2013 Prep work? What are you doing to prep for the 2013 Hunting Season?

[josephmrtn]

you don't need a doe in heat. but wouldn't you like one? I guess we're not going to see eye to eye on this. But where there are doe, there will be bucks. Same thing goes for turkey. You can kill them off the roost, but you can also imitate a hen and call one in. I've killed my fair share of lone bucks as well. There is no "right way" or "one way" to hunt. It's a mixture of a lot of things.

that works great in the rut but wont work on Oct 1st as phade mentioned... 

 

No, actually I wouldn't over a pattern. What I would like is an early season pattern of bed to food and food to bed. Or a midday bed to water pattern. Or a late season pattern of bed to food and food to bed (I can hear Doc screaming, but he's not getting the whole picture on my statements). Those are WAY more reliable than a doe in heat, which all you do is roll the dice in a funnel or near a doe bedding area. Do I totally discount rut hunting? Not at all, but it doesn't take near as much skill, although, it is very effective at times on random bucks. I really enjoy sitting in a funnel for that type of action. The problem I have with your thought process is that you seem to rely ONLY on rut principles. If you can get past that, the chances for taking nice bucks goes way up. Open your eyes to hunting bucks based on their beds more, that's what I'm saying. Eye to eye.

 

Where there are does, there will only really be bucks for a short window of time. The season starts Oct. 1 here, Belo. Not Halloween weekend.

I think both of your Ideas are good.... I would be a stupid fool to not use your tactics in early season phade, but I also try to use Belo's tactics as well during the rut since we dont have a SUPER bedding area on our place... (they bed across the road usually)

 

I agree! You need to change your tactics as the rut phases change. Hunting scrapes wont work the first weekend or probably even the last weekend for that matter. Obviously you wont see bucks breeding does on October 1st so you need to use a different tactic if you are gonna hunt then. Food sources and bedding areas are key during the early season!

+1 You've got it ArrowFlinger !!!!!

[phade]

that works great in the rut but wont work on Oct 1st as phade mentioned... 

 

I think both of your Ideas are good.... I would be a stupid fool to not use your tactics in early season phade, but I also try to use Belo's tactics as well during the rut since we dont have a SUPER bedding area on our place... (they bed across the road usually)

 

+1 You've got it ArrowFlinger !!!!!

 

Remember, you are not looking for "they"...you are looking for "him" when it comes to hunting beds. I see it referenced several times by several users here. Not all deer are created equal. You don't need a bedding area per say. You need to know that buck's bed.

 

I use multiple tactics as seasons progress, but beds are good throughout the season. Say November 10...I often sit multiple stands for the day, 2, maybe three. I time them with deer activity. I'll target a bed first thing in the a.m. and transition to a doe bedding area mid morning, and then a funnel for midday...sometimes I'll work back to the doe bedding for evening. Why sit in a funnel all day when the bucks will go to bed for a short period of time in the a.m. and then target doe beds after getting up and getting water? Water holes are another rut must-have to sit...rarely do you hear of people sitting water holes then. I actually think they are MORE valuable then, than in early season to a degree, for mature bucks.

[josephmrtn]

Remember, you are not looking for "they"...you are looking for "him" when it comes to hunting beds. I see it referenced several times by several users here. Not all deer are created equal. You don't need a bedding area per say. You need to know that buck's bed.

 

I use multiple tactics as seasons progress, but beds are good throughout the season. Say November 10...I often sit multiple stands for the day, 2, maybe three. I time them with deer activity. I'll target a bed first thing in the a.m. and transition to a doe bedding area mid morning, and then a funnel for midday...sometimes I'll work back to the doe bedding for evening. Why sit in a funnel all day when the bucks will go to bed for a short period of time in the a.m. and then target doe beds after getting up and getting water? Water holes are another rut must-have to sit...rarely do you hear of people sitting water holes then. I actually think they are MORE valuable then, than in early season to a degree, for mature bucks.

Yes but it helps if there are some deer in the area (i think) 

[Arrow Flinger]

PHADE....what do you do during the chasing and breeding phases for hunting a bucks bed? I would think a bucks bedding at this time would be random because you never know where he'll end up after chasing does all night. Just curious. I hunt bedding areas alot, probably more than any other tactic, but I've never tried to key in on a particular bucks bed. I mostly look for big rubs to let me know he's bedding in a particular thicket .Anything wrist size or bigger.

