Crossbow Early Season Deer Hunting Tips

If you’re looking to get a jump on hunting deer, then here are some crossbow early season deer hunting tips that you’re going to need in order to do your best. While many things will stay the same, there is a lot that you will want to keep an eye out for when you’re getting out there.

Look for Acorns
Well, instead of looking at the ground for acorns, you should be looking up into the trees. This is something that you should do when you’re out checking the area for places to put stands or cameras. You’ll want to be checking what trees look like they’re going to be dropping acorns soon.

The reason for doing this is to check and see which trees are going to be the spots where the deer are eating. This is a way of knowing where you will want to be watching. You should make a mental checklist of all the trees in the area. You might be able to set up an area where you will be hunting.

Use Decoys or Plots
Decoys for deer is something that you would think of during the rutting season, however, they can be useful during all periods of the hunting season. If you find a field and set up some decoys close to an edge, then other deer that wander into the area will be more drawn to the decoys.

You can use this to your advantage by being downwind of the decoys and waiting for the deer to go towards the decoys. This can be an especially easy way to direct deer where you need them to be. You can also use food plots to direct deer within sight of your stand.

The plots will work especially well in the early season because you will be attracting the deer away from their hiding places. Early in the fall, there isn’t a lot of foraging out there for deer, so a food plot may be able to draw the deer out of hiding.

Practice with Longer Range Hits
One of the biggest problems that hunters run into when they are trying to hunt with crossbows is that they aren’t always doing well with the longer range hits that they want to make. This may be especially true during the early season when you’re out of practice and struggling to get back to the skill level that you might have been at the end of the last hunting season.

During the off-season, you will want to practice at least a little bit on targets. You might have a range that you prefer to hunt at, so the suggestion here is to practice hunting targets that are farther away than what you typically hunt at. This is a way of making the other range seem a little bit easier.

Pick Your Spot Wisely
Hunting is always about location, location, location. The main thing you should know is that you want to stay out of sight. If you’re using decoys or plots, make sure that you’re downwind of them. This will prevent deer from smelling you. You may also want to avoid certain bug sprays as the deer will really be able to smell those.

But for an actual location to put your stand, you may want to pull away from the fields and stay in the shadow. Deer are often spotted in fields, so you will want to be able to see into a field, but you may not want to be on the very edge of the field.

Watch the Deer
This is about watching them through the cameras as well as watching them when you’re in your stand. you will be able to tell which deer are older by the way that they act. Early in the day, you may see deer that are younger eating in certain spots. You might be tempted to shoot that one right then and there.

However, older deer may stay away for a little bit longer. Seeing younger ones wandering through is a good sign that older ones will be along soon. Patience will be key when you are trying to hunt the older bucks. But it will be well worth the wait for those older deer.

One of the best ways to watch deer and know where they’re going and where they will be is by using trail cameras. Using trail cameras will ensure that you know where the deer are actually going to be and you won’t have to guess wildly when you’re out in the field.

Plan Your Day
While hunting requires some patience and flexibility, you will also want to plan parts of your day. Planning will make sure that you have a route and a plan to follow during the hunting day. This can also make sure that you’re out until the last possible moment in order to get the most out of your hunting experience.

However, planning your day also means that you need to be planning your getaway. Getting out of an area does require a little bit of stealth and practice. You may already have a route setup that you’re going to use. However, if you’re on the edge of a field and you are pretty sure that the deer are going to be nearby when you are leaving, you will need a way to get out without scaring them.

You can do this a number of ways, but you may want to ask a friend or local farmer to come get you with their tractor or something. Because deer are often seen near farmer’s fields, they are well aware of the farming equipment. They are also pretty used to it and won’t bolt as soon as they see it.

As well, you may want to hunt later in the day and not right away in the morning. While you can use the morning to figure out the area and keep an eye on specific field cameras, you will want to relax a little bit. The deer are rarely active right away in the morning, so it will mean that you can spend some time preparing instead of trying to get straight out the door.

Conclusion
Well, here are some tips for the early hunting season with deer. You will find that the deer behave a little bit differently during the beginning of the season. Those little changes are important to know about since you will need every edge that you can get in order to get the most out of your hunting season. Beyond these tips, make sure that you are following all the rules and guidelines in your state so that you are doing all of your hunting legally.


This article was written by Sammy Garrard, a prepper with over 15 years of experience. He is excited to share his knowledge and the things he learned while travelling in British Columbia, Canada where he lives and around the world.

1 Comment

  1. mitch kary on October 18, 2017 at 12:51 am

    picking spot is very tricky. Those who can do that they can be successful in hunting. Practicing with longer range also very good idea. Thanks for sharing some good tips.