Bedding Areas Via Mapping

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lavazhole
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Bedding Areas Via Mapping

Unread postby lavazhole » Sun Dec 11, 2011 10:10 am

I've read some books on using maps to find different funnels and other points of interest but I've had NO luck with finding bedding areas using tops or overheads.

Anyone throw me a bone????


dan
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Re: Bedding Areas Via Mapping

Unread postby dan » Sun Dec 11, 2011 10:20 am

Welcome to the BEAST. 8-)
WITH TOPO MAPS ITS PRETTY EASY TO DETERMINE LIKELY BEDDING AREAS BASED ON TERRAIN AND ELEVATION. In cattail marshes its pretty easy to pick buck bedding using aerial photo's.
Swamps, flat farm land, and big woods can be a lot tougher and usually require boot leather.
Sometimes you can pick out spots in the Swamps, flat farm land, and big woods by looking for elevation differances on topo's... But thety still need walking. If you don't have them yet, Hill country bucks DVD, and Marsh bucks DVD both available in the store here on the BEAST go into detail about finding bedding and some mapping of it.
One easy suggestion I would suggest would be to look at our scouting forum and look at the maps people have posted and where I have picked bedding areas for them off the maps... It starts to be clear there are patterns when you look at those...

If you would like me to go into more detail, tell us what type of ground you hunt? Hilly? swamp? marsh? flat? farm? big woods?
lavazhole
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Re: Bedding Areas Via Mapping

Unread postby lavazhole » Sun Dec 11, 2011 10:32 am

I'm hunting little pieces of hilly terrain around clinton lake in central IL. It is pretty heavily hunted public land but w/ a canoe I've really upped my deer hunting success but haven't run into any mature deer. I know they are out there just haven't had the best of luck. I'm not sure if I'm pushing them on my way in/out.

Not sure if that helps....most of it just seems too 'open' as it's pretty mature hardwoods.

Thanks for the quick reply!
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Stanley
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Re: Bedding Areas Via Mapping

Unread postby Stanley » Sun Dec 11, 2011 10:46 am

Welcome to the Beast.
You can fool some of the bucks, all of the time, and fool all of the bucks, some of the time, however you certainly can't fool all of the bucks, all of the time.
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Re: Bedding Areas Via Mapping

Unread postby dan » Sun Dec 11, 2011 12:21 pm

Hilly woods.... There going to prefer to bed along ridges. Beds are found most often where points jut out from the ridge right where the terrain starts to drop off quickly. They like to have the wind blowing from above over there back while they watch below and also get the thermal air current bringing scent from below. The beds are generally right where the natural occuring wind meets the day time thermal air current.
lavazhole
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Re: Bedding Areas Via Mapping

Unread postby lavazhole » Mon Dec 12, 2011 5:01 am

I think I'm screwing myself...what I've been doing is walking up the deep cuts that run out to the lake to form 'coves'. I don't hear anything running off but they could hear me coming up the ravine below them and be slipping out. They are really steep on both sides and provide a great funnel where ravine meets up with normal cover. I will say that since I started doing this rather than tromping through the woods up and down the hills and ravines I've been WAY more successful but still only does and dinks. I have yet to be winded doing this.

I was hoping to find some bedding areas and then utilize any funnels in the trains to intercept.

It could be that I'm just peeing in the wind and the big boys aren't even using the sections I'm in during daylight as there are hiking trails, duck hunters, on and on.

I'm really going to dedicate some time the next few months and get prepped for next year. I've just been looking at the maps and canoing (walking the lake edges now that the lake is freezing) in to spots and setting up then in the morning I've been walking a bit looking for sign before leaving and hunting another part of the lake the next time...I'm not seeing ANY sign besides well worn trains. No rubs, no scrapes, etc.

My gut is saying they are staying on the private surrounding land and then running the park at night. There are oaks and acorns EVERYWHERE this year and the place is surrounded with ag fields.

I really appreciate the help.
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Re: Bedding Areas Via Mapping

Unread postby dan » Mon Dec 12, 2011 9:04 am

Its quite likely that there are buck beds in position near the top of the lake ridge watching you and smelling the thermals of you climbing up the ridge... good luck scouting
lavazhole
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Re: Bedding Areas Via Mapping

Unread postby lavazhole » Mon Dec 12, 2011 9:22 am

I'm going get that dvd you suggested.

I'm at nit-wits end!


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