Urban Areas Small woodlot buck staging areas

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Crawdad31
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Urban Areas Small woodlot buck staging areas

Unread postby Crawdad31 » Thu Jan 18, 2018 4:33 am

I hunt a lot of public land and public access land and a little private land in PA, the public access stuff is a lot of times bow only due to being in urban areas and small properties ranging from 80 acres to 28 acres. I wanted to open up a discussion and about buck bedding and staging areas in urban areas with small properties. I have been doing the urban property thing for 8 years or so and Ive killed a bunch of doe, just havent sealed the deal on a mature buck. I had missed a giant in the 150's about 4-5 years ago, wounded a 130's as a 3.5 year old that survived and blew up the next year and has since disappeared completely last season, I had another buck in the 140's that busted me this year. while trying to get turned around in the stand after grabbing the bow. (I wasnt even completely set up and almost pulled it off). Anyway, a lot of times, these bucks bed on different parcels just across the street and I dont have permission to hunt those parcels. So sometimes getting close to the bedding is tough. I have done well seeing these bucks in day light between October 17th and the 22nd. Sometimes during rifle season I do ok seeing these bucks in day light, our rifle season is usually, the first two weeks of December. It starts the Monday after Thanksgiving. I still have to hunt with a bow during that time though which is fine and probably explains why I see them. Thats the background

Now, identifying staging areas, and timing hunts is what I would like to talk about. Anyone else have any experience and would like to share their thoughts? Something in my scouting I havent done enough of was paying attention to staging area's, the urban guys, how do you identify a buck staging area? Greg Millers rub line secrets talked about cluster rubs that are off of rub lines. I had noticed in a funnel/pinch point/inside corner, where a fallow field, timber, and yards meet, there are two scrapes, and a bunch of rubs running out with the rub facing the scrapes and yards. I seen the buck that busted me coming off the scrape I didnt know was there at the time, until I got down and poked around. So this is also primary scrape area as well. I missed this every other year hunting it. I kinda feel stupid. At any rate I didnt see that buck after that encounter. I will post a map to show what I mean once i figure that out.

So again, staging areas in urban areas, identifying them and timing hunts. Just wanted to get some thoughts.


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Crawdad31
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Re: Urban Areas Small woodlot buck staging areas

Unread postby Crawdad31 » Thu Jan 18, 2018 5:24 am

Image

This is the property I referenced.
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Boogieman1
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Re: Urban Areas Small woodlot buck staging areas

Unread postby Boogieman1 » Thu Jan 18, 2018 6:03 am

All depends on the pressure those properties are getting. 8o acres isn't a whole lot if u got all kinds of knuckle heads stomping through it. In those cases I look around at what's close by where a buck could hole up during the day. It might be right up behind a elderly couples house who never go outside or in overgrown foreclosed properties. I then seek permission to investigate.
Small acerage also presents a problem with getting in undetected, most these places only have one entry so a bit of covert ops is sometimes required. I've had the best luck eithier just hunting the perimeter corners and slowly squeezing down based off what I have seen. Or staying completely out until prime time and hitting the very best spot on the property 3 days in a row with all day sits. This is also if u r the only one hunting the place. If not the chances of a big buck even being there are slim at best, I would seek permission for overlooked spots.
Life is hard; It’s even harder if you are stupid.
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Crawdad31
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Re: Urban Areas Small woodlot buck staging areas

Unread postby Crawdad31 » Thu Jan 18, 2018 7:25 am

Boogieman1 wrote:All depends on the pressure those properties are getting. 8o acres isn't a whole lot if u got all kinds of knuckle heads stomping through it. In those cases I look around at what's close by where a buck could hole up during the day. It might be right up behind a elderly couples house who never go outside or in overgrown foreclosed properties. I then seek permission to investigate.
Small acerage also presents a problem with getting in undetected, most these places only have one entry so a bit of covert ops is sometimes required. I've had the best luck eithier just hunting the perimeter corners and slowly squeezing down based off what I have seen. Or staying completely out until prime time and hitting the very best spot on the property 3 days in a row with all day sits. This is also if u r the only one hunting the place. If not the chances of a big buck even being there are slim at best, I would seek permission for overlooked spots.



Timing has been something I have learned after keeping journals for the last few years and I totally agree on being covert and a lot of what you said is basically what I do, the 3 days in a row all day sit thing I have not tried and will use that in the future. Each urban property I hunt, I am not the only guy. It seems to me though that you typically get one crack at these bucks and thats it. They tend to not move much in day light after the pre-rut and rut, the dates I gave from the 17th to the 26th, have been good. Urban bucks and urban deer movement is tough, because the food can be everywhere or in the case of white oaks they can be a little more patternable. Are staging areas something you have paid attention too? If so, how do you often identify them? Also, have you had any luck in the late season? I had one day one year I saw two twin 8 pointers both in the 130's and a crazy non-typical all in the same little woodlot, I was on the ground and the snow had melted after a cold snap broke since then havent done as well in the late season. I love urban areas, and hate them at the same time they can be very frustrating to hunt. One final thought the other guys that hunt are usually hunting from fixed position stands or climbers in my experience, so I can move around the pressure pretty easily, but on 28 acres, thats tough.
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Boogieman1
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Re: Urban Areas Small woodlot buck staging areas

Unread postby Boogieman1 » Thu Jan 18, 2018 7:34 am

3 days in a row works for me cause that's timed with when the resident does get the most attention. I also hunt low deer density so the bucks tend to travel more following terrain. Not sure if that's what u got or not so the 3 days might not work in your case. Just got to figure out when that property gives u the best odds and form a plan for it. There all kinda diff what works good at one will fail miserably at the next
Life is hard; It’s even harder if you are stupid.
-John Wayne-
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Crawdad31
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Re: Urban Areas Small woodlot buck staging areas

Unread postby Crawdad31 » Thu Jan 18, 2018 10:31 am

Agreed. I hunt in areas with high deer densities at least on the urban side of things. That's been the problem for me on the property I posted a map, the doe population needs knocked back a little, I took a mature doe this late season so that may help. Now that I think about it, the years with the best buck movement was a couple hard winters and we had a few doe die off. It doesnt help that one of the mature doe had triplets this year :shock: I have been trying to get as many permissions in this area as possible which helps some and the two properties i do have permission I took doe, one I took doe in consecutive years so hopefully the big boys move more next year.


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