[phade]

Mature bucks can be very sketchy animals. Sometimes they'll tolerate other deer, but sometimes they will not and prefer solitary locations. Never a rule, but bedding areas can be misleading. Big difference between knowing a bedding area, and knowing a buck bed.

 

Use things like wind direction, elevation/topo maps, etc. to start narrowing down where to really look for beds.

[josephmrtn]

Guys just so you all know phade is a lot like wooly is in finding sheds... lol he seems to know his stuff... lol lol

[Arrow Flinger]

Mature bucks can be very sketchy animals. Sometimes they'll tolerate other deer, but sometimes they will not and prefer solitary locations. Never a rule, but bedding areas can be misleading. Big difference between knowing a bedding area, and knowing a buck bed.

 

Use things like wind direction, elevation/topo maps, etc. to start narrowing down where to really look for beds.

My main problem is that most of the deer where I hunt bed in these pine thickets that are so thick you can only see 10 feet into them. There no way of going in them and hunting, so I do the next best thing and hunt the edges of them where the biggest buck sign is.

[phade]

PHADE....what do you do during the chasing and breeding phases for hunting a bucks bed? I would think a bucks bedding at this time would be random because you never know where he'll end up after chasing does all night. Just curious. I hunt bedding areas alot, probably more than any other tactic, but I've never tried to key in on a particular bucks bed. I mostly look for big rubs to let me know he's bedding in a particular thicket .Anything wrist size or bigger.

 

First, I'm not an expert on beds yet, so let me preface that. But, I am pretty far into the game, being my third season of such tactics. In the three seasons, I've shot a 3.5, and a 5.5+ before the month of October was out. The third season I targeted a sole buck and he was shot the morning after the first time I saw him in the stand and I didn't find out about it for quite sometime, so I was hunting a ghost that didn't exist.

 

There's a bit of hyped up legendry when it comes to bucks, especially mature bucks, during the chasing and breeding phase. The TV world hypes up the slobbering, care to the wind, mistake ridden bucks. In reality, they're certainly more vulnerable based on the amount of daytime movement - but let's not get crazy here. The hype is the exception and not the rule. We have all seen instances of bucks making boneheaded mistakes. The problem is those are the one's people recall or remember. The majority of bucks in the chasing and breeding are still vulnerable, but they're not stupid. People forget the times where a buck follows a doe, then pauses and side steps a trail and continues on after the doe. Or the buck just out of range, etc. It's not happenstance all the time - they picked the hunter off somehow in many instances.

 

And contrary to belief, not all bucks are roamers. You really have two categories there...residents/homebodies and roamers. With much of the state being high doe to buck ratios, bucks don't have to travel far to find and tend receptive does. So, here, even the roamers are less "roamy" on par with midwest states. Bucks will maintain a bit of habit during this phase...and when they do stray far, it's almost always for 72 hours or less (according to most academic studies) at a pop, before returning to "home base". Rarely does a buck leave for a week, etc. The other thing about buck beds, is that the best buck bed is the best buck bed. Multiple bucks will use a given bed. If the dominant buck isn't there, one will backfill it. It may be subordinate younger buck, or in the case of the chasing/breeding phase, it may be another mature buck on a "roam." So, given in the rut, while a buck may bed elsewhere on a "roam"...the quality buck bed doesn't suddenly become less useful...it's just as desireable to the next buck or the buck roaming through that parcel at that time.

 

One thing to caution you on is don't give credence to a mature buck bed having rubs on or nearby. It runs about 50-50 from what I have seen, and Infalt and others have stated the same too. The 5.5+ I shot last year wasn't rubbing a thing within 100 yards of his bed. In fact, there was very little rubbing in that entire multiflora bedding patch when I busted through there this post season, and there was at least another 3.5 or 4.5 bedding in there at the same timeframe.

[phade]

Guys just so you all know phade is a lot like wooly is in finding sheds... lol he seems to know his stuff... lol lol

 

Nah, I'm no different than others. No better, no worse. I'm a bit harsh here on this site, but I see more misinformation that I can take, ha. I'm just as eager to learn from those who know and also new people who sometimes wow me with things I never realized or thought of. One of the things that I just can't stand is when people try to say that bucks bed without purpose or regard because it's patently false. And, I understand why they say things like that because I used to be in that camp.

