How to Hunt Deer: Everything You Need To Start Deer Hunting

Why do people hunt deer?

Before we get into how to hunt deer, let’s first talk about why we hunt deer.  For each hunter, this is a personal choice and there may be multiple reasons, including feeding your family and becoming closer to nature.  At its core, hunting is about conservation.  Wildlife, such as white-tailed deer must be controlled to ensure they do not overpopulate for the environment in which they live.  Too much of a good thing is a bad thing.  An overpopulation of deer can be devastating to the local ecosystem, as well as the deer herd that calls the area home.

Understanding that there is a need for hunting doesn’t mean one has to participate in the art of hunting, but the hunting community welcomes all people to give hunting a try.  There’s no better feeling than sharing a wild game meal with friends and family after a successful hunting season.

Many people find themselves hunting for the first time after being repulsed by the commercial meat industry.  The growth hormones, antiboitcs, meat glue, and other garbage that’s found in today’s food supply is far from clean, healthy organic meat that mother nature provides.  For most, many hunters would prefer a venison steak over a store-bought steak any day.

With hunting, you must first learn to appreciate that in order for something to live, one must die.  And that is the unfortunate side-effect of hunting is that a living animal must die in order for another to live.  So don’t take the act of killing an animal lightly, and there’s a tasteful way to present yourself as a hunter to those who don’t hunt.  You can rest assured that the wild game meat that you’re eating wasn’t bred for the sole purpose of feeding humans., but it had a chance to live a natural life and that’s something that the commercial farming operation cannot offer. Being a food hunter does not assuage the need to treat the animal I hunt ethically and humanely, meaning that it will not suffer, take what needs to be taken, and do what is best for the wild population.

Now, when it’s time to perform the act of killing an animal, it’s your job as a hunter to ensure that the animal doesn’t suffer by taking ethical shot opportunities and being capable of taking the shot when the time comes.

Hunting Techniques

There are two major techniques for hunting deer: stand-hunting and still-hunting.  Both of these have advantages and disadvantages of the other and you should consider trying both options at various times in the season.

• Stand Hunting involves sitting in a treestand or ground blind and waiting for a deer to come through the area so that you can get a shot.  This requires scouting and being prepared for the day’s hunt or have a solid gameplan for the day’s hunt if you’re a mobile hunter or saddle hunter.   Hunting from a blind will help you stay warm and dry during harsh conditions, whether it be rain or snow.  Treestand hunting provides a unique hunting experience that helps you get above the deer and hopefully provides an up-close encounter.
• Still-Hunting (or stalking) is when you move quietly on the ground to sneak up on a deer or other game animal.  This requires skill and luck, as you’re entering into a deer’s comfort zone, hoping to sneak close enough for a shot opportunity.  This can be performed blindly, meaning you walk slowly and cautiously through your hunting area, scanning the horizon and everything in between for deer and other animals.  Be extra cautious and slow as you walk around and you might just find a deer over the next crest.  Now, if you want to step it up a notch, consider spot-and-stalk hunting, where you see a deer from a distance and you try to sneak up close enough to get a shot.  This is best done in fairly open country and is my favorite method of hunting.

Scent Control Practices for Deer Hunting:

If you open hunting magazine or a hunting show on TV, chances are you’ll see them using some form of scent-control when hunting.  The goal is to reduce unwanted odors and be undetected in the woods when hunting.  Now, try as you might, you can’t eliminate all odors but with a good scent control routine, you can decrease your human odor and increase your odds of deer coming into range.  Follow this 11 Step Scent Control Process for Better Deer Hunting Success.

Scent-blocking products are widely available at most online retailers but my favorite scent blocker to use for hunting is a combination of Elimishield Hunt products and ozone.  Ozone is an effective way to eliminate unwanted odors and I treat all of my hunting clothing and gear with ozone before a hunt if possible.  The goal is to remove as much unwanted human odor as possible and ozone will certainly help.

