Hill country draws

[Bucksunlimitedpa]

I’ve read thru the forms about draws but wanted to get some more information. Would you Walk up a draw to where all the draws meet up then get off the to the side and set up. Or stay out of the draw completely and come in from the side. I see a big advantage with walking the draws in because you are out of sight and can move quiet but and the same foot it can pull your scent up the hill to anything bedded up the hill. I’m all ears for all information on hill country draws

[whi52873]

Hill country access is tough in general. I hunt big woods in a little mountain range where there are deep draws/drainage's and the slopes consist of softball sized rocks.....being quiet in that terrain is next to impossible.

Deer have every advantage in this type of terrain....if you're accessing the draw from the leeward side the deer will see you and if you access the draw from the windward side the deer will smell you.

I'm not sure on what type of hill country you're accessing but draws are tough. IME, the deer will exit his bed in the direction he is facing on the leeward side of the ridge heading towards the bottom in the evenings. He may not go all the way to the bottom but at least to the bottom third. Sometimes they will stage up there and browse until dark and sometimes they will actually start working back up the ridge with the thermals falling down in their face. I actually see that a lot in the big woods I hunt because all the white oaks and higher stem count browse is up top. There is no ag for miles so food sources are limited. The hard part is setting up on the same ridge the bucks are on without blowing them out of their bed.

I'm not sure this will answer your question but what has worked best for me in the evenings is when I have a ridge/draw I am wanting to hunt, I access using an adjacent ridge/draw. Once you're on top, use the rising thermals/cross wind to get closer to the ridge/draw you want to hunt.

Since the deer will be on the leeward side of the ridge facing the bottom, I find it easier to come up the draw/windward side of an adjacent ridge. Your thermals are still rising and you are using the crosswind to get closer to an exit route.

I am still trying to figure out evening hunts in big woods hill country myself so hopefully someone else can add some knowledge. All of this is excluding rut by the way.....hill country is great for funneling activity but when it comes to September/October....it's tough.

[Bucksunlimitedpa]

What I’ve been finding is most the draws have all the oaks in them with accorns and the leeward sides are super thick and impossible to sneak thru quiet with a stand on your back. I’m think the draws will be a good funnel during the rut because they are between bedding and have food just need to figure out how to set up on them

[whi52873]

I gotcha. Most of the drainage's around me are too steep or too rocky for mature trees......the mature trees that did find a way to grow have pretty much all resulted in a dead fall.

If you are planning on hunting the draw in the rut, I would set up in the head of it where the deer will likely travel. IME, there is always a deer trail at the head of the draw because the deer take the path of least resistance and won't cut down through draw and back up the other side. Not saying they won't cut down the drainage but a majority of the time they don't. That's with the steep drainage's I hunt.....not sure how steep the draw is your planning to hunt.

[Jeff25]

I walk up them in the mornings and hunt at the top of the drainage ditch. Being down in the ditch muffled the noise of you walking in and out as well and your out of sight. I have found many beds at the top of those ditches too