Hunting Pressured Bucks

[Steve Bartylla]

Waiting for the wife to call to get her from work and don't want to start on something new. So, I'll start on this and see how far I get.

Before I begin, I should qualify why I would have any possible insight on this topic. Most "experts" write a pressured bucks piece every year or so, but pitifully few of them every hunt pressured bucks. In fact, I can only think of 3 that ever do anymore. So, PLEASE don't take what I'm about to write as an arrogance or egotistical thing. The only reason I am is that I wouldn't take any "expert" the least bit seriously if they didn't quantify how much they hunt pressured bucks (or I didn't otherwise know), as most never do.

I've hunted public lands since I was 12 and I've never stopped. For the last 20+ years, once doors started opening up for me, I have cut back and spend about 50% of each season hunting dream lands. The remaining 50% is divided fairly evenly between high pressure private grounds and public land. I could do 100% on WOW land, but don't have the desire and believe it would hurt my evolution as a hunter, and I know I can still get a lot better than I am today.

So, with that out of the way, the first trick to killing a mature buck (to me, on public or hard hunted private ground, that's a 3.5+) on public lands is to find him. In my experience, they exist in far greater numbers than most believe, but that's just because most believe they don't exist.

I tend to walk a lot of public ground this time of year (spent about a week so far this year). I'm mainly looking for big buck sign, such as overly large rubs. Sure, he could be dead, but it seems their odds of getting killed go way down after they hit 3.5+. They've already figured out how to avoid us or they're generally dead before 3.5.

When I find promising sign, I then pull out the topo and aerial photo that I have printed out and in my pocket. At this point, I'm looking for where I believe no one else goes and betting I'll find more of his sign there.

These areas generally fall into one of three categories:
Stupid easy to access locations that no real hunter would ever step foot in, as it's just too stupid easy. I've taken 3 bucks (2 P&Ys and 1 just under 120) out of locations like these. The last one, I could see the parking area from my stand. The other spot that I took 2 out of I could have been hit by rocks on the gravel road as cars passed. Both were under 4 acres of woods, isolated from the much bigger woods everyone else hunted. Please continue to ignore these locations, as you some of you may well bogger me for writing this here.

The next is to genuinely go the extra mile, in areas that ATVs not only aren't allowed, but the old logging roads are bermed with dirt blockades that can't be driven around to provide access. If you get an honest 1/2 mile back in, you lose over 90% of other hunters. Get an honest mile back in and you lose virtually all the rest. If you go this route, get a good deer cart, you'll thank me for it. You can find these setups in much of Northern WI and even quite a bit in the central WI forested region. It's my least favorite of the 3, not because of the work, but because there's often a lot of land back there to cover and finding him in it can be really tough.

Last is taking advantage of barriers. If you have to put on hip boots, waders or pull out a canoe, you almost always have the other side to yourself. Extremely steep ridges (used them in MN, WI and IL, along the Mississippi) or super deep cuts (used one near Eau Claire...took 3 buddies to help me get him across and nearly killed 2 of them in the process), nasty clear cut regrowths, had to cross swaps, anything that will leave others behind generally gives you solo hunting on the other side.

Wife just called. so, I'll leave it at that. It will probably take me a while to keep fleshing this one out, but there's perhaps the most important part of the method I use...Not saying it's the best or only way, just that it's the best I've found.

P.S. I ignore big deer sign in areas others will hunt...It's typically left after dark, but is great for keeping others hunting in those locations.

 

[sandbur]

I have a book-Taking Pressured Trophy Whitetails by William J. Vale.

He hunts metro areas of Michigan. There is lots of good material in the book and I recommend it to everyone. I may never hunt a metro area, but some slightly different ideas on wind direction and other things.

 

[Native Hunter]

Steve, this is going to be a thread I enjoy setting back and soaking in. I'm especially interested in hearing your thoughts about the first type of location that you mentioned. Why...because it fits my land more than the other two categories. Other than the lack of human presence in these overlooked areas, what are some other things that make them good hunting spots for mature bucks? And can anything be done to actually create such spots?

