Editor’s Note: Alan Benton from McDonough, Georgia, has hunted deer for 34 years, starting with his dad when he was 7. He took his first deer when 9-years old. “And I’ve been steadily after deer ever since that day,” Benton says. He hunts with a bow, a rifle, a muzzleloader and also a pistol.

Our bow season generally starts around September 10th in Georgia, which I know is earlier than many states. In some counties in Georgia, the season will stay open until January 31st for some type of deer hunting. A handful of metro counties also will hold a late archery season. So far, I’ve connected with a deer 80% of the time on opening day. I hunt for an opening-day buck, however, my family and I love the taste of venison. So, if I don’t see a buck on opening day, I don’t have a problem taking an older-age-class doe.

I’m often asked when I start scouting for deer. My answer is, “During turkey season.” If I’m hunting new property, I use turkey season to begin my early deer-season scouting. Turkey season provides an opportunity for me to put a mental map in my head for deer season. As you know, the key to taking a turkey is woodsmanship. You have to know where all the creeks, hill, valleys, acorn flats and fields are located to effectively hunt turkeys. So, that same type of scouting I do before and during turkey season is a tremendous benefit to me when deer season arrives. I’m also looking for soft mast that deer will feed on during early bow season, like muscadine vines, wild plums and persimmons. I’ll search for oak flats and ridges that run into oak flats, as well as free-flowing streams and ponds that can provide water for deer during the heat always present at the first of Georgia’s bow season. I’ll also be looking for pitch points and funnels that I can’t spot on aerial maps.

To learn more about deer hunting, check out John E. Phillips’ eBooks, print and Audible books, at johninthewild.com/books/#deer and www.barnesandnoble.com for Nook books. You can type in the name of the book and download it to your Kindle, and/or download a Kindle app for your iPad, SmartPhone or computer. For a free download on how to make jerky from venison to provide a protein-rich snack, choose “How to Prepare Venison Jerky: The Ultimate Snack Food” at johninthewild.com/free-books.

Tomorrow: Use Trail Cameras to Find Deer