pattering mountain white tails

I have been hunting sine I was 8(now 20) and I still have trouble pattering big mountain white tails. On our main piece of land we hunt I have them down to almost the exact time they come through but each year they seem to make it just shy of my effective range untill this year, but back to the questions. What can I do more to be better prepaired for the season I spent around 60-80 hours scouting all year I start from mid may and scout till mid september. Do any of you guys find it hard to pattern the big ones? What do you do differently

 

Our own Shed has luck with mock scrapes. Check out his post. http://forums.bowhunting.com/showthread.php?t=22204

 

This may be a long winded post, but please bear with me.

My main property is approximately 600 acres. I'd say that its 40% farmland, 60% mountain. In the course of 18 years of hunting this ground, you could say I know it pretty darn well. One thing I will tell you is that there is a big, big difference between the deer the spend most of their time up and over the top of the mountain and the ones that spend the vast majority of their time in and around the low farm land. I tend to agree with you, mountain deer can be much harder to pattern.

Hunting farmland deer gives you a big advantage, food. They will frequently, like clockwork, ag fields, in affect, funneling deer to you. We know that deer in the mid to late summer will probably not stray too far from the patterns in early archery season. They are feeding and as fall progresses, they are feeding heavily preparing for breeding and mostly, winter.

Mountain deer are doing the same thing, eating and getting ready for breeding. However, the big, distinct difference is that they aren't frequenting a food source like agriculture fields. These deer are feeding mostly on browse and mast crops such as acorns. Acorns are the big ticket here. They are full of protiens and are vital to deer in the fall. Now, the problem. If your area is full of oaks, then chances are, on any given year, it will be full of acorns in the fall. This, in my opinion is what makes patterning deer in the big woods so hard. Deer do not have to go far to eat, and if they do, they'll seem to wander just about anywhere. Ever notice that big woods deer don't seem to follow trails as hard as farm deer? This is because they are wandering the woods, eating as they go. If they aren't pressured, they won't feel the necessity to follow trails and get from A to B as quickly as they can.

If your mast is sparse, deer will turn to other browse in early autumn. Again, these food sources are spread out and will be almost everywhere. However, here is another thing I've noticed about hunting are mountain deer here. If, for example, you have a light mast crop this year, but you find an area or two where the oaks are dropping acorns pretty heavily, you can bet money the deer know it and will be there. Acorns are king in the fall. Watch for turkeys as they also key in on acorns as well. If you find an area that is continuously scratched up by turkeys in the early fall, take a look around the area, chances are, acorns are coming down in litters. There is a very good chance deer will also hit the area hard to get the acorns.

Deer will eat up what they can in an area and move on quickly, so it pays to be mobile and move with them. Don't be afraid to move to another location if your spot "dries up". If you find an area that is producing acorns and lots of deer, hunt it hard. You have to hunt the deer where they are now, not tippy toe around waiting for the right wind, etc. If you do wait, chances are the deer will be in a totally new area by the time you climb into the stand.

Once the rut gets into full swing, well, good luck. Honestly, I have yet to figure that puzzle out. Other than simply hunting the does, which is a sure fire way to find bucks, they could be almost anywhere and will show up out of thin air on you. However, you can up your odds a lot if know of buck corridors. These can be very difficult to find, but once you do, you'll find and see more bucks in the big woods. Most of the buck corridors I've found in the mountains are littered with rubs by rut time. They are usually out of the way and hard to get to. The terrain is usually rough and thick. Bucks, especially mature ones, tend to use these to move from one section of woods to another while remaining hidden. One other thing to point out is that these areas are usually not far from known doe family travel corridors. Bucks will slip from area to area, scent checking these areas in hopes of finding a receptive doe.

If I decide to hunt the mountains because of a big buck I've seen, I usually plan on hunting all day. Get into the stand early, bring lots of food and liquids to keep your occupied. I'll even bring along a book sometimes. These deer will get up and move at any time of day, searching for food. One of the best mountain bucks I've taken was shot at around 2pm in the afternoon in mid October. You simply need to wait them out if you know they are in the area.

Again, IMO, food sources are a moving target with mountain deer. It will not stay consistent all year and you have to be mobile enough to move with the changing times. Hope this helps.

 

Hi, first post here. I hunt in South East Kentucky and South West Virginia. The mountains are very steep in some places and the hunting can be hard. Compared to a farmland deer a mountain deer is a totally different animal. I have found on the places I hunt that the majority of deer movement in the steep mountains in the fall is within 50-75 yards of the ridge tops. The walking is a little easier closer to the top and the majority of your oaks are up higher here. It pays to know your trees here. White oaks are the ticket, but deer will also eat red oak and pin oak if white oak is not available. Like said before the deer in the mountains might be on one food source one day and a half mile away on another the next. In addition to food sources I hunt terrain. Gaps, shelves and points are good places to funnel deer. Also logging roads and gas roads are major travel routs around here. Topo maps and google earth are good for finding this stuff but there is no substitute for getting out and burning some boot leather.
As far as mountain bucks I have found they especially like to bed out on points where they can either see or smell something coming from almost any direction. Don’t even bother trying to get close to those spots it’s a waste of time. You best bet is to catch him on his feet sniffing out does or eating/drinking.
I have hunted in the farm land, but there is something special about sitting in a stand way back in the mountains. The mountains are always surprising us with the deer that come out of our places. These bucks seem to materialize out of thin air.
Patterning mountain deer is dang near impossible to do. Their home territory is much larger than that of a farm country deer. Just know your land and what food sources are where and be willing to log some serious time on the stand.
Good luck:
Oh and the best piece of advice I ever got for hunting in the mountains is…. Carry some rope in your pack. Me I carry 50ft of nylon rope and it has come in handy countless times now.

 

great post, I live in north mountains and this is pretty much the same way. The best advice I got is to hunt the skinny ridges. you can hunt them about everyday and not have to worry about the wind. With the mountain going straight down behind you and the wind going that way you never get busted.

 

Thanks guys I'm goin to put more time in on topo maps and even out the time between the woods and maps to see if that will help. Find something that looks good on the map and check it out in person

 

I grew up hunting in the mountains. What I did was get really high up on the ridges before daylight and set up in transition areas just before the bedding areas. Like clockwork, no matter what piece of land I hunted, I'd pretty much always see deer moving up the ridge.

 

like most the post saids you haft to get on them big ridges and get near some type of food source i always have hunted mtns and i always go out and find a big patch of white oaks on the top and have had great luck one thing about these mtns is you never know what kind of monster buck is on the other side of the hill coming in to ya!!!! goood luck this season!