 

[bueller]

Excellent tips that all of us should keep in mind when deciding where to hunt on heavily pressured grounds. I love the statement about ignoring big deer sign in areas others will hunt, Fool's Gold :p. Thank you much.

 

[Steve Bartylla]

Art, I can't say I've read that book or that I'm overly experienced in hunting metro areas. I've done it around Eau Claire (technically, I think it would have been Chip Falls) a couple years and in suburbs around Madison, many, many, many years ago. So, my experience with it is very limited. What I did pickup between that and friends that hunt the Duluth hunt is that metro hunting is VERY different from the rest. I'm not surprised he has "slightly different ideas," as I have the distinct impression that metro deer seem to be "different" than deer on pressured grounds, which are "different" than deer on tightly managed ground. I believe it all goes back to us "training" them and how they adapt to their environments.

Bueller, thanks. For what it's worth, I love it when there is good buck sign in areas I hunt. The best example was when hunting some Core of Engineers land along the IL river. The woods along the bank were tore the heck up and had stands all over and I'm convinced that the amount of big buck sign was what kept everyone else from dragging out a canoe and paddling to the small islands before dawn. You had to get in early to beat the deer back, but it was one of the cooler things to watch them all swim to the islands each morning, as the hunters started getting out of their trucks. Still, the next day there'd be even more fresh buck sign, instilling even more hope in those hunters that this would be their day.

 

[Steve Bartylla]

Native, let me think on that one a while. I think that's a very important ? and I want to answer it to the best of my abilities.

 

[bueller]

Bueller, thanks. For what it's worth, I love it when there is good buck sign in areas I hunt. The best example was when hunting some Core of Engineers land along the IL river. The woods along the bank were tore the heck up and had stands all over and I'm convinced that the amount of big buck sign was what kept everyone else from dragging out a canoe and paddling to the small islands before dawn. You had to get in early to beat the deer back, but it was one of the cooler things to watch them all swim to the islands each morning, as the hunters started getting out of their trucks. Still, the next day there'd be even more fresh buck sign, instilling even more hope in those hunters that this would be their day.

Steve, your example reminds me of my experience at a state park in IL. Prior to hunting there I had ZERO experience hunting in areas with deep ravines and high ridges. All my hunting had been done on very flat ground. My first time out I found myself, like many others out there, hunting the ridiculous amount of deer sign at the bottom of the ravines. Trees rubbed all over the place, scrapes every 30 feet, and deer trails that looked like bike paths :eek:. I didn't see any deer until I relocated away from the deer sign, and the crowds. At the time I had no idea that it is common for deer, especially mature bucks, to be up high during the day and down low at night :oops:.

In the following years I've had good success hunting the same park. Should've had a nice mature buck last December, but that's another story :(. Many people still hunt down low in the ravines at this park and I'm sure it's the sign and ease of access that keeps them there. Myself, I go up a nasty thick and steep ridge which gets me into a small "forgotten about" ridgetop sanctuary where I see both natural deer movements and deer using the area as an "escape route":D.

 

[Native Hunter]

Native, let me think on that one a while. I think that's a very important ? and I want to answer it to the best of my abilities.

Sounds good - I will be patient. And if you have any thoughts on small sanctuaries which are close to human habitation other than just roads/highways (like kids playing, penned dogs barking, other loud noises, etc) please share thoughts on that too.

 

[sandbur]

William Vale gets into thinss about his calendar that he sells with prime times on it. I don't quite buy that idea, but some of his ideas on human scent are very interesting.

He touches on some of the same things as Ken Nordberg. Hunters work in pairs or threes. One simply leaves his scent blow into a bedding area and the others are on escape routes.

 

[Steve Bartylla]

1st, sorry I haven't given this more attention. It still needed a lot of meat to be filled out on this skeleton. I probably shouldn't have started this thread until July, but I will keep picking at it as I have time.

 

[Steve Bartylla]

Steve, this is going to be a thread I enjoy setting back and soaking in. I'm especially interested in hearing your thoughts about the first type of location that you mentioned. Why...because it fits my land more than the other two categories. Other than the lack of human presence in these overlooked areas, what are some other things that make them good hunting spots for mature bucks? And can anything be done to actually create such spots?

