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Tips for Late Season Baiting...??

jagermeister

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
18,060
223
Ohio
You're a smart dude Jim and I respect you as a friend and fellow sportsmen. However I will say this. It's hard to make a definitive assessment of something you've not done. Just sayin.
I'm not making any definitive assessments Jesse. I'm simply stating my opinion. But to your point, I've seen a ton of big deer that met their demise over a bait pile... Quite a few on this website. Now, I'm not taking away from anyone here. Guys here at TOO are some damn fine deer hunters. But I've seen even more killed over bait by guys that couldn't hunt their way out of a paper bag. It just boils down to prime real estate and patience. Just because I don't try it myself doesn't mean I can't form an opinion of it. I've never baited turkeys or ducks either but I know damn well it'd make killing them a lot easier.
 

jagermeister

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
18,060
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Ohio
It was a joke bud.
Ok I thought so. Sorry... Had to be up at 3:30 am today.

Anyway, explain to me what veteran knowledge and skill was involved in the following scenario: Guy places piles of corn on several properties, hangs cameras overlooking the corn piles, keeps refilling corn and checking cams until a big buck shows up on cam, then decides ok I'll hunt that spot and kills said big buck.
 

bowhunter1023

Owner/Operator
Staff member
48,879
274
Appalachia
Nothing. You just described the absolute easiest possibility to that situation. That's not the norm. Per your logic on this situation, I must be one piss poor hunter. I've been feeding late season deer for the past 8 seasons and I'm yet to execute this maneuver. Between pressure and lack of quality set ups, it has proven to be a difficult task. That, or I really need to reassess my ability as a hunter.
 

bowhunter1023

Owner/Operator
Staff member
48,879
274
Appalachia
What's so "easy" about this scenario?

Guy dumps corn all year. Come winter, he gets picks of his target buck coming to the corn at last light. He logs 50 hours in a tree in January chasing said buck in gale force winds, snow, sleet and rain. Guy's target buck never shows in daylight EXCEPT days guy isn't on stand.

That's was January 2008 for me while I was chasing Deuce. Sure wasn't easy.

If I judged my duck and deer hunting on the Robertsons and Waddell, I'd think it was easy stuff. We all know that's not the truth. Certain situations can make things easy, but that doesn't mean the entire process is always easy.
 

jagermeister

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
18,060
223
Ohio
Christ... Entertain me would ya? I didn't ask for your particular experience and I didn't imply that you're a shitty hunter. All I asked was what skill is involved in THAT scenario. Because I believe that scenario happens more than you think it does. But now I'm curious.... Why do you keep doing it of it doesn't pay off? If the baiting doesn't make it easier, why bother?
 

jagermeister

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
18,060
223
Ohio
What's so "easy" about this scenario?

Guy dumps corn all year. Come winter, he gets picks of his target buck coming to the corn at last light. He logs 50 hours in a tree in January chasing said buck in gale force winds, snow, sleet and rain. Guy's target buck never shows in daylight EXCEPT days guy isn't on stand.

That's was January 2008 for me while I was chasing Deuce. Sure wasn't easy.

If I judged my duck and deer hunting on the Robertsons and Waddell, I'd think it was easy stuff. We all know that's not the truth. Certain situations can make things easy, but that doesn't mean the entire process is always easy.
That's just bad luck. Without the corn he likely wouldn't have shown up at all.

---

Ok ok ok... I'll give it a rest. So all you master baiters out there, tell me your secrets to baiting success. What strategies set your bait pile apart from all the rest?
 

jagermeister

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
18,060
223
Ohio
That's just bad luck. Without the corn he likely wouldn't have shown up at all.

---

Ok ok ok... I'll give it a rest. So all you master baiters out there, tell me your secrets to baiting success. What strategies set your bait pile apart from all the rest?
Never mind... I read the first page again. Seems like that about covers it. Lol
 

Jackalope

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Staff member
38,841
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I don't see it as being easier but a different tactic. We use tactics all the time. We constantly shift our methods in order to give us an edge. For example. In some areas it's easier to hunt out of a lock on than a climber, others it's easier to hunt out of a blind, the area dictates the best method. Are we going to look down on a guy because he put up a blind vs trimming 20 limbs off a tree so he could use his climber? And if he's successful out of said blind try to say he took the easy way? Are we going to chastise a person for trimming shooting lanes because it make is easier vs leaving it natural and shooting around it. Are we going to try and claim he took something away from the hunt because he trimmed lanes. That lunacy jB and is the same argument your making. Baiting isn't easier. It's another method. Getting pictures of big bucks over bait is one thing. Killing said buck over bait is a whole other story. If anything IMO it's easier to screw up hunting a big buck by putting bait out than it is to hunt them without it. Big bucks aren't stupid. They know what that bait means. Hence the reason that 99% of them visit in the middle of the night.

The ONLY difference between the story Jesse posted and the one you posted is being successful. Success doesn't define the required effort or a lack thereof. The plan working doesn't mean it was easier than the plan that didn't work.

