Glassing help & Summer to Fall pattern change

[Brad]

So, I am new to glassing for real intel. I have never actually glassed before this year and so far have really only been glassing from the road and parking lots to see some deer and know there are deer around. With 3 weeks till out season begins, I am ready to get out there to get real intel, however I have some questions.

- if you haven't ever glasses a particular field and don't know where bucks are bedding and/or where they are likely coming from, where do you try to set up to glass? do you choose a high point in the field? do you choose dependent on wind direction?

- do you guys generally see deer entering a field in the low point? or are they coming in with the wind at their nose, or back? is it pretty consistent or too random to pattern?

- How long before opening day should the serious glassing begin? The glassing I will be doing is for a managed hunt that lasts from Sept 15th until Sept 27th, and it is in Missouri.

That leads me in to some other questions regarding the transition from summer to fall patterns.
Would you expect the summer pattern to continue until pressure causes them to shift? or do you think it's more biological and a result of the shedding velvet and breaking up of bachelor groups?
I have heard the bucks lose their velvet by Sept 1st, but have seen a couple reports that it has started already. Do you believe the transition out of the fields during daylight directly correlated to the loss of velvet? do you think it is more due to hunting pressure? or due to the changes of food? The fields I plan to glass are bean fields at least 3 fields back from the closest road/parking lot. I believe they were all planted late, but I am not sure when the beans will start turning yellow. They have been hitting the beans recently I know. Right now there are a large number crop fields including beans, milo, and corn, as well as some grass fields and a few thick brush fields. There are also some areas of hills with timber and several areas loaded with white oaks. Curious on everyones thoughts on what the patterns might be in this instance and during that time frame.

[Jdw]

IMO glassing is most effective when you can do it without altering the deer movement with your entry or exit.

The timeframe you are talking about is when they are transitioning out of their summer patterns.

Put your time in and hopefully a pattern will develop that you can take advantage of. But if not you are still likely to learn what kind of bucks are around and which areas they are coming from.
So even if they are no longer on a daylight pattern you still have a place to start from to hunt one down.

Good luck

[Brad]

IMO glassing is most effective when you can do it without altering the deer movement with your entry or exit.

The timeframe you are talking about is when they are transitioning out of their summer patterns.

Put your time in and hopefully a pattern will develop that you can take advantage of. But if not you are still likely to learn what kind of bucks are around and which areas they are coming from.
So even if they are no longer on a daylight pattern you still have a place to start from to hunt one down.

Good luck

Yea, I already know there are some very nice bucks that have been frequenting the fields closer to the road and parking lot, but I was planning on getting a little further back in hopes of having less intrusion by other hunters, but i don't really know if that will be the case. I know I want to get in there without altering deer movement, but the problem is I have no idea where the deer are bedded or where they tend to enter those particular fields, which could make that a little tricky.

[Jlingle]

My one piece of advice.....

Be sneaky about it. If somebody figures out you’re glassing good bucks in a spot, it’ll draw their attention to hunting there as well, legally or illegally. Drive something that doesn’t look like a hunters vehicle, or hide yourself altogether to glass. Just try not to draw attention.

[MuskieHunterDave]

Like you, I'm am a rookie glasser this year. Tried for the first time on Friday and I ended up with mixed results. I planned to sit at the edge of a field. Across the field is a pond, and on the other side of the pond is a thick bedding area. My thought was to try to see any bucks coming out of bedding to get a drink before heading out for the night. To get to the field edge I planned to turn off a hiking trail and go through about 250 yards of mature hardwoods.

Well, when I went out I got about halfway through the hardwoods and ran into a pair of bucks. One was a small 6 pointer, the other was a 8 or 10. I don't think I spooked them too bad, they just stared at me as I looked at them in the binos, marked the spot in OnX, then backed away, but I still was bummed I made contact when I wanted to stay undetected.

I'm planning a different spot this coming Friday where I can sit up on a hill across a river, hopefully that will be a little more stealthy.

