CCPaHunter

I use to hunt pinch points in the big woods that led to bedding areasand it worked great, however the doe population took some big hits inthe lastthree years and things have changed. Two seasons ago the usual spots produced absolutely nothing. No does or bucks.There use to be so many does and smaller bucks that I actually wished them to leave so as not to get busted.Near the end of that season I moved to open fields with multiple hedgerows. The hedgerows connected two large blocks of woodsthat have no or littlehunting pressure. I started seeing deer, just a few and all bucks. I didn't see a doe that year. Last year I hunted two new farms. The last week of the season I went back to the hedge rows and hit pay dirt. The bucks were using them as safety corridors between the wood lots.I'm trying to come up with a game plan to take advantage of it this year. Climbable tree are scarce.

SouthDakotaHunter

That's actually what I did last year on Nov. 4th...

Wind was right for what I generally consider my best rut location, but at the last minute driving down I slowed down to make the turn but insteadI just kept driving straight and muttered to myself...The pics I got the day beforeof the does hanging out around one ofmy other locations/stands was to much to pass up....

Lucky for me it paid off and I got my buck...

Pretty much the only reason I hunted that particular standwas the trail cam pics of the does from the day before.

JoeRE

Before about the third week of Oct I hunt as near as I can safely get to buck bedding areas(I will be the first to admit this is a very inexact science). After that, I hunt were the does are more and more, especially at the height of the pursuit phase. After about the first week of Nov this no longer works tho (hunting doe bedding & feeding areas) because the does have been chased out of thier normal spots by bucks. The does hide out in little bits of timber, grassy/brushy areas, really any out of the way(from a deer point of veiw) spot. I could hunt those spots but I have found them to be very low percentage. When I see the does dissapearing I know all I can do is hunt the super funnels, where deer(mostly bucks) almost must pass to get between points. I dont know really what else to do at that point

GregH

I can't tell you, I've been sworn to secrecy by my ancestors.

LouisianaTomkat

LOL. Of all the people, and this is the answer I get.

Come on GregH, spit it out. I want to hear from you.

This is what I am trying to become better at recognizing. This is where the BIG boys will be found. They are using these trails for a reason. And the reason is to stay out of our sight while checking for does and predators. Just like we become creatures of habit in assessing our surroundings, so do big bucks. One thing out of place and they will notice. (May not alarm them, but they notice) I have set my sights on the interception method for the coming season. I guess time will tell.

Thanks Schultzy.

LT

magicman54494

Then we will just have to get you drunk enough to spill the beans. Don't make us shove bamboo shoots under your fingernails

MeanV2

If I wanna kill a doe, I hunt does. IHunt bucks in different areas than I would tokill a Doe. There are doe areas here where you will see tons of does but only an occasional Buck. I hunted approx. 2 1/2 weeks hard in IL. last Nov. I saw 100 to 110 deer out of my Treestand. Over 60 of those were Bucks. Most all of the bucks were close to where I setup and several of the does were in view but at a distance. Hunting Does and all the sign they make (tracks, trails, etc.) is an easy mistake to make. Sure you may catch a Buck coming through, but I've watched Mature bucks hook up with a Doe in Heat and he takes her to his house. He's not hanging around hers

Dan

MeanV2

LT, Most of the places I setup have very little sign. It's just a gut feeling I have about the place because of terrain, location, etc. I'm really not worried about why! I've just learned to trust my GutsI think the more anyone hunts the better feel they get for the intangibles. I learn something every year and I've been at it 40 years. Guess I'm a slow learner

Dan

peakrut

I tried that magic and damn my head hurt the next day.Didnt think of the bamboo though.

LouisianaTomkat

MeanV2, I understand exactly where you are coming from. I have come to the conclusion that sometimes we really should accept good sound advice without questioning someone's experience or knowledge. Might speed up our learning as well as make us easier to get along with. I mean, I really don't need the same guy telling me 100 times how he hunts and is going to hunt regardless of what others say or think. I am looking for advice here, not to pick apart everyone's methods. If an experienced boxer tells me I better watch my opponents left hook and shoves me back in the ring, I won't question his knowledge or try to figure out a better way. Life is too dang short to question the knowledge that is readily available to us.

LT