Why is this?
10-02-2007, 09:39 PM
#21
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location:
Posts: 13,082
RE: Why is this?
TJF, thanks for your input.
I hunt mostly private ground, w/ some public just for good measure. 90% is private though.
The food sources I key in on are mast crops. Half the prop's I hunt are ag, the other half is big woods. After a crop has been harvested, I don't view it as a viable food source for long. Today's combines are just so efficient, they simply don't toss much grain on the ground anymore.
1 property I hunt is 100 acres, with I would say, moderate pressure. Not real heavy, but not real light either. Another I hunt is several hundred, all woods. Pressure there is pretty light, until rifle season opens anyway. 1 of the public grounds I hunt is around 4000 acres, almost entirely wooded. It recieves a fair amount of pressure, almost heavy at times and in certain places. I don't hunt here very often though.
What I look for in a spot is typically a terrain funnel. Travel routes. If those travel routes hold some food, all the better. For instance, I hunt an inside corner that is traveled quite a bit, and there are white oaks and persimmons in that corner. Always a producer, of does. I really like to hunt creek bottoms as well. Good, thick cover down there, and sometimes the creek itself makes a good funnel. I also hunt quite a few oak ridges as well.
I hunt mostly private ground, w/ some public just for good measure. 90% is private though.
The food sources I key in on are mast crops. Half the prop's I hunt are ag, the other half is big woods. After a crop has been harvested, I don't view it as a viable food source for long. Today's combines are just so efficient, they simply don't toss much grain on the ground anymore.
1 property I hunt is 100 acres, with I would say, moderate pressure. Not real heavy, but not real light either. Another I hunt is several hundred, all woods. Pressure there is pretty light, until rifle season opens anyway. 1 of the public grounds I hunt is around 4000 acres, almost entirely wooded. It recieves a fair amount of pressure, almost heavy at times and in certain places. I don't hunt here very often though.
What I look for in a spot is typically a terrain funnel. Travel routes. If those travel routes hold some food, all the better. For instance, I hunt an inside corner that is traveled quite a bit, and there are white oaks and persimmons in that corner. Always a producer, of does. I really like to hunt creek bottoms as well. Good, thick cover down there, and sometimes the creek itself makes a good funnel. I also hunt quite a few oak ridges as well.
10-02-2007, 10:12 PM
#22
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: ND
Posts: 1,627
RE: Why is this?
I hate to say this but... you should be hunting the 4000 acres more. There is a good reason why Gmmat doesn't see many bucks till Nov. nor you for that matter. They just probablyaren't thereor just a fewin that small of acreage duringthe early part of your season!!! The does are there but the bucks could very well be hanging out of the neighbor's land. The does bring them in during rut and why you see more bucks at this time.
We search out our buck spots. I cover a lot of ground to do it. In say 5,000 acres we might find good numbers of bucks in6 certainareas with them ranging ( bedding area to feeding area ) of 80 -200 acres. They are using 1200 acres at mostout of that 5,000 acres. Granted you might see a few bucksanywheres in that 5,000 acres but the bulk of them are not using it. It generally has to do with big bedding areas per area. The does are all over as that is their nature with fawning to the point where they start grouping up more late fall/early winter or frompressure.
Tim
We search out our buck spots. I cover a lot of ground to do it. In say 5,000 acres we might find good numbers of bucks in6 certainareas with them ranging ( bedding area to feeding area ) of 80 -200 acres. They are using 1200 acres at mostout of that 5,000 acres. Granted you might see a few bucksanywheres in that 5,000 acres but the bulk of them are not using it. It generally has to do with big bedding areas per area. The does are all over as that is their nature with fawning to the point where they start grouping up more late fall/early winter or frompressure.
Tim
10-02-2007, 10:24 PM
#23
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Norman OK USA
Posts: 3,318
RE: Why is this?
Don, I'm not entirely sure of how your setups have gone lately as I haven't been able to be online much. When I started bowhunting I'd always set up in locations to see as many deer as I could, generally speaking this is where I'd be most likely to see does. As I learned more and more (specifically in early season) I've started hunting areas that may be more secluded where deer feel less vulnerable. I've found that many times bucks tend to hang out there just for security seasons. As we all know, I haven't killed any monsters, but (as buckeye continually reminds me 
)my buddieshaveproduced a LOT of inches from stand locations that I've put up with this in mind.
)my buddieshaveproduced a LOT of inches from stand locations that I've put up with this in mind.