[greenhorndave]

Like you, I'm am a rookie glasser this year. Tried for the first time on Friday and I ended up with mixed results. I planned to sit at the edge of a field. Across the field is a pond, and on the other side of the pond is a thick bedding area. My thought was to try to see any bucks coming out of bedding to get a drink before heading out for the night. To get to the field edge I planned to turn off a hiking trail and go through about 250 yards of mature hardwoods.

Well, when I went out I got about halfway through the hardwoods and ran into a pair of bucks. One was a small 6 pointer, the other was a 8 or 10. I don't think I spooked them too bad, they just stared at me as I looked at them in the binos, marked the spot in OnX, then backed away, but I still was bummed I made contact when I wanted to stay undetected.

I'm planning a different spot this coming Friday where I can sit up on a hill across a river, hopefully that will be a little more stealthy.

Hey, that’s good intel. I wouldn’t knock it or be too concerned. Got a little time for them to settle down.

[Brad]

My one piece of advice.....

Be sneaky about it. If somebody figures out you’re glassing good bucks in a spot, it’ll draw their attention to hunting there as well, legally or illegally. Drive something that doesn’t look like a hunters vehicle, or hide yourself altogether to glass. Just try not to draw attention.

That's good advice. My hyundai sonata doesn't look too much like I'm a hunter... ha! but i like it because it's quiet when I'm driving up to glass. I don't think anyone would be able to figure out where I'm going to glass since I'm going several fields back and parking in an area that would be almost a mile walk away from the place I park. There is a closer parking lot that is only about a half mile walk, but they'd have to walk by 5 other bean fields before getting to the ones I'm headed to. I'm more worried about deer knowing I'm there and altering their patterns, but I'll be trying to avoid that too.

[Brad]

Like you, I'm am a rookie glasser this year. Tried for the first time on Friday and I ended up with mixed results. I planned to sit at the edge of a field. Across the field is a pond, and on the other side of the pond is a thick bedding area. My thought was to try to see any bucks coming out of bedding to get a drink before heading out for the night. To get to the field edge I planned to turn off a hiking trail and go through about 250 yards of mature hardwoods.

Well, when I went out I got about halfway through the hardwoods and ran into a pair of bucks. One was a small 6 pointer, the other was a 8 or 10. I don't think I spooked them too bad, they just stared at me as I looked at them in the binos, marked the spot in OnX, then backed away, but I still was bummed I made contact when I wanted to stay undetected.

I'm planning a different spot this coming Friday where I can sit up on a hill across a river, hopefully that will be a little more stealthy.

At least you know there are some bucks there! so that's good. Every new experience is an opportunity to learn. at least thats the way I see it.

[Thesouthpaw]

I don't really really use glassing to pattern a deer to kill in the exact spot that I saw them, I use it just to take inventory and see what properties I should focus my efforts on for the season. With that being said, I typically try to get as high as possible, if I can do it without spooking deer. In my opinion, glassing is ineffective if the deer know your'e there. Also, it is important to glass from an area that deer won't worry about your scent being.

[Brad]

so i went out last night & took the long hike out to the field i wanted to check out. I couldn't find a tree to get height do I observed from in the timber. At 7:15 I saw a doe & fawn browsing on opposite side of field, then a forty buck came up from the low end & both went back into the woods. I sat there a few then decided to check the milo fid behind me, then a quick peek at the next bean field to South, & still nothing. Decided to go back to my main target, which is a 14 acre bean field. At 7:40 the high spot in the field was loaded with around 20 deer, including at least 7 or 8 bucks, of which 4 or 5 were really nice big rack bucks.

its 3 weeks from opening day, & these are some questions I have
is it safe to assume the big bucks beds are very close to the fields, since they were out at 7:40pm?
is it safe to assume these bucks will break up and disperse? and would they likely do so by sept 15th? if so, would some of the bucks continue to use the same bedding areas & travel patterns?
if the beans begin to yellow by then,, would the bucks more likely shift to milo fields next to the beans? or transition to acorns in the hills near the field?

[NorthStar]

I made a post about a month back about the the lack of success I was having around shining and glassing. I, like yourself, are new to this and I am trying to get things figured out. But I have had success with the last 3 nights I have gone out and I am learning something from it.

