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LOCATING MOUNTAIN BUCKS

My hot take, if you actually like hunting public land mountain bucks the very first thing I would do is unsubscribe and stop giving views to these fools trying to make it out to be the coolest new bro-cred way to hunt and sell specialized gear.

Scout, scout, scout is my recco. You can pretty much take off June, July, and August, but the other 9 months of the year if you don't have anything going, get out there and scout. Scout hunting pressure for sure. Long-soak cams are a good way to see beyond immediate sign. Snow this time of year is a godsend for intel.

Any of the content out there geared toward mapping bucks is so overcooked now, I still use it, but a lot of the specific terrain features that are taught are now slammed, throw that all out the window and focus on boots on the ground.

And don't get me started on old Stevie selling out public land coordinates! I think he's a good guy but I would be whizzed if he was working his hustle in my area. Not saying he's a bad guy, but not at all a fan of that frankly.
 
@Jammintree and myself hunt very similar areas. He seems to be better at shooting the bigger bucks than I am and I didn’t read everything he wrote but I’d tend to say follow more of his words. However! Following the does will lead you to the bucks in a sense. My areas I notice that the does like to bed the tops and walk the first bench down on the edges of the first transitions be it softwood to hardwood or hardwood to thicket and so on. The bucks how ever tend to like that next bench where there’s a secondary transition and they stay down wind of the does but still in full cover. If you’re tree hunting get on an edge between the first and second shelves or even just off the top shelf leading up to bedding. Do some observation sits. I don’t put my boots on the ground in season unless there’s good tracking snow. But I’ll do multiple observation sits to create a pattern and then move accordingly. Obviously when the ruts kicks off anything can go but my personal experience I’ve had the best luck and best sightings sitting those doe transitions. Keep in mind big woods don’t always get a lot of pressure but the pressure they do get will feel greater to the deer than it will to the deer that are used to great pressure. Be smart with your entry and exits and you’ll never notice an impact on them. In crappy weather the soft woods will usually hold more activity as it shelters them some and when it’s windy it’s quieter so they can hear a little better. Biggest key aside all of this is thermals. Find a good thermal hub and get just off it. Hunt crappy weather and you’ll see more deer in a day than you know what to do with
 
Just skimmed some of the other replies I may be repeating what some have said but here's my 3 cents

I cut my teeth hunting mountain deer. Dad didn't know any different and we had access to a large tract of private.
That ecosystem just doesn't support deer like the foothills and lowlands and can easily make you hate deer hunting. If you're not really on top of things you will spend a ton of time seeing a whole lot of nothing.
Even if you are on top of things opportunities will be few and far between with the lower deer density. You better be able to take your time in a hurry.

That being said sign is fine and all but it doesn't mean much to me and I absolutely won't camp on it. Only time I'll fool with it is mid to late oct after a rain when they have a little piss and vinegar going and that's mostly for the novelty of it.
Some of my best spots ever are barren of sign and trails and hanging a camera in there would just make you think nothing is going on in that spot as no two deer walk the same path through it.

Without going into hyper detail a great way to whittle down the big woods is to of course read the topo, 9 times out of 10 they are going to take the path of least resistance. However all topo is not equal. Sure a random saddle on a ridge will have deer pass through at some point but how often.

You need to determine the significance of each topographical feature. Diversity and relative topography will dictate the significance of each topo feature.
Sure deer can be killed in bland random topography, but when you're faced with whittling down 20 to 100,000 acre and beyond rugged tracts you've got to have some confidence in some consistent topo and Diversity features that produce replicable hunting experiences no matter whether you hunt.

Sometimes there's no old clearcuts/meadows/swamps/adjacent cow pastures to key in on the topo in proximity of.

Often times you are faced with strictly "ivy" (that's what the old timers call mountain laurel or rhododendron interchangeably here)
Think of It like reservoirs and rivers, dont overlook streaks of hemlock or pine either.
A great place to key in on any time but especially cold days in the rut is where rivers of ivy intersect, especially when paired with path of least resistance topography.
Get Google earth or anything that shows historical satellite imagery and go to when the leaves are off. Ideally you can find where the vegetation is least obstructive while maximizing shot opportunities in the topo feature. More often than not this is sufficient when gun hunting but generally takes a little on site tweaking for archery.

Often I'll get right on the x of the ivy streaks so I can shoot either side of the laurel.

And yeah its not the Midwest or Texas brush country but a deer is a deer and I rattle my ass off in late oct and early November. I could care less what it scares off cause I'm only after what it brings in anyway. I have had some magical days in late October with my bow. Especially on the first cold snap of the year. You aren't going to call one into the wide open but he'll make a bee line to the base of your tree if your in the the laurel.

I rate each as 1,2,3 dimensional and so on. Generally the more dimensions you delineate the higher the frequency of deer passing through.

There is no substitute for time spent in the tree. Don't write off a spot over a couple skunk sits. Take up squirrel hunting, turkey hunting. Romp that mountain down and take notes. There's spots that scream at you from the map and there's ones that you'd never know they were there unless you were standing in em.

