Corn Row Stalking

[Hideandwatch]

I just finished reading one of the articles in the newest issue of Bowhunter magazine that I received today. It mentions one of the options of farm crop hunting to be Corn Row Stalking. I'm wondering if any of you have tried this and how successful has it been? The article mentions that is is a good stradegy for a windy day, to cross the rows slowly and look up and down each row. It just seems like it would be very difficult to channel an arrow down a corn row, without being deflected by a tusk or corn leaf. Evidently deer like to make these fields a bedding ground, and if your lucky, you can catch them bedded and stalk them. What's your thoughts or experiences with this or cropland hunting? ie. corn, bean fields, winter wheat.
:target:

 

[StringShooter]

I have never tried it because I don't have any crops on my property. The corn & beans are on all of the neighbors land.

I have read articles about it and it seems like a challenge for sure. I just set up on the travel routes to the corn and beans and try to get mine as they are coming and going.

 

[coyote170]

I have one area that I hunt that has crops planted on it
but no luck in the corn rows catch them coming and going
like stringshooter but never tried the stalking in the rows!

 

[spectr17]

It's some of the funnest and nerve racking deer hunting you'll ever do. Sometimes you won't see nothing and the next time you poke your head into a row there'll be a deer chewing it's cud 15 feet from you looking the other way.

First, try and get up in a tree to see where the deer are hanging out. They usually will trample a little circle area and you'll also see the trails going in and out. On my Dad's farm last year the does wiped out about a 40 yard circle right near our trailer. You couldn't even see them when they were standing since the corn was so tall. Tracks can help you pinpoint the doors to the cornfields or beanfields. The bucks won't be near the does usually before the corn is harvested. Watch for the yearlings, I've been busted on a few stalks by yearlings I never saw who suddenly popped out to look at the funny hunter on his hands and knees.

Best day to do it is when wind in in your favor from the direction you want to slip in from. I tie a piece of frayed dental floss on my rifle sling and bow to watch the wind and still have it ready for a quick shot.  A change in wind direction and the whole game is over. You may hear the deer unassing the field on the othe side if you're lucky.

One key is to get down first and look under the corn or over the bean field to see if you can spot any bedded or feeding deer. If the beans are short or the rack is tall you'll see the tips of the antlers moving around when they shake the flies off. Use your binos to be sure. One guy near our farm, Randy Simonitch, stalked up to a huge buck in the beans. The older bucks will hold the longest thinking you'll walk right on by. They've got nerves of steel.

You have to move very slowly up and into the corn. Be as noise free in your gear as you can because once your busted those snorting does will alert the whole dang field. Be ready to shoot as you lean out into a row, practice really helps here. You won't be able to jump into the row and get set up perfect. Kind of like shooting from a treestand, bend at the waist. I shot a recurve so once I find a deer I back off, get drawn and then lean out and find my sight picture. The rows are wide enough usually to shoot 20 to 30 yards tops.

Another good time is when the farmers start harvesting which is usually when the rut is getting started too. The deer will hold until the equipment is almost on them. Knowing where they'll run to can pay off  when they stop to look back in the timberline.

Sometimes the deer will be in a position that you can't get a shot at. I carry a hickory nut in my pocket for just this time. A dirt clod works also. Just chuck it in the direction you want the deer to look. If there're bedded they'll stand before moving. You gotta be quick though on the decision to shoot.

Try it, it's some of the best still hunting you'll ever find.

 

[Tinhorn]

I used to have a tape called "Bowhunting October Whitetails" with Barry Wenzel and ? (loaned it out too many times and now it's gone)  This tape shows the technigue Spectr17 describes.  It's one of my favorite tapes, wish I had it back.  I've not tried it (no corn) but the tape says the deer bed in only the grassy areas in the corn,  good to know if that's true

Tinhorn

 

[Chairman]

Wouldn't you know it ~ my neighbors didn't plant any of their fields, this year.  Both fields (on both sides of me) are overgrown with weeds.  It's thick & tall, though.  I'm wondering if the deer will still bed in the weeds?

 

[StringShooter]

Do you know why they decided not to plant? Did they put it in CRP or was the weather not cooperating.

 

[Chairman]

They said they couldn't afford to plant this year.  :frown-blue:

 

[Hideandwatch]

This really sounds like an fun thing to try amidst the tree stand hunting that I will be doing. The article didn't make it sound as dramatic as Jesse did, but, Jesse makes me want to try it out even more. If any of you subscribe to Bohunter magazine, or can pick it up at the store, ya might want to do that. It mentions the stratigies used with how the farmers are harvesting crops. Following the combines and all, and scouting the fields to see whee the deer may exit the fields. I really can't wait for this years archery season to start, it seems it will be far more exciting than any season that I have experienced in California, and I've had some dandies out there.
:target:

 

[jayber]

I was pondering on this very topic the other day. I recalled reading an article like Hideandwatch a year or so ago and was contemplating trying it this year in my hunting area. I had just never heard of anyone else having success with it, other than the authors, before Jesse. Might have to give it a whirl!