 

Learning how to target bucks and their beds was a major milestone for me when it comes to hunting them. I understand why people have a hard time adjusting to it, because it's a major shift in their hunting philosophy and experiences. It was a big issue for me...once I got over it I started connecting the dots.

[phade]

My main problem is that most of the deer where I hunt bed in these pine thickets that are so thick you can only see 10 feet into them. There no way of going in them and hunting, so I do the next best thing and hunt the edges of them where the biggest buck sign is.

 

If you find the actual buck beds in the post season, you can then use them to your advantage come next fall. Sometimes when I hunt a buck bed, I am 50-75 yards away; others, I am 200. The key is to know the bed location, how's transit to and from takes places, and where the end goal is for the buck.

 

A buck has a safe zone...which is the area he feels safe being on his feet between his bed and the point of darkness. Sometimes this can be 50 yards or less, and others it can be longer. The key is to be set up on the edge of that safe zone without penetrating it to alert him. Some people confuse this with a staging area.

 

So, now that you know where the buck bed is and the paths he takes, you identify the spots where you can set up. Let me ask you this, does it really matter if you can only see 10 feet? What about height? Does it matter if you are only 5' off the ground or 12' or 15' or 18'? No. What you want is to intercept that buck before he knows you are there. If that means being on a stand platform at 5' feet with 10' of visibility, but I know that buck travels that path out of his bed...guess what? I'm hunting there. If I played my cards right and did my due diligence, he'll know about me after the Grim Reaper opened up inside him.

 

Now, if you legitiamately cannot penetrate the pines, you still have value in knowing where the bed is or beds are. Say you find a bed and it has two paths. Which one does he take? Well, what would be the logical food source? For example, (just example sake) you have the thicket, and the bed in the middle of that thicket. The bed has two paths - one east, one west. You have alfalfa on an east field and corn on another. Well, scout the paths. Look for rub direction indicationg travel outward. If that peters out - grab a spotlight and shine the alfalfa field right after dusk. Is he there? Yes. Then, guess what? You know which path he takes. No? Chances are he went to the corn. If the corn is down, shine that field. Come back about 3:30-4:30 a.m. and repeat. Is the buck now in the alfalfa? Yes. Great...now you know he exits to the corn, and re-enters from the path on the alfalfa side. You may figure out it's wind related, or influenced by vantage point.

 

Knowing all of this, you can then set up on the appropriate edge and see if he makes it there by end of hunting time.

 

I personally would target transition lines for buck beds. Look where the pines start and meet hardwoods, a field edge, multiflora, etc. Usually they'll let the wind come from the pines and they'll look over the open area on the transition line, allowing vision to play defense in areas where the nose cannot. Make sense?

[Pav2704]

How do you tell the difference between a buck and doe bed without using a trail camera or actually bumping the deer? 

[phade]

A combination of things, really.

 

Track size and width, pellet size, rubs, circumfrence of the bed, isolated bed or multiple beds facing different directions...plenty of things show you the difference.

[Arrow Flinger]

If you find the actual buck beds in the post season, you can then use them to your advantage come next fall. Sometimes when I hunt a buck bed, I am 50-75 yards away; others, I am 200. The key is to know the bed location, how's transit to and from takes places, and where the end goal is for the buck.

 

A buck has a safe zone...which is the area he feels safe being on his feet between his bed and the point of darkness. Sometimes this can be 50 yards or less, and others it can be longer. The key is to be set up on the edge of that safe zone without penetrating it to alert him. Some people confuse this with a staging area.

 

So, now that you know where the buck bed is and the paths he takes, you identify the spots where you can set up. Let me ask you this, does it really matter if you can only see 10 feet? What about height? Does it matter if you are only 5' off the ground or 12' or 15' or 18'? No. What you want is to intercept that buck before he knows you are there. If that means being on a stand platform at 5' feet with 10' of visibility, but I know that buck travels that path out of his bed...guess what? I'm hunting there. If I played my cards right and did my due diligence, he'll know about me after the Grim Reaper opened up inside him.

