Alright, so I just finished school, don't have a job lined up yet, and have been hunting diligently ever since before the rut. I have been holding out for a good shooter buck, generally all I have seen are spikes and 4 point bucks. There is a nice 8 point that I came close to shooting, but he never let me get a decent shot on him. Had to put up my rifle after the season was over, and just got a new bowtech destroyer 350 and set it up with a spot hogg right on wrapped sight, a qad hd ultra drop rest, and some other goodies. I was out hunting with my buddy on Saturday morning and he saw this "monster 12 pointer" at about 8am right after sunrise on the buck sighting location number 4. He was sitting in the ground blind on the ridge of the pond to the east of this sighting. I attached a diagram of my property from google earth with some different markings and a legend. I haven't seen this buck and I've probably been out for about 20 days morning and evening over the last month and a half, rotating locations from stand to stand, brush piles, creek beds, etc., looking for this shooter. There are some major tree rubs on the scrape trails that I showed on the map. I think this monster's main stomping grounds are at the far north of the map, and I think he beds down either in the northern bedding area, or also could bed down in the draws on the property to the northwest that I can't hunt. It finally snowed here in Missouri, and I had to take the opportunity to see if the deer had been bedding down in the area that I thought they were in. I walked from the north to the northern bedding area today, following a few sets of tracks, at about 1:30, and kicked up about 4-5 deer, one of them looked like a decent buck, but I don't believe he was the monster. I also put up a trail camera right to the south of the bedding area on a main trail coming out of it, so hopefully this will give me some pics of the monster and some insight as to his habits. My question is what would my best plan of attack be for this monster buck? I have hunted all the area to the south and west heavily, and there is a lot of activity, but I haven't really seen any shooters. I think that he must stay under cover until after dark and bed down before first light. I haven't gone out in the afternoon yet, but I think his main areas include the far north (a ton of tree rubs) down to the bedding area. I think they also might cross the field on the northeast during the evenings as there are some fields and a few cornfields across the road to the northeast. Forgot to mention that all of this property is soybean fields with wooded areas throughout, so the deer don't have to venture far for their food. My main problem is that there are a lot of thorn trees here and the woods are very thick with very few taller trees that would make suitable stands, and this monster never ventures from the cover during the daylight. I was thinking about getting a free-standing 17' stand from my friend and placing it on the northwest corner of the bedding area and trying to sneak in from the land that I can't hunt (it's okay if I drive in this way and walk around, just can't linger), climb the fence up to the stand before first light to catch them when they come to bed down. No shooters (or really any deer for that matter) have responded to calls, scents, rattling or anything after the rut passed, they just ignore it and keep moving. The main movement (at least during the rut) comes from the northern bedding area in the morning, and they migrate south or southeast, and then in the evenings they move back to the north. Any suggestions as to how I can mix things up again and bag this monster without shaking up these deer too much? The main problem is that now that the rut has passed there seems to be little activity during daylight hours, and what little does take place now takes place in thick cover. I feel that I am either going to have to be invasive of the bedding areas or get a group of drivers together to move these deer out of the cover in order to get a shot, but I don't want anyone else to shoot this monster given all of the time and effort I have put into my equipment, hunting hours, and learning the habits of these elusive animals. Any help would be much appreciated.
I also forgot to mention I shot my first doe with my bow, hit it high for a double lung shot, tracked it's blood trail for a mile the next day across a road, but the coyotes got to it first. I was looking for it that night and I had my second encounter with a bobcat that seems to have been roaming around my property. I saw him stalking a doe earlier in the season, and he seemed to have been following this doe after I had shot it. This can't be good for hunting, and I was wondering what the best way to trap/shoot this cat would be? It would be awesome to lure him in with a predator call or some kind of decoy or food or something and shoot him with my bow, but I haven't been seeing nearly as many deer in the open as I have in previous years, and can't help but think it may be the fault of this bobcat.
im not a wildlife biologist (yet) but if im not mistaken bobcats wont bother deer, they only eat small game such as rabbits, birds, mice etc. they arent big enough to take down a deer. yes it could happen but not very often. think about it bobcats are about the same size as coyotes and coyotes dont bother deer sized game, just rabbits, birds etc. now mountain lions are a different story.'