OK, I've given this more thought than I should have over the last week. Going through an inventory of all those overlooked locations I've had some degree of success in, they all share 2 common traits:
They are in high pressure areas
They are ignored/left alone by humans

Now, taking that a step closer to where you are trying to get, it only stands to reason that improving the quality of cover they provide can only help. This could be done by hinge cutting, planting trees/shrubs or with WSNGs.

Another consideration that comes to mind is how they lay in relation to food, other cover areas and how they can be accessed/how the deer will access them to aid in hunting. I know this last sentence says a lot, without really saying anything, but I'm not sure how else to explain it in limited words and I hope it at least provides a good nudge in the right direction.

 

[Native Hunter]

OK, I've given this more thought than I should have over the last week. Going through an inventory of all those overlooked locations I've had some degree of success in, they all share 2 common traits:
They are in high pressure areas
They are ignored/left alone by humans

Now, taking that a step closer to where you are trying to get, it only stands to reason that improving the quality of cover they provide can only help. This could be done by hinge cutting, planting trees/shrubs or with WSNGs.

Another consideration that comes to mind is how they lay in relation to food, other cover areas and how they can be accessed/how the deer will access them to aid in hunting. I know this last sentence says a lot, without really saying anything, but I'm not sure how else to explain it in limited words and I hope it at least provides a good nudge in the right direction.

Thanks Steve. All that makes sense to me. Like you said, the last sentence says a lot, but that is the challenge for putting the pieces together for any given parcel of land.

I remember years ago my dad talking about jumping a mature buck in a 1/2 acre brier patch in the middle of a fescue field after gun season. It was a place where no one would hunt, and the only reason dad went there was to cut across to another field to check some cattle. It was a place where dad hadn't been for a long time, and a place where no one else was ever at. So, it falls in line perfectly with the lack of human presence and recent high pressure.

 

[Steve Bartylla]

I know I've been bad at getting this filled out and that will continue for a while.

After finding Mr. Big on pressured grounds, I want to setup in that area he feels safe during daylight hours. There isn't an exact formula for this and it seems to vary most on how big that area is. For example, in those small, overlooked spots, I'm always setup within shooting distance of his bed. I'm not going to be able to get in and out without him knowing I'm there anyway. So, my only chance is beating him in. If that's the case, I may as well be exactly where he's going first.

In those situations where I'm hunting the backside of some form of a barrier that other hunters won't cross, the area he occupies during legal light is often significantly larger. Here' I can often setup just far enough from his bed to be able to slip in and out undetected. When that's the case, that's what I strive for. In those cases, I pick my setup spots no differently than if hunting a low pressured deer. It may be a funnel, a heavily used scrape, an in woods food source or just a trail leading to and/or from his bed. What I'm really focusing on most is getting close, but not too close to where I believe he's bedding and finding what I see as the highest odds location within that zone, and that varies from situation to situation.

Next, I want to do nothing to draw any attention to myself. That means something as seemingly silly as using a pole saw as little as possible. Nope, I don't believe he will be afraid of smelling sawdust, but it is likely that he will investigate what made the smell. Sure, I cut my odors like I was hunting just to set the stand, but what happens when I breath on that leaf or a drop of sweat falls while cutting? Pruning gives off less odors. First, I try to trim as little as possible, relying on shooting windows instead of lanes (I create lanes when hunting moderate to light pressured bucks). Next, unless absolutely forced, I prune the few branches I have to, instead of cutting, and take any I touch out with me.

Along those lines, I never blind call or rattle when hunting pressured bucks. If he is mature and truly pressured, he's heard both many times before. If he was inclined to come in to either, he died long ago. The ONLY time I'll ever try is when I spot him outside of range and he shows no intent of approaching closer. Even then, I let him walk far more than try calling him over. Frankly, I've never had it work to the point of arrowing a pressured buck I've called over, where as that has been extremely effective for me on light-non-pressured bucks, just outside of weapon's range.

In short, I strive to be the invisible man, doing absolutely nothing to attempt to draw any attention to myself at all.

Next up, timing, but that will have to wait.