 HOW
TO PICK A STAND SITE
Stadium Seats for Bucks
EDITOR’S NOTE: You can’t bag a buck if
you don’t see the animal. The key to seeing more
bucks on every hunt is knowing how to choose the most-productive
stand sites. Many hunters choose their stand sites using
too little information.
The best way to find a stand site for deer is to utilize
the same procedure you use to find your seat at a football
game. According to Bo Pitman, the manager of White Oak
Plantation near Tuskegee, Alabama, and long-time hunting
guide, “An aerial photo is like having a ticket
to get into a stadium for a football game. On an aerial
photo, you can look at how the ground lies. Each piece
of property is different, and you’ll have to hunt
it differently. Also, with  an
aerial photo, you can identify the road systems to enter
and leave where you’re hunting, the natural barriers,
property lines, bodies of water, large fields and funnels.
You can even distinguish between pinewoods and hardwood
sites on an aerial photo. The textures of the two types
of trees will appear different. Hardwoods will be small,
round, blob-looking things on an aerial, since you’re
actually seeing the tops of the trees. Pine trees will
have a smoother texture to them.”
Pitman, who also uses topographical maps to pinpoint
land changes where he hunts, terms topographical maps
as how he locates the section of the stadium where his
ticket should allow him to sit. “After I study
aerial photos to get me into the land, then I use topo
maps to help me find the very-best places to hunt on
that property,” Pitman continues. “On topo
maps, I look for ridges, valleys and terrain breaks.
However, the problem associated with using topo maps
is they often are not up-to-date. Usually aerial photos
are shot more frequently and contain more up-to-date
information. In the Southeast where I primarily hunt,
one year a field may be planted in cotton, and three
years later loblolly pine 10-feet
tall may be growing there. But to find the row and the
seat that is the best seat at a football game, which
is similar to determining where the most-productive
place is for me to sit to bag a buck, I’ll have
to begin as soon as deer season is over to check the
ground. I’ll walk carefully over the spots I’ve
located on the aerial photos and the topo maps and look
for shed antlers. These antlers will give me an idea
of how many and what size bucks are still on the property.
Also, I can find where the deer are bedding and feeding
and pinpoint their rutting trails. Although you can
wait until summer to do this on-the-ground scouting,
I feel I’m more successful when I scout immediately
after deer season ends. Too, in the summer, you have
to contend with spider webs, snakes and dense undergrowth
when you’re trying to find the best seat in the
stadium for your stand  site.
I choose all my stand sites for the next season as though
I plan to bow hunt from them. I want the stands to be
close to where I expect the deer to appear. Then, I
can take a shot at a deer with a bow at 10 yards or
less. Also, I pick the most-direct route to and from
my stand site so as not to disturb the deer in the area.”
To learn more about Bo Pitman and his expert hunting
tactics, you can purchase John E. Phillips’ book,
“How to Take Monster Bucks – Secrets to
Finding Trophy Deer”. To learn more about this
book, go to http://www.nighthawkpublications.com/hunting/hunting.htm.
You can send a check or a money order to Night Hawk
Publications, 4112 Camp Horner Road, Birmingham, Alabama
35243, or use the PayPal address nighthawkpub@mindspring.com.
TOMORROW: PUBLIC LAND STANDS
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