I need to vent guys...

[BowtechHunting]

I don't get much time to hunt, and when I do I want to feel confident knowing I'm going to see the buck I'm after.

Well, Saturday brought in a front with some light rain and cool temps in the morning, which was a great time to hit up a thicket on a mid-day hunt. I drive about 20 minutes to the property about 9:30 and while getting ready I hear 4-5 beagles barking and howling around the area I was going to set-up at. I get to walking through the field and I see a gator, a guy that lives in the area that shouldn't be there. Wonderful, someone is BIRDHUNTING through the roadbed! Unbelievealbe I thought, so I went to the East side of the property about 500 yards to hunt a ridgline. I get to where I'm going and I sat just a momment looking for a good tree with some cover. I then hear a four-wheeler and dirtbike tearing through the field, and then another four-wheeler on the property! I'm standing near the edge of pond and I look up and see a freshly made deer stand...really, it's December. Now here comes a four-wheeler towards where I'm at, so in rage I began walking back to field and next to the woodline is 3 guys with a trailor with homemade deerstands, corn feeders, saltblocks, and stinkin' C'mere deer. It's DECEMBER AND THESE GUYS ARE PUTTING UP WOODEN DEER STANDS ALL OVER THE PROPERTY!! Not to mention his kids are on motorcycles zipping back and forth all over the hills and edges of the woods the whole time!! It looks like a 3 ring circus! I go talk to the guy and ask who he is. He was from Tennessee and has permission to hunt, and he revealed to me that he has 3 other stands that I haven't seen yet. Really? This guy is ruining this place. So, in digust I wished the guy(s) luck left without having one minute in the stand.

Now, I can look at this in 2 ways.
1. this place is about to over hunted and pretty much done until next season with too much pressure.
2. Hunt when he's at home during the week, when i get a week off for vacation.

It urks me that I can't have solitude and somewhere to hunt without idiots everywhere, putting more pressure on the deer, when I have limited time to hunt. So what do you do??? Sorry, I'm not the one to complain, but this just sucks, my season so far has been less than exciting with not much time in the woods.

[dan]

I would either lease the land or move on till this guy gets board with it.

2. Hunt when he's at home during the week, when i get a week off for vacation.

I hear this comment a lot from public land hunters and just don't buy it... Pressured mature bucks don't come out of there hideouts and hang out by the pressured spots just cause its a weekday. I really don't think they know what day it is, they just avoid spots that get pounded.

The only way this spot will continue to produce for you, is if you find the hot little hiding spots this guy and his kids are missing. Or if he goes away.

[PK_]

The resident bucks will most likely just deal with the extra activity. Unless there is some piece of land nearby where there is no pressure, most bucks are quicker to change their habits than their core area.

What you just described is exactly what every weekend is like where I hunt. What all that does is narrows down the areas for you to focus on and actually makes the bucks a bit more predictable IMO. You now know a lot of areas where they won't be during daylight. A term I use is 'scouting the hunters', because that is exactly what the deer do. That type of hunter is very easy to pattern and it's not hard for bucks to avoid them.

If they are going to be up there hunting on the weekends, try to get in there and scout the next day, find fresh tracks around some security cover and you found their hiding spot. Hunt it accordingly. If you can't find the sign, then they may have vacated.

My .02

[BowtechHunting]

The property is about 200 acres of farmland, with about 45% of it being hardwoods and small fingers. I do try to go where other hunters are not. It is hilly trerrain, with some good spots for buck hiding. I'm guessing the other hunters won't be there every weekend, but their other people who get on the land that don't have permission.

I agree that the resident bucks will be there no matter what, and just relocate when they feel pressured. It's just aggrevating when others don't practice the same stratigies that I do, and potentially ruin the place. I say that I'll hunt during the week when they aren't there just to have the place to myself and not have to worry about others. Oh well, do the best I can with what I got.

[MOBIGBUCKS]

Personally, I would move on for awhile and just keep tabs on the guys activity. If it subsides then go back and hunt it. This might be a good time to find some big public areas where you might be able to move around and hunt different bedding areas.

[Darin]

Ive experience situations like this. Let it blow over for a week and see what happens. We had a large group of hunters "take over" one of our hunting spots. They set up large wooden stands all over, hunted it TWICE, apparently seen no deer, and havnt been back since. Now theres wooden stands all over but no people to fill them .

While your waiting to see what happens, pull out that map and start plotting new areas or "relook" the hidden desires on your land.

