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Deer "Sightings"
A recent thread got me to thinking......am I alone in this thinking?
I'm one who is hoping (becasue of my herd dynamics) to see LESS deer each year. I'm also changing up my approach on most of my hunts....to the point to which I don't WANT to see "deer". I'm hoping for a buck or nothing. If I see too many does.....I'll know I picked the wrong place (for THIS time of year). So does not seeing deer bother you? Or....do you just say it goes with the territory you're hunting (if you're buck hunting)? I saw WAY less deer in '07, compared to '06. I hope that trend continues. |
RE: Deer "Sightings"
I hate not seeing deer. BUT I am in an area where there is enough that I feel I should at least see deer 2/3 of my sits.
WHen I hunted less populations just seeing one was bonus, as it took MANY more sits before doing so. Having plenty of deer around spoiled me, cause when I go a few without seeing any I get rather cranky. |
RE: Deer "Sightings"
I somewhat agree, but I don't have a lot of land to hunt and I see a lot of does almost every sit. So basically I'm hoping it will be a good spot during the rut.
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RE: Deer "Sightings"
I somewhat agree, but I don't have a lot of land to hunt and I see a lot of does almost every sit. So basically I'm hoping it will be a good spot during the rut. I'm just having fun hunting the new land a new way. Your way WILL/does work.;) |
RE: Deer "Sightings"
I see where you're coming from, Jeff. This time of year, if you're after the mature bucks, your best bet isn't probably hunting the heavily doe saturated areas. In my case, I'm after a doe or a buck, and which ever presents itself first, so I continue to hunt the locations where I'm seeing a lot of doe. I really don't feel that I have access to any solid mature buck territory on the property I hunt. My pre-rut observations and early season scouting confirm this. I don't really see much other than 1.5 yr old bucks ANYWHERE until the rut begins. I've hunted this piece of ground for all of my life so, unless I'm missing on key piece of info, that's my take on my situation.
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RE: Deer "Sightings"
Sep. through midOct., I avoid the does. Then mid Dec. through Jan. I do the same thing, if I'm still buck hunting.
Seening a lot of does bothers me for this time of year. That means I'm notin theright spot for a mature buck. My buck to doe ratio is about 1 to 7, if I can cut that down to 1 to 1 sightings, I'm happy. |
RE: Deer "Sightings"
Not seeing deer bothers me.....I like watching them:)
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RE: Deer "Sightings"
I hate it when I don't see any deer. It really makes me start second-guessing myself. Should I be in a different stand, mornings compared to evenings and so on. But thats all part of it.
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RE: Deer "Sightings"
The more i see them the more confidence it builds in me.
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RE: Deer "Sightings"
my honey hole hill is pretty much buck only...ive only seen a doe and 2 yearlings in there 3 seasons back once or twice.....now, if i see it, it likely has bone on its head...this season ive seen 2 bucks and a BB in there....last season i only hunted it twice but i seen a 2.5 and 1.5yo buck...
dont see piles of deer...but when i do, its usually a buck...and about 50% of the time a 2.5yo shooter(for me) id rather have it that way....yes, seeing ALOT of deer is awesome...but im not doe hunting. im buck hunting. my number of sightings is just fine IMO...if i had parades of bucks walking by each and every day, i dont think it would be as exciting as it is to me... |
RE: Deer "Sightings"
A recent thread got me to thinking......am I alone in this thinking? I'm one who is hoping (becasue of my herd dynamics) to see LESS deer each year. I'm also changing up my approach on most of my hunts....to the point to which I don't WANT to see "deer". I'm hoping for a buck or nothing. If I see too many does.....I'll know I picked the wrong place (for THIS time of year). So does not seeing deer bother you? Or....do you just say it goes with the territory you're hunting (if you're buck hunting)? I saw WAY less deer in '07, compared to '06. I hope that trend continues. Exactly my thoughts on my hunting. I could care less about seeing all the pretty deer out in open fields. Actually I could care less if I only saw ONE deer as long as it was THE ONE deer I wanted to shoot. |
RE: Deer "Sightings"
Good post. I have seen two bucks and three does this year so far. Both bucks I had within range at 10 and 20 yards, and they were both coming in 1-2 hours after sun-up to bed down. I am happy about seeing two bucks this early as I only saw 3 bucks the entire year last year. And guess what, all three bucks I saw last year were within bow range, and the two I saw this year were within bow range. So I believe I am setting up to get better shots, but just seeing less deer overall, and that includes bucks.
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RE: Deer "Sightings"
I don't see alot of does. Never have.. and I've been known to go 40+ hours without a single sighting of a deer. And it's not by accident.
I could care less if I saw 100 deer in one sit.. because there is only one deer I am after. |
RE: Deer "Sightings"
I enjoy seeing deer when I'm out, and usually do - no matter where I set up. We have alot of deer, and unfortunately few big bucks -so hoping for a super stud is a long shot, so I don't mind having the activity. I will say though...a few years ago, when we were slamming just about every doe we saw to try to get the numbers down, my hopes was that it would make a HUGE difference. It made some difference, but honestly - I think alot ofdeer from surrounding areas just migrated in and filled in the spots of the ones we took out. It did help our buck/doe ratio and numbers of older bucks some for sure, but not as much as we'd hoped it would - especially with the numbers we were shooting.Back then, I'd rather have seen only 1 - the one - than deer every sit.
Today, I still hope for the stud I want to come by, but honestly I am spending more time hunting with my kids than by myself - so its nice to have deer come by almost every sit. That keeps them motivated and excited, and you still never know who will show up. Last year was my best season ever, and I didn't even elect to shoot a deer. My son (9 then) killed his first buck ever a 7pt, and actually ended up getting another buck later as well. That to me is what its all about. This year he and my daughter (7) are itching to go...so I HOPE we see alot of deer each time out. |
RE: Deer "Sightings"
ORIGINAL: Siman08/OH The more i see them the more confidence it builds in me. |
RE: Deer "Sightings"
ORIGINAL: WV Hunter I enjoy seeing deer when I'm out, and usually do - no matter where I set up. We have alot of deer, and unfortunately few big bucks -so hoping for a super stud