Camping -- How far away from your stand?

[YosemiteSam]

How far away from your stand do you think it's safe to camp?  Last year, I found a more promising area that's about 2 miles from my usual lakeside camp.  So I'm going to try to find something closer.  My usual camp is bivy-style.  Being out most of the day, I rarely build fires.  I just boil water for meals on a little pack stove & clean up at camp at the end of the day before knocking out.

[BAK]

Good question.  I have camped as close as a 1/4 mile before, but usually would try to stay 1/2 to 3/4.  This was for deer.  I believe it would vary by species.

[gvdocholiday]

I would want to be at least a 1/2mile...even though I say at least, I consider a half mile to be almost more than enough 99% of the time.  

Now if I had a cabin or a more permanent shelter, I'd probably cut that in half and still feel comfortable.

[Anointed Archer]

I guess it would also depend on your terrain and if your deer hunting or trophy deer hunting.  We hunt in hilly wooded terrain with rivers and creeks. Some of us have tree stands only couple hundred yards away from camp.

[gvdocholiday]

Originally posted by Anointed Archer:
I guess it would also depend on your terrain and if your deer hunting or trophy deer hunting.  We hunt in hilly wooded terrain with rivers and creeks. Some of us have tree stands only couple hundred yards away from camp.

I guess that what I was getting at with the permanent camps.  I feel deer are more used to these.  My most productive stand is only 125yds from where we make a fire every night.  Northern MI.

[Sam McMichael]

How heavily the hunting area is populated by people has an effect. My small place has houses on all sides, some just a few hundred yards from my stands. These deer are used to having people close by, so they are less affected by smells than other deer I have encountered in areas with few people, except that they learn to be very sneaky. When I camp, I am sometimes close to the deer. They are around but not necessarily in plain view.

[Orion]

On my pack in trips for deer, I used to shoot for about a half mile. Now have a cabin so don't do that anymore,.  Do have a good stand just 300 yards or so from my cabin.

I now get packed in on my Western elk/mule deer hunt.  Not unheard of to have critters come through camp.  A little forky walked up to 5 yards away from me while I was eating dinner last year. I figure I'm hunting as soon as camp is out of sight, which doesn't take long.

I suppose some critters make the camp, but not much one can do about it miles from the trailhead. However, as light as you're camping, you could move every day or so, so they wouldn't be able to pattern you.

[Pat B]

I've set up a stand less than 100 yards from camp and have been successful. It all depends on the terrain and the regular deer movements in the area. I've had deer walk through our camp while we were there and while we were out hunting. Deer are curious animals and will sometime investigate situations that are a bit different than the usual.

[YosemiteSam]

Thank you all for your thoughts.  Typically, the deer here are ghosts -- especially the bucks (15:1 buck:doe ratio out here).  Cowboys will camp at established spots along their routes early in the season.  But most folks pass through on the trail there to better destinations, making this spot get overlooked by a lot of people. I've seen hikers & hunters further up the trail but none near here.  So my camp would be an anomaly.

The area I wanted to focus on is a wooded drainage with several creeks & meadows spread around.  The entire area is less than half a square mile.  Only 400 yards of meadow & timber would separate my camp from one stand location.
 So it sounds like I'd be better off camping by the road that borders it & walk in from there.

Too bad.  I like the solitude & quiet of a remote campsite.  Guess that will have to wait for my late season coastal hunt.

[Dave Lay]

When I was back pack hunting a lot I used 1/4 mile as a minimum, and I never built a fire or anything that would cause a lot of scent.  Also depends on winds and if there is much human activity in the area such as hiking trails etc.