Let's discuss why deer trails end abruptly. One minute you are an obvious deer highway and then it just seems to stop for no reason and you can't figure out which way the deer are going from there. The deer have to be going somewhere. I presume it can mean they are bedding there and only exiting the area the same way. Is this typically the case? Are there other reasons why this happens? What should one be looking for? I'm sure there are different causes and scenarios and I'd like to discuss them all.
I just came across this scenario today. upon further investigation it seems that the area I was in just plain opened up and there were many other more lightly traveled trails in the area. I guess they just had more area to travel.
Tuff time of year for seeing trails that make since to me with the woods being so green and dry also. I have been doing most to all of my trail scouting a few days after the snow has been on the ground so i can get better ideas how the deer travel off the main trails to bedding and feeding areas.(winter ) this time of year i would have to put some trail cams out. I will say all my stands are up ready for opening day already and i am just staying out of the woods until then, I have a few cams out over my mineral licks but thats about the only intrusion i will do before the season opener.
Did these trails happen to end at my stand? Sorry Brad i couldnt resists. Actually the way last season went, no trails stopped at my stands. I look at it like a fork where the deer are on one trail for a bit then spread out in different directions.
Could be a change in the forest floor as well (hardwoods to pines, etc). Sometimes the trails are easier to see than others
Look up in the trees they may have roosted there lmao. Bedding area wood be my guess depending on the type of area your trail is in . I have an area on my property were they do just that and follow the same exact trail out to the other trails. I only know because i caught them on trail cam doin that
It was hard to tell where they went at first so I really started looking close and the leaves didn't lay right because there were hoof prints. Basically part of the leaves were pressed into the dirt (down into the hoof prints) from the deer walking on them. My one narrow worn down trail went into at least 3 different dirrections from what I could tell. There were a few other areas that looke dlike deer just randomly wondered around though. I am not saying this is the case for you but, just look around next time you are out there and see if the leaves look like they lay different, if the floor ios covered in leaves that is.
