Dumb move

Discuss deer hunting tactics, Deer behavior. Post your Hunting Stories, Pictures, and Questions/Answers.
  • Advertisement

HB Store


Swelch
Posts: 91
Joined: Tue Jun 20, 2017 3:02 pm
Location: Kentucky
Status: Offline

Dumb move

Unread postby Swelch » Tue Oct 19, 2021 5:49 am

Well I feel like a total goober found an awesome spot on the top of a mountain. Bench above it, Nice thick area below impossible to access without a buck scenting or hearing the approach and thought for sure there would be a bed up there. Scouted it out no obvious bed so found a torn up scrap at the end of the point right as it goes to scrub brush and switchgrass with tons of Muscadine vines around. Went back to the transition of the bench and made a mock scrape only to see his bed out under the smallest pile of brush up there tons of fresh poop on the bench and a nice mock scrape I peed in to kick start it. Hoping I didn't screw it up by doing that but time will tell. Good luck to all of yall


Maverick1
Posts: 499
Joined: Fri Nov 20, 2015 2:34 pm
Status: Offline

Re: Dumb move

Unread postby Maverick1 » Tue Oct 19, 2021 8:16 am

What was the dumb move?
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
No sponsors. No camera crew. No team. Just me and my bow. And that’s the way I prefer it.
User avatar
gsquared23
Posts: 330
Joined: Thu Sep 19, 2019 3:54 pm
Status: Offline

Re: Dumb move

Unread postby gsquared23 » Tue Oct 19, 2021 2:03 pm

Sounds like scouting and putting pieces together to me. I’d rather find a good area and mess it up than go in blind based on map scouting and not have the actual intel.
Bowhunting is not for the faint of heart. But fortune favors the bowed.
dan
Site Owner
Posts: 41587
Joined: Sat Feb 13, 2010 6:11 am
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HuntingBeast/?ref=bookmarks
Location: S.E. Wisconsin
Contact:
Status: Offline

Re: Dumb move

Unread postby dan » Tue Oct 19, 2021 9:06 pm

Probably rattle a few cages with this, like usual... But really, what the heck is the fascination with mock scrapes? Do people think there is some sort of advantage to a mock scrape that makes it worth the effort, or worth getting your scent all over an area then hunting it over and over? Not a lot different than a bait pile to me, except that a bait pile at least has the food aspect that makes them want to come back... In my opinion a buck is not bedding in a certain area cause there is a mock scrape there, and he is not traveling thru an area cause there is a mock scrape there... The only thing a mock scrape does is get him to concentrate on an exact spot if he is in that area and passing by. Good old boot leather and scouting should put you in the right spot, not a scratched up piece of ground you yourself pee in.. I think your scent and intrusion has done more damage than the scrape helped... A little effort being stealthy and put into scouting, in my honest opinion will do a lot more than trickery and trying to attract deer to you...

The best way to kill a giant buck is to catch him by complete and utter surprise Never smelled you, never seen you, never knew you were there... The time spent creating areas to attract deer to you would in my opinion be much better spent hunting for the buck... Not knocking what your doing, just giving a perspective from a guy who has been there, done that, and had success...
User avatar
Huntress13
500 Club
Posts: 3107
Joined: Wed Jul 03, 2019 2:47 am
Location: NY
Status: Offline

Re: Dumb move

Unread postby Huntress13 » Tue Oct 19, 2021 9:56 pm

I think mock scrape on a small piece of private can be useful, to take inventory and maybe get a shot. And I will also say I made one when I first started bow hunting in a wrong place and it never took off so it was a waste of time. I had one spike take a look and that's it. Just not a place the deer would use one. On a big piece of land, I wouldn't make one. You should be able to find the natural ones, if you want to hunt over one or hang a cam.
Twigs in my hair, don't care.
Rich M
500 Club
Posts: 3980
Joined: Thu Feb 18, 2016 1:29 pm
Location: Sunny Florida
Status: Offline

Re: Dumb move

Unread postby Rich M » Tue Oct 19, 2021 11:53 pm

to the OP - KUDOS for finding the buck's bedroom. He'll come back to it and you'll have a few attempts to get him, but yer gonna blow it a time or two with that buck before you get him. I'd probably hang a camera and let it soak for a hunting season on that bench and see when he's moving around the most in the daytime, then go kill him.
Swelch
Posts: 91
Joined: Tue Jun 20, 2017 3:02 pm
Location: Kentucky
Status: Offline

Re: Dumb move

Unread postby Swelch » Wed Oct 20, 2021 2:44 am

dan wrote:Probably rattle a few cages with this, like usual... But really, what the heck is the fascination with mock scrapes? Do people think there is some sort of advantage to a mock scrape that makes it worth the effort, or worth getting your scent all over an area then hunting it over and over? Not a lot different than a bait pile to me, except that a bait pile at least has the food aspect that makes them want to come back... In my opinion a buck is not bedding in a certain area cause there is a mock scrape there, and he is not traveling thru an area cause there is a mock scrape there... The only thing a mock scrape does is get him to concentrate on an exact spot if he is in that area and passing by. Good old boot leather and scouting should put you in the right spot, not a scratched up piece of ground you yourself pee in.. I think your scent and intrusion has done more damage than the scrape helped... A little effort being stealthy and put into scouting, in my honest opinion will do a lot more than trickery and trying to attract deer to you...

The best way to kill a giant buck is to catch him by complete and utter surprise Never smelled you, never seen you, never knew you were there... The time spent creating areas to attract deer to you would in my opinion be much better spent hunting for the buck... Not knocking what your doing, just giving a perspective from a guy who has been there, done that, and had success...


That was my thoughts after the fact. it was one of those why the did i do that moments. I know there are great bucks in the area and its not a highly pressured peice of ground due to the terrain and surrounding leases and private land. I've had tons of good bucks on cameras during night and very few daytime pics just trying to narrow the 6k acres down to an area I can find daytime movement in and let the TV hunter get the best of me lol. I've had better luck going in completely blind and finding an area hunting fresh sign and then leaving as opposed to trying to get deer to come to me. Live and learn. Good luck out there everybody
User avatar
gsquared23
Posts: 330
Joined: Thu Sep 19, 2019 3:54 pm
Status: Offline

Re: Dumb move

Unread postby gsquared23 » Wed Oct 20, 2021 6:13 am

Mock scrapes are helpful to take an inventory before season to determine what kind of bucks are in the area. It has to be in a travel area that is already consistently being used, it won’t draw anything in that wasn’t already working through at some point. If you’re setting your sights on a certain class of buck and you really need to get a good look at him, it’s a good tool.
Bowhunting is not for the faint of heart. But fortune favors the bowed.
User avatar
Nocturnal
500 Club
Posts: 874
Joined: Wed Feb 10, 2016 8:40 am
Location: SE WI
Status: Offline

Re: Dumb move

Unread postby Nocturnal » Wed Oct 20, 2021 6:18 am

Mock scrapes are awesome if used with the right mindset. Ive killed a few bucks over them.
Swelch
Posts: 91
Joined: Tue Jun 20, 2017 3:02 pm
Location: Kentucky
Status: Offline

Re: Dumb move

Unread postby Swelch » Wed Oct 20, 2021 6:57 am

as many scrapes as i found going up that ridge i figure hes going to stumble in there sometime soon or ill spook him out completely one of the two and i did the mock scrape prior to finding his bed. just located a good tree for it and made it then looked at the very edge of the transition and saw the area of beat down grass where he was bedding up against a dead stump about 30 ft from the scrape i made


  • Advertisement

Return to “Deer Hunting”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: Chad Gus 715, Google [Bot] and 91 guests