Here he is ! Now what ?

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Southern slayer
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Here he is ! Now what ?

Unread postby Southern slayer » Wed Oct 03, 2018 3:32 pm

https://chroma.tryprism.com/photos/5bb4 ... redirect=1

I joined the Hunting Beast forum this August, so i'm new to the beast style of hunting. This past weekend I checked some trail cameras and up pops this big boy! He first picture came an hour after dark. I have about 80 pics of him. How far from the camera location should I start to try and hunt this deer ? The picture is in a very thick pine plantation with a creek bottom and hardwoods around 400 yards away. The pines have little to no terrain changes. I know i'm behind the eight ball because i haven't scouted for buck bedding yet. Any suggestions on what to try would be greatly appreciated.


matt1336
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Re: Here he is ! Now what ?

Unread postby matt1336 » Wed Oct 03, 2018 4:05 pm

Get in there and try. I just posted something similar to this in another thread. Your questions are impossible to answer through cyber world. You have to get in there and figure him out. Ik it’s not easy to do this time of year but that’s what needs to be done. Try to decipher what direction he’s coming from, take your best guess on the best bedding location and hunt.
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Re: Here he is ! Now what ?

Unread postby Lockdown » Wed Oct 03, 2018 4:39 pm

matt1336 wrote:Get in there and try. I just posted something similar to this in another thread. Your questions are impossible to answer through cyber world. You have to get in there and figure him out. Ik it’s not easy to do this time of year but that’s what needs to be done. Try to decipher what direction he’s coming from, take your best guess on the best bedding location and hunt.


Solid advice from Matt. That doesn't mean go and stomp all the suspected bedding. But it does mean come up with the best plan you can and get out of your comfort zone a little bit. Breaking new ground (so to speak) is the best teacher there is. You can read on the Beast all you want but nothing will teach you more than a big buck himself. Gotta get in there and get dirty.

80 pics is A LOT. Are you saying those are all from the same cam?? If so, I would say you are pretty close to his bedding area. That or you've got that cam in the mother of all funnels ;) I would deploy more cams if you can to help figure him out. Study aerials repeatedly and come up with a plan for what you think he's doing. Then place your cams accordingly to prove/disprove your hunches. For example, "If he's bedding in the pines I think he'll enter/egress at these spots. If he's bedding down by the creek (creeks and rivers scream oxbows for bedding) I think he might be here.". Pay attention to weather details especially wind. If you get him coming through a certain area consistently with a specific wind, that's huge.

Just take a stab at suspected bedding in relation to food and use the process of elimination.

Also try to improve your woodsmanship. Try and learn his track. Tracks are the one thing that they leave wherever they go...
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bowfreak8
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Re: Here he is ! Now what ?

Unread postby bowfreak8 » Wed Oct 03, 2018 11:37 pm

Are any of your pictures of him day time? If not then your camera is probably not that close to his bedding. You have to figure out where he is bedding and on what winds.
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Re: Here he is ! Now what ?

Unread postby Brandonkinchen » Wed Oct 03, 2018 11:53 pm

After finding out which way he is coming from I'd push in and find him. Even if you bump him he should be back. Nothing is 100% What I've learned so far is.....as long as you aren't constantly bumping him he should return back to his bedding area. It's the constant pressure that drives them out.
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Re: Here he is ! Now what ?

Unread postby Southern slayer » Thu Oct 04, 2018 4:35 am

Thanks for the replies guys. It makes me feel better about my game plan, when I can bounce ideas off of some veteran beast hunters. :D Every picture I have so far are from the same camera. I know the direction he is coming from and I plan on moving a few cameras into other areas to see if I can get closer to his bedding. I’m excited about using beast tactics, such as sitting different spots and scouting on my way in. I’m also going to study his track so I can find it in other areas. I may or may not be successful on this particular buck but I can’t wait to learn from him !
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Re: Here he is ! Now what ?

Unread postby PK_ » Thu Oct 04, 2018 7:47 am

I wouldn’t step foot in the direction he is coming from until I have a weapon in my hand and stand on my back.

It’s hard to say with any degree of certainty but I would think he is bedding 200-400 yards from the cam, that’s if he gets up and browses his way out of his bed like they usually do... again, take that guess with a grain of salt without me seeing the terrain or even a map.

He has to be shed by now. Would be perfect if you caught him within a day or two of shedding and backtracked him until you find some rubs. I think that is one of the best ways to get on those early bucks, those first few rubs of the year are like a neon sign.

Good luck.
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Re: Here he is ! Now what ?

Unread postby Southern slayer » Thu Oct 04, 2018 12:42 pm

Great point PK. I’ve never considered looking for those early season rubs right after shedding.
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Re: Here he is ! Now what ?

