Transition routes from corn to other cover are excellent locations. A standing- corn edge is one of the few places that we will hunt a field edge. A good example is the inside corner of a field Chris hunts. The corner offers excellent transition cover when the field is in standing corn, and there are always active scrapes in that corner during the rut phases. When the scrapes become active, this location can only be described with superlatives.

Swales surrounded by corn should be checked for travel routes and later in the season for scrape activity. Swales should be hunted in the mornings while catching deer coming in to bed, and an extremely early arrival time is required. Unless the swales are large, your entry for an evening hunt would spook the deer you are pursuing.

Food mast trees, such as oaks surrounded by corn, are excellent locations and can be hunted both mornings and evenings, with the evening hunts requiring a stealthy entrance. Hunting from a tree that offers cover would be our preference, but once the leaves are gone and you are silhouetted against an open sky, a ground blind is the best option.

Fencerows or brushy areas between cornfields are excellent travel routes due to the excellent perimeter cover and quick exit routes, but if there are no trees tall enough offering good cover, then hunt from the ground.

We will not hunt along cornfield edges that border short crop fields or open areas, whether they have fencerows or not. Our success rate when hunting along perimeters of open areas has been poor in pressured areas.

Clear-Cuts
Clear-cuts between three- and 10- years-old should show deer activity. The tops provide great cover and the thick young clear-cuts provide cover and browse. John's youngest son, Joe, shot a nice eight-point in such a location. The clear-cut was right next to where Joe parked and did not offer any suitable trees to hunt from, so he concentrated his efforts on the woods farther back on the property. There was a runway through the clear-cut, along which more and more rubs kept appearing. With this spot in mind, Joe borrowed a pop-up blind from dad, set it up about 20 yards from the runway and hid it in an old pile of slash. Barely settled into the tent, he looked up and noticed a nice buck walking steadily down the runway. The buck covered the remaining distance quickly and offered a 20-yard broadside shot. Joe's shot was true and the buck dashed about 40 yards before toppling in a heap. Joe's adjustment to the ground proved a good decision.

Ground blinds in wooded areas should become part of the natural surroundings for some time prior to the hunt. Anything suddenly out of place in a whitetails world can get extra scrutiny, making it more difficult to get off a shot.

Ground blinds set up in the woods should utilize natural ground cover to make them as inconspicuous as possible. Fallen trees and their root systems, old dead branches and trees and brush from cleared shooting lanes can be utilized as blind material. Camo mesh or 3-D fabric can be used for added cover.

In 2004, John took an eight-point in a primary scrape area on state land from a pop-up blind. Five acres of thick autumn olive bushes surrounded the small open scrape area. The bushes were so dense that while scouting the previous spring he had to occasionally get on his hands and knees and crawl down some of the runways. The lack of any trees made the decision to use a pop-up blind a rather simple one.

That day November 11, at 11 a.m., the buck walked right through the middle of the small opening and stopped to freshen a scrape only eight yards away.

Conclusion
Scent control is a factor that must be considered on the ground because you are at a whitetail's level and so is your odor. We take advantage of technology and wouldn't even consider hunting from the ground without an activated scent control suit, headcover, rubber boots and anything else we had with us being recently washed in a non-scent detergent. You cannot always count on deer coming in from upwind, no matter how well you think you know them, and any deer. Even a doe can spoil your chances at a good buck.

Editors note: The books "Precision Bowhunting" and "Bowhunting Pressured Whitetails," by John and Chris Eberhart are available at: Amazon.com and deer-john.net.