In my area, it appears that older bucks prefer the tucked away bean fields where there is the least amount of human intrusion. And I am not just talking about human pressure that is on foot. I am talking about areas where even a lot of car traffic is or houses that are near by. The most seclude bean field of the 3 had the most bucks during daylight. The other 2 had deer but not until an hour after dark. Now, 3 successful trips does not definitively conclude anything, especially for this newb, but I am gaining confidence here.

[Huntress13]

so i went out last night & took the long hike out to the field i wanted to check out. I couldn't find a tree to get height do I observed from in the timber. At 7:15 I saw a doe & fawn browsing on opposite side of field, then a forty buck came up from the low end & both went back into the woods. I sat there a few then decided to check the milo fid behind me, then a quick peek at the next bean field to South, & still nothing. Decided to go back to my main target, which is a 14 acre bean field. At 7:40 the high spot in the field was loaded with around 20 deer, including at least 7 or 8 bucks, of which 4 or 5 were really nice big rack bucks.

its 3 weeks from opening day, & these are some questions I have
is it safe to assume the big bucks beds are very close to the fields, since they were out at 7:40pm?
is it safe to assume these bucks will break up and disperse? and would they likely do so by sept 15th? if so, would some of the bucks continue to use the same bedding areas & travel patterns?
if the beans begin to yellow by then,, would the bucks more likely shift to milo fields next to the beans? or transition to acorns in the hills near the field?

I don’t know about your area, but early October here I still see younger bucks in bachelor groups.

[MichiganMike]

Like you, I'm am a rookie glasser this year. Tried for the first time on Friday and I ended up with mixed results. I planned to sit at the edge of a field. Across the field is a pond, and on the other side of the pond is a thick bedding area. My thought was to try to see any bucks coming out of bedding to get a drink before heading out for the night. To get to the field edge I planned to turn off a hiking trail and go through about 250 yards of mature hardwoods.

Well, when I went out I got about halfway through the hardwoods and ran into a pair of bucks. One was a small 6 pointer, the other was a 8 or 10. I don't think I spooked them too bad, they just stared at me as I looked at them in the binos, marked the spot in OnX, then backed away, but I still was bummed I made contact when I wanted to stay undetected.

I'm planning a different spot this coming Friday where I can sit up on a hill across a river, hopefully that will be a little more stealthy.

Hey, that’s good intel. I wouldn’t knock it or be too concerned. Got a little time for them to settle down.

Yup! this.

[MichiganMike]

My one piece of advice.....

Be sneaky about it. If somebody figures out you’re glassing good bucks in a spot, it’ll draw their attention to hunting there as well, legally or illegally. Drive something that doesn’t look like a hunters vehicle, or hide yourself altogether to glass. Just try not to draw attention.

Definitely good advice! When Im along side the road I put the binos down and pretend im on my phone when a car comes.

[Brad]

I made a post about a month back about the the lack of success I was having around shining and glassing. I, like yourself, are new to this and I am trying to get things figured out. But I have had success with the last 3 nights I have gone out and I am learning something from it.

In my area, it appears that older bucks prefer the tucked away bean fields where there is the least amount of human intrusion. And I am not just talking about human pressure that is on foot. I am talking about areas where even a lot of car traffic is or houses that are near by. The most seclude bean field of the 3 had the most bucks during daylight. The other 2 had deer but not until an hour after dark. Now, 3 successful trips does not definitively conclude anything, especially for this newb, but I am gaining confidence here.

That would be good for me if that holds true in this case. This particular field is the northern most in a line of bean fields, with the southern most having a parking lot where you can glass the field. There are no roads or parking lots that are public access to the north, and there is a creek and more woods and hills to the north. There is an access path from the south parking lot that goes around the fields, but there are 5 or 6 bean fields between the parking lot and the field I was glassing. The next closest parking lot would require a hike close to a mile through some fairly thick areas, across a creek, and going around several other fields including tall grass and milo. I can't say what the hunting pressure will be like, but I hope it's less than the other areas.