Well I made it out and checked all five cams on monday after a two week soak. This was the only pic I got of any buck worth mentioning and I cant even tell if its the same bucks. Would prefer to have some good pics but there's still time.
I had set up a stand last year in a very thick area that we had discovered on the last day of the 2012-2013 season. There was more fresh sign in the snow than we had ever found on this farm. The deer appeared to funnel along the top of the flat, thick overgrown ridge from their bedding to the corn field. Last season the stand pretty much sucked because the field was in beans. I decided to try and make a small food plot/staging area because their were very few shot opportunities due to it being so thick and they often went by well out of range. I figure if I can get it planted and stay out they will feel comfortable there. Other hunters have stands all around this area but none of them have closed the route from the bedding through the thick stuff so I really think this is my best shot at a deer this season.
When I went in to clear out an area for the plot, the trails were decimated by the deer and there was a huge hole in the ground filled with water where I had once had a trophy rock for two months before moving it. It also looked like they had opened a pretty nice rub next to it. In two hours I was able to clear out a nice sized area and use the trees to funnel them where I want them to come through. I also sprayed it all with weed killer and covered myself in poison ivy/oak
. I am planning to go back in in a week or two and till it up and plant some sort of shade tolerant mix, any suggestions?
The hole and rub:
Before and after:
Sorry about the long post. I also moved a trail cam right next to my stand so I can check it easily, will check it whenever I plant just to see if anything came through. I covered the log in the hole pic with my homemade salt/syrup mix and the cam is over it and the rub.