So as some of you may have read I will be doing some public land hunting and this is one place I am looking to scout when spring starts to break through! What we have is 4 ridges each gaining about 40-60ft and running east to west. The two southern ridges have a small creek running near them which would be a great water source to hunt near. Now I leave it to you guys....where do you hunt and keep in mind during hunting season we see a lot of North-North West winds. One last thing the area you are looking at covers right around 800 acres....
Can't tell much from the map. Got a topo? What food sources are there? Hardwoods? Where's the water? Do the creeks hold water year round or just when it rains? Any old ponds? Old ponds can be good spots. How steep are the ridges? Deer tend to travel the military crest of ridges and will bed on them. Looks like an interesting spot but can't tell much about the cover. Looks like some overgrown fields in there. Gotta burn some boot leather while sign is still relatively fresh.
Topo added. For the other questions I am not sure on most this is a purely scouting from the sky for now. I have never been out there before. It is public land and near by on the west side of the ridges it was logged and replanted with tall pines standing now. Looking through multiple sites I would say there are hardwoods on the ridges and cedar swamp between the ridges. Any of the fields are either clearings from logging or tall swamp grass areas. My main goal right now is to take this 800 acre area and take it down to 3-4 key spots to really beat up in early spring time.
I'd go scout the areas with the creek/field and hill all in a close area. Could be a jackpot if there is food and a bedding area close by.
Without boots on the ground and assuming the ridges have hardwoods with acorns, I'd focus on the southern 2 ridges, south slopes. Looks like the topo map has trails to access 3 of the ridges. I'd walk those first bc you will cover a lot of ground, get a feel for who is using the trails (joggers/horseback/bikes/atv etc.) and maybe see some sign. This will tell you if the deer will avoid the trails or if you can use them as quick/easy/quiet access to a stand. I'd walk the stream as well, looking for highways and crossings.
