Gutpile learned a new trick but has a couple questions

[Gutpile]

I'm an old fart, a colorblind one at that and one who has little time to spare in Sept so bow hunting was something that sounded cool but given that I can't see a blood trail because of my color vision and the fact that I'm so damn busy in Sept I figured it'd be something I'd never do. Last fall we bought a little 10 acre piece that has a lot of deer and turkey. After shooting my turkey this spring 10 minutes after shooting light I decided that I needed to shoot #2 with a bow. That's a whole other story that I don't have the patience to share but let's just say #2 never fell to a bow.  After that I decided I'll go ahead and apply for an archery B tag and try no nab a doe with the bow. Part of my failings with the turkeys was being busted. THOSE THINGS ARE HARD TO SHOOT WITH A BOW!! They just kept busting me. That in mind I bought a blind. I had a ton of fun sitting in the blind watching these deer. I have quite a few vids on Instagram where small bucks or does with fawns were standing in front of me that I passed on. It was very interesting watching them do their thing from 20 yards but I noticed that any sound coming from the blind is amplified 100 times and the deer spook big time. Once, I started to draw on a doe and my Father in lawn knocked a small snow berry branch into the wall of the blind that totally spooked her and off she went.

That leads me to question #1. The doe I ended up shooting jumped the string in a big way. She crouched at the noise and turned hard right so the shot entered right in front of her hind, passed through the stomach and liver and exited behind the shoulder on the far side with no lung or heart damage. She traveled about 120 yards before piling up. My question is, Do they always jump the string like this or is this because the blind tends to amplify it? If it is the blind I think I'll buy a tree stand or two.

Question #2. Talk to me about tree stands. What are the good brands to consider? I've noticed a gigantic price range from 100ish up into the mid $400 range for a climber and I suppose they go even higher than that. What do you guys use and what should I consider when I look at tree stands?

Back to the doe.  I sat in the blind for quite a few days and passed on a lot of bucks. I just don't want to knock a buck down in Sept unless it's a total pig. The B tag gave me all of Sept and then approx a month in nov and dec so I had plenty of time. My father in law spooked one and then there was one more that came in late on another occasion that I passed on due to lack of time. Three days in a row no does came in at all, just a bunch of small to mid sized bucks. This last Monday morning I decided to give it a go before work and I had a small buck come through right off the bat and then a group of 4 deer came. 1 little buck and three mature does without fawns. I got ready but they never presented a shot. At 7:45- 8:00 I decided to call it quits and get to work but I saw a lone doe coming in. She walked right in front of me and stopped at 25 yards. I drew and she busted me. I waited for what seemed like forever for her to relax and she finally dropped her head and started feeding. I took aim and let fly. I saw the arrow hit and thought I heart punched her but didn't find out until later where I hit her. I watched where she went and waited a few minutes to start to look. I also tried my damnedest to find the blood trail but I could only find a little blood due to my color vision. I looked for about 20 minutes where I saw her drop into a ravine and finally found her. You know, I've shot a lot of deer but I have to admit, the first bow kill was pretty damn cool even if it was a doe. I decided I needed more blood trailing experience and I wanted to recover the arrow so I decided to try to retrace her steps again. I did finally find some good splashes and I did find the arrow which was just covered in blood but it's very very difficult to see blood unless it's a huge splash. It's hard to explain to someone with normal color vision. For what it's worth I used a Bowtech Icon Pro and Rage Hypodermic broad heads. Part of me doesn't fully trust mechanicals but I had heard good things and since I'm a newb and they assured me that this broadhead is going to definitely leave a good blood trail I decided to try them and I want to try to NOT overthink this bowhunting thing like I do with all of my rifles. LOL. Holy cow, the wound was impressive! They definitely did what they were supposed to do.

Well, thanks for the read, if you wouldn't mind I'd appreciate your comments on the blind vs. tree stand questions or if you colorblind guys out there know of any tricks for finding and following a blood trail. THANKS!!!

Now it's time to chase the buck with my multi season tag!!! Be safe and enjoy!!!

[bobcat]

Since you're hunting your own property I'd get a ladder stand or two, and leave them up all season. Way easier, and safer too, for old guys like us. For hunting out of the blind all I can think of is maybe you were a little too close. Just guessing really, but maybe 35 to 40 yards out they wouldn't jump the string as much.

What's a B tag?

[Gutpile]

Basically a second deer. Doe only.

[Gutpile]

I figured closer would be better because they'd have less time to react but you think 40 or 50 yards out would be better?

[Johnny Doe]

I'd say 75% of the time I've shot or watched someone shoot a whitetail with a bow they react to the bow going off.  It's definitely situational and wether or not the deer is on alert, what the weather is doing (a little rain or wind can cover the sound of the bow), etc.  I try to aim heart (lower on the body) and if they crouch or react you will catch lungs.