We can’t talk about scent control without discussing the wind direction and learning how to hunt the wind.  Understanding that if the wind is blowing in your face, everything to your back will be able to smell you might seem like a simple concept but unfortunately, there are a lot of changing winds during the hunt that you should be prepared for.  Utilizing mobile hunting applications such as OnX Hunt make is very easy to visualize a hunting location with a good wind vs a bad wind.

Imagine your scent as a cone projecting out from your body. The farther out it goes, the wider and less concentrated it becomes.  Now, factor in the best scent control regimen, including the use of an Ozonics device during the hunt, and you can decrease how far and wide your scent travels.

A combination of scent control products and hunting the wind will keep you from getting busted as often.

What are the Best Times to Hunt?

The Best Time of Day Hunt is early morning and the last couple of hours before dark. Deer move the most during daylight hours just after sunrise and just before sunset.  The beginning and end of daylight hours are often the best times to be in the woods, as deer are either going to and from food sources to bedding areas. Different states have different legal shooting hours, so do your research and plan accordingly. For instance, my home state defines legal shooting light as 30 minutes before sunrise and 30 minutes after sunset.  It’s best to be in the treestand or blind at least thirty minutes before shooting light to let the woods settle and be prepared to stay there after sunset to avoid spooking game, especially if hunting near food sources.

The Best Time of Season to Hunt is during the whitetail rut, when bucks are on their feet looking for does (female deer) to breed with.  This time of the year can be magical with new bucks popping up as they search for a receptive doe.  The rutting action observed during this time, from late October through the end of November for most of us around the country, can be exciting, to say the least.  Another great time of the year to hunt is during the early season over a food source, especially for archery hunting.  Deer are very patternable during this time and there’s been very little human pressure nearby to mess things up and spook them!

Stand-Hunting Tips

When hunting from a treestand, you should always wear a safety harness.  Just like you would wear a safety harness at work when working from heights (as required by OSHA) it’s important to practice the same level of safety when hunting from a treestand as well.  You should be tied off at all times, even when climbing in and out of the stand.  Also, never climb into a stand carrying a loaded gun.  Make sure it is unloaded before hoisting the gun or crossbow up into a stand.

Strategies for treestand placements include using the wind to your advantage and never positioning your treestand where deer can be get downwind of you.  See the Scent Control Practices for Deer Hunting section for more information.  Remember that scent cone?  If so, place your stand where your scent cone will not come in contact with a deer and you can learn more about this using the OnX Hunt app.

Advantages of hunting from a treestand include having a better view of your hunting area so that you can observe approaching animals for easily.  Also, your scent control can be improved by getting higher above the animal and your scent cone travels above them sometimes!  Shot angles can be trickier in a treestand and it’s important to practice shooting from an elevated platform before attempting to shoot a deer from a treestand.  Lastly, don’t forget to check your shooting lanes when hanging treestands so that you have enough room to take the shot, but not so much that you don’t have any cover.

Still-Hunting Tips (Spot and Stalk Hunting)

Still hunting is best performed with a gun as most shot opportunities are presented at distances further than most hunter’s effective shooting distance with a bow.  A couple of times per year, I’ll pick up a rifle or muzzleloader and go on a long, methodical walk through the mountains in hopes of crossing the track of a big buck!  I am the most successful at still hunting during a light rain or after a soft, fresh snowfall.  The fresh tracks in the snow are the perfect way to identify a deer’s travel routes and once you spot the track, you can keep walking until you catch up with deer.

During light rains, the sound of you walking through the leaves and across the other terrain features is quietened and you can eliminate one of a deer’s critical senses that it uses to avoid you most of hunting season, its ability to hear you coming!  The key to still hunting and spot and stalk hunting is to move slowly – a step or two every few minutes, while scanning the area for deer during the process.  Keep your movements to a minimum and pay attention because a deer will most likely be bedded down making it even harder to spot.

What Clothes Do You Need to Hunt Deer?

HuntingGearDeals.com has a bunch of hunting clothing reviews and information about hunting clothing brands and options that are best for deer hunting.  Clothing options will vary based on the environmental conditions, such as how hot or cold it is during the hunt. There are a lot of great hunting clothing options for hunters on the market from brands like KUIU, Sitka Gear, and First Lite.  However, you might find better deals and discounts from brands like ScentLok or Nomad.

