Hinge Cutting A Funnel

This off season I am going to utilize a method of hinge cutting in order to create a funnel.  To give a little insight as to why I am doing it let me explain; My father has limited mobility in his legs so stand selection for him is quite restricted. It has to be a clear path to and from his stand with no muddy areas. This leaves him hunting the field edge. And because we don't own a high fence ranch and the deer here in Northeast Wisconsin come and go with no rhyme or reason you have to get smart. For these reasons I plan on bringing the bucks to him rather than him to the bucks. In order to accomplish this though one needs to consider a few things. First you must have an good idea as to the existing travel patterns of the bucks. Things like where they are coming from and where they are headed. Creating your own funnel will only work if you make their travel easier and more appealing but not change their overall direction of travel. Next you should consider the forest floor and vegetation. Find the lowest route and attempt to use it or at minimum work off of it. In my experience big bucks like to travel in the lowest thickest areas. Cover you can create quickly but terrain takes way more planning and heavy equipment. So once you know where you are pulling the bucks from and find the lowest travel route; you are ready to create the perfect ambush spot.
So how do we take this perfect spot and make it appeal to the big bucks? Easy, you make it easier to walk for the deer than the surrounding terrain and create a false sense of security. To make it the path of least resistance for the bucks you simply mow a narrow path if it tall grass or clear a hole through the brush. You want to clear this path either to an existing known travel route or until you reach thicker cover. While making your path, don't move logs or fallen trees out of the way. Instead leave them where they are and cut a path through them hence clearing a small section of the tree. If you make the mistake of moving the whole log chances are you will push or drag it parallel to your created trail which makes the deer feel trapped.

Now that you have created a clear walking trail it is time to make it a buck trail and not just a deer trail. To do this you must create cover around your new trail but not close it off. This is done by hinge cutting the small trees and saplings next to your trail on both sides. Now when you hingecut these trees you do not want to be doing it low to the ground but rather four to five feet up off of the ground. And the other key element to its success is you do not want to pull the trees parallel to your selected trail but rather perpendicular. And another trick that seems to work is pulling the saplings across the trail instead of pushing them away. If you choose to pull them across make sure you are making the cuts high enough and your not making the trail too narrow. Another thing I have found is if you then create a few shooting windows or holes in to the path. This is particularly crucial on a path to a field or food plot for the bucks entering the path from the field. Because the big bucks don't like to be in the open so they are usually moving off of the field in a hurry. Then when they enter the tree line they will many times stop to scan for danger and hopefully that pause happens in your shooting window. The same goes for bucks entering the field. Many times they will stand a few feet inside the tree line and make a last second scan for danger.

Remember this isn't a fool proof approach but trust that with a little practice it is deadly. I hope this tactic can help some of you who may have mobility issues or someone who simply finds bucks coming and going without any rhyme or reason.