It’s safe to say that success favors those prepared. Scouting for your hunt or understanding areas you may want to hunt is directly tied to preparing. Everyone prepares for their hunts differently, and there is nothing wrong with that. In fact, the mountains have a lot to offer for everyone.
As I complete my pre-season e-scouting, I find myself scouting and hunting in the sparse pinyon and juniper zone along with sagebrush hills. This zone is prime for mule deer. The typical slightly rolling terrain gives the animals enough cover for grazing. In most places I hunt, the sagebrush is well over five feet tall and at times difficult to walk through. This gives me the best opportunity to just sit and glass from a distance.
My pre-season e-scouting is completely different from mid-season e-scouting. By mid-season, I understand much more about the tree cover, terrain, and water resources. Waypoint management is key to mid-season success. As I am out in the field and gain a much better understanding of the area, I try to find as much “ground” information as I possibly can. Water resources are a big deal to me and where I hunt. When scouting is slow, I try to find as many water resources as I can. I also look for areas for bedding, game trails, and those areas where deer like to hide. We recommend using onXmaps while out in the field, and soon, you will be able to import all of your waypoints because we are working on an import tool! This tool will allow you to import all of your waypoints from your preferred data collection source.
We spent a lot of time developing our waypoint management system. Did you know that you can store all of your waypoints in folders? This is the first 3D mapping tool that allows full control over all of your waypoints. Most guys in our office have hundreds of waypoints, and trying to manage those waypoints can be a nightmare. Our folder system gives you the ability to turn grouped or entire folders on and off, share, and modify your waypoints. Understanding our 3D Hunt Planner waypoint management system can help you during your mid-season e-scouting sessions.
We have a wide range of waypoints to choose from. These waypoint icons were developed to help give you a better understanding of your e-scouting sessions. If you don’t see what you are looking for, let us know. We are always looking for ways to improve your e-scouting sessions.
Next month, we will dive deeper into our waypoint management system, but in the meantime, take a look at our “Mapping Minutes” on the Huntin’ Fool YouTube channel.
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