A problem I ran into on a big 8.
- AntlersAnonymous
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A problem I ran into on a big 8.
So, last season I got a big 8 pointer, 145 or so, showing up to a feeder pre rut. He would show up every 2-3 days in October right at dusk. I hunted him a couple times at the feeder in October. Once November hit, I only got 1 picture of him walking by the feeder. Then, early December, he shows up to the feeder and has already dropped his antlers. By the way, in October I got his pictures on other cameras. We only put cameras on the fringes of the woods, also on food plots and feeders. Like I said, during the rut, he was a ghost. I'm starting to have a feeling he never left the property, about 300 acres or so. I'm thinking he started ducking my cameras and the high traffic areas.He would've been the most dominate buck on the property. There was also a 150s 13 pointer, but he's only 3.5 and wouldn't stand a chance against the big 8. I got tons of pics of the 10. Does this sound normal per a mature buck? Do you guys think my pressure pushed him? Should I push into the woods a little harder if I have a mature buck ducking my cameras? To add, I've never had a mature buck duck my cameras until last year, I 100% had a giant at one of my properties who only got caught on camera once, he was 100yd yards out and only got caught because his hot doe ran by the camera. All my areas are pretty low pressure.
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Re: A problem I ran into on a big 8.
IMO this is very common with that style of hunting....cameras, feeders, regularly hunted stands etc on a small-ish property.
You can trick them by completely changing things. Access, time of day, when and where you hunt etc.
I had a farm that if I happened to walk to, I saw a Biggun. If I drove back, I saw didly. Why? My truck driving back and stopping tipped them off. That wasn't normal.
Checking cameras is a great way to educate deer for the most part. Cameras IMO probably save more deer than they kill when used in the traditional manner...checking weekly or whatever.
I used to hunt like that and struggled. I quickly caught on that when I hunted a different farm, I saw deer. Then realized "hey I usually always see deer the first time I hunt a place...after that sightings are way down or none..". So I started hunting new spots all the time.
Yep it's not nearly as convenient as hunting private ground or a lease close to home, easy access, atvs, limited other hunters etc....but I wanna be in game every hunt. And I wanna hunt every chance I get....so I gotta cover some ground.
Just my thoughts....but I'd say "they are watching you"
You can trick them by completely changing things. Access, time of day, when and where you hunt etc.
I had a farm that if I happened to walk to, I saw a Biggun. If I drove back, I saw didly. Why? My truck driving back and stopping tipped them off. That wasn't normal.
Checking cameras is a great way to educate deer for the most part. Cameras IMO probably save more deer than they kill when used in the traditional manner...checking weekly or whatever.
I used to hunt like that and struggled. I quickly caught on that when I hunted a different farm, I saw deer. Then realized "hey I usually always see deer the first time I hunt a place...after that sightings are way down or none..". So I started hunting new spots all the time.
Yep it's not nearly as convenient as hunting private ground or a lease close to home, easy access, atvs, limited other hunters etc....but I wanna be in game every hunt. And I wanna hunt every chance I get....so I gotta cover some ground.
Just my thoughts....but I'd say "they are watching you"
- Lockdown
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Re: A problem I ran into on a big 8.
My friends and I have both noticed that pics seem to drop off a bit if a cam is either noticeable to the deer, or if you check it with any regularity. Every few weeks or so. I’m confident they avoid them if they know they’re there. Especially mature bucks.
Some deer don’t seem to mind, some do.
Some deer don’t seem to mind, some do.
- austin1990
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Re: A problem I ran into on a big 8.
I'm gonna say he caught on to the pressure and adjusted. I've hunted that way a good bit in my life and usually the first hunt after a buck shows up like that is the best chance at him, after that he smells you were there and avoids it in daylight. The deer on the private I hunt see's, hears and smells people every day due to it being a working cattle farm, so I usually can get away with more intrusion than most, but a smart old buck will avoid a spot if they've smelled a person recently. Usually I dont hunt near a feeder or plot, I hunt close to the bedding or a good staging area before the feed.
