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Deer and water

G

GeoFish

Well-Known Member
SH Member
Joined
May 5, 2021
Messages
2,426
Location
Kentucky
How important is a water source for your hunting set up?
I hunt big woods and when we have a wet November their is water in every dry creek. But go for a week or two with no rain and ponds seem to be a deer magnet.
Question?? How much water does a deer need every day?
I know it depends on how much moisture is in their foods supply, the temp, how much they are forced to move and so on. But a pint a day, a quart?
Do you guy set up close to a water source?
 
Thought about this some as well. I have a creek running thru the property I hunt.
Seems in Michigan or at least S. Michigan you can't go more than A mile with out finding some kinda standing water. Creek, lake, or just a natural low area with water.
How far is to far? So If you guys could give some more information as to what kinda water holes they seem to prefer? Springs? No movement? Slow moving? Edge of lakes? Cover to and from?
Do they hit multiple spots? Or fill up at one spot?
Trying to understand how the use water more as well..
 
One thing I have found very interesting is that deer will go out of their way to drink out a pond in my area preferentially over all the spring creeks that are everywhere. There is one place I watch them literally wade across a creek to drink out of a pond. The deer society guys on YouTube talk about this some too, how deer prefer still to running water given the option. Speculation is it might be mineral content or because they can smell scent collected on a cool pond. Not sure. Has made me look closer at making dedicated waterholes right next to bedding for sure
 
I think there's often overlooked sources of water that deer will use even in "dry" areas. For instance, the area I hunt remote doesn't have any traditional sources of water within about a mile radius. Not that that's a long way for a deer to travel for a drink, but I have on multiple times in different spots seen deer drinking the collected water from the hollow created where a tree splits near the ground to form a double. Since I like to sit in these trees I've even had them drinking from base of the tree of I'm sitting in before. :tearsofjoy:

Luckily for me its generally pretty wet here during deer season and there's almost always puddles (or snow later in season) around so I don't need to focus on the water sources when hunting.
 
I’ve found the best place BY FAR to hunt water is where a large tree has uprooted and created a depression in the ground. When it fills with rain, the deer will use it for generations. My guess is that the ground is rich with the things that were essential to support the life of the tree so the deer benefit as well. This is as predictable as @boyne bowhunter going to the local watering hole for a Budweiser.
 
huck72412 said:
I’ve found the best place BY FAR to hunt water is where a large tree has uprooted and created a depression in the ground. When it fills with rain, the deer will use it for generations. My guess is that the ground is rich with the things that were essential to support the life of the tree so the deer benefit as well. This is as predictable as @boyne bowhunter going to the local watering hole for a Budweiser.
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Have you noticed a buck will 'j" hook into a water hole? Or usually just slowly ez in?
 
Never really made it a point to hunt near water, I may situate myself where they may pass me going to it bc I know they have to drink at some point but never really made it a make or break thing, depending where I’m hunting it doesn’t really matter in LA if you’re hunting you’re not far from a water source regardless. Not sure about deer in particular but animals seem to be able to go longer without water than people. If they feel danger from drinking or going to a hole they’ll find another or not drink for a few days.
 
I've hunted near creeks and ponds for decades and the only deer I've seen drinking are real young ones and wounded ones. I think they get most of their water from sources such as the uprooted trees and split trees mentioned above as well as from stumps and dew on vegetation.
 
boyne bowhunter said:
I think there's often overlooked sources of water that deer will use even in "dry" areas. For instance, the area I hunt remote doesn't have any traditional sources of water within about a mile radius. Not that that's a long way for a deer to travel for a drink, but I have on multiple times in different spots seen deer drinking the collected water from the hollow created where a tree splits near the ground to form a double. Since I like to sit in these trees I've even had them drinking from base of the tree of I'm sitting in before. :tearsofjoy:

Luckily for me its generally pretty wet here during deer season and there's almost always puddles (or snow later in season) around so I don't need to focus on the water sources when hunting.
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I want the opposite. Alot of the other hunters go to the crop fields. I talked to a guy from Alabama last year. He was hunting close to crops.
In 5 days he did not see a single deer.
Not saying I hunt right over water, but I find in big woods I see more buck sign close to water.
Also I did not think you were a Bud Lite drinker. But that guy from LWCG might be!
 
I read awhile back somewhere that deer prefer standing/stagnant water over running ‘noisy’ water due to predation. Makes sense but I myself have not been able to prove or benefit from this.
 
mattpsu1 said:
I read awhile back somewhere that deer prefer standing/stagnant water over running ‘noisy’ water due to predation. Makes sense but I myself have not been able to prove or benefit from this.
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That is an interesting theory... that its the sound... I like it please find the source!
 
I don't know if it's got any truth to it whatsoever but I've heard multiple stories from random people thru the years about big old swamp bucks that hooves half rotted off from never leaving the water living deep in the swamp
 
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In normal years we have enough water that they can go a quarter mile in any direction to find water. I think they get most of their water from vegetation anyway but will drink if it is available. This past summer was very dry around here. One of the "lightbulb" moments for me this past season was when I walked up on the remnant of an old oxbow filled with stagnant water and the ground at both ends of the little pool were demolished with hoof tracks. That, and the addition of a couple of nearby white oaks was all I needed. I hunted the spot two days later with an all day sit and arrowed a nice 7 point 15 minutes before dark. This little oxbow was remote also.

I went back to the spot a month or two later and the place had completely changed. The water was up, and the sign had disappeared. It looked like just any other part of a wide creek. This is probably not a situation that will repeat itself too often, but it will be one of those things to keep filed away for the future if a similar weather condition arises.
 
I havent really hunted anywhere that water was a limiting factor so it hasnt ever been a strategy to hunt a water source. That said I have definitely noticed that rut or puddled water in logging roads has more sign of activity than creeks or ponds. Because of that I have considered adding a small tub or something to create a small water source at a spot or two that have pretty consistent good acorns and also are at key topo features. Just havent done it yet.
 
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