 

Now, if you legitiamately cannot penetrate the pines, you still have value in knowing where the bed is or beds are. Say you find a bed and it has two paths. Which one does he take? Well, what would be the logical food source? For example, (just example sake) you have the thicket, and the bed in the middle of that thicket. The bed has two paths - one east, one west. You have alfalfa on an east field and corn on another. Well, scout the paths. Look for rub direction indicationg travel outward. If that peters out - grab a spotlight and shine the alfalfa field right after dusk. Is he there? Yes. Then, guess what? You know which path he takes. No? Chances are he went to the corn. If the corn is down, shine that field. Come back about 3:30-4:30 a.m. and repeat. Is the buck now in the alfalfa? Yes. Great...now you know he exits to the corn, and re-enters from the path on the alfalfa side. You may figure out it's wind related, or influenced by vantage point.

 

Knowing all of this, you can then set up on the appropriate edge and see if he makes it there by end of hunting time.

 

I personally would target transition lines for buck beds. Look where the pines start and meet hardwoods, a field edge, multiflora, etc. Usually they'll let the wind come from the pines and they'll look over the open area on the transition line, allowing vision to play defense in areas where the nose cannot. Make sense?

Makes sense. I pretty much know where they bed, my problem is figuring out where they feed and when. For example, one of the main bedding thicket I hunt has 3 different pastures to the north, 2 to the east, apples in the woods to the south and a gazillion oaks to the west with another pasture beyond those oaks. All these pastures have is clover and maybe some alfalfa. There are never beans or corn planted in them. Is it a crap shoot where and when these deer feed or do they feed on a pattern? I've seen them feed in all these spots without any noticeable pattern. One day their in the oaks and the next the apples and the next you'll see them in one of the pastures. Too many options for feed I think.

[phade]

Look for wind specific patterns. If you know the beds, everything else is usually figured out with a little grunt work. They very well could be hitting all food sources...but doing some scouting (shining, trail cams, etc.) will reveal a general pattern and you can surmise the trail they'll leave their bed from for an afternoon sit.

 

The other option is a morning hunt (early season, morning hunts are rare as they need the right ingredients). Look for weather conditions that keep the buck in its bed longer the night before your hunt - look for the storm that hits right around dusk and lasts into the night. What this will do is put the buck behind schedule as it holds in its bed a little longer than normal. Some people try to pair this with a proper moon status (I'm neither a believer nor a non-believer). If you know the bed, get tight to it with the least likely wind direction for approach as your entry. You may beat the buck to its bed that morning in this scenario, especially if the rain/fog persist into the morning.

 

For the apples, if there is water nearby the apples, I'd consider a midday hunt to set up around those apples when they drop.

 

 

[Five Seasons]

No, actually I wouldn't over a pattern. What I would like is an early season pattern of bed to food and food to bed. Or a midday bed to water pattern. Or a late season pattern of bed to food and food to bed (I can hear Doc screaming, but he's not getting the whole picture on my statements). Those are WAY more reliable than a doe in heat, which all you do is roll the dice in a funnel or near a doe bedding area. Do I totally discount rut hunting? Not at all, but it doesn't take near as much skill, although, it is very effective at times on random bucks. I really enjoy sitting in a funnel for that type of action. The problem I have with your thought process is that you seem to rely ONLY on rut principles. If you can get past that, the chances for taking nice bucks goes way up. Open your eyes to hunting bucks based on their beds more, that's what I'm saying. Eye to eye.

 

Where there are does, there will only really be bucks for a short window of time. The season starts Oct. 1 here, Belo. Not Halloween weekend.

 

can you hear me rolling my eyes? at no point did I say that rut hunting is the only way to. I stated my credentials, i've posted pics of the big deer we've scouted and shot near our stands. We know what we're doing. Everything you're saying i'm agreeing with. The whole point of this thread is that there are multiple ways to increase your odds of getting a nice buck, and most of that is with pre-season scouting. The only issue I have with your post was that you should scout buck beds in the spring. And also, I'll be hunting 10/1. But not as much as I'll be hunting around Halloween. That's simply called playing the odds.

 

I agree! You need to change your tactics as the rut phases change. Hunting scrapes wont work the first weekend or probably even the last weekend for that matter. Obviously you wont see bucks breeding does on October 1st so you need to use a different tactic if you are gonna hunt then. Food sources and bedding areas are key during the early season!

agreed that scrape hunting has its peak, however i have scrapes still being hit as of April. It all depends and furthers my point of hunting multiple ways and strategies.

