I agree with all 5, I would add play the wind, wrong access, and making noise setting up. When I’ve made noise setting up I never seen deer. It’s very hard to be very quiet when dealing with metal platforms and sticks etc…
I agree with all these other than #3. All my best spots are .5 miles or more in. I’ve tried and tried so many times to find good spots close to roads or parking lots but the ones with good thick cover are already getting hunted hard because of easy access, or many are very open woods. I think one you missed is guys scouting at the wrong times. By far Jan-April are the best times to scout. Summer boots on the ground scouting I see done by guys far too often and the deer sign they see in the summer generally won’t be there in the fall.
