BROOKHAVEN — Hunters are now on the home stretch for deer season. The special September Velvet season is a month away and bow season will be a little over a month and a half away. 

Time is ticking as the daylight gets shorter gradually every day. Now is the time to get the final pre-season chores finished up. August is a busy and hot time for hunters and habitat managers. 

First, let the day’s conditions dictate what task you tackle. It may not be wise to work yourself into a sweaty mess cutting trails or trimming shooting lanes early in the August heat when you could do other work. Here are a couple of easy tasks. 

Set trail cameras

An easy task for hot days would be to set up your trail cameras at key locations to gather information on the bucks and does who are visiting your property if you do not already have them up. 

Check the batteries and cards to make sure the camera is not dead or the card is full of pictures. Try to remove any possible obstructions such as grass or a sapling. Set the trail camera at about waist height to get photos of deer and other wildlife and be sure the camera faces to the north to prevent sun glares in pictures. 

Check deer stands

If you have left lock-on stands, ladder stands or tripod stands up over the year it might be wise to check these stands before deer season. Ensure your tree stands are safe and secure, check your straps, chains and seats.. 

Wear a safety harness while working in a tree stand and maintain three points of contact with the tree. It might be wise to check the straps and cables on your climbing stand before climbing up into a tree. 

Hunters should clean out their box blinds, remove leaves, debris and check to make sure there are no hornets nests or a raccoon family who has taken up residence. It is not uncommon for people to find vultures in tree stands. Remember to leave these birds alone as they are protected federally. 

While you are getting deer stands checked, it might be a good idea to have your bow and arrows inspected by an archery pro-shop. Arrows could be damaged in the spine or strings might need to be replaced. 

Check back next week for more hunting checklist items. Share with us how you are getting ready for deer season by emailing hunter.cloud@dailyleader.com.