 

note the dates. None of these deer were caught on cameras in the fall. And that's 6 cameras on a 60 acre plot

 

Edited May 14, 2013 by Belo

[Five Seasons]

Guys just so you all know phade is a lot like wooly is in finding sheds... lol he seems to know his stuff... lol lol

 

i'm not sure anyone knows all there is to know. For example, I'm not sure I agree with hunting 2 or 3 stands a day. You're disturbing the area and your stands. There's nothing like a fresh stand. You know; the one where the deer dont look up because they busted someone there the day before?

 

to each his own. Just like a pissing match, we all prove our worth come picture posting time in the fall. I will add that phade, you've passed on some great info in this thread. That's appreciated. But hunting, like anything will always be "Ford or Chevy"! haha

Edited May 14, 2013 by Belo

[phade]

Hunting multiple stands at the right time can pay off as the chasing peaks. You need to know when to be aggressive and when/how to approach. If its November 8 for example, you can push a stand in a funnel hard for multiple hunts with prime access and exit routes. People make mistakes by seeing a buck and backing off to cool down the area at that time of the year. Funnels typically prdouce midday...hence the 10-2 push that many people preach. Why sit there all day? Those bucks are in their beds, hitting a doe bedding, getting water...all before hitting a funnel in the midday.

Beds are more reliable than most imagine and even more people discount them...for a variety of reasons. You say you mix approaches yet you state time and time again the rut tactics. Best of luck hunting this rut. While you were waiting for the rut to kill a 1.5 year old, I was picking out my form for a buck 5.5+ and moving onto Ohio. I'm certainly not saying that I am some great white hunter and I am not saying bed hunting early season is the only option...but what I'm saying is that it increases your odds. Anyone can do it if they just open their eyes and be willing to change the way they look at things. That and knowing beds and how bucks use them. Scouting and identifying beds in post season is a massive benefit.

 

With an influx of new land this season, I only have two bucks to really target with a degree of confidence. But, I feel very confident either me or my hunting partner will kill one or both. I have attached just a few on the photos locking down this buck that will lead to his demise.

 

Based on your scouting technique, what do you know about the buck you want to kill? And, I am asking with genuine inquiry as nobody can know everything about hunting.

Edited May 14, 2013 by phade

[josephmrtn]

Nah, I'm no different than others. No better, no worse. I'm a bit harsh here on this site, but I see more misinformation that I can take, ha. I'm just as eager to learn from those who know and also new people who sometimes wow me with things I never realized or thought of. One of the things that I just can't stand is when people try to say that bucks bed without purpose or regard because it's patently false. And, I understand why they say things like that because I used to be in that camp.

 

Learning how to target bucks and their beds was a major milestone for me when it comes to hunting them. I understand why people have a hard time adjusting to it, because it's a major shift in their hunting philosophy and experiences. It was a big issue for me...once I got over it I started connecting the dots.

Your better than me!!!

[phade]

Your better than me!!!

 

No sir. Stop thinking like that and stop making comparisons because it's never apple to apple on who's a better hunter. You are a teen...and I have a couple years under my belt. I'm merely in a different position than you...I'm sure when you are my age, my wall will pale in comparison to yours.

 

I've cut my teeth with no real hunting mentors in my formative years. I wish I had the internet at your age...you are very lucky in that sense. Information passes so easily now.

[josephmrtn]

i'm not sure anyone knows all there is to know. For example, I'm not sure I agree with hunting 2 or 3 stands a day. You're disturbing the area and your stands. There's nothing like a fresh stand. You know; the one where the deer dont look up because they busted someone there the day before?

 

to each his own. Just like a pissing match, we all prove our worth come picture posting time in the fall. I will add that phade, you've passed on some great info in this thread. That's appreciated. But hunting, like anything will always be "Ford or Chevy"! haha

+1

 

 

No sir. Stop thinking like that and stop making comparisons because it's never apple to apple on who's a better hunter. You are a teen...and I have a couple years under my belt. I'm merely in a different position than you...I'm sure when you are my age, my wall will pale in comparison to yours.

 

I've cut my teeth with no real hunting mentors in my formative years. I wish I had the internet at your age...you are very lucky in that sense. Information passes so easily now.

