Congrats on finding the sign, pretty exciting isn't it!!
Kind of funny my hunting partner shakes his head when we are out together. You see I am a rub man myself, whenever I see a rub I run right over and start checking everything out. He always says "the only good scrape or rub is when a deer is making it! Besides that it is a waste of good trees, ground & time" kind of funny but he does have a point (to a point ...humm that doesn't make much sense). Any hew I concur that setting up on a rub or scrape is usually a futile effort, I have never taken a buck over a scrape or a rub........BUT (that is a big but) it can lead you to a much better area which I have taken many a buck. You see i run over to my rubs to see how he is rubbing the deer, then try and determine if it is food to bed vs bed to food. After that scratching of the head process, I have started to determine where he is coming from/going to and where he is living....and that my deer hunting friend is where the buck stops.
Hehe, ok enough of the one liners but the point is a hunter must use all the sign in a given area, rubs/scrapes indicate a buck which is a good place to start but to be truly successful you must look for patterns(sign) of this deer haunts and travel routes. Set up in accordance to the safest place the buck travels during legal and the area that offers you more than one sign but several. Basically look for trail that come to the scrape you found follow them back to what you persume is where the buck beds and look for your rubline, trail intersection,additional scrapes & so on. Most bucks will leave several clues(signs) in a given area, the highest % odds are the safe zones, such deep transition areas that offer concealment to the buck moving under daylight conditions, funnels, ridges, etc. If you can place yourself somewhere between his bedroom and kitchen you up the odds. I personally prefer getting as close as possible to his bedroom and either waiting or calling him out...depends on the cycle of rut they are in.
This is not meant to say that the rub doesn't indicate his route but if it is the sole thing you found then setting up shop may not provide you with the chance your thinking of, check the area for sign and determine which spot will give you that opportunity. Good Luck!!!!
