DIY Watering Hole Installation: How to Keep Deer on Your Land During Summer

We all know deer prioritize food, water and shelter, just like any other living thing. If you don’t have a natural water source on your property you can make your own by digging a hole or by setting up one of our Wild Water Systems. Equip your property with a water source now, during the summer, to bring the deer to your property while it’s hot out. They’ll be seeking more water than they would during the colder months and it gives them the chance to get accustomed to your property before hunting season opens.

Set it up Along a Path

You’ll want to set your water source up next to a travel path. Identify paths the deer use most often by observing them on your trail cameras or tracking prints. Try to set it up near a bedding area so that the deer don’t have to search too far to find it. You can set it up next to your food plot, but make sure you’re giving yourself enough distance so that you can set up your Stump blind near the two spots without directly hunting over either one.

Tips for Creating the Watering Hole

Try to choose a spot that’s in a low-lying area. You’ll get the benefit of natural run-off water filling the source when it rains. Dig a hole about two or three feet deep into the ground. Line the bottom of the hole with a child’s pool or any kind of waterproof lining, such as lining for a pond. You can also bury a multi-gallon bucket.

Make sure you give animals a way to get out if they fall in, like placing something sturdy inside the hole that extends all the way from the bottom of the pool to the top. You can use a solid branch from the trimmings you collect from clearing your shooting lanes.

Make sure there’s some shade from a tree casting over the hole. If you place the watering hole directly in the sun, the water will eventually evaporate.

Use Our Wild Water System

You can also use one of our Wild Water Systems as your water source. The systems come in options of either 50, 100 or 300 gallons. You can fill the main tank and let the automatic shut-off valve do the rest. Whenever deer drink from the system, the mechanism will sense that the trough is empty and refill the troughs. The tank is completely sealed and latched shut, so the water will stay clean. If you use a homemade watering hole, you’ll need to check the water periodically to make sure it’s not filled with algae or otherwise undrinkable. If it is, you’ll need to dump it out and fill it with fresh water.

Wild Water Bladder

Whether you’re using our Wild Water System or a homemade watering hole, you can fill it with our Wild Water Bladder. It holds up to 100 gallons of water, so you can fill it up with minimal trips. Use our Trail Runner 62 Trailer to haul the bladder to your water source. You can secure everything down to the trailer and haul it behind your ATV or UTV around your property.

Create your own water source on your hunting property this summer to make sure the deer herd has adequate nutrition and that your property has everything it needs before the fall hunting season.

How do you install your own waterhole on your hunting property? Let us know in the comments below!