Been lurking, reading and trying to apply for a few years, but am struggling to find mature buck bed sites. I can easily find doe bedding areas and identify a few buck beds associated with them, but have trouble locating mature bucks. I hunt in a part of the country thats more hill country than farm. However, we don't have cover the way that traditional whitetail country does. Our whitetails are typically associated with narrow riparian areas around creeks and the limited farmground associated with it. The main cover away from the riparian is eastern red cedar. Lots of it. The cedars typically only cover the north facing slopes or the lowest south facing slopes where there's enough moisture to grow. The topography doesn't bode real well for observation type sits as most of the time bucks just seem to appear out of a draw or out of the cedars. I've located a couple beds in the very bottom of draws, but haven't had much luck in the rest of it.
I know I always need to scout more, but I've covered enough ground to know that the deer (particularly bucks) aren't bedding in the riparian. This is where I'm struggling to pick out buck bedding areas. Does aren't hard to find like I said, but the bucks aren't there. I'm sure that deer use wind and sight in choosing bed sites, but I'm struggling to figure out how bucks select bedding areas. For a random example of the country I'm dealing with, look at 40.76, -100.53 and let me know what you think.
Thanks!
Struggling to apply Beast tactics
- Lu Rome
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Struggling to apply Beast tactics
“Curiosity never killed the cat. The cat died from stupidity, or maybe an overdose of mice.” -The Old Man
- seazofcheeze
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Re: Struggling to apply Beast tactics
Check the heads (high point/starting point) of the draws.
- Lu Rome
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Re: Struggling to apply Beast tactics
seazofcheeze wrote:Check the heads (high point/starting point) of the draws.
Good point. Thanks. I’ve looked at some, and found some bedding. I forgot to mention that scouting post season is difficult because most of this country gets fall grazed and most of the grass is grazed golf course short and beds aren’t as apparent.
“Curiosity never killed the cat. The cat died from stupidity, or maybe an overdose of mice.” -The Old Man
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Re: Struggling to apply Beast tactics
Sometimes they are in the tight draws too... Ive seen some areas in Illinois and parts of Iowa where the bucks bed in the steep draws. Particularily in areas with lots of cattle grazing, open ground, and run off draws are the main elevation change. The tight ones are hard to hunt cause the wind seems to swirl and pull scent from every direction. My best luck was to hunt outside of the swirls.
- Lu Rome
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Re: Struggling to apply Beast tactics
dan wrote:Sometimes they are in the tight draws too... Ive seen some areas in Illinois and parts of Iowa where the bucks bed in the steep draws. Particularily in areas with lots of cattle grazing, open ground, and run off draws are the main elevation change. The tight ones are hard to hunt cause the wind seems to swirl and pull scent from every direction. My best luck was to hunt outside of the swirls.
In the tight stuff, did they still bed leeward? Our wind varies, but often out of the nw. Our south facing slopes are bare with very little cover. Trying to figure out how they use shade and wind.
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Re: Struggling to apply Beast tactics
Lu Rome wrote:dan wrote:Sometimes they are in the tight draws too... Ive seen some areas in Illinois and parts of Iowa where the bucks bed in the steep draws. Particularily in areas with lots of cattle grazing, open ground, and run off draws are the main elevation change. The tight ones are hard to hunt cause the wind seems to swirl and pull scent from every direction. My best luck was to hunt outside of the swirls.
In the tight stuff, did they still bed leeward? Our wind varies, but often out of the nw. Our south facing slopes are bare with very little cover. Trying to figure out how they use shade and wind.
The wider the draw gets and the less swirling the more the stick to leeward. I don't think they bed there much with the wind blowing straight up the guts, but any variation other than straight up the guts should work, I think its the toilet bowl effect wind that has them bedding on both sides. Needs to be tight though so you have that swirling effect. Sometimes with the wind blowing up the guts I seen them bed up on the top in the point if there is open terrain up there. Wind coming out of the draw watching the open, especially if its a field.
- thepennsylvanian
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Re: Struggling to apply Beast tactics
A big thing that you'll have to figure out is what you are basing the term nature off of! Are saying your having trouble finding mature bucks because you aren't seeing the 150" class bucks? If so you need to figure out what y
The potential of for the area you are hunting, because it is entirely possible you are finding a mature deer, he is just not meeting your expectations! Go in with the mindset that your are going to shoot the first buck that gets you excited and I think you will be fine!
The potential of for the area you are hunting, because it is entirely possible you are finding a mature deer, he is just not meeting your expectations! Go in with the mindset that your are going to shoot the first buck that gets you excited and I think you will be fine!
Be polite, be professional, but have a plan to kill everybody you meet.
- Lu Rome
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Re: Struggling to apply Beast tactics
dan wrote:The wider the draw gets and the less swirling the more the stick to leeward. I don't think they bed there much with the wind blowing straight up the guts, but any variation other than straight up the guts should work, I think its the toilet bowl effect wind that has them bedding on both sides. Needs to be tight though so you have that swirling effect. Sometimes with the wind blowing up the guts I seen them bed up on the top in the point if there is open terrain up there. Wind coming out of the draw watching the open, especially if its a field.
Ok. That makes sense to me. No shortage of off wind slopes. Thank you much!
“Curiosity never killed the cat. The cat died from stupidity, or maybe an overdose of mice.” -The Old Man
- Lu Rome
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Re: Struggling to apply Beast tactics
thepennsylvanian wrote:A big thing that you'll have to figure out is what you are basing the term nature off of! Are saying your having trouble finding mature bucks because you aren't seeing the 150" class bucks? If so you need to figure out what y
The potential of for the area you are hunting, because it is entirely possible you are finding a mature deer, he is just not meeting your expectations! Go in with the mindset that your are going to shoot the first buck that gets you excited and I think you will be fine!
I run plenty of cams. I have mature bucks. Pics of one individual (my personal Moby Dick) since 2013 season. I don’t have any giants, but plenty 3+. I’m just struggling to apply what I’m learning here.
“Curiosity never killed the cat. The cat died from stupidity, or maybe an overdose of mice.” -The Old Man
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