So you saw a mature buck..then what?

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mheichelbech
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So you saw a mature buck..then what?

Unread postby mheichelbech » Tue Dec 04, 2018 2:44 pm

I think this happens with a lot of hunters, they briefly see or spook a mature buck off and then hunt that area thinking he will be back. Without proper scouting and planning they end up spooking the buck out the area by leaving scent trails on entry/exit and/or hunting the wrong winds.

If you have spotted a buck or spooked a “new” buck in the woods, maybe you jumped him walking in or out to/from your stand or while just walking around scouting, what are your next steps to figuring out the best chance to kill him?

For me, my first thing is to try and figure out a logical reason he was in the location that he was:

- was he bedded, running from something?
- was he with a doe, the herd or all alone?
- what time of year is it...to me this determines the likelihood it was purely a random affair.
- does it make sense for him to have been there, for bedding, feeding, etc? For example, if bedded or cruising was he in the leeward side of a ridge?
- if later in the year was he near a food source or is there a food source where I spotted him such as acorns?

For you guys who have been able to see a deer like this...that you came upon by surprise, what did you do that enabled you to come back and make the kill? What questions did you ask yourself and how did you answer them?
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"One of the chief attractions of the life of the wilderness is its rugged and stalwart democracy; there every man stands for what he actually is and can show himself to be." — Theodore Roosevelt, 1893
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Re: So you saw a mature buck..then what?

Unread postby TN Whitetail Freak » Tue Dec 04, 2018 3:38 pm

This happened to me on Nov. 26. My number 1 buck I was chasing was seen on the edge of a field after a goat roping of an evening hunt I decided to road scout. I spotted this buck on the edge of the field and seen another deer out in front of it. I assumed it was a doe. I pulled the cam out and videod the deer. I had a speculation it was my number one buck i was chasing and it was daylight with 20 minutes of legal light. So the next evening I walked the edge of that field until i cut those tracks he left. I followed them into the timber line and made an assumption the doe was in the CRP they ran toward. I slipped in and climbed the tree closest to where I thought they were coming out when I noticed the farmers were cutting the beans in the nearest crop field. Then I remembered the farmers were working that field the evening before. Maybe thats why I saw that buck where I saw him. I settled in at 3pm. and at 4pm I spotted him 80 yds away as if he stood up out of the grass. He was staring right out of me and I thought I was done. He grunted and took steps to me. Long story short the doe carried him by me at 65 yds and I never got a shot. Two things happened in my situation. I had farmers eliminating one huge crop field from my hunting strategy because i knew they werent heading that way with the combines running. I knew he was with a doe and all i had to do was hunt the doe. Where would she want to go tomorrow evening given the circumstances. I assumed her path would be nearly identical because the wind and farmers occupying the crop were identical to evening before. Turns out I hit it right on the head guessing their route, but my setup was 30 yds off unfortunately. So, instead of shooting an arrow I did shoot 3 minutes of video of the big buck I've BIG EASY. A high 140s mid 150s eight point buck I guesstimate 5.5+ yrs old on state ground.
Evanszach7
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Re: So you saw a mature buck..then what?

Unread postby Evanszach7 » Tue Dec 04, 2018 11:08 pm

Those are all really good questions to ask yourself, and pretty much what I do with this situation. I’ve had a few encounters with mature bucks this year between Ohio and KY. Asking the questions kept me in the game a couple times this season, but should mostly set me up for next year. Otherwise, sticking to last year’s scouting and on to the next 1st sit.

Couple in September in KY: 2 different ones busted out of bedding scouting in. Bump and dump unsuccessful. Figured out setups for those beds for next year. Had another encounter with 1 of them prerut 700-800 yards away. Bedding had switched to hill country with some leaf drop/acorns. The other was killed working a scrape line 20 yards from the tree I killed my buck in, and my buddy was going to hunt that morning. Lessons...shoulda held out for one of those. My buddy was running late that morning.

November 3 Ohio: setup slightly upwind of doe bedding, but 30 yards down wind of a scrape line. Passed 2 sets of does coming back to bed late from a standing corn field. Over the next 3 hours saw 6 bucks dog one of the doe’s trails. Almost shot a 2.5 year old, but figured he’s got a good chance of making it. The buck I was after, showed up last, and was the only one to not present a shot. Had bumped him from his bed a week prior. This was the closest doe bedding area to that bed. Hitting his bed Halloween week next year and this doe bedding area if that doesn’t work out. Picked a kill tree 15 yards away from my set that would have killed that buck. Biggest takeaway... he let the other bucks chase and hugged the cover. Probably one of the 1st esterous does in the area.

Nov 18 small ridge/saddle near a swamp, dogging a doe at top speed. Couldn’t stop him. Found a lot of sign suggesting he comes from private farm country on the way to this spot. Left a camera at an entry point. Will check it at the end of the season. I’m assuming my best bet is to hit the area the same time next year. Setup closer to the doe bedding where they came from. Hitting a marsh bed nearby on the chance that he beds farm country early season and gun season has pushed him there.
mheichelbech
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Re: So you saw a mature buck..then what?

Unread postby mheichelbech » Wed Dec 05, 2018 2:06 am

If unsuccessful, prior year intel can be your best. I have seen 2 different bucks in the same places at the same time (same week) as the year before.
"One of the chief attractions of the life of the wilderness is its rugged and stalwart democracy; there every man stands for what he actually is and can show himself to be." — Theodore Roosevelt, 1893
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Re: So you saw a mature buck..then what?

Unread postby Tennhunter3 » Wed Dec 05, 2018 3:19 am

How do you know you spooked him out of the area?
Just because he hasn't been back in that spot in daylight I think he is more likely to go nocturnal and remain in area.

Area I guess could be 20 acres to one person and 300 acres to another.

Most buck home ranges are between 280-340 acres on average which Is not all that big.
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