So you cannot find any beds.....

Discuss deer hunting tactics, Deer behavior. Post your Hunting Stories, Pictures, and Questions/Answers.
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Zap
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Re: So you cannot find any beds.....

Unread postby Zap » Thu Jan 26, 2012 1:32 pm

BigHunt wrote:then i would hunt only during the rut using rut tactics and hoping a buck from another property comes by ....kind of sad way to do it ....



What if you want to hunt early season/late season?


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BigHunt
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Re: So you cannot find any beds.....

Unread postby BigHunt » Thu Jan 26, 2012 1:33 pm

Zap wrote:
BigHunt wrote:then i would hunt only during the rut using rut tactics and hoping a buck from another property comes by ....kind of sad way to do it ....



What if you want to hunt early season/late season?


well then if i cant find beds then i move on to the next property ...im not hunting a ghost that ant there
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Indianahunter
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Re: So you cannot find any beds.....

Unread postby Indianahunter » Thu Jan 26, 2012 1:36 pm

BigHunt wrote:
Zap wrote:
BigHunt wrote:then i would hunt only during the rut using rut tactics and hoping a buck from another property comes by ....kind of sad way to do it ....



What if you want to hunt early season/late season?


well then if i cant find beds then i move on to the next property ...im not hunting a ghost that ant there


That is the part that interests me. Zap you are saying you do see these deer on your property but can't find the sign right?
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Re: So you cannot find any beds.....

Unread postby BigHunt » Thu Jan 26, 2012 1:37 pm

Zap wrote:
BigHunt wrote:then i would hunt only during the rut using rut tactics and hoping a buck from another property comes by ....kind of sad way to do it ....



What if you want to hunt early season/late season?


and i would also determine whats on the land with trail cams. See what times the bucks are traveling the land and see if its wroth hunting
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Zap
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Re: So you cannot find any beds.....

Unread postby Zap » Thu Jan 26, 2012 1:50 pm

Indianahunter wrote:That is the part that interests me. Zap you are saying you do see these deer on your property but can't find the sign right?



I was starting a topic for discussion.
Obviously Dans system is a good one.

But, maybe there are places you have a limited amount of time to scout.
You know bucks are there, have been there, go there, whatever.

You go in and do not find exact bed spots.

Then what?

I mean alot of folks do not have an unlimited amount of time to scout, but want to hunt outside the rut.

What do you look for?
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Indianahunter
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Re: So you cannot find any beds.....

Unread postby Indianahunter » Thu Jan 26, 2012 1:59 pm

Zap wrote:
Indianahunter wrote:That is the part that interests me. Zap you are saying you do see these deer on your property but can't find the sign right?



I was starting a topic for discussion.
Obviously Dans system is a good one.

But, maybe there are places you have a limited amount of time to scout.
You know bucks are there, have been there, go there, whatever.

You go in and do not find exact bed spots.

Then what?

I mean alot of folks do not have an unlimited amount of time to scout, but want to hunt outside the rut.

What do you look for?


Ok....Well if I don't have time...I review my properties as I said in my earlier post. It is actually becoming a very productive way for me since how I really do get limited or no time on out of town property. I keep looking at those maps and logically breaking them down to the most likely spots. Do you not agree with my previous post?
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Re: So you cannot find any beds.....

Unread postby Brad » Thu Jan 26, 2012 2:06 pm

BigHunt wrote:
Zap wrote:
BigHunt wrote:then i would hunt only during the rut using rut tactics and hoping a buck from another property comes by ....kind of sad way to do it ....



What if you want to hunt early season/late season?


well then if i cant find beds then i move on to the next property ...im not hunting a ghost that ant there



He said what do you know when you know the deer are there but cant find the beds. I imagine that means they have visual confirmation of the deer being there.
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Re: So you cannot find any beds.....

Unread postby Hunter74 » Thu Jan 26, 2012 2:11 pm

I would first hope the land has had low pressure for a couple years and there's a good deer population there... I would then hope there is a good flat of white oaks that have a good acorn yield on em and hunt it for the first week or two of the season... While hunting I would pay close attention to what I see goin on around me... If I see a big buck I would move in for the kill based on what I saw... If I didn't see any decent bucks or sign in that time I'd abandon ship and maybe return in the rut if there were a lot of does and some good funnels

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Zap
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Re: So you cannot find any beds.....

Unread postby Zap » Thu Jan 26, 2012 2:13 pm

Indianahunter, your previous post was awesome.

But it revolves around finding the beds....which is a very good tactic.

It is also a tactic that some may have trouble getting the hang of, and I was trying to stimulate discussion.