+1

Yes It very well might... I hope so lol

I sure Am thankful for the ease of gaining info from you guys!!!!

[Doc]

They are likely bedding 1/3 from the top on the leeward side of the predominant wind. You'll have more wind specific bedding in hill country, but I bet you find exemplar beds 1/3 from the top on the leeward side.

Lol .... If only it were that easy. But the fact is that I have seen bedded bucks in the area that you are describing, no more often than I have seen them in the thickets and creek-bottoms in the valleys. 

 

Over on our side of the road where the prevailing westerly winds hit the face of the hill directly, leeward takes on a different meaning and the deer have a different set of rules. In fact, depending on what time of year it is, protection from the elements may not really even be that big a consideration. Sometimes concealment is their biggest priority and that explains the bucks that I have pushed from their beds in the heavy muli-flora rose thickets. Other times vantage points with lots of visibility suits their fancy. That would be for the guys spending their days on the hillsides. And yes, I have seen a lot of bucks that took full advantage of thermals, particulary over the crest on top of the hill around the big ravines. To say that all the bucks are located 1/3 of the way down the hill simply does not align with the 50 years of observations that I have had on this particular hunting area. In fact, that is not the first place I would look for a buck. Yes, I have seen them there, just like I have seen them in other places. And like I have said, if there is any correlation to beds, it is with the food sources for that particular time of the year. In fact, when they are hot to feed on acorns, I have seen some huge bucks bedded right in the middle of the woods with absolutely no logical reason for them to be there other than food. I think another big fallicy is that bucks go to some specific spot when day-break arrives and simply sit there all day long until sunset. Big bucks do feed periodically through the day. They get up. They move around (to a limited extent). And there has been more than a few people who have shot them at mid-day while they munched up acorns.

 

So while I appreciate general rules of thumb, and the wise words of the experts, I have seen enough deer behavior to understand that they often make up the rules as they go along. I have also noted that what they are doing when the snow flies has little to do with what they will be doing October 1st when bow season opens. I also understand that they are slaves to their food and that food changes dramatically as the seasons change and so their patterns change (including bedding locations). If anyone is so fortunate to live in a place where the bucks never change their patterns, then they are fortunate hunters indeed. But down our way that isn't the case. And that makes things a bit tougher.

[Five Seasons]

Hunting multiple stands at the right time can pay off as the chasing peaks. You need to know when to be aggressive and when/how to approach. If its November 8 for example, you can push a stand in a funnel hard for multiple hunts with prime access and exit routes. People make mistakes by seeing a buck and backing off to cool down the area at that time of the year. Funnels typically prdouce midday...hence the 10-2 push that many people preach. Why sit there all day? Those bucks are in their beds, hitting a doe bedding, getting water...all before hitting a funnel in the midday.

Beds are more reliable than most imagine and even more people discount them...for a variety of reasons. You say you mix approaches yet you state time and time again the rut tactics. Best of luck hunting this rut. While you were waiting for the rut to kill a 1.5 year old, I was picking out my form for a buck 5.5+ and moving onto Ohio. I'm certainly not saying that I am some great white hunter and I am not saying bed hunting early season is the only option...but what I'm saying is that it increases your odds. Anyone can do it if they just open their eyes and be willing to change the way they look at things. That and knowing beds and how bucks use them. Scouting and identifying beds in post season is a massive benefit.

 

With an influx of new land this season, I only have two bucks to really target with a degree of confidence. But, I feel very confident either me or my hunting partner will kill one or both. I have attached just a few on the photos locking down this buck that will lead to his demise.

 

Based on your scouting technique, what do you know about the buck you want to kill? And, I am asking with genuine inquiry as nobody can know everything about hunting.

 

you love to throw the 5 point in my face. that's fine. Like I said before I could have easily taken out the mature 8 point right behind him, but ethically and leagally I chose not to. In a different year without a newborn I would have passed on the 5 and then had my chance at the 8. it happens. My father on the other hand didn't shoot a deer last year because he passed on many 1.5 and 2.5 year olds looking for the slob that never presented himself. If you live your life in such a way that you're only going to shoot 3.5 year olds and up than that's fine. For me, I enjoy the woods and the hunt but it will always come second to my family. It does not not make anyone a better or worse hunter.