Several years ago I was hunting a big 8 point as well, he was a traveler, showed up november 2nd following a hot doe. Over the rest of November and December he stayed on the place, but never was on the same camera more than once and never in the same week. I ended up getting him on 3 cameras, farthest 2 cameras were 1.3 miles apart as the crow flies. But he always moved in the middle of the day, between 11 am and 2 pm, when no one hunted I've learned since then... anyways end of December he actually got regular for 3 days on a corn pile I had out for hogs. I slipped in to check the camera, seen he had been there the previous 2 nights, before dark and decided it was time. Slipped in early and got setup. Anyways about 10 minutes til dark I seen him coming. He was 50 yards and closing, but he was super wary. Take a few steps and stop and scan EVERYTHING before moving. Anyways, I messed up, picked a tree with no cover and he was walking directly towards me and when he was about 30 yards out he spotted me. We had a 2 minute stare down, but he knew something wasn't right and turned to leave, I drew back, he hit an opening and I shot under him Anyways, he NEVER showed back up on a single camera again, not since then and that's been 4 seasons. I say all of that to show how wary a big buck can be, and one encounter and he completely abandoned the place he'd been staying all winter and never came back. That hunt helped me a lot though, helped me be smarter about my setups, picking a tree not directly in the path of a deer, picking a better hide/cover, not hunting directly on the food source, etc...
Several years ago I was hunting a big 8 point as well, he was a traveler, showed up november 2nd following a hot doe. Over the rest of November and December he stayed on the place, but never was on the same camera more than once and never in the same week. I ended up getting him on 3 cameras, farthest 2 cameras were 1.3 miles apart as the crow flies. But he always moved in the middle of the day, between 11 am and 2 pm, when no one hunted I've learned since then... anyways end of December he actually got regular for 3 days on a corn pile I had out for hogs. I slipped in to check the camera, seen he had been there the previous 2 nights, before dark and decided it was time. Slipped in early and got setup. Anyways about 10 minutes til dark I seen him coming. He was 50 yards and closing, but he was super wary. Take a few steps and stop and scan EVERYTHING before moving. Anyways, I messed up, picked a tree with no cover and he was walking directly towards me and when he was about 30 yards out he spotted me. We had a 2 minute stare down, but he knew something wasn't right and turned to leave, I drew back, he hit an opening and I shot under him Anyways, he NEVER showed back up on a single camera again, not since then and that's been 4 seasons. I say all of that to show how wary a big buck can be, and one encounter and he completely abandoned the place he'd been staying all winter and never came back. That hunt helped me a lot though, helped me be smarter about my setups, picking a tree not directly in the path of a deer, picking a better hide/cover, not hunting directly on the food source, etc...
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Re: A problem I ran into on a big 8.
Mature bucks are a different animal. You have to go to them, not lure them to you.
- funderburk
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Re: A problem I ran into on a big 8.
What Dan said.
I’m no mature buck killer, but one thing I have noticed since joining the beast is that total surprise is key. I did a study of the defining tactics of killers like Dan, Eberhart, D’Acquisto, and a few others and ALL OF THEM (I can’t stress that enough)...all of them...are so serious about catching those mature bucks completely off guard until it’s the right time and situation and then moving in for the kill.
Definitely something I’m working on this season. Total surprise.
I’m no mature buck killer, but one thing I have noticed since joining the beast is that total surprise is key. I did a study of the defining tactics of killers like Dan, Eberhart, D’Acquisto, and a few others and ALL OF THEM (I can’t stress that enough)...all of them...are so serious about catching those mature bucks completely off guard until it’s the right time and situation and then moving in for the kill.
Definitely something I’m working on this season. Total surprise.
“I’ve always believed that the mind is the best weapon.” John Rambo
- AntlersAnonymous
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Re: A problem I ran into on a big 8.
Thanks everybody for the replies. I'm definitely doing it differently this year when he comes back. He will be back if a car doesn't get him. If a mature buck is super active early season like he was, on his feet a lot before dark. Should I go ahead and try to get a little closer to his bed? Should I stay on a trail, or set back off and just scout for his movement?
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