BIG BUCK KILLERS, what are your top 5 contributing factors to your success?

Good thread shed...Georgia boy here so take it for what it's worth. I don't have a top five, because the last few years have found 2 little ones coming into my life, so vacation time for deer got cut in half. I now shoot from the hip ALOT, try to hunt what the deer are telling me each trip into the woods.

Case in point, I have a stand on a small ridge that is between 2 bedding areas. no real food there (couple white oaks), but just a semi thick ridge that a deer has to travel to get between these 2 points. I sat 3 years in a row telling myself I needed to be 30 yards over, in order to see over a small rise. I finnaly cleared a land or 2 in turkey season, sat it 5 times this year and had 2 shot oppertunities at a mature buck. I watched a few deer (nice bucks) just over that rise for a couple years, but i was seeing "more" deer in my other tree. 30 yards made all the difference. FOLLOW YOUR GUT, i get too caught up on keeping the area fresh, etc...but if you are not killing deer what does it matter.

Location within a location...I have one tract right outside Atlanta, that we have been on for 7-8 years. The first 2 years, we were letting 130+ deer walk, yes we were letting those deer go here in Georgia. Now, we see a few on trailcamera mostly at night, and the property hunts like most other pressured areas down south. We are back to sticking any 3.5 or better, because that is what the land is offering...make no mistake, we are hunting the giants, but we are also realistic. In the last few years, a subdivisdion has went up, along with b-ball courts and a poolhouse, and out landowner has finally got his horse stable up and running, so 20+ people are in and out everyday.

Take what is there, when it's there.

 

I am really surprised thus far to have very little mention of food plots or baiting as contributing factors. At least for some hunters. The majority of all whitetail hunting on television these days revolves around farming for whitetails and or in conjunction with baiting.

 

I run 8-10 cameras year round. You are spot on about licking branches in July and August. They are an awesome spot for taking inventory. As far as my food plots it's all about location, Secluded spots where big bucks feel safe being out and about during hunting hours or staging areas between bedding and large AG fields are the best hands down. My mock scrapes are actually located on the edges of my plots. It really is a killer set up.

Tons of great info in this thread ! Nice work Troy !

 

You talk about a location within a location, this is one contributing factor that I personally can relate too. I have one piece of ground that I have been hunting for 10 years now. It's a 320 acre piece. Yet there is about a 40-50 acre portion of that 320 that is by far the place that big bucks prefer to hang out in during the daylight. It's a combination of thick security cover, feed, water (year around springs) and is positioned on a steep mountain side with finger ridges and small benches where the daily thermals and predominate southwestern wind plays into their favor big time. It's an absolute BEAOCH to hunt though. Without tipping the bucks off. I've killed a 180 +, 160 + and 2 in the 140s and one in the 150's (my bro's) off this 40-50 acre area. And I lost a 170 in there (later found) and missed a big drop-tine buck over the past decade. All of these bucks have been on the fringe of this location within a location. When I lay the map out of this property and place the dots on the map where I got shots at these bucks, the dots don't lie, they literally surround this area. I have a lot of stands in there. Some are morning only stands while others are evening only and due to the major wind on this southern face, some stands I can only hunt a time a two a year because of the type of wind that I need but rarely get. The bucks on that mountain have the best of the best in their favor in elevation, bedding/security cover, feed and water. Yet I still contribute the wind and thermals as the key factor for the bucks that like to use this for daytime bedding. Not only can they detect any predator climbing up slope, they can lay in their beds and scent check does below via the thermals. Staying out of the core of this location within a location imo has kept bucks coming back to it year after year.

 

Pat, thank you two times over, 1st I was hoping to get the big buck killers here to talk a little! No matter what the factors are that are working, they will obviously not all be the same, not everyone can hunt using the same tactics and strategies due to what is available to them as far as ground/access etc goes... yet we should all be able to find some common ground to use in our approach to consistently killing mature bucks.

You talk about your food plots ...being all about location, I get it and because you are using secluded food plots in areas where the big bucks feel safe in the daylight..your mocks on your secluded food plots are killer! Good stuff for guys hunting and farming for big bucks on their own property. I know that if and when I ever buy a piece of ground in the midwest, food plots will be a big part of my strategy unlike what I am accustom to hunting out here in the mountains.

I have recently started hunting some ground in WA state that is big timber/mountains butted up against ag/crops in the bottoms.. I hunted what you refer to as a staging areas and very close to bedding areas coming off the feed. I killed a nice buck in there this year and feel like I am only scratching the surface. Thanks for sharing your info Pat.

 

Remember the big buck you got a crack at the first year you hunted here. Not only did he run far after the shot... he never came back to that area or even within a mile from it. I would say our deer a just a tiny pressured. You will not find any place around here to get away from the pressure or hunting pressured deer.

