How far from the road?

[Unchained]

Some of the most heavily used bedding is within 200 yards of the road. The closer to danger, farther from harm bucks are smart.

[justdirtyfun]

The walking conditions will dictate how far most go. If you imagine a half mile walk in two directions. One an empty bean field,flat and smooth or one up and down two ridges that lay perpendicular to travel with thick undergrowth.
I know what area will be hit harder, the smooth walk.

And now that I'm leaving my stand in the dark those areas with thick undergrowth are much more remote feeling lol. The bushwacking is not enjoyable and keeps most guys walking elsewhere.

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[Crazinamatese]

I can see my car parked in the ditch in couple of places I set up just because there is decent fresh sign most of the time and I often see and kill deer along these type of edges.

[Hawthorne]

I remember back in the early 90s I helped my cousin drag a couple of nice bucks out of a spot close to a road. I was just getting into bowhunting then and did'nt know much about why he was successful there. He would park in a parking area and walk down the road a 100 yds then cut in 50
Yds to a grove of apple trees that was in the middle of a nasty thicket. All the hunters walked right passed it to a big hardwoods with a creek.bottom. He shot some big ones out of there for a few years. That spot is probably still good if its still overlooked.

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[justdirtyfun]

I know where a conservation road circles down around a bedding point. I really really want to set up 5 yards from the road but it would give it away.

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[Edcyclopedia]

I've killed deer as close as 75 ft. off a road.

One of my scouting techniques for suburban hunting is to drive around during snowy months and look for road crossings. I mark them on my gps and load the coords on my maps. Once you string a few properties together you can start to see how deer utilize terrain and thick areas for travel.

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[checkerfred]

However close you hunt know your laws. Here, with a gun, you must be at least 50 yards from the right of way.

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[BCO]

i have a few places in mind where there isn't a climbable tree within a 20 acre section right next to the road. its really thick in there!

[BCO]

Justdirtyfun,

Sounds like a good observation stand opportunity. Park where you can just see that area and watch from your vehicle from the road. If there is an animal there you want to take; get it's pattern down and when you are ready move in for the kill. Maybe hunt it on a Tuesday or something if you really want to keep other hunters from seeing you hunt it???

[justdirtyfun]

Yes bco it would work well setting a distance away. The shelf is 3/4 up the hill and completely hidden from the road. But a small parking lot is further up the road and I might spot them leaving in the evening.
But being upwind can also keep them locked down till after dark.

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[stash59]

If your talking bigwoods situations with no major terrain barriers and easy walking. I'd say 1 mile. Most guys get nervous about getting lost and won't stray much farther. At least that's what I've seen in my northwoods area in Wisconsin.

Now go out west where covering more ground is the norm. You may have to triple that even in steeper terrain. Some of this also has to do with elk hunters knowing they need to cover more ground in general.

But also remember. There are more hardcore bowhunters ratio wise than gun hunters. So if another hardcore bowhunter finds your bigwoods spot you may get some company. Proof of this is how often when someone posts an aerial on here. Alot of times somebody else recognizes it!

[Stanley]

I put the sneak on a buck that was bedded 40 yards off the road. This was on public ground also.

[cbniner]

Near the roads is some of the best and overlooked spots, big bucks don't automatically stay away from roads, reclusive bucks maybe, but there are way more big bucks living near the road and parking lot than you think, you will be one of the people who is walking passed the overlooked spots if you start a half mile in

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[ihookem]

Gee guys, maybe I should scout near the road. My last hunt was a .8 mi. canoe trip down river and .19 mi. walk in just to see nothing except another hunter. With all the hunting magazines the last 10 yrs saying " go back in deep" may be overplayed. I was surprised to see a hunter that far back but with good clothes and $200 boots, and excellent clothes, maybe 1 mi. isn't so far back anymore. As I think of it, there is a spot in the Kettle Moraine S.F. that is loaded with trais very close to the road. Have not seen a deer there while on the stand but seem to see them just after closing when I am walking out from bang way back in. ( Hate that) It is so close to the road it aint funny. 40 yards maybe. it is 50 yds from a closed area and 100 yds from private land and so close to a horse trail I am not even sure it is legal to hunt that close to a horse trail . Tons of hunters walk right by it using the horse trail to " get way back in" just like me. It is maybe 100 yds form a heavily used parking lot. Honestly , I wonder if the deer know when hunters pull in the parking lot and can tell by the tires crunching the stones. I am sure they know this. The reason they are there , I think is cause they bed in the closed area and when night comes they cross the road and seems one of the houses is feeding them. I might try late season there but never drive in the stoney parking lot. I park down the road an walk in the pines. Weird place to hunt tough.

[Matty]

I see the same thing everyone else sees.

If it's easy walking, people will go pretty far.

Something as simple as a hip boot deep creek though, and you just weeded out about 98% of hunters.

Guys around here seem to gravitate to field edges and hardwoods and don't venture far from main people trails.

My specialty is actually hunting very close to the road, because honestly, I'm lazy too when it works.

If I don't have to walk a mile, I'm not going to, especially if there's a thick bedding area that everyone walks past to get to this magical land "far from the road". When it calls for it, I will go far, but like Zap said, walk a mile and you're just closer to another road. lol Most of my extra mileage comes from having to access from certain spots, or looping out of the way to avoid areas I don't want to disturb. Other than that, I have actually sat less than 10 yards off a main parking area and had a big ten pointer come in to within 25ish yards... just couldn't get a shot...little too dark by the time he charged in. I actually rattled him in with several other bucks that evening. Most of them came from across the street on private land behind houses. He actually walked within feet of all the hunters vehicles.

Everyone else saw those bucks all summer too....but they all figured they were still in the WMA...just deeper in. I had seen them around the road late at night though and watched them cross a few times, so I looked at the map and figured out where they might be across the road.

I tried to setup late so everyone else would be in the woods already, but I still had two guys pull in and snicker at me, like I'm some dummy sitting there. I understand it looks like I'm a dope, but honestly they are the dummies burning up boot leather chasing deer that aren't deeper in the WMA. lol

I wish that story ended with success, but the lesson is still the same. Big bucks can live anywhere and especially where people don't threaten them. There is no set distance to walk.