I like both treestands and ground blinds.  Here are a few ground blind tips from my experience:  I really like ground blinds for cold weather (your late season) or areas that are not as densely vegetated.  I think a few things that can help ground blinds is to set them up off of where the deer are going to be and give yourself about a 30 yd shot, wear total black on your upper half including blacking out your face with a buff or black face paint.  Also, I only open the front half or less of the windows and close the shoot through mesh to hide movement, black out the rest.  If you can't do that or don't want to close the windows sit as far back against the back wall as you can and make sure there is no light coming in the back to silhouette you.  A quite chair that allows you to maneuver easily helps with sound and adding a bow stake that holds your bow in front of you with the arrow knocked keeps movement to a minimal as well.

Treestands are good because of the simple fact that deer are not used to looking up for predators...I don't have a ton of experience with them, but have used a few different ones.  I would say stay away from climbers unless you need one to pack back in a long distance.  I've had good luck with cheaper ($80-$120) hang on stands and ladder stands from Gorilla or similar brands.  In my opinion they are all a pain in the *#! after sitting in them for 3hrs plus...get something with a big enough platform you can stand and stretch easily.  Most importantly use a good restraint system and safety line!

Just my
Congrats on that first bow kill 

[Gutpile]

I sure appreciate it!! I thought I was shadow banned since no one replied lol. 

Another question. I read about shooting through the mesh but I'd be worried it would affect the flight and that if mechanicals are used it would deploy them prematurely. What are your thoughts?

[lokidog]

I would look at your blind from the deer's perspective. We typically shoot deer (albeit Blacktails) at fifteen yards or less from the blind. Make sure to have only the window(s) open that you need to shoot out of, backlighting will destroy you, and wear a facemask and gloves along with your darker clothing.

I don't like the idea of shooting through the mesh, especially with a mechanical (which I do not use).

Have you though of trying some kind of color enhancing glasses? A quick search brought this up... https://www.brilleye.com/services/color-blindness/ 

[Gutpile]

My blind is buried in trees so I'm good to go there. I've had many deer right in front of me without being busted. It was noise that caused problems.  I do only have the front partially open and even have the blind buried under cut tree branches as well as being tucked away in a tree line.

[BULLBLASTER]

I’ve killed plenty of deer from 5-35 yards from blinds shooting through the mesh screens. Zero affect on arrow flight from a properly tuned bow. I’ve shot both fixed and mechanical through it.

Make sure that the ground inside the blind is clear of leaves and sticks that may make noise, and also make sure that you can easily draw your bow while seated. Pay close attention to your clothing choices from a noise perspective. You can get away with so much while in a blind.
Also don’t let anything touch the sides of the blind and keep open windows to an absolute minimum.

[lewy]

All good points. Wear quite clothes (fleece is great). Buy a swivel chair, that will help with the  noise of shuffling around to get in position to draw. If you have a blind or stand stand in the same spot all the time the deer will eventually figure it out and it will be the first place they look when they come out

[Johnny Doe]

I sure appreciate it!! I thought I was shadow banned since no one replied lol. 

Another question. I read about shooting through the mesh but I'd be worried it would affect the flight and that if mechanicals are used it would deploy them prematurely. What are your thoughts?

Personally I have never shot mechanicals, but would probably not attempt it through shoot through mesh without a few practice rounds...BullBlaster says it's doable, my guess is it's doable with the right broadheads.

[BULLBLASTER]

I sure appreciate it!! I thought I was shadow banned since no one replied lol. 

Another question. I read about shooting through the mesh but I'd be worried it would affect the flight and that if mechanicals are used it would deploy them prematurely. What are your thoughts?

Personally I have never shot mechanicals, but would probably not attempt it through shoot through mesh without a few practice rounds...BullBlaster says it's doable, my guess is it's doable with the right broadheads.

I only shot rage broadheads through the mesh as far as mechanical. Can’t speak for any others

[nitroelk]

Touching the inside of the blind is a dead giveaway in the blind. I ended up getting a little bit bigger blind because of touching the sides when drawing down on deer. Its just too much of a foreign noise to them, I guess.

[Magnum_Willys]

Never tried it but have read of guys that swear by spray bottle of hydrogen peroxide for tracking blood trails. 

[EchoLimaKilo]

I’m also red green deficient and it makes blood trailing pretty darn difficult. I really enjoy hunting solo but I’ve questioned the ethical element if I’m unable to recover game (lost a bear last year and that was pretty discouraging). I’ve tried the glasses, peroxide etc and didn’t find that any of it helped much

The good news is that after a few years of tracking animals (both mine and hunting buddies’) I feel like my tracking skills have improved quite a bit. I try to pay attention and practice following fresh tracks, if I think I’ve got the track of my animal then I’ll start really looking hard for blood to confirm. You’ll also start to find certain foliage that shows blood better than other stuff, lighter green leaves/firs, rocks, sticks so I check that stuff more often. Slower than simply following blood but it’s what I have to do. It’s not really a skill that can be practiced all the time but I think what practice you can get really helps and you’ll find your own tricks and methods. Don’t let it discourage you too much!

Interested to hear if anybody else has any tips or tricks