Then you look at Dawg's shed hunting photos where the deer know he is there and they still stand around for pictures. He has been busted twice and is still getting pictures off them. Too very different worlds and I envy Dawg.

You get one chance here on a mature buck. Once he knows you are hunting him or you blow it once on him... you move on unless you like wasting your time.

Tim

 

For my property:

1) Food (This is primarily food plots)
2) Sanctuaries
3) Low Pressure
4) Time on Stand
5) Luck

 

Troy on the map I posted I believe food was one of the more important factors on my success this past season.
Most of my deer sightings this past season were deer coming off their feed. I would say on morning hunts vs afternoon hunts it was 4-1 in sightings. If I could put a #6 it was getting to my stand much earlier then I usually do in the morning. I thank JZ and Dukemicheals for this one after seeing on the videos how early they get out in the morning.
To me food is one of the most important factors in deer hunting. Even during the rut the does still fill up and we all know where they are the bucks will follow. Good thread buddy!

 

Troy
#1 I mainly focus on the end of the 2nd week after there done rutt#1, say the last week of November up here in Alberta or pre rutt #2: Reasoning behind it! The smaller bucks are worn out from fighting and want nothing to do with getting beat up. That's when I have found the bigger bucks roaming the surrounding properties in the day light. 95% of bowhunters are done and out of the woods. I'd say 90 % of all bowhunters dislike the extreme cold and want to get it done before the real cold comes.
#2 Staying on stand for those all day sits during this period is a must, because you never know what will cross your path
#3 Location, I find spots after the season, IE now and look for junctions of 3-4 trails that meet and criss cross
#4 Find the doe's
#5 Find the food source: the bucks will be trying to get some weight back on and will be with in veiw of the does for one to come in her cycle
Rocky
Neat to see all the different opinions,cool subject Troy,picking brains

 

One thing that I can identify is the pure element of surprise.

It doesn't take much for a big buck to know that he's being hunted. Or, rather, that his area is being invaded, in some way or another, by a human. He will react accordingly. It's simply how old deer become old deer. They avoid human contact.

Not every hunter has an array of 5-6 different big buck targets, so they're typically not afforded the luxury of skipping from target-to-target, as the chess match plays out. If you, like most hunters are relegated to a single buck or two, it's imperative that you keep the element of pure surprise on your side. That means, resisting the natural impulse to hunt the hell out of them, carefully picking your spots, and not disrupting whatever semblance of a predictable pattern that they're enjoying. That means using every tool available to learn his morning/evening/nighttime behavior in every phase of the season. Knowing his habits before they even happen.

When that arrow hits him, he should be absolutely shocked that he's been so soundly beaten in this high-stakes game.

The element of surprise is as sound a whitetail hunting strategy as it is useful in modern warfare.

Finding big deer requires intrusion. Unless you're fortunate enough to have a fantastic glassing point, you're left with no option but to tromp in there at some point and mine for his sheds, try to gather photographic evidence of his whereabouts, or just plain look for his sign. He will know that you were there. It's inevitable. While you're learning about him, he's learning about you.

Remember the ways that you've accessed his areas on your scouting runs. Pay close attention to the way that other humans enter and behave in his world. He will react, and to some degree, you can calculate your intrusions to train him to react in a way that's favorable to your eventual attack strategy.

For example, if you're going to shed hunt him, enter/exit in such a way that would be unconventional in archery season. If you're going to trailcam for him, hang your cameras on the opposite end of the area that you plan on hunting. This will train him to the expectation of human intrusion from the wrong direction.

It all goes back to what Ryan mentioned earlier about first-time stand sites.

When the time is right, you lay a trap for him like he's never walked into before, and end his life. When that arrow pierces his lung cavity, he'll know that he's been fooled in a game with no second chances.

 

Fran

That is a great post !! Thanks for taking the time to write it !!!!!

Tim

 

While I agree with everything Quick posted. Again I go against the grain.

I am on my hunting land at least 2-3 times a week from July 4 on. Checking cameras, mowing trails, habitat improvement, trimming shooting lanes, doing food plots, checking stands, riding my 4-wheeler. The deer I hunt know me by name when I pull in. I do not go scent free. I am postive every buck I have killed in the last 6 years (7) know my scent. That said I stay out of bedding areas and am only in there mid-day so not at primetime. Call me crazy but I love being there too much but it works for me and I know what I can get away with.

 

LOVE this post!

 

Wish I could contribute to this thread, but I can't.

I'm enjoying the hell out of reading it though.

 

Here's a "professionals" opinion

http://www.grandviewoutdoors.com/de...tent/6/2009/1618/Going-All-Out-On-Public-Land

 

Good stuff guys! I loved reading how everyone gets it done! However, alot of us do it slightly different for our own areas and situations and thats what makes it interesting. If it were all done exactly the same by everyone it would be boring!