Unread postby backstraps » Thu Oct 04, 2018 1:10 pm

You've gotten some solid advice already. I would have to second what PK said about not getting in there now until you have the stand to hang and a weapon to kill him.

You could get lucky and get in and place some cams to try and get a better idea of where his core is.... BUT you are going to leave scent every where you go, and he WILL catch that scent while he is up. How he reacts to it....who knows.

If you know someone here you can trust, PM them maps and you could probably get some good educated guesses of where he may be bedded near your camera.

At any rate take a guess based on the intel you know, catch the wind you need, get in there with stand on the back and kill him!
Good luck man!
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Re: Here he is ! Now what ?

Unread postby Tennhunter3 » Thu Oct 04, 2018 2:09 pm

[quote="Southern slayer"]https://chroma.tryprism.com/photos/5bb420332110df260ecf7276/DIvzsWinlrJTIvz.JPG?out=png&width=4096&height=2304&cmd=resize_then_fit&quality=95&premultiplied=1&no_redirect=1

I joined the Hunting Beast forum this August, so i'm new to the beast style of hunting. This past weekend I checked some trail cameras and up pops this big boy! He first picture came an hour after dark. I have about 80 pics of him. How far from the camera location should I start to try and hunt this deer ? The picture is in a very thick pine plantation with a creek bottom and hardwoods around 400 yards away. The pines have little to no terrain changes. I know i'm behind the eight ball because i haven't scouted for buck bedding yet. Any suggestions on what to try would be greatly appreciated.[/quote

I would focus on the edges were it me.

The transition of pines to oaks is great providing food and cover in close proximity to one another.

Often I see deep cuts and ravines in pine edges where it creates a funnel or bowl.

Nothing to eat in a pine plantation this time of year usually rub lines in pines are at thermal tunnel level for rut cruising or night activity. They are good camera positions to gain intel.

Don’t be fooled by the big fresh rubs in those pines they are most likely made at night. Unless you have a cam with mature buck activity during daylight in those pines with a very close bedding area.


I’ve hunted many pine plantations early season and never seen a large buck in them in daylight outside of the rut here in the south. Not saying it never happens just its not something I’ve personally seen.
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ghoasthunter
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Re: Here he is ! Now what ?

Unread postby ghoasthunter » Thu Oct 04, 2018 2:14 pm

Southern slayer wrote:https://chroma.tryprism.com/photos/5bb420332110df260ecf7276/DIvzsWinlrJTIvz.JPG?out=png&width=4096&height=2304&cmd=resize_then_fit&quality=95&premultiplied=1&no_redirect=1

I joined the Hunting Beast forum this August, so i'm new to the beast style of hunting. This past weekend I checked some trail cameras and up pops this big boy! He first picture came an hour after dark. I have about 80 pics of him. How far from the camera location should I start to try and hunt this deer ? The picture is in a very thick pine plantation with a creek bottom and hardwoods around 400 yards away. The pines have little to no terrain changes. I know i'm behind the eight ball because i haven't scouted for buck bedding yet. Any suggestions on what to try would be greatly appreciated.

i would start buy scouting the creek bottom stand on back best place too find a track and possibly put some pieces too the puzzle if you find him crossing throw a camera on it and see what happens setup over it if it looks good. then i would just keep making stabs at all the possible bedding down the line trying too stack it up. eventually your bound too catch a break and find the sign you need.
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Re: Here he is ! Now what ?

Unread postby timberninja » Thu Oct 04, 2018 11:59 pm

PK_ wrote:I wouldn’t step foot in the direction he is coming from until I have a weapon in my hand and stand on my back.

It’s hard to say with any degree of certainty but I would think he is bedding 200-400 yards from the cam, that’s if he gets up and browses his way out of his bed like they usually do... again, take that guess with a grain of salt without me seeing the terrain or even a map.

He has to be shed by now. Would be perfect if you caught him within a day or two of shedding and backtracked him until you find some rubs. I think that is one of the best ways to get on those early bucks, those first few rubs of the year are like a neon sign.

Good luck.


This^ Excellent advice. This is what came to mind before I read the comment. Like PK took the words out of my mouth.
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Re: Here he is ! Now what ?

Unread postby Southern slayer » Fri Oct 05, 2018 3:57 am

I appreciate all the comments. There are some really good strategies that I can consider. I’m fired up and can’t wait to get in after him.
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Re: Here he is ! Now what ?

Unread postby matt1336 » Fri Oct 05, 2018 8:43 am

Very solid advice here guys. It should be reiterated that you shouldn’t go in there without hunting. If you want to put a camera up do it when your out there hunting, probably after your hunt is finished. Also don’t waste time. Get in there ASAP
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Re: Here he is ! Now what ?

Unread postby jmbknvc » Tue Jan 01, 2019 2:39 pm

SouthernSlayer, got an update on what you learned and how it turned out?


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