About 101.6 million Americans participate in outdoor activities, which also includes deer hunting. The percentage is set to increase as more people are looking to engage in more outdoor activities after the lifting of strict containment measures brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic. However, not everyone is lucky to make a kill even though they have the best deer hunting weapons.
There are easy mistakes such as miscalculations of wind directions, putting on the wrong apparel, among other errors that can cost you a deer on your hunting trip. Whether you are a novice or an experienced deer hunter, there is something new for you to learn about deer hunting every day. Here are six deer hunting tactics that every hunter should try.
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Learn more about deer and their behaviors
There are different varieties of deer in the wild. The two common deer families are the Cervinae and Capreolinae. These two categories of deer have further disintegrated into other different deer in the wild bring a diversity of this wild animal.
The diversity of deer contributes mainly to their differences in population, size, appearance, and even where they breed. Learning more about their different species, how they behave, and their appearances will go a long way in making you a successful deer hunter. Otherwise, it will be challenging to hunt for what you aren’t familiar with.
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Get the appropriate deer hunting gears
Deer hunting requires the selection of the right weapon, apparel, and having the right scent. When looking at the weaponry used in deer hunting, you can either choose a bow, rifle, or shotgun. These are good choices for deer hunting, but they have their limitations.
Bows are ideal for experienced hunters and for shooting short ranges. They’re also not noisy compared to rifles and shotguns. On the other hand, rifles and shotguns are suitable for both long and short ranges for experienced and novice hunters. They are, however, noisy.  When choosing a shotgun for hunting, a popular choice is the Benelli M4.  It is built to withstand all the harsh elements of the outdoors, while reliably functioning without a hiccup.  A popular accessory to have on your shotgun is a Benelli M4 Collapsible stock.  This allows the hunter to change the length of pull to suit their body style, and make it more comfortable.  This in turn, increases the accuracy if their shots.
When going for deer hunting, you need to put on camouflaging clothes. Avoid putting on those apparel you wear in your garage; deer can quickly get your scent and that of your clothes before they even see you. When preparing to go for the deer hunting trip, shower with odorless soap and avoid scented deodorant. If your hunting clothes have been washed with a strong detergent or dry cleaned, hung them in an open-air to clear the smell of the detergent.
You should store your hunting clothes in a tote full of leaves or dirt from your hunting area. The smell of dirt or leaves will stop your human scent from getting to the deer. You can also walk on deer droppings; this will give you a scent of a buck. Any of the rifles coupled with a scope such as a ruger 10/22 scope will help hunt the prey.
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Know how to play with the wind
Whether you are equipped with a bow or rifle, you should pay attention to the wind directions. Wind direction can influence the accuracy of your shot, and it can also help the buck get your scent and vanish away from your sight before you make that shot.
If you are using a stand, you should position it where the wind will blow your scent into the opposite direction of the deer trail. You are only safe from the deer’s strong sense of smell when you are on the downwind side of their bedding area or path.
To visualize the wind direction in the bush, float a wind pointer such as a milkweed seed; it’s a light seed that can travel on the thermos. The milkweed seed will blow towards the direction that your scent is traveling.
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Set up a juice scrape
A deer is a curious animal; it will be attracted to scrapes that have different scents.Â
One of the easiest and inexpensive scents to attract deer to the scrapes is the scent of your pee. Yes, the smell of human pee will not put the buck away but instead attract the most mature ones. You can take your best shot at that time. This is because human urine has a strong scent and has some salts which lure the deer.
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Familiarize yourself with the hunting block
It can be very tiring and frustrating hunting in a block of land that you are not familiar with. You will be unfamiliar with the terrains, the access points, and even the out-of-bound areas of that block of land.Â
The land could also be swampy and impossible to cross, but you are not aware because you have never put your foot on it. This will not only make your deer hunting trip futile, but it can also be dangerous to you.
Scouting your preferred hunting block is recommendable. Did you know you can scout the land without physically stepping into it? It is possible through a topography map of the hunting block and Google Earth. You can use these resources to pick some of the critical points you will need to scout in the hunting block.
After identifying the key points, physically scout the area a day or two before the main day. By exploring the block prior, you will know which area to go and which not to; this will save your hunting time and increase your chances of making a kill because you know in and out of the block.
Additionally, as you are scouting the hunting blocks, you can install some trail cameras in strategic areas of the block, such as water catchment areas. It will help you spy on the available number of deer, know what they are doing, and the time they hideaway to their bedding place.
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Do a lot of practice.
The best approach to becoming better in deer hunting is by doing training and doing many practices. The ideal time for exercise on deer hunting is when it is off-season. Spending time watching deer on a pair of binoculars can also help in understanding them.
Even with the best deer hunting gears, you may earn very little if you don’t have the necessary skills and experience. If you are a beginner, create time to be with experienced deer hunters. They will teach you how to stalk your prey, scent control, shooting, among other skills. Hunters are made and not born, so everyone willing to be a good deer hunter has the opportunity of making it.
Final thought
Deer hunting can be an exciting activity. However, it can be frustrating if you can spend the entire day on the hunting ground and come out with nothing. Deer hunting necessitates a high level of patience, learning different hunting tricks, training, and doing practices.
Whether you are an aspiring deer hunter or an expert, the tips above will go a long way in helping you improve your hunting skills. Pick one or a couple of them and start practicing them, and you will surely bag deer in your next hunting trip.