Explain this to me. This year Alex's buck was shot over bait. There was also another bait pile about 300 yards away placed by another hunter. The other hunters bait was seldom visited during the day. The target buck rarely even went to that bait. Despite it being about the same distance to both piles from where this deer was bedding. Why is that so? What was the difference? You can't just dump a pile anywhere will nilly and expect to kill your target buck over it. As with anything sometimes people get lucky that way. But that is not the norm.
 

jagermeister

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
18,060
223
Ohio
I don't see it as being easier but a different tactic. We use tactics all the time. We constantly shift our methods in order to give us an edge. For example. In some areas it's easier to hunt out of a lock on than a climber, others it's easier to hunt out of a blind, the area dictates the best method. Are we going to look down on a guy because he put up a blind vs trimming 20 limbs off a tree so he could use his climber? And if he's successful out of said blind try to say he took the easy way? Are we going to chastise a person for trimming shooting lanes because it make is easier vs leaving it natural and shooting around it. Are we going to try and claim he took something away from the hunt because he trimmed lanes. That lunacy jB and is the same argument your making. Baiting isn't easier. It's another method. Getting pictures of big bucks over bait is one thing. Killing said buck over bait is a whole other story. If anything IMO it's easier to screw up hunting a big buck by putting bait out than it is to hunt them without it. Big bucks aren't stupid. They know what that bait means. Hence the reason that 99% of them visit in the middle of the night.

The ONLY difference between the story Jesse posted and the one you posted is being successful. Success doesn't define the required effort or a lack thereof. The plan working doesn't mean it was easier than the plan that didn't work.

Explain this to me. This year Alex's buck was shot over bait. There was also another bait pile about 300 yards away placed by another hunter. The other hunters bait was seldom visited during the day. The target buck rarely even went to that bait. Despite it being about the same distance to both piles from where this deer was bedding. Why is that so? What was the difference? You can't just dump a pile anywhere will nilly and expect to kill your target buck over it. As with anything sometimes people get lucky that way. But that is not the norm.

A couple things. First, I never once said we should chastise, or look down upon, or take anything away from anyone killing a deer over bait. Yes I agree with you that baiting is a method. It's a hunting method that uses a deer's weakness against it... Like taking advantage of a rut crazed buck looking for pussy. Totally agree with you. All I've been saying is it makes things easier, not easy, and that I don't believe it's rocket science to be successful with bait.

Secondly, the difference between Alex's bait pile and the other guy's... I'm going to guess it's either one or all of the following: better cover, better wind direction, better entry/exit, better scent control, or any other basic strategy of not getting busted by a deer. Again, I didn't say a willy-nilly approach will yield results... I said a basic understanding of deer will yield results. Well, that, and some luck of course... Like with any other strategy.
 

TripleA88

*Supporting Member*
I don't see it as being easier but a different tactic. We use tactics all the time. We constantly shift our methods in order to give us an edge. For example. In some areas it's easier to hunt out of a lock on than a climber, others it's easier to hunt out of a blind, the area dictates the best method. Are we going to look down on a guy because he put up a blind vs trimming 20 limbs off a tree so he could use his climber? And if he's successful out of said blind try to say he took the easy way? Are we going to chastise a person for trimming shooting lanes because it make is easier vs leaving it natural and shooting around it. Are we going to try and claim he took something away from the hunt because he trimmed lanes. That lunacy jB and is the same argument your making. Baiting isn't easier. It's another method. Getting pictures of big bucks over bait is one thing. Killing said buck over bait is a whole other story. If anything IMO it's easier to screw up hunting a big buck by putting bait out than it is to hunt them without it. Big bucks aren't stupid. They know what that bait means. Hence the reason that 99% of them visit in the middle of the night.

The ONLY difference between the story Jesse posted and the one you posted is being successful. Success doesn't define the required effort or a lack thereof. The plan working doesn't mean it was easier than the plan that didn't work.

Explain this to me. This year Alex's buck was shot over bait. There was also another bait pile about 300 yards away placed by another hunter. The other hunters bait was seldom visited during the day. The target buck rarely even went to that bait. Despite it being about the same distance to both piles from where this deer was bedding. Why is that so? What was the difference? You can't just dump a pile anywhere will nilly and expect to kill your target buck over it. As with anything sometimes people get lucky that way. But that is not the norm.

I got mad skillz
 

Kaiser878

Senior Member
2,633
97
ohio
IMO the biggest things people who hunt bait mess up on is this.
1. Put to little corn out.
2. Don't have an understanding of where the deer is coming from and set up wrong with the wind.
3. Don't have good access and said deer watches them walk in.... and doesn't come in
4. Hunt to close to bait and get busted by does.
5. Exit the tree with deer still standing at corn... resulting in bumping deer.
6. Hunt the bait in the morning
 

Diablo54

Senior Member
7,082
126
Outside
IMO the biggest things people who hunt bait mess up on is this.
1. Put to little corn out.
2. Don't have an understanding of where the deer is coming from and set up wrong with the wind.
3. Don't have good access and said deer watches them walk in.... and doesn't come in
4. Hunt to close to bait and get busted by does.
5. Exit the tree with deer still standing at corn... resulting in bumping deer.
6. Hunt the bait in the morning

What is your best method for figuring out where they are coming from? Extra cameras in the area? Sitting back from afar?