I am pretty close to a beginner when it comes to hunting deer. I am going to be hunting in the western mountains of NC in buncombe county this season. I just scoped out the property this weekend. It is about 200 acres, it is mountainous with a big creek running down the center with several feeder creeks. There are some access trails that I did see coyote, deer, and possibly blackbear tracks on. There were not as many visible deer tracks as I expected on the sandy areas (but it was mostly rocky and compact soil so as to make sign less visible) but I think there should be quite a lot of deer in the area. It is very remote, should be low hunting pressure, and there were tons of oaks, hickory trees, blackberries, and other forage in the clearcut areas. My first instinct was to stick close to the creeks as deer like water sources, but the creeks are very overgrown with bushes and you cant really see very far so that seems out. In general the whole landscape seemed to be overgrown with bushes so the only real long range visibility was on the access trails and potentially the clearcut areas, although those are growing up with bushes and small trees now. My question is what is the best way to hunt a property like this (mountainous and semi-low visibility)? With my limited knowledge, the best area I found was on an access trail with some large hickory trees. That was where I saw the most tracks. Based on what you are hearing do you think the best place to hunt would be in stands overlooking the access trails near foods sources? Any advice would be greatly appreciated. I am also interested in turkey/blackbear if they are around(no experience with either of these) so any advice in this realm would be appreciated too.
You never mentioned looking for buck sign. . As in rubs,rub lines big beds in around the brushy areas. They would not be in thick cover now due to velvet damage but come fall thick stuff isn't a bad thing. PS If you find what looks like fresh rubs now...have your head on a swivel...most likely black bear. Look for last year's rub lines
200 acres is big enough to hold deer year round but doubtful if mountainous county. Depending on the area around the property you have to hunt deer could be spending their summer somewhere else and moving in come fall and the rut. As mentioned above looking for old rubs is your best bet in knowing if deer will be moving through come hunting season. Any trails you find now are good places to start and work your way out from there. Access trails to feeding are great spots to hunt but only a part of the big picture. Food sources change throughout the year and hunting season. Look for pinch points and funnels in the terrain, open oak ridges with thick brush close by. These areas should have sign from last season. Turkey and bear have similar habits of deer with a few changes thrown in there. Turkeys like the more open areas and edge cover like deer and feed on some of the same things but usually have a smaller home range. Bear have a larger home range and prefer thicker environments with a water source. In the fall all three can be found on the same oak ridge if the fresh acorns are falling. Good luck
