will just melt into the ground. As far as where, I like saddles between bedding and feeding area with intersecting trails, especially if there is a smaller trail paralleling a well used trail. I don't use bait or scents so I have to be careful where I pick to hang a stand and make sure that it is in an area that is being used by deer. If you are hunting blacktail, less is more as far as calling IMO. I rattled up my daughter's buck last year by barely tickling the rattling antlers and no other calls.