just a few weeks before the season opens,(don' t go in there and stink up the place),if you know the trails,food,and water,and beding area.just wait till opening day and get between the beding area and the food and wait.you shouldn' t need to scout if you know all this.they will go the same places as the did last year if the food is there,of course in the rut,go where the does are.food means nothing to a rutting buck.as I tell my wife ;" if the girls are there ,the boys will be there" [:-].