Hunting Around Beaver Dams?

[BCD]

Has anyone had good luck hunting around beaver dams? If so can you share your thoughts on how you hunt them and example photos from maps showing how you find them?

Thank You!

[Groundhunter@1]

What state.? In N Wis at the Laona field station for USFS, they will do a spring aerial run on the area dams. It's aerial photo and you can get a copy for free......they.mark them with a colored pen.

You can get all USFS marked road maps also, showing every numbered road and improved and unimproved trails, and what roads are closed to spring use. It's black and white. Handy to have.

I know MDNR in Crystal Falls along with Iron County has info. on locations.

USFS also sells bids for spring trapping season, issues permits etc, talk to them. I have hunted a few and they were good spots. Deer cross them alot IF I find them between good ridges. One of my best ones, I have a chair in a blow down, in the creek. I am downstream from the dam shooting up. They usually don't know I am there, and water covers scent well. Rushing water noise also is a good cover.

[Jonny]

They can be great funnels depending on a few factors but definitely something to key in on for rut hunting. Just need to check and see if deer actually use it cause a funnel without a reason to go from one side of the street to the other is gonna make for a lonely sit. Pretty easy to identify on an aerial. Find some small creeks and look for little ponds. Anyplace you have a non natural looking line is the dam. Water backs up and makes the shape of the pond, sometimes can see the exit stream

beaver dam.JPG

I scouted this one I think 2-3 years ago when I tagged out early in bow season. Never made it back up here to bow hunt but it had promising sign. Should hang a camera there for a long soak. Kind of a pain to access it though. Red lines are the trails I found. Had a couple different trees picked out for wind but my idea was to access in a way I wouldn't cross any of the trails or if I did, in a spot I could shoot. Best would be a westerly wind so I could use a logging trail for most of it. Should go bury a camera there to see if its any good.


But since they are pretty easy to spot, others find them as well. I've ran into guys hunting this one since you can see a beat down trail on the road and its just stupid obvious. But I know it produces, especially during gun season. The guy I've talked to that always is parked there opening weekend normally has something in his truck. Never anything spectacular but it works.

beaver dam 2.JPG

Just gotta scout them out. Can be great funnels, just need to actually see if anything wants to go through them. Also be careful, beavers leave sharpened stumps that will pop through a boot no problem. I always try to avoid walking in any amount of water if I know beavers are around.

[Abishai]

Dan talks about beaver dams in one of his big woods videos on YouTube. He states that they have almost everything a deer could want right around them: water, edge, thick cover, and food due to the trees that are cut down opening up the canopy. He likes hunting near them in big woods because they offer changes in the habitat.