Loner Bucks

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hplayer13
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Loner Bucks

Unread postby hplayer13 » Sun Sep 01, 2019 6:41 am

Different bucks have different personalities, and I’m currently tracking one 4.5-5.5 yo that is never seen with or around other deer, even in the summer. So far I have zero pattern for him besides I believe he is making a loop and comes by my camera every 5 or so days. I need to find his bedroom, but do you guys have any advice for time of season and other tactics to kill these mature loner type bucks? This is in a pressures, small tracts of land Michigan area


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Re: Loner Bucks

Unread postby moondoondude » Sun Sep 01, 2019 7:18 am

I've dealt with this before and it can be tough. My best spots are primary bedding areas for bachelor groups which can be just what a loner target buck will deliberately avoid.

All things being equal - weather, moon phase, etc. - I think October 21 - october 31 is best for this type of deer. The biggest, oldest bucks become very vulnerable during this time and usually have a daylight routine that can be patterned or observed pretty easily. I have had a lot of big older bucks move heavily 1 - 3 hours before dark, doing just about the same thing every day during that stretch. I have plenty of big, older bucks do that year round but the vast majority, outside of those with seasonal ranges and bucks that make rut excursions, will be most consistent and easy to target during the bow season during those dates.
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Re: Loner Bucks

Unread postby hplayer13 » Sun Sep 01, 2019 7:42 am

moondoondude wrote:I've dealt with this before and it can be tough. My best spots are primary bedding areas for bachelor groups which can be just what a loner target buck will deliberately avoid.

All things being equal - weather, moon phase, etc. - I think October 21 - october 31 is best for this type of deer. The biggest, oldest bucks become very vulnerable during this time and usually have a daylight routine that can be patterned or observed pretty easily. I have had a lot of big older bucks move heavily 1 - 3 hours before dark, doing just about the same thing every day during that stretch. I have plenty of big, older bucks do that year round but the vast majority, outside of those with seasonal ranges and bucks that make rut excursions, will be most consistent and easy to target during the bow season during those dates.


What if he isn’t wanting to breed any more? My initial thought was try and target him the first few days of the season, maybe trying to pick him off at a secluded apple tree. Or get close to his bed but if it’s where I think it is he can see almost all access because surround area is fairly open. This is all within probably 150 yards of several houses, basically an overlooked back yard buck
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Re: Loner Bucks

Unread postby moondoondude » Sun Sep 01, 2019 9:27 am

I doubt he doesn't want to breed, almost certain just the opposite. Those loner bucks are usually avoiding the social bachelor group life because they don't play well with others. Some of the biggest and most dominant bucks i have killed have been what I would consider loners, and mostly for that reason. On the very rare occasion, it is because they got their but kicked in a bad way earlier on.

It sounds like you don't know enough about him to go after him with much confidence in your setup in early October. I won't go in somewhere just to hunt and hope because personally, I go in when i know it's right to get it done. If i don't know enough about a buck or if he is moving through a smaller property sporadically or on a circuit, I know the timeframe I mentioned in my first post increases the likelihood of an encounter.
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Re: Loner Bucks

Unread postby Lockdown » Sun Sep 01, 2019 9:49 am

Good to see you’re still snooping around, Moon!


Going after a single buck can teach you a lot, but it can also be very frustrating. It takes a ton of time and if you don’t obsess over him your chances of success will be fairly low.

You’ll definitely want to learn his track. If there aren’t many big bucks around it can be quite easy to decipher him from others. When I spent a couple years chasing the big one I killed in 2016, I was always looking for his tracks. He had a wide print and fairly square toe. Even when checking cameras I tried to figure out if I had him on cam even before looking at the card. I was very limited property wise, not sure what you have access to.

Check field edges and the gravel shoulders of the roads after a rain. Observe any time you can. Trail cams are obviously very beneficial if used correctly. Spread them out in “locator” type locations just hoping to inventory his whereabouts. Any piece of the puzzle is important no matter how small it is.

If you’ve got resident does on the property, do everything you can to keep them there. Without knowing all the details of your situation they will likely be your best bet to kill him.
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Re: Loner Bucks

Unread postby brancher147 » Sun Sep 01, 2019 11:46 am

I hunted one in particular that was a loner. Hunted him for 4 years and saw him twice. Once last week of October as Moon said and once the weekend before Thanksgiving chasing a doe. I would get him on cam a few times a year on a couple cams that were 3 miles apart. Never knew where he bedded. Those weeks are consistent with seeing and killing other loner bucks for me.
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Re: Loner Bucks

Unread postby iowa whitetail » Sun Sep 01, 2019 4:33 pm

Loner bucks are the easiest bucks to kill. They are usually older with a very small core area. I've found they dont move much at all in day and the ones I've killed and seen killed are all in november just making circles in the small area they roam all year.
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Re: Loner Bucks

Unread postby hplayer13 » Sun Sep 01, 2019 11:06 pm

iowa whitetail wrote:Loner bucks are the easiest bucks to kill. They are usually older with a very small core area. I've found they dont move much at all in day and the ones I've killed and seen killed are all in november just making circles in the small area they roam all year.


So just hunt observation stands until the rut you’re suggesting? I think I mentioned but thankfully my camera is very close to a road and house so I’m able to easily access it and monitor if he’s on the property or in the process of making that loop.
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Re: Loner Bucks

Unread postby brancher147 » Sun Sep 01, 2019 11:08 pm

iowa whitetail wrote:Loner bucks are the easiest bucks to kill. They are usually older with a very small core area. I've found they dont move much at all in day and the ones I've killed and seen killed are all in november just making circles in the small area they roam all year.


