Bedding area approach/Locked down bucks

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Southern Buck
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Bedding area approach/Locked down bucks

Unread postby Southern Buck » Mon Jun 12, 2017 9:50 am

Couple questions for the board:

How close to the bedding area do you guys get before you really start slowing down and taking your time to reach the tree you intend to setup on?

Secondly, can anything be learned in terms of predicting a buck's future movement when he is locked down with a doe, or is he just a slave to the whims of that doe?


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Re: Bedding area approach/Locked down bucks

Unread postby headgear » Mon Jun 12, 2017 12:22 pm

Generally speaking if I am 500 yards away from bedding I am going a little slower and quieter just so I don't spook any deer in the area. After that the last 100-200 yards I am going extremely slow and being careful not to make any noise. The area conditions dictate how long it takes to cover that distance, quiet and crunchy and it might be an hour or more. Nice wind or a wet ground and you can cover that in 10-20 minutes.

I don't know if a buck is slave to the doe, they can corral them and guide them where they want them to go at times. However I don't know that you can really predict anything about movement when they are locked down.
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Re: Bedding area approach/Locked down bucks

Unread postby Bowhunter4life » Mon Jun 12, 2017 12:39 pm

In terms of slowing down as I get close to my setup, It really depends a lot on the situation. If it is dry and noisy then I'll take my time once I get a few hundred yards away. If it just rained and I can slip in quietly then I may not slow down till the final 60 yards. Deer are always hearing different things out there in the woods. As long as you don't get crazy with walking in snapping limbs and breaking every stick in sight then I believe deer really dont give a lot of attention to it.

Predicting movement when a buck is locked down with a doe is pretty much a guessing game at best. I'd use terrain and the most likely travel routes in the area. When they are locked down with a doe I really don't believe a big buck is gonna allow her to travel far at all, at least not in daylight.
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Re: Bedding area approach/Locked down bucks

Unread postby Southern Buck » Mon Jun 12, 2017 1:17 pm

headgear wrote:Generally speaking if I am 500 yards away from bedding I am going a little slower and quieter just so I don't spook any deer in the area. After that the last 100-200 yards I am going extremely slow and being careful not to make any noise. The area conditions dictate how long it takes to cover that distance, quiet and crunchy and it might be an hour or more. Nice wind or a wet ground and you can cover that in 10-20 minutes.

I don't know if a buck is slave to the doe, they can corral them and guide them where they want them to go at times. However I don't know that you can really predict anything about movement when they are locked down.

I've heard people say that before, but can a big, heavy, mature buck really herd a doe where he wants her? Seems like she would be much faster and nimble and could elude him if she really wished. Not doubting what you're saying at all just thinking out loud based on what I've seen in my limited experience.
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Re: Bedding area approach/Locked down bucks

Unread postby headgear » Mon Jun 12, 2017 1:37 pm

Ya I don't really know if it is rare or common just that people have seen it. One time rifle hunting I had two does and buck come in during the rut. For whatever reason the does didn't smell me or didn't care but the buck sure did. He proceeded to blow 20+ times until the does finally turned back, not exactly the same thing as we were talking about but he certainly talked them into turning around away from danger. Never did get a good look at him but he had a nice sized body from the flash I saw.
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Re: Bedding area approach/Locked down bucks

Unread postby tgreeno » Mon Jun 12, 2017 11:32 pm

I try to walk quietly and take my time when ever I'm hunting. The last 100 yards or so, are usually very slow & more methodical. It depends how open the terrain is.
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Re: Bedding area approach/Locked down bucks

Unread postby JoeRE » Tue Jun 13, 2017 2:10 am

Southern Buck wrote:
headgear wrote:Generally speaking if I am 500 yards away from bedding I am going a little slower and quieter just so I don't spook any deer in the area. After that the last 100-200 yards I am going extremely slow and being careful not to make any noise. The area conditions dictate how long it takes to cover that distance, quiet and crunchy and it might be an hour or more. Nice wind or a wet ground and you can cover that in 10-20 minutes.

I don't know if a buck is slave to the doe, they can corral them and guide them where they want them to go at times. However I don't know that you can really predict anything about movement when they are locked down.

I've heard people say that before, but can a big, heavy, mature buck really herd a doe where he wants her? Seems like she would be much faster and nimble and could elude him if she really wished. Not doubting what you're saying at all just thinking out loud based on what I've seen in my limited experience.


I have wondered about that too. A doe controls WHEN the breeding occurs. I've wondered if she controls the "where" as well. I see bucks chasing does but when it comes to a buck moving with a doe - the doe is usually in the lead heading somewhere, not getting "pushed". If she is in estrus usually she heads somewhere out-of-the-way. It might be in the middle of a 500 acre cornfield or a fencerow or a patch of brush down in a bottom somewhere. Its rarely anywhere on a doe's normal pattern. I have chalked that up in the past to being "driven" by the buck (or several bucks) but am wondering these days if the doe is the one leading the buck to these spots intentionally.

Regarding where a buck will travel after he leaves a doe. I would be very interested if anyone has observed a buck doing this? I haven't, would be pretty cool to hear about it. Does he go get a drink after all that thirsty work? Does he bed down and take a nap? :lol: Just thinking out loud....
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Re: Bedding area approach/Locked down bucks

Unread postby stash59 » Tue Jun 13, 2017 7:28 am

Yeah my old hunting mentor said the bigger bucks liked to push the doe into a more open area. So, that he could keep a better eye out for interloping bucks. Maybe it's actually the doe that leads the buck to these kind of spots, but for the same reasons. To make it easier to keep interlopers away.

All I know is the couple of times I got to witness a doe being breed. They were in an area with better visibility.
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Re: Bedding area approach/Locked down bucks

Unread postby Wannabelikedan » Tue Jun 13, 2017 5:10 pm

As far as when approaching a bedding area, I would say slow down according to what the conditions allow. If you've done your homework scouting you know what you should be able to get away with. If you're on the fly, I'd keep my movements as cat-like as I could and be conservative of when I slowed down. To me slowing down at 100 yds is pushing it where I'm at but not the same where you hunt.

Kinda interesting views on the locked down buck/doe and who is in control of what. Yes, does do control "when" because a buck isn't mounting if she isn't ready. But the chasing/seeking power struggle is relative to the age class of the doe/buck and many other characteristics in the breeding population. Mature does seek mature bucks. They're proven to be successful at surviving and that's what a doe wants. The does are pretty cooperative in letting him have the choice of where he wants to push her, especially if there are lots of younger bucks harassing her nearby. If there is a bad buck<doe ratio probably will see similar thing with does actually seeking more and not leading a buck on a chase. Remember this is a big deal if the doe doesn't get breed within a couple estrous cycles. Why run from opportunity?

I think most situations where the doe is in control is if a buck is a 3 year old or less, if the doe is also a young, inexperienced deer and also when the buck is outside his core area in foreign territory. Younger bucks aren't proven yet so the doe is testing a bucks fitness for breeding. Younger does seem intimidated by rutting behavior the first couple years. Just like young bucks they just don't quite have it down yet. Lastly, when a buck is well out of his stomping ground he may take a hot does lead since he isn't as familiar with the area as the doe is.

Some of this info has been researched, documented, or observed on numerous occasions. Some of it is personal theory too. We all know how whitetails don't follow the rules so always remember "always" is a bad word in the whitetail world!
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