[James]

I think people need to remember that some bucks are just plain nocturnal as well. If you watch Bill Winke at all, he hunts an incredibly non-pressured well managed farm with food plots and everything a deer hunter could want. Yet he still has bucks he comments on being completely nocturnal and not hunt-able. In fact it seems to be one of his criteria for what he prefers to hunt.

[Darin]

I think people need to remember that some bucks are just plain nocturnal as well. If you watch Bill Winke at all, he hunts an incredibly non-pressured well managed farm with food plots and everything a deer hunter could want. Yet he still has bucks he comments on being completely nocturnal and not hunt-able. In fact it seems to be one of his criteria for what he prefers to hunt.

Thats another good point. Some nice bucks will only venture to certain feeding areas only in the dark. However I dont believe there is any deer completely nocturnal. All deer move in the daylight, whether its only 50 yards from the bedding area. (Now if that bedding area isnt on your land, well... thats another problem) I say get out that map and start digging deep to find those hidden or over looked areas. Typically most hunters look for good sign and good sources of food, and thats usually where they set up. Many times they never think about setting up near the bed or find that inbetween transportation route to get em before they get to the other guys set.

[BowtechHunting]

I think people need to remember that some bucks are just plain nocturnal as well. If you watch Bill Winke at all, he hunts an incredibly non-pressured well managed farm with food plots and everything a deer hunter could want. Yet he still has bucks he comments on being completely nocturnal and not hunt-able. In fact it seems to be one of his criteria for what he prefers to hunt.

Thats another good point. Some nice bucks will only venture to certain feeding areas only in the dark. However I dont believe there is any deer completely nocturnal. All deer move in the daylight, whether its only 50 yards from the bedding area. (Now if that bedding area isnt on your land, well... thats another problem) I say get out that map and start digging deep to find those hidden or over looked areas. Typically most hunters look for good sign and good sources of food, and thats usually where they set up. Many times they never think about setting up near the bed or find that inbetween transportation route to get em before they get to the other guys set.

While we are on the subject of bedding, I have one piece of property that I hunt on every now then only when wind conditions are optimal and gun season is in, that I have seen a buck on two sperate occasions. He was bedded down along a ditch around 10am close to where I have a spot picked out. My question is do you think the bucks just feel like laying down anywhere? The only way to get to the my spot is walking through the field, and I have no idea where he is "bed" is. I would think that it would be close??

[dan]

My question is do you think the bucks just feel like laying down anywhere? The only way to get to the my spot is walking through the field, and I have no idea where he is "bed" is. I would think that it would be close??

I don't think mature bucks do anything "randomly"... Every bedding spot is used because of safety advantages or to breed does.

[BowtechHunting]

My question is do you think the bucks just feel like laying down anywhere? The only way to get to the my spot is walking through the field, and I have no idea where he is "bed" is. I would think that it would be close??

I don't think mature bucks do anything "randomly"... Every bedding spot is used because of safety advantages or to breed does.

Just by glassing at 250+ yards with 10X50 binos, Im guessing he a 3.5 maybe 4.5. The property that I've been seeing him on is less than 35 acres with 60% of it being field. I haven't put a camera out because I'm afraid that he may bolt out of there if I muddy up the place.

[Darin]

Along with what Dan said about how bucks dont do anything randomly, theres usually a good reason behind him hanging out in a ditch (especially right about gun season time). From my experiences hes usually waiting for the does to feed. Hes got breeding on his mind and he knows when and where they are going. And I wouldnt want to kick that buck outa there.

Seems we are getting a little bit side tracked off topic here

[Darin]

Along with what Dan said about how bucks dont do anything randomly, theres usually a good reason behind him hanging out in a ditch (especially right about gun season time). From my experiences hes usually waiting for the does to feed. Hes got breeding on his mind and he knows when and where they are going. And I wouldnt want to kick that buck outa there.

[BowtechHunting]

Along with what Dan said about how bucks dont do anything randomly, theres usually a good reason behind him hanging out in a ditch (especially right about gun season time). From my experiences hes usually waiting for the does to feed. Hes got breeding on his mind and he knows when and where they are going. And I wouldnt want to kick that buck outa there.

I agree to that, the post-rut is here and he's probably just waiting for the does to come to him, if he's a muature buck. From what the landowner has said he's been around the property night after night. I know he's bedding somewhere but just don't know where.

[Darin]

Thats good news that the landowner always sees him. Now that you know hes made that his home any game plan?