When you are walking in the off season with the leaves off take the time to mull over spots and pick trees that present the most shot opportunities, dont half ass tree picking when you have the time. Then ring the the tree with a few cat eyes and drop a pin on it so you can find it in the dark even years later. I like to bring a 2tc stirrup strap and get them up in the air some (probably overkill but if you can't tell by now I'm prone to that).

One more thing that's worth noting is Google maps has a relief layer that shows the topography in extreme detail albeit its not super close up in its most detailed extent. I'll often look at it drop a pin on the subtle feature you can't see on a regular topo map and copy the coordinates onto Onx to save.

As if I haven't already I could go on and on but I better go do something productive. Good luck
 
Appalachian Assassin said:
Just skimmed some of the other replies I may be repeating what some have said but here's my 3 cents

I cut my teeth hunting mountain deer. Dad didn't know any different and we had access to a large tract of private.
That ecosystem just doesn't support deer like the foothills and lowlands and can easily make you hate deer hunting. If you're not really on top of things you will spend a ton of time seeing a whole lot of nothing.
Even if you are on top of things opportunities will be few and far between with the lower deer density. You better be able to take your time in a hurry.

That being said sign is fine and all but it doesn't mean much to me and I absolutely won't camp on it. Only time I'll fool with it is mid to late oct after a rain when they have a little piss and vinegar going and that's mostly for the novelty of it.
Some of my best spots ever are barren of sign and trails and hanging a camera in there would just make you think nothing is going on in that spot as no two deer walk the same path through it.

Without going into hyper detail a great way to whittle down the big woods is to of course read the topo, 9 times out of 10 they are going to take the path of least resistance. However all topo is not equal. Sure a random saddle on a ridge will have deer pass through at some point but how often.

You need to determine the significance of each topographical feature. Diversity and relative topography will dictate the significance of each topo feature.
Sure deer can be killed in bland random topography, but when you're faced with whittling down 20 to 100,000 acre and beyond rugged tracts you've got to have some confidence in some consistent topo and Diversity features that produce replicable hunting experiences no matter whether you hunt.

Sometimes there's no old clearcuts/meadows/swamps/adjacent cow pastures to key in on the topo in proximity of.

Often times you are faced with strictly "ivy" (that's what the old timers call mountain laurel or rhododendron interchangeably here)
Think of It like reservoirs and rivers, dont overlook streaks of hemlock or pine either.
A great place to key in on any time but especially cold days in the rut is where rivers of ivy intersect, especially when paired with path of least resistance topography.
Get Google earth or anything that shows historical satellite imagery and go to when the leaves are off. Ideally you can find where the vegetation is least obstructive while maximizing shot opportunities in the topo feature. More often than not this is sufficient when gun hunting but generally takes a little on site tweaking for archery.

Often I'll get right on the x of the ivy streaks so I can shoot either side of the laurel.

And yeah its not the Midwest or Texas brush country but a deer is a deer and I rattle my ass off in late oct and early November. I could care less what it scares off cause I'm only after what it brings in anyway. I have had some magical days in late October with my bow. Especially on the first cold snap of the year. You aren't going to call one into the wide open but he'll make a bee line to the base of your tree if your in the the laurel.

I rate each as 1,2,3 dimensional and so on. Generally the more dimensions you delineate the higher the frequency of deer passing through.

There is no substitute for time spent in the tree. Don't write off a spot over a couple skunk sits. Take up squirrel hunting, turkey hunting. Romp that mountain down and take notes. There's spots that scream at you from the map and there's ones that you'd never know they were there unless you were standing in em.

When you are walking in the off season with the leaves off take the time to mull over spots and pick trees that present the most shot opportunities, dont half ass tree picking when you have the time. Then ring the the tree with a few cat eyes and drop a pin on it so you can find it in the dark even years later. I like to bring a 2tc stirrup strap and get them up in the air some (probably overkill but if you can't tell by now I'm prone to that).

One more thing that's worth noting is Google maps has a relief layer that shows the topography in extreme detail albeit its not super close up in its most detailed extent. I'll often look at it drop a pin on the subtle feature you can't see on a regular topo map and copy the coordinates onto Onx to save.

As if I haven't already I could go on and on but I better go do something productive. Good luck
Click to expand...
Really good stuff!!
 
