Stands good sir.

WSU - I've hunted from stands a few times back out east...a very LONG time ago. So I'm (we) are just sort of re-learning it all over again. One thing I can tell you is that you only need to be in your stands at dawn and dusk (for BT's). Once the sun comes, mature animals will bed down tight for the day. It's best to give em' till 9 am or so, crawl down out of your stand and get into the bush for a daytime still / jump hunt. Or just leave em' completely alone and not pressure their beds.

Both of my animals came within the first and last 5 minutes of hunting hours this year. It's pretty much a 15 - 30 minute window of opportunity....more or less.

Wait until we give our season recap sometime here in the future. We learned some interesting things this year. This was my 3rd year hunting BT's and I don't think I'll ever truly figure them out. The only truisms are to expect the unexpected; their pattern is that they have no pattern; forget what normal deer are "supposed to do" and be in the right place at the right time. Once or twice per ENTIRE YEAR they will make a legit mistake and you have to be right there when it happens.

Also, game cameras are THE most important thing. There is a reason Salmo doesn't see his yard 3 pt. all that often and that his 3 pt. isn't the big daddy that IS there and NOBODY ever sees.

Good luck,