You saw him at 5:30am...that star could be a long way from his bed. We've watched bucks make 1 mile swims across Lake Chautauqua NY.
One buck swam a mile across the lake (swam past duck decoys...layout hunting) got out of the water shook himself off, then got back in and swam a mile back to the other side. Granted, that was in November when they are doing crazy things, but your buck could have still been 2 hours away from bedding time.
Seeing him in that one spot, one time, does not make any sort of pattern. I'm not saying you shouldn't scout it, but that star very well could be a mile from his bed. Bucks do often relocate home range at this time of the year. Competition from more aggressive bucks can push younger buck to new core areas. Its common.
I would be very curious to know what age class that buck is.Doe core areas also effect buck relocation.
Lots of changes in food sources and hunter pressure at this time of the year can cause deer to change core areas during different times of the year.
There are lots of reasons why that individual buck may never step foot on that chunk of land again. Still...go check it out. You have nothing to lose. Satellite pics and topo maps are helpful, but nothing beats boots on the ground to really figure things out.
One buck swam a mile across the lake (swam past duck decoys...layout hunting) got out of the water shook himself off, then got back in and swam a mile back to the other side. Granted, that was in November when they are doing crazy things, but your buck could have still been 2 hours away from bedding time.
Seeing him in that one spot, one time, does not make any sort of pattern. I'm not saying you shouldn't scout it, but that star very well could be a mile from his bed. Bucks do often relocate home range at this time of the year. Competition from more aggressive bucks can push younger buck to new core areas. Its common.
I would be very curious to know what age class that buck is.Doe core areas also effect buck relocation.
Lots of changes in food sources and hunter pressure at this time of the year can cause deer to change core areas during different times of the year.
There are lots of reasons why that individual buck may never step foot on that chunk of land again. Still...go check it out. You have nothing to lose. Satellite pics and topo maps are helpful, but nothing beats boots on the ground to really figure things out.