Just like the title, what is your favorite terrain feature or features for targeting bucks?
Just like the title, what is your favorite terrain feature or features for targeting bucks?
By "whole story" do you mean in relation to topography, proximity to food, etc? For the non-rut periods?Depends upon time of the year.
During the rut, it would probably be very old logging roads cut into a hillside that cut many doe trails. However, outside of the rut, I see mature bucks very rarely on these during shooting hours. They want to be able to smell as much doe as possible while covering ground but not being super exposed (like middle of a field).
Outside of the rut, it is much harder to outline but for bucks during the day, I have to be very close or in thick cover. But it's more of a "whole story" sort of thing at that point.
By "whole story" do you mean in relation to topography, proximity to food, etc? For the non-rut periods?
Old logging roads that are near a draw, saddle, or intersecting ridgelines. Make it a good acorn year as well and I'm salivating.
Private or public? Rut or non-rut?
I ask because on public here, outside of the rut, you'll hardly ever see a decent buck cruise a logging road unless that logging road is THICK.
E'rybody an all their chilrens can have onx but what I quoted is one of the major differences between hunters and killers. I would venture the overwhelming majority of folks(hunters in general) cant pin that stuff on a map and not all of it can be. Lots cant spot it walking within peeing distance either. I say both of those things from experience and knowing I still have lots to pin down too.just little subtle stuff is the X.
Old logging roads, swamp "ridges" (a 1-2ft elevation change that means a strip of land is the last to flood), and old logging roads on swamp ridges.
E'rybody an all their chilrens can have onx but what I quoted is one of the major differences between hunters and killers. I would venture the overwhelming majority of folks(hunters in general) cant pin that stuff on a map and not all of it can be. Lots cant spot it walking within peeing distance either. I say both of those things from experience and knowing I still have lots to pin down too.
Persistance has been my ace too. I have connected some dots this spring though that I hope pay the dividends I think they will. May not happen this season like you referenced building on the knowledge but I think I will be much better in the game. The sad part is how many of the things are glaringly obvious but were hiding in plain sight. Felt about as sharp as a rubber mallet when the light finally came on.I wish I was too. I'm usually just throwing spaghetti at the wall. I think persistence is probably my best attribute. I didn't kill one in 2021, never even had a good one in range. I was closing in and just ran out of clock. But then I killed one in that spot pretty early in 2022 that was completely built on the knowledge and lessons learned during my long, unsuccesful, 2021 season. I don't even know how to describe it. Big, flat patch of thick laurel that backs up to a big oak flat. Just kept nipping away at it. Everyone wants the quick fix, but I've yet to find it, I know that.