Hunting Sense

Taking big bucks is as much about chance as it is about doing your homework. Even though lady luck has to be on your side, there are a few things you can do to help her out. Below is a list of ten tips and tactics that will help you increase your odds at taking home a monster buck the next time you go to the woods.

1. Know your hunting area. Know the feeding areas, the bedding areas, the trails between the two, where the deer go when hunting pressure increases. Study topographical maps and aerial photos to help locate intercept points at funnels created by topography, vegetation, and edges such as fencerows, clearcuts, field edges, creeks, sloughs, and lakes.

2. Go deep. Most hunters go less than a half mile from where they park and the deer know it. Go to those hard to reach spots where you have to put in some hiking to get to. As a friend of mine use to say, where the road ends, big bucks begin. This is where you’ll more often find those elusive bucks.

3. Be aware of the weather. Make the wind work for you, adjusting your strategy according to it. Also take advantage of any changes in the weather. If there is a low pressure system moving in the deer will be moving more, increasing your chances.

4. Go early and stay late. Get to your position well before sunrise, stay all day, and don’t leave till after the sun sets. Dawn and dusk are excellent times to see deer moving to and from bedding and feeding areas, but many deer have been taken between 11 and 3. Stick it out when others go in for lunch and you just may be showing off your buck to them before they go back out for the evening.

5. Dress appropriately. Dress in layers so that you can adjust to varying weather conditions like colder temperatures or rain. Being overdressed or underdressed with no way to compensate for comfort can ruin the hunt. The more comfortable you are, the longer you can stay, the better prepared you’ll be for a shot, and the better your chance of not going home early empty handed.

6. Make yourself comfortable. When you decide on a stand or a seat, make sure it’s comfortable enough to spend long periods on. If you have to keep standing or moving because you’re uncomfortable or sore, the likelihood of spooking a deer increases. So short of taking the lazy boy with you, make sure you are comfortable even if it adds a little more weight to carry in.

7. Choose your stand or blind location wisely. Whether you’re hunting from a tree or from the ground, location is key. Don’t set up too close to a well used trail where the deer are likely to see you. If there aren’t enough shooting lanes, clear some, taking care to avoid trimming so much that the deer will notice it and avoid the area.

8. Rattle and use calls. Don’t be afraid to try rattling to draw in a buck. During the rut a mature buck will respond to other deer fighting for the rights to his territory. Don’t give up if it doesn’t work immediately, it takes time. Also, deer are very vocal, so using different calls from fawn bleats to buck grunts can help in bringing in a buck or stopping him long enough to get a shot.

9. Let smaller bucks walk. Passing by on a decent buck standing broadside to you is hard to do, but necessary if you want to wait for the big one. Decide what it is you are after and don’t settle for less, no matter how nice they may be.

10. Take your time. No matter how big the rack is and how bad you want to get a shot, don’t rush yourself. Take the time to steady yourself and concentrate on shot placement. If you rush not only is there the chance of missing, but there is the very likely possibility that you’ll only injure the deer and lose him. If it is the buck of a lifetime, make sure to take the time to deliver the shot of a lifetime, he deserves it.

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