 

My tactics?

 

Pre-rut I'm hunting known beds and food sources. These are tried and true stands and generally the beds hold bucks and doe. At this time I'm heading out once or twice a week as I'd like to save my vacation time for the rut. Case and point my 5 point was shot on 10/20. It was my second morning and 4th time in the woods that season. I had already seen 2 bucks without shots and could have killed at least 2 doe each trip. That would not have changed if I had not had the kid. I'm just not going to put that much time in. And again, it would have paid off with the 8 if I allowed it, and did pay off with a 150lb. 5. It's a bedding haven stand and there's a big mature pear tree near by. The scrape had been hit over and over again. I would also generally hunt our hard wood stand as their pattern seems to show the runs are used more early season before the guns go off and the rut is in full swing. Can you shoot nice mature bucks on 10/1? absolutely, i know plenty who did last year. Can you shoot a mature buck on 10/31? of course. As someone else mentioned, you adjust your stand preference and tactics as the season progresses and based off the activity you're seeing, the scrape activity and where you're seeing more rubs. And I tend to hunt the wind more pre and post than I do during rut.

 

Rut? I'm doing just like any other rut hunter would do.

 

Post? back to pre-rut tactics.

 

I've had some stands get hot when the corns up and not when its down. Some are cold when there's soy and vise versa. For the 3rd time I have nothing wrong with most of what you said. We will just chose to disagree when it comes to spring buck beds and moving from stand to stand during 1 hunt. But we're not hunting the same land, so what works for you may not work for me. And I say, whatever works for someone is what they should continue to do.

 

Edited May 15, 2013 by Belo

[phade]

Whatever works for you is fine. You can preface all you want about time, lack of time, etc. You don't need to justify the 5 point to me at all. If all you want is a 5 point, then most certainly, avoid scouting beds or discount them to a degree because basic hunting principles can net deer. Nothing wrong with being proud of a 5 point, either. Home life is what it is, I had the same scenario with not only a young one but also a gestational carrier, and a kid in college. Does that matter? No, not really.

 

People just need to know where others come from when a statement discounting certain tactics is made - same goes for the inverse. I certainly value Michael Jordan's input on my jumper, but not necessarily Shaq's as much, get my drift? Same goes for driving cars...Mario Andretti vs. the woman with the gas tank nozzle still stuck in the car after driving off with it.

 

I appreciate you posting your thoughts/tactics. One thing I find different is that you want a fresh stand, yet you don't always hunt the wind. So you sometimes hunt the wind but sometimes don't? Just because it is the rut? What's the value of a fresh stand when you don't hunt the wind?

 

What's worse? Hunting a stand two days in a row in a funnel that has prime entry and exit access with the wind in the stand's favor? (IE a hard break, such as a crek, edge, etc.)? Or, hunting a fresh stand with the wind blowing into the bedding?

 

 

Edited May 15, 2013 by phade

[Pav2704]

Phade I totally get what you are saying about winter scouting for buck beds, however, I think that it not possible to always have bucks bed on your property, especially on smaller lots.  My uncle and I scout his property in Carlisle every year.  He has 33 acres and and is loaded with deer sign, most of which I believe to be does.  Very rarely do we come across rubs or scrapes and hardly ever do we catch a buck on the trail cameras which are out being in June.  However, his food plots which have been established for the last ten years are loaded with does and once November rolls around the bucks start coming out.  He hasn't shot anything less than 90inches during the last four years. 

 

I love to be able to scout for buck beds, however, it's not always possible.  Especially when dealing with smaller pieces of land.

[PREDATE]

On those small parcels, it's even more important to know where the buck beds. Whether it be on or off the property. You may only get one chance and knowing what wind to hunt in will make or break that opprotunity.

 

 All in all, I think you guys pretty much summed it up when you mentioned connecting the dots and knowing the reason for specific travel patterns, whether it be food, safety, does, Etc.

 I try not to preach any hard and fast rules because not every scenario deals with the same terrain or deer, but I do enjoy reading up on different tactics used by other hunters. I'm always trying different things because I learn more about my quarry that way. Sitting in a stand all the time bores me, that's why I enjoy bringing the ground game to some pre-rut bedded bucks! FUN FUN! 

 I think we can all agree on the importance of scouting (all year).