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Beaver Dam Scouting — Determining Potential

T

Tweet88

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Joined
Nov 27, 2021
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Just got back from scouting a piece of public land near my house. I discovered a beaver pond and remember hearing guys talk on podcasts about being great spots for bucks.

This beaver pond was created from a small creek that runs off the mountain and is not that large. Below the dam where I am standing is pretty muddy but not thick brush or anything. The far side is a hill with pretty open hardwoods. Above and below the dam along the creek its pretty open hardwoods as well. The only potential bedding is behind me which is a patch of pines but those are not too thick either. I did see some deer tracks below the dam but nothing significant.

I assume all beaver dams are not created equally.. is this one perhaps a dud or am I overlooking some details that could point to it being a good spot?

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In my limited experience I find that most of the sign is near the edge of the woods before it transitions to open area. Look for any points of elevation that fall off into the low areas around the pond. I usually find the buck sign near the tip of the points and along the ridge top.
 
Look for crossings before and after the dammed areas and ponding water locations. They can be great funnels for deer movement and the water tends to pull your scent to it as its usually the lowest area around. You can use the creek or the pond as way to keep your scent at bay while overlooking crossings or Travelways along the pond and transition up to the woods Or ideally, have a location where you can overlook both the parallel trail along the pond and also have a shot opportunity to the crossing trail(s) either above or below the beginning or end of the beaver pond area.
 
From how you describe the topography it may be a better pre-rut/rut spot instead of deer holding there for bedding. Depending how far and deep that pond backs up it may create a funnel at the upstream or downstream between the two ridges. I don’t hunt beaver ponds but the same situation arises from the small lakes/ponds around me. If there are bedding areas on either side of the beaver pond (and not even necessarily close), bucks cruising between them are funneled around the obstacle. And like the previous post mentions, it may be thicker in some areas than you think


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just a bonus during elk season out here .there is a low trail crossing the dam,a center trail through the wallow and a head trail up around it wich is prime with cover .however iv had 2 bears and 2 elk cross the middle during the day.wich surprised me.but i still asume a deer is going to use the top swing around trail in cover
 
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An aerial would probably be a better pic to make a judgement call off of.

Beaver dams/ponds in my experience work as funnels or bumpers. Deer move across/around them during travel to avoid a swim. I hunt a productive one that is the only crossing point in a swamp and there is bedding/food on each side. It is always a good sit, especially during rut.

I've seen some that weren't good for anything.
 
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