I'd like to start by saying I'm one of the lurkers here who doesn't say much, but I'd like to share a story for those who don't believe I. What they are reading. I've been studying the beast for about two years now and am starting to see some results. I've been hunting whitetails on PA state forest for over 20 years and always blamed my lack of success with poor deer numbers. Ive killed a few buck over the years, but my opportunities have been limited. I decided to start doing a little of my own research instead of repeating what I had done in the past.
The beast strategies have appealed to me and I decided to ditch the ladder stands and get myself a mobile setup. I mainly focused on that last year and got pretty efficient on setting up quietly. This year I've been focusing on where I think the bucks will be bedding based on the wind. I did not get out over the winter to do much scouting, so the majority of my setups have been going in blind. I've been focusing on ridge tops with clear-cuts and making assumptions on where the bucks will be bedded.
My first evening sit was the first day of archery season. I scouted my way in and found some fresh sign. Picked a spot on the north side of the ridgetop (wind from the south) and waited. About 45 minutes before dark I caught movement off to my right. Two rack buck were headed my way. Unfortunately they made a line straight to my stand. They ended up coming right underneath me and I stuck the second one right in the shoulder. Turns out this was not a good decision as the arrow didn't pass through and the deer ran off. After hours of searching and a few hundred yards of tracking small drops of blood, we gave up. Lesson learned I probably won't take that shot again...
Fast forward to this weekend. I picked another ridgetop that I have never hunted before. It was right for the wind, and I headed in. I got in and started to see sign right away. Snuck in and did another stealthy setup. About 30 minutes before sunset I heard some loud crashing about 200 yards away. Not long after I heard footsteps, but could not locate the animal. It was pretty thick where I was setup and I had a couple windows where I might get a 30 yard shot. Eventually I saw it step out. It was a huge body, but I couldn't tell if it was a buck or not. It was starting to get past about 60 yards out so I grunted. It stopped and I was able to see in the binoculars that it was a really nice buck. Probably about three inches wider than his ears. It was probably the biggest buck I ever saw while hunting. After staring in my direction for a while he turned and walked off.
Even though I didn't get a shot at him, I was ecstatic with what I had saw. This was the second time this year I have setup close to where bucks were bedding, just by cyber scouting. The tactics here work, and I wanted to thank all of you who take the time and effort to help everyone out. Hopefully I can connect on one this year and share my success story.
Cory
Starting to "click"
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- Ditz
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Re: Starting to "click"
It’s a great feeling when things start to come together. Using Beast tactics completely changes the PA hunting experience. Keep at it.
- Jackson Marsh
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Re: Starting to "click"
Cool encounter.
- Seeker529
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Re: Starting to "click"
I’ve been missing something and racking my mind at what it is... I’ve been out several times in PA with nothing but a few does and small bucks! I saw my target buck at 300 yards one evening and the next evening I moved in for a closer setup to observe where he was coming out of and he never showed up.. been excited every time implementing beast tactics though!
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Re: Starting to "click"
It is really cool once things start coming together for sure. I’ve been at beast style this year for the first year I unfortunately haven’t been out much due to my wife’s schedule and kids but every time I have been out I have had encounters either seeing does and fawns or watching bucks stand up in their beds they have just gone the wrong way. That’s a lot closer than I’ve been in the past on public. Good luck it will happen for you if you keep at it!!!
Haste makes waste
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Re: Starting to "click"
Maybe someone can shed some light and help me with my setups. We have a lot of ridges like this in the area that I hunt. I've been targeting the ones that have clear cuts on top.
I came in between the two ridges as I wasn't sure which side the deer would be bedded on. I understand why the buck cut down where he did. I'm sure he caught my ground scent from my access path. I set up on the north side as I thought the buck would follow the military crest in to my stand. I also had a fairly fresh scrape where I was setup. Any idea why the buck would have come in the south side of this ridge? His travel path is mainly based on hearing him, and where I saw him. I'm assuming he would have been bedded on the north edge somewhere.
I came in between the two ridges as I wasn't sure which side the deer would be bedded on. I understand why the buck cut down where he did. I'm sure he caught my ground scent from my access path. I set up on the north side as I thought the buck would follow the military crest in to my stand. I also had a fairly fresh scrape where I was setup. Any idea why the buck would have come in the south side of this ridge? His travel path is mainly based on hearing him, and where I saw him. I'm assuming he would have been bedded on the north edge somewhere.
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