Pennsylvania Game News - December 2022 - 5

sometimes even a season - doesn't define
a stand's worth. If there was a legitimate
reason for hunting there, keep it in your
rotation.
It's hard to ever know when deer will
be coming through at any place. Recognizing
that helps develop the patience
every hunter needs to eventually be in the
right place at the right time.
Unless forced to by limited cover,
whitetails change up their travel patterns
regularly.
They also like to use spread formations
- each searching for food - as they travel.
Deer typically use a follow-the-leader
approach only when they feel threatened,
or thick cover offers them only narrow
passage.
Recognizing that a stand's worth
varies from year-to-year, depending on
uncontrollable conditions - fall-food
availability, hunter pressure, even crop
rotation - helps you keep the faith and
ensures you'll always have a deeper selection
of stands to hunt.
FUNNEL VISION
Anywhere deer are hunted, they usually
pass through pinch-points between
bedding and feeding areas.
Such funnels are used by whitetails,
often because they're the only passages
the landscape offers. They include woodland
strips in farm country, breaks in
mountainside rock formations and forestregeneration
fences, fordable waterway
crossings, interstate highway culverts
and passages around massive fallen trees.
Finding these funnels can be tremendously
beneficial, especially if they're part
of escape routes whitetails use to elude
rifle-season hunting pressure.
Sometimes these funnels are easy to
spot. Other times, you might need some
snow cover to identify them. But finding
DECEMBER 2022
and hunting them discreetly will improve
any deer hunter's options afield. Remember,
though, funnels are like other stand
options: If another hunter blocks passage
of deer to the funnel, it'll be a long day.
BEAT THE CROWD
Those who succeed on rifle-season
openers on public land often have one
thing in common: They beat the crowd.
It requires getting into the woods earlier
than others with plans to hunt the same
area as you.
That means being packed the night
before, getting to bed early and, in my
area, often starting into the woods at 5 a.m.
Getting in early provides you time to
sneak in and then settle into your stand
without much disturbance.
Waiting until right before daylight,
when deer already are on the move and
other hunters are watching you walk into
the woods, rarely offers success.
HUNT YOUR HUNT
It's hard to wait out whitetails if you
don't have the wherewithal to stay put.
Having an answer to disqualify every
excuse you might use to leave earlier than
you planned helps. Tell yourself another
15 minutes on stand is all you need to take
a deer. If that time passes, tell yourself you
need 15 minutes more.
Make sure you pack what you need:
snacks, drink, proper clothing, even antacids
and ibuprofen.
Properly prepared, a hunter need only
watch for deer. But maintaining that
focus can be hard, particularly for new
hunters and those easily distracted by
smartphones.
When you're afield, remember you're
supposed to be fooling deer, demonstrating
how clever you are.
Don't hunt distracted and let whitetails
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Pennsylvania Game News - December 2022

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