Scrapes....Does he have to use my trail?

[BEN]

Every year the same thing..............I use a machete and pruners and make a nice clear path to my intended hunting area. Using a older climber, I like having a clear path; nothing like CLINK CLANK going through the woods in the early am. Then, right about now, fresh scrapes appear all along my trail. this year the same thing. I caughta glimpse of what appeared to be the largest deer I've ever seen in the woods about 50 yds from my stand the other night right at dusk. I went back out yesterday afternoon and low and behold: 2 large, fresh scrapes right in the middle of my trail, not 150yds. off the road. I followed  it on in to my hunting area and it intersected the trail the large buck was using the other night.
So..............what would you do? Keep using the trail I cut (I WAS here first) and try moving my stand closer to his other trail? Or ?  I'm hunting public ground that is well advertised for deer numbers and it is going to be hit hard the next 2 weeks or so.
Any ideas??

Ben

[doug77]

keep using the trail

doug77

[adkmountainken]

keep using the trail, deer like the easiet route too.

[Whip]

I clear trails to all of my stands too and often run into the same thing.  Wearing rubber boots and being careful not to brush against anything seems to help and I often have deer walk right down a trail I have come in on earlier.

[Chris O]

what they said...

[Shawn Leonard]

Try pouring a little doe in heat in oone of his scrapes and use a drag rag with doe in heat on it and when ya get close to your tree circle it and hang the drag over a limb nearby. Shawn

[BEN]

I guess that's settled! gonna keep doing what I'm doing. Already wear rubber boots and try to keep from brushing anything. Haven't tried the drag line though...might try that in a day or 2. Don't want to over-hunt the spot.

thanks
Ben

[Wudstix]

Same thing happens here in Texas.

[vermonster13]

Now you know he's there. Any good trees along your trail?

[wingnut]

Had the same thing happen years ago elk hunting in Washington.  My buddies and I spent a weekend cutting trails into a couple of spot for treestands.  By the time the season openned a month later the elk were traveling the new trails like clock work.  We ended up taking a couple off of the access trails and never getting one in range from the stands.

Mike

[akbowbender]

A buddy and I cut a quick trail thru the brush so we could portage our boats and gear around a series of logjams on our way to our moose hunting area. The moose started using the trail while we were on the hunt! I guess we should have just setup camp close by and staked out our trail!

[maineac]

since he started using it after yo did, I would say you are not spooking him.

[hickstick]

here in MA its illegal to cut trails on public land so I don't know about it on public land, but I do know that every couple years or so the farm manager on the farm I hunt brush-hogs  trails for his horses and the deer start using them right way.   like ken said...they like the easiest route too.

couple years ago we actually found a new spot in a funnel/escape route we wanted to hang a stand in, but the area is littered with old stone farm fences, some 4 feet high.   with the managers permission we knocked down a small section of a fence to get in there easier.  within a month the deer were using 'our' hole in the fence.    

[J-dog]

They are lazy like us, why walk through all the thick when they have a cleared path. lso scrapes are like business cards, they only work if they are seen by potential customers in this case they need to be in the open.

Jason

[J-dog]

Them being worried by our smell is over hyped I have seen too many come in on my trail overthe years - I use some scent killer and keep my clothes clean but I know I cant be THAT scent free - they have to be able to know I came through there. Know when they are downwind from you while you are in stand, they know you are close! and they will be GONE.

Serioously, though wear some bot pads decent scent product. Or better still cut open the toes of your next kill and get your own interdigital gland secretions put in plastic bag - stick about 6 inches of a foot long piece of rope in the bag rub secretions into rope. Next time into stand tie unscented end of rope to your ankle and drag into set. It works.

J