It’s best to dress in layers, as temperatures and conditions will change throughout your hunt.  Don’t forget that most states have a blaze orange requirement during gun season as well.  For a detailed comparison between Sitka Gear and KUIU, check out this blog post: KUIU vs Sitka Gear: Which Hunting Camo is Best for Me?

Guns and Gun Safety

Safety first!  It’s always recommended that new hunters take a firearms safety course, as well as your hunter safety education course.  General gun safety includes treating all guns like a loaded gun, keeping your finger off the trigger until it’s time to shot, always point the muzzle in a safe direction.  It should go without needing to be said but never point a gun at anything you’re not prepared to kill, and always know what’s behind your target.  Each hunting season, we hear about someone being shot by a fellow hunter because they failed to properly identify what they were aiming at before taking a shot.

Trying to figure out which gun to buy can be difficult for a new hunter.  I made a huge mistake on my first hunting rifle purchase as the gun was too heavy for me to shoulder as a youth and I never really liked the gun as I got older.  There are different types of guns that you should be familiar with for deer hunting.

• Centerfire Rifle:
  • The further shooting, most powerful gun on this list is the centerfire rifle.  They come in a variety of calibers specific to various hunting scenarios a game species, but anything larger than a .243 caliber will do the trick.  Look for a budget-friendly option like a .308 to get started with as it can be used for a wide variety of hunting scenarios and ammo is readily available.  These guns are often considered a long-range rifles and some states limit their use during the hunting season, especially in area of flat terrain.
• Straight-wall Cartridge Rifle:
  • The straight-walled cartridge has become very popular amongst deer hunters in recent years because of its incorporation into traditional shotgun seasons.  Straighwall cartridges, such as the 45-70, 350 Legend , and .450 Bushmaster are growing in popularity in states where it’s legal to use them in place of shotgun. I have a Bear Creek Arsenal .350 Legend and really like it!  Many of these gun calibers are carried as brush guns, which is a short-barreled guns that are good for spot and stalk hunting, as well as deer drives.
• Muzzleloaders:
  • The age-old tradition of black powder rifles is a staple in the hunting culture and there are seasons designed specifically for hunting with muzzleloading.  These guns require you to load the power and projectiles from the barrel end and in years past, you were limited with your effective range.  However, during a recent podcast interview with CVA, I learned that they have a muzzleloader capable of shooting 3″ groups at 800 yards!

Other Things Deer Hunters Should Know Before You Start Hunting

Shooting Techniques and Practice

Practicing with your hunting equipment is extremely important, whether it be a bow or gun.  When it comes to shooting a firearm, you need to have a firm rest for the gun but not too tight of a grip that you don’t push the shot.  The most important part is the squeeze of the trigger, which can be applied to archery hunting as well.  Slowly squeeze the trigger while focusing on your aiming point is the key to consistent accuracy with both a gun and a bow.

Where to Shoot a Deer:

Learning the anatomy of deer is just as important.  You must understand the importance of hitting the appropriate vitals, the heart, and lungs, to ensure a quick and humane kill.  You’ll want to aim just behind the shoulder, about 4 to 6 inches above the belly line in height.  Also, the positioning of the animals dictates where you should aim as well.  It’s best to take a broadside shot or a slightly quartering away shot on big game such as deer.  If hunting from elevation, you need to adjust accordingly and aim for where you want the arrow or bullet to exit the deer.

Field Dressing and Transporting

Once you’ve shot a deer, what do you do?  Well, now the work begins!  It’s time to field-dress the deer, removing the entrials and preparing to cold down the carcass to ensure that it doesn’t spoil.  If some remote areas, it may be necessary to quarter the deer, but with the help of a buddy, you should be able to drag the deer out of most places.  They also make game carts and an ATV works great as well!  As for processing the deer, I would recommend that you find a good butcher shop until you’re ready to tackle the job of processing your own game at home.