A lot of newbies look at TV hunters or Instagram influencers and get the impression it’s easy to tag a trophy buck with minimal effort on just about any outing.
But unless you’re hunting strictly at high-fence outfits, you’re going to spend significantly more sits watching squirrels and walking away empty-handed. And some seasons might even end in tag soup.
Consistent, long-term success demands persistence — logging lots of hours in the woods scouting, prepping, and hunting.
That doesn’t mean you trudge down the same trail and climb into the same stand every single day of the season. Instead, persistence means you continue to put in the work, learning and adapting as you go.
Gather Intel
The best bowhunters continue to scout and collect intel throughout the season — and sometimes year over year when following a specific buck. As conditions, hunting pressure, and deer behavior change, they adjust their strategies. And they don’t forget the long game.
Minimize Impact
While they do invest the hours, consistently successful bowhunters minimize their impact in the whitetail woods. They don’t head into the field with noisy gear and smelly clothing. And they certainly don’t overhunt a prime rut stand again and again for weeks. They will make sure everything they haul into the woods is as stealthy as possible, keep pressure to a minimum, and be incredibly strategic about hunting near a buck’s bedroom.
Hunt the Right Conditions
If the wind isn’t right for your favorite spot, don’t hunt it. If you can only get out a couple days each year, make them count and prioritize times when weather conditions are right for daytime movement. Don’t spoil a great stand just because you’re too eager or lazy to find another spot.
Keep Your Head in the Game
Multiple all-day cold-weather sits in a row can wear you down in every way possible. Sticking it out requires mental toughness and determination — and so does managing to make a perfect shot when buck fever strikes. To be a consistently successful bowhunter, it’s important to mentally prepare and keep your head in the game.
>>> success demands persistence — logging lots of hours in the woods scouting, prepping, and hunting. <<<
TBB,
Good advice but isn't this what deer hunting is all about?
You hit it right on, The biggest deer hunting challenge is infiltrating the bucks' territory unnoticed. You know that you have done that successfully when you start seeing mice.
Hank
It sure is, but a lot of “celebrity hunters” don’t portray it that way
But who wants to watch some guy or gal sitting in a blind all day? Like anything else you see on TV that is advertised as “reality”,, it is only those parts of reality that people want to watch.
and that is the best case. Some are actually staged, although it is difficult to stage hunting, you might be surprised what can be done with proper editing.
But persistence is, indeed, the key to continued success. If you know someone who brings home a nice buck every year,, you can be sure that he spends a lot of time in the woods.
Another thing that some overlook is checking cameras too often. They do make trail cameras that can be checked with your cell phone from another state,, but they are expensive and you pay a cellular fee every month. Going in to an area too often to pull the SIM card WILL be noticed.