I know this is an older thread but mountain bucks is not for everyone and it’s not easy. I hunt national forest in the counties where the the deer density is .96 deer per square mile and .46 bucks per square mile. Being ok with sitting for days not seeing a deer is a must. Also. There are many topo features that fit the bill but don’t fit the deer. A flat point off a ridge is what we are taught to look at but that mature deer or wise old doe. Won’t use it the way the internet tells you. They will skirt the down hill side of it and not go through it. I’ve hunted this type of terrain and deer density since my dad carried me when I was four. If your much further west in North Carolina there is no definitive play book. Keep in mind 90% of the deer use 10% of the woods here. Most mature deer here are on a 7-10 day loop. You are better off hunting bedding areas on the edge of disaster. I seen deer all but 5 trips last year. Now with that said the areas I hunt are thick. Most of my shots are under 30 because that’s as far as I can see. I believe I did see some one mention transition lines. This works here but it has to be the right area. I have one spot where it’s laurel thicket grows into a pine thickets with a hard wood edge but the hard wood edge bits up to a rock cliff. You want some sure fire place to find them. Find proof they are there and use rock cliffs and boulder fields to help funnel them. If it’s right they will actually cross a rock cliff to avoid the woods. One of the biggest deer I’ve ever chased would cross from a laurel thicket across a cliff to another laurel thicket. We also have a spot where they cross a laurel gap and then literally walk through a cut in a rock cliff. Oaks in laurel thickets are money. Also look for oaks that hit every year. Those are more consistent. They use steep faces way more than you would believe. I find more deer sign on steep faces I have to crawl up hands and knees. Yes they use the path of least resistant some. Best time to scout is Jan to march. Summer scouting is ok but pretty much useless when October hits. Chasing a single deer takes patience because they travel so far because of the low deer density. Nathan killen is a real asset. Also don’t over look Jason redd that owns timber ninja. Him and Nathan are pretty close even pull scouting trips together here.
 
Lowg08 said:
I know this is an older thread but mountain bucks is not for everyone and it’s not easy. I hunt national forest in the counties where the the deer density is .96 deer per square mile and .46 bucks per square mile. Being ok with sitting for days not seeing a deer is a must. Also. There are many topo features that fit the bill but don’t fit the deer. A flat point off a ridge is what we are taught to look at but that mature deer or wise old doe. Won’t use it the way the internet tells you. They will skirt the down hill side of it and not go through it. I’ve hunted this type of terrain and deer density since my dad carried me when I was four. If your much further west in North Carolina there is no definitive play book. Keep in mind 90% of the deer use 10% of the woods here. Most mature deer here are on a 7-10 day loop. You are better off hunting bedding areas on the edge of disaster. I seen deer all but 5 trips last year. Now with that said the areas I hunt are thick. Most of my shots are under 30 because that’s as far as I can see. I believe I did see some one mention transition lines. This works here but it has to be the right area. I have one spot where it’s laurel thicket grows into a pine thickets with a hard wood edge but the hard wood edge bits up to a rock cliff. You want some sure fire place to find them. Find proof they are there and use rock cliffs and boulder fields to help funnel them. If it’s right they will actually cross a rock cliff to avoid the woods. One of the biggest deer I’ve ever chased would cross from a laurel thicket across a cliff to another laurel thicket. We also have a spot where they cross a laurel gap and then literally walk through a cut in a rock cliff. Oaks in laurel thickets are money. Also look for oaks that hit every year. Those are more consistent. They use steep faces way more than you would believe. I find more deer sign on steep faces I have to crawl up hands and knees. Yes they use the path of least resistant some. Best time to scout is Jan to march. Summer scouting is ok but pretty much useless when October hits. Chasing a single deer takes patience because they travel so far because of the low deer density. Nathan killen is a real asset. Also don’t over look Jason redd that owns timber ninja. Him and Nathan are pretty close even pull scouting trips together here.
Click to expand...
I think much of what you said holds true for the north east as well. The reward of getting a mature buck in a the mountains is worth all the waiting.
 
I see this is a revival but ill tell you a few things.

As elk yinzer pointed out, so much of the things you see in media will be almost irrelevant, some of it will hold true to some degree but a lot of it is just BS.​
  • Cameras if used are a seasonal tool, let them cook the entire fall to learn for the following year, not this year. Youre not looking for a target buck, youre looking for patterns of when areas are used. That sign you found might only be good a week a year. Probably not even when you expect.
  • Look for multiple changes in the habitat if you can find it. Example: a creek bottom meets a secondary point that leads to a clear cut in hardwoods with soft woods creating another edge. You have gotta STACK the deck and I dont just mean this looks ok. When you step into a spot you should be and all these things start to line up youll be beyond excited. Not only will it have habitat it will have sign too. Tracks, rubs, scrapes and droppings. Deer poop and if youre not finding that keep looking.
  • The deer are way more lazy when not pressured than you probably think. Theyre not going up over the face if they can walk a logging road.
  • Entry from the bottom in the evening is a side entry at best, most times you cant get away with it at all
  • Contrary to what a lot of is preached, big woods deer dont bed in the same places. So many guys I know have written off mornings too, due to the preach of the influencer( did at one point ). 95% of the deer I see are between 9-11 am. They bed at dawn somewhere for a little and then they shift to the mid day bed in this timeframe is what I have come to realize. It took me watching deer show up during this timeframe for years where I was ready to get down out of frustration.
  • Every good stand that ive found came with hundreds of hours of scouting, mostly in season. Ill put my bow in my hand and walk before I sit in a tree and burn up the time. Very very very few spots are good every year and when you find one tell no one.
  • Dont be afraid to hunt from the ground to stay mobile. It can be done.
 
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