For example:
Good area, good potential buck bedding in the high spots in a cattail marsh.
Dont really have time to look em all over, but you see:
a small island in the middle of the high spots, lotsa oaks on the island.
Good late september spot?


Same situation, but no oaks on the island.
There are alot of big scrapes in a row thou...
Good late October spot?

If I look a spot over and do not find exact beds, I want to come away from that with at least one hunt figured out.

Maybe I am wrong?
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john1984
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Re: So you cannot find any beds.....

Unread postby john1984 » Thu Jan 26, 2012 2:30 pm

hmmmm :think: maybe climb high up a tree for observation. Bring binoculars and glass. Maybe you might spot a buck a little ways off that just stood up from his bed. Then the next day sneak over close to where you saw him and hunt and hope......
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Re: So you cannot find any beds.....

Unread postby RaisedByWolves » Thu Jan 26, 2012 2:32 pm

I've hunted many areas where I haven't found any exact beds. like Zap just mentioned I would try and figure out at least some time the spot would be good....oak flat=October feeding, funnel=rut hunt, water hole=hot weather or rut hunt, ect. If it was an area I went to and had to hunt the same day, I would hunt the fresh sign. Lately I have come to find so many spots I do have close to figured out "i think".... that I only spend precious hunting time in those areas. If say I heard of an area where a giant was seen and I have never been there before, I would spend the morning tromping all over the suspected non-bedding areas to help narrow down the sign leading to the bedding areas. Then I would set-up for an evening hunt and see what happens.
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Re: So you cannot find any beds.....

Unread postby goldtip5575 » Thu Jan 26, 2012 2:48 pm

I hunt a property broken small farm woodlots, open and ag fields, and fencelines that has no bedding but draws from adjoining properties.It seems nice bucks 130-145 stage early on it or will run the crp fields and fencelines to get there prefered food source earlier.Ive seen them cover 120 acres in 5 minutes.So you could be drawing from 120 acres in any direction maybe more. And get this more than ONE certain buck.And dont tell me a 130-145 isnt a nice buck for most on this site.
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Re: So you cannot find any beds.....

Unread postby Zap » Thu Jan 26, 2012 2:51 pm

RaisedByWolves wrote:I've hunted many areas where I haven't found any exact beds. like Zap just mentioned I would try and figure out at least some time the spot would be good....oak flat=October feeding, funnel=rut hunt, water hole=hot weather or rut hunt, ect.



Thats what I am getting at.

Now there is that oak flat or water hole.....maybe there is a rub line or trail with large tracks that goes into that large CRP or thicket.
Where is a good ambush spot and when is that a good place to be set up....

Maybe those few trails from the bean field that come to one and go into the CRP is a good early season/early morning spot?

Dont mind me... :lol:
I am just thinking out loud. :mrgreen:
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Zap
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Re: So you cannot find any beds.....

Unread postby Zap » Thu Jan 26, 2012 2:57 pm

goldtip5575 wrote:I hunt a property broken small farm woodlots, open and ag fields, and fencelines that has no bedding but draws from adjoining properties.It seems nice bucks 130-145 stage early on it or will run the crp fields and fencelines to get there prefered food source earlier.Ive seen them cover 120 acres in 5 minutes.So you could be drawing from 120 acres in any direction maybe more. And get this more than ONE certain buck.And dont tell me a 130-145 isnt a nice buck for most on this site.



A 140 is a nice buck.

I want to know how to shoot one if I cannot find his exact bed.
Out of the rut.
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Indianahunter
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Re: So you cannot find any beds.....

Unread postby Indianahunter » Thu Jan 26, 2012 3:04 pm

Zap wrote:Indianahunter, your previous post was awesome.

But it revolves around finding the beds....which is a very good tactic.

It is also a tactic that some may have trouble getting the hang of, and I was trying to stimulate discussion.

For example:
Good area, good potential buck bedding in the high spots in a cattail marsh.
Dont really have time to look em all over, but you see:
a small island in the middle of the high spots, lotsa oaks on the island.
Good late september spot?


Same situation, but no oaks on the island.
There are alot of big scrapes in a row thou...
Good late October spot?

If I look a spot over and do not find exact beds, I want to come away from that with at least one hunt figured out.

Maybe I am wrong?


Ok buddy, no problem I just wanted to make sure I was answering your question :D ...and it is a good one. Outside of the rut it is still all bedding for me....even if I can't find them physically I am trying to logically deduct where they may be. Shoot I guess honestly the rut is all about bedding for me as well...just switch from buck bedding to doe bedding. It is a great question I think a lot of people will be helped by it.

Thanks Marty.
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Romans 5:8


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