Hillcountry buck hiding places/bedding area's

[vwj]

I have a questions for highly pressured areas in hill country. I see spots that hunters may overlook and looks like a deer wouldn't be there, such as steep cliffs with pine trees, or lower side hills bank right next to a creek or river that is maybe 2 acres with thick cover.
I remember one year a shot a doe that I just shot low, i follow drips of blood and fat to a steep side cliff that I didn't think the doe would go to but there was a faint trail there. I didn't even want to try following cause it was that scary. would big buck or deer just hold up in those areas? I just want to know if anyone has ever seen bucks hide in those areas?
how would you hunt these areas?

[dan]

They hide anywhere that people don't go... I would want to scout it after season and find the beds and from there figure out how to hunt it.

[bowhunter15]

Like this kind of steep cliff?

Interestingly, both edges of that cliff have very heavy trails on them, however I feel it's more from hunter traffic than deer traffic. In this particular spot, I've found that the actual daytime deer movement occurs about 40 more yards up the ridge from the cliff where it's much thicker. Hunters could walk right along that dropoff and never see the deer just uphill from them. However, if it were thicker by the dropoff I could imagine the deer moving right down there instead. I imagine the thermals would have to be pretty strong going almost straight up once the sun gets down there.

Like Dan said, finding the beds will be the key piece of info to start from.

[vwj]

Well I know that there are a few bedding areas and have seen them. They are exactly how dan said in hillcountry videos, leeward and steep points. A lot of big scrapes and rubs on bottom flats, but those are made at night.
The pics shown is similar but the small cliff is more on top onethird of the hill. And on those faint trails that either go right on top or underneath those small cliffs is pretty thick and hard to go through while being quiet. its pretty nasty. Dan have you seen big buck hold up tight in areas what I discribed?

[ Post made via Android ]

[dan]

Dan have you seen big buck hold up tight in areas what I discribed?

Yes

[vwj]

what did you do when you knew that they were holding up in those areas? did you drive, slow push them up with your buddies posting, how would you attack it?

[GRFox]

what did you do when you knew that they were holding up in those areas? did you drive, slow push them up with your buddies posting, how would you attack it?

That would not be the most ideal way to aproach it. You would want to get in there in the off season, and find the exact bed he is using. Stand in the bed and figure oit based on the trails to and from which way he is leaving the bed. Crouch down in the bed to a deers level and look how far he can see and take a mental note. Then follow the exit trail out of the bed and find the closest possible tree you can get to with out the buck seeing you. That's the tree you will want to climb and wait for the buck to come out of his bed and walk by you in bow range.

Good luck.

[ Post made via Android ]

[GRFox]

It sounds like you haven't seen the Hill Country or Marsh Bucks DVD's. If you haven't I recomend ordering them and watching them a couple of times. You will have a much better understanding as to how to hunt bedding once you do.

[ Post made via Android ]

[vwj]

I do have both vidoes. The reason why I am asking about going in is because it's last week of gun and it get hunted pretty hard. just the valley alone that we hunt has about 20 hunters, which is pretty crazy pressure.

I was just wondering if beast style hunters would do, if it was the last day of hunting. would you go in or would you just leave it alone?

[GRFox]

I do have both vidoes. The reason why I am asking about going in is because it's last week of gun and it get hunted pretty hard. just the valley alone that we hunt has about 20 hunters, which is pretty crazy pressure.

I was just wondering if beast style hunters would do, if it was the last day of hunting. would you go in or would you just leave it alone?

If it was me and it was the last day of season, I would push it and try to blast him.

[ Post made via Android ]

[dan]

I do have both vidoes. The reason why I am asking about going in is because it's last week of gun and it get hunted pretty hard. just the valley alone that we hunt has about 20 hunters, which is pretty crazy pressure.

I was just wondering if beast style hunters would do, if it was the last day of hunting. would you go in or would you just leave it alone?

I would hunt it... I never do well sitting back waiting for big bucks to come to me. I would get in as far as I can without spooking deer and sit till last light.

[Hunter74]

I do have both vidoes. The reason why I am asking about going in is because it's last week of gun and it get hunted pretty hard. just the valley alone that we hunt has about 20 hunters, which is pretty crazy pressure.

I was just wondering if beast style hunters would do, if it was the last day of hunting. would you go in or would you just leave it alone?

I would hunt it... I never do well sitting back waiting for big bucks to come to me. I would get in as far as I can without spooking deer and sit till last light.

On average how close do you think you have to get to a mature bucks bed in order to catch some daylight movement, like within 75yrds? Second do you believe that almost always even in pretty pressured areas a buck will get up and mill around within a certain distance from his bed as long as it didn't bust you setting up?

[ Post made via Android ]

[dan]

On average how close do you think you have to get to a mature bucks bed in order to catch some daylight movement, like within 75yrds? Second do you believe that almost always even in pretty pressured areas a buck will get up and mill around within a certain distance from his bed as long as it didn't bust you setting up?

Ideally, I would like to be within 100 yards. Thats not always possible...
Most of the mature bucks I have observed in bedding areas move at least 75 yards before its to dark to shoot... I have not yet seen a complely nocturnal buck. They all seem to rise before dark with a few exceptions if they don't detect your presance.

[Hunter74]

On average how close do you think you have to get to a mature bucks bed in order to catch some daylight movement, like within 75yrds? Second u you believe that almost always even in pretty pressured areas a buck will get up and mill around within a certain distance from his bed as long as it didn't bust you setting up?

Ideally, I would like to be within 100 yards. Thats not always possible...
Most of the mature bucks I have observed in bedding areas move at least 75 yards before its to dark to shoot... I have not yet seen a complely nocturnal buck. They all seem to rise before dark with a few exceptions if they don't detect your presance.

.
That's the answer I was hoping for. I think I got a spot figured and I really believe I can get within 75yrds of the bed from two different sides. That leads me to my second question. In a marsh type area is there anything that dictates if a buck is using a particular bed on a particular day? Like how in hill country they will bed on the leeward side of a point for example?

[ Post made via Android ]

[dan]

In a marsh type area is there anything that dictates if a buck is using a particular bed on a particular day? Like how in hill country they will bed on the leeward side of a point for example?

There are some wind specific beds in marsh terrain, but unlike hill country most of the beds are not wind specific. My way of knowing if a certain buck is using a certain bed is to look for his buck sign near the beds, but far enough back as to not spook the buck... Rubs, tracks, and shining nearby fields just after dark ( where legal ) has killed more than one target buck for me in the marsh.