After a long deer season, most hunters are ready for a break. Hunters like myself consider deer season a year-round event. The preparations made during the preseason are typically your biggest advantage.

To be honest, this is the first deer season that I couldn't wait to be over. I'm not sure if it was just bad luck, burnt out spots or because of a lack of preparation. I missed the first three weeks of bow season because I was out of town. I also was too busy to clear out all of my stand locations and trail systems, so I was off to a rough start from the word go. To combat this issue in the future, I'm going to leave my girlfriend. Just kidding, I'm going to do as I should have done last winter. There is plenty of time for the most strapped hunter to get their stand sites prepared. The trick is to plan ahead. You also have the opportunity to move stands to new travel routes.

I have been hunting the same stand sites for several years now. It only takes a few years for deer to avoid an area because of your presence. They create new trails that take them away from your setup. There is no exact time limit or guarantee that a stand site will ever burn out. Some stands will produce year after year, while others will experience a decrease in activity after the first year of use. When you see this happening, you need to move or add new stand sites. I pay attention to trails showing signs of heavy use that have no stand on them. I keep them in mind, and when season is over, I get to work. You don't want to move stands mid season because it can take some time for the deer to acclimate to a new object in their core area. It is best to move them now being that you have to go loosen the straps on them any way, and it doesn't matter if you spook the deer while doing it.

It is important to loosen the straps because the tree will damage them as they grow. It is recommended that you remove them every year, but most of us leave them out and replace them every couple years. I will yank a stand that is no longer producing, and place it on the past season's heaviest trails. This is the best time to trim up the shooting lanes and tree. I like to go a bit crazy and cut more than is needed. This will greatly reduce the amount of work for next year’s preseason preparation.