Interesting. Maybe in Iowa they have a very small core area. That’s not at all what I have seen in mountains or big woods. Those older loner bucks have been around long enough to know all of the doe bedding areas for miles and when the rut hits they cover more ground than any other bucks. They are just very smart about how and when to travel.
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Re: Loner Bucks

Unread postby moondoondude » Mon Sep 02, 2019 12:08 am

iowa whitetail wrote:Loner bucks are the easiest bucks to kill. They are usually older with a very small core area. I've found they dont move much at all in day and the ones I've killed and seen killed are all in november just making circles in the small area they roam all year.


I could agree, as long as that small core area consists of the property you are hunting.

It sounds like the OP's buck is likely shrinking that range down to less and less, not including the small parcel he hunts.
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Re: Loner Bucks

Unread postby Singing Bridge » Mon Sep 02, 2019 12:54 am

hplayer13 wrote:Different bucks have different personalities, and I’m currently tracking one 4.5-5.5 yo that is never seen with or around other deer, even in the summer. So far I have zero pattern for him besides I believe he is making a loop and comes by my camera every 5 or so days. I need to find his bedroom, but do you guys have any advice for time of season and other tactics to kill these mature loner type bucks? This is in a pressures, small tracts of land Michigan area


Some great posts already, different areas and different habitats- we can learn a lot from each other.

Michigan- Pressure - Small tracts of land... it's all about locating the bedding as you mentioned. Even if some of your pics are in daylight, that's going to change soon.
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Re: Loner Bucks

Unread postby iowa whitetail » Mon Sep 02, 2019 1:39 pm

hplayer13 wrote:
iowa whitetail wrote:Loner bucks are the easiest bucks to kill. They are usually older with a very small core area. I've found they dont move much at all in day and the ones I've killed and seen killed are all in november just making circles in the small area they roam all year.


So just hunt observation stands until the rut you’re suggesting? I think I mentioned but thankfully my camera is very close to a road and house so I’m able to easily access it and monitor if he’s on the property or in the process of making that loop.

I kill allot of loner bucks sitting in an observation stand. The day after you see them is a good day usually. Dont get discouraged if you dont see him. Go in halloween to nov 1st were you think is a good spot and go from there. Loner bucks are older and dont leave the area. My opinion. Very aggressive deer in there area. On grunt or rattle and it's over.
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Re: Loner Bucks

Unread postby hplayer13 » Mon Sep 02, 2019 1:55 pm

iowa whitetail wrote:
hplayer13 wrote:
iowa whitetail wrote:Loner bucks are the easiest bucks to kill. They are usually older with a very small core area. I've found they dont move much at all in day and the ones I've killed and seen killed are all in november just making circles in the small area they roam all year.


So just hunt observation stands until the rut you’re suggesting? I think I mentioned but thankfully my camera is very close to a road and house so I’m able to easily access it and monitor if he’s on the property or in the process of making that loop.

I kill allot of loner bucks sitting in an observation stand. The day after you see them is a good day usually. Dont get discouraged if you dont see him. Go in halloween to nov 1st were you think is a good spot and go from there. Loner bucks are older and dont leave the area. My opinion. Very aggressive deer in there area. On grunt or rattle and it's over.


Are you saying they are a loner because although old they may have got whooped early on? And calling to them will push them out? Or that they’re super aggressive and should come in to any call?
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Re: Loner Bucks

Unread postby hplayer13 » Mon Sep 02, 2019 1:59 pm

iowa whitetail wrote:
hplayer13 wrote:
iowa whitetail wrote:Loner bucks are the easiest bucks to kill. They are usually older with a very small core area. I've found they dont move much at all in day and the ones I've killed and seen killed are all in november just making circles in the small area they roam all year.


So just hunt observation stands until the rut you’re suggesting? I think I mentioned but thankfully my camera is very close to a road and house so I’m able to easily access it and monitor if he’s on the property or in the process of making that loop.

I kill allot of loner bucks sitting in an observation stand. The day after you see them is a good day usually. Dont get discouraged if you dont see him. Go in halloween to nov 1st were you think is a good spot and go from there. Loner bucks are older and dont leave the area. My opinion. Very aggressive deer in there area. On grunt or rattle and it's over.


Are you saying they are a loner because although old they may have got whooped early on? And calling to them will push them out? Or that they’re super aggressive and should come in to any call?
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Re: Loner Bucks

Unread postby iowa whitetail » Mon Sep 02, 2019 2:03 pm

hplayer13 wrote:
iowa whitetail wrote:
hplayer13 wrote:
iowa whitetail wrote:Loner bucks are the easiest bucks to kill. They are usually older with a very small core area. I've found they dont move much at all in day and the ones I've killed and seen killed are all in november just making circles in the small area they roam all year.


So just hunt observation stands until the rut you’re suggesting? I think I mentioned but thankfully my camera is very close to a road and house so I’m able to easily access it and monitor if he’s on the property or in the process of making that loop.

I kill allot of loner bucks sitting in an observation stand. The day after you see them is a good day usually. Dont get discouraged if you dont see him. Go in halloween to nov 1st were you think is a good spot and go from there. Loner bucks are older and dont leave the area. My opinion. Very aggressive deer in there area. On grunt or rattle and it's over.


Are you saying they are a loner because although old they may have got whooped early on? And calling to them will push them out? Or that they’re super aggressive and should come in to any call?
aggressive and are ready to defend territory.


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