Late in the season, if i have not yet bagged a deer, i usually hunt close to bedding areas in the morning. Sometimes in them, if I know I won't be hunting there til next season. In my neck of the woods in Illinois, all the deer are now in herds due to the significant snow fall and all crops being harvested early this year. So I will knock on a door or two if i'm seeing deer coming out in certain neighboring fields while scouting. Most hunters are usually done for the year after our gun seasons, so getting into these properties then is much more possible. Another thought I just had was that you mentioned you have been hitting it hard since the rut. When I am experiencing a drought in good buck sightings, and especially when i'm hunting a lot, i will often replace sitting a stand with scouting. This scouting has led to kills that may have never happened had i not been glassing field edges. A good climber or ladder sticks with a hang on are necessary. Or you could make a ground blind if there isn't a good tree available. I like using logs, sticks, prairie grass and leaves from the surrounding area to assemble my ground blinds. Good luck and let us know how it goes!
Update I have been starting moving closer to the bedding areas but trying not to ruin them completely, I have pretty much left them untouched all season. The only one that I can manage to get close to quietly is the northern bedding area, as the other one is buried in really thick cover. The good news is this is where the "monster" buck was sighted. We had the beginnings of development start here, and some sewer pipes were laid, so there is a clearing through the center of the treeline and a lot of brush piles. I have been hunting in or on the edges of these brush piles getting closer and closer to the bedding areas. Tonight I was tired of waiting b/c the deer are not showing up until last light anymore, and I snuck along the field up to the bedding area. The snow is just melting, so I took about 20 minutes and I didn't make a sound. I set up shop with the wind coming from the NE, and I was on the West of the bedding area which was perfect. It was starting to get dark and I let out a couple of short grunts. Apparently I was only 30 yards from the "monster" buck my friend had seen. He turned out to only be a decent size 10 or 11 point buck. I would guess maybe 2 1/2 to 3 1/2 years old at the most, but I would've shot him. He is the second biggest buck I've seen all season! The buck jumped the fence and circled around me while I was still looking for him in the bedding area, I was totally caught off guard. He responded to my call in 2 minutes flat, I think I had woke him up. He circled downwind slowly and I couldn't move and eventually got directly downwind and busted me and pranced off slowly through the field to the West. He was in the open field and I was on the edge of the field right in front of a tree with no cover between us. I was bummed but at least I am positive where these deer are spending their afternoons, everyday from about 9-5 they're bedded down in here, with a creek running through and soybeans on both sides they don't need to go anywhere else. I am planning on getting a 17' tripod stand and setting it up on the NW side of the bedding area in the middle of a couple trees and setting up in it before first light before these guys bed down if the wind is right, and I should get a couple more opportunities. Hopefully I'll be able to grunt this ballsy buck back over. I won't be caught off guard again!
Here's what I would do.... First, you're going to wanna ascertain some Claymore mines. Next, you'll need to carve some 3' long section of bamboo into sharp points.....
Food is key late season. Hunt trails from food sources to the bucks bedding area. I'd go as close to the bedding area as you can without getting busted, and get in the stand EARLY! play the wind as best as you can, and don't be afraid to be mobile and move to a better location.
Yeah I've been trying to do hunt different spots around their bedding areas, the problem is that I haven't been seeing any of them lately, even at first light. I think they have completely abandoned the southern bedding area, I went through there today and spotted the bobcat again. I do have a trail camera that I put up a few days ago on the outskirts of the northern bedding area, pretty much right where that buck was bedded down, and I haven't checked it yet, so maybe I'll check it in the next few days and learn a little more about what times they've been moving in and out. Thanks for the advice I am due to get lucky sooner or later.
Adamfargo, I know your frustration. I've too seen big bucks but not where they were suppose to be. I'm hunting 60 acres of the thickest crap known to man. I've made 4wheeler trails through out the woods in hopes of getting the deer to use them. however, with my trail cam pics I've notice a large buck hanging out at the end of my trail and have hunted it hard only to see him and other bucks walking by to far away for a gun. I got in late a couple of weeks ago and decided to hunt the main 4wheeler trail with a climber, and what do you know here comes the biggest buck I've ever seen in a stand. It was shot gun season and he was about 80yards out standing in water (flooded timber now) I shot and missed him, but I didn't fire again because I didn't want to alert him of where I was. he walked back where he came from. sucks to be me, however, I now know where he beds and will hunt him in a week or so with my bow. The deer aren't hanging around thier normal spots anymore, so be brave and hunt somewhere unexpected. you should have some luck if not rulling out an area for next season.
Yeah it's terrible hunting this thick thorny mess here too, it's impossible to walk through it, the 4-wheeler paths are a great idea, I was thinking about doing something similar on my property. I borrowed a tripod stand and found the bedding area of the monster buck, I really believe there is a monster 12 pointer I just haven't seen him yet because my trail camera sucks d. I'm going to put up the stand next to the pond in his stomping grounds, and got permission to hunt the property he lives on, so hopefully I'll catch him in the morning or evening, or maybe even midday.