 

Very interesting! Its amazing how things vary place to place! In my area seing a Big Buck in or near any opening via ag field or plot during daylight hours after September is rare! My woods are very big and it seems I always have to go very deep just to find one! But Pat you have proved it many times what you stated works for you and what you do! Cool!

 

Fun thread to read Shed. A lot of interesting stuff here that everyone can learn from.

My best success has come in the last few years for very specific reasons. I started scouting more, using cameras mostly. However, I never go into core areas until I am ready to kill something. My cameras are all in fringe areas and travel corridors. I also quit hunting when mature bucks are likely to still be nocturnal. I did not hunt one time this year prior to the day I killed my buck. I seldom am in the woods prior to the last few days of October. But I spent a LOT of time preparing for that hunt. I wait until I begin to get daytime photos of mature deer working scrapes and using travel funnels. Then its time to drop everything and hunt. I leave some areas at each farm completely off limits to intrusion. I am very careful about when I check cameras and scent control. I have also had a huge amount of success with rattling and calling. Learning the vocalizations of deer and learning to read their body language when you call to them has really improved my success.

 

Thanks for contributing you guys, I've finished up my 5 top personal contributing factors of my last 11 buck kills and a couple other magnums that I didn't kill but had in deadly bow range. (2 that I missed because of mishaps on my part, 1 other that I shot and lost..later found)

1. Knowing the buck personally on the hoof, through daylight observations whether it be glassing him or via trail cams. Finding his sheds would be the next best evidence to actual on the hoof observations. I have killed 9 big woods bucks now that I have sheds from. Confidence soars and goes a long ways when you KNOW you have a big one in the immediate area. I will not hunt a spot unless I have visual evidence of a buck using/frequenting the area in the daylight. I need to know he feels safe to be on his feet in the area on multiple occasions. Where I hunt a given buck for a couple weeks or even a month may be in a completely different spot later in the season. Due to hunting pressure! feed, rutting phases, weather, etc.

2. Wind/human odor, I don't bother hunting a spot if I do not have a stand site or natural blind option for the given wind that day. I hunt clean and use all I can to knock down my human scent as to not leave much scent behind as I come and go. I do feel being extremely clean can dupe deer including mature bucks into processing that you are farther away than you really are if they do wind you. Still its NEVER good for them to smell us. I try to keep my residual scent to a minimum as well. I often will only check trail cams on rainy days or right before and I like to keep my trail cam checks to 3 to 4 weeks at a time. In these big woods, deer know exactly when a human comes into an area that they normally never would. There is so much ground out here that deer are not forced to be in and around human scent so when it enters their security cover they blow a gasket.

3. Entry and Exit route has to be well planned out and it allows me to get in and out undetected. I like to hunt a hot spot more than once and have been able to with good success, because of well planned entry and exit.

4. Knowing my doe family groups every move from bedding to feeding and how mature bucks use the terrain to keep tabs on them. This is crucial to scrape hunting and rut hunting and dictates where I set up. I will adjust stand sites immediately if and when I see evidence that the bucks or doe families in my areas are changing paths of travel.

5. Minus the scraping, seeking, chasing and tending phase of the rut, I spend the majority of my time hunting big mature bucks on the fringes of heavy security cover and bedding areas. Sometimes in secluded hard to get to staging areas. During the rutting phases mentioned above my stand sites coincide with doe family groups and how the big mature deer in the areas use the terrain/prevailing winds and thermals to keep tabs on those does.

 

The "noise" factor will depend on where you hunt. Some deer are comfortable with human noises, as long as they are not out of the ordinary.

I may not qualify as a "big buck killer" but I can tell you what I've learned over the last 35 years of chasing them, there is no formula or list of factors that you can carry around from place to place and be successful. Location is the number one factor, maybe the only "factor". You have to hunt where a mature buck exists, preferrably more than one, after that, you have to do what works in the area you find them and that will change from place to place, depending on pressure and terrain.

Some of what you guys are posting here would get you skunked in NJ, I know, I've tried. When I hunt out of state, this stuff works fine. No outfitters or exclusive leases, just public or private land hunted by others, but the deer are very different where I hunt in Ohio than they are in NJ, and these methods work well there.

In NJ, the hardest part is finding a piece of property you can hunt that has a mature deer on it. Our regulations are set up so that not many bucks make it from year to year (long gun seasons, crossbows in bow season, six buck tags, large groups driving the woods shooting everything, etc.). Once you find one, you are not going to be the only person chasing it, there will be many. The 'well known' tactics posted here will not get you much in NJ. I do the opposite and that is probably why it works...because the mature bucks are doing the opposite as well to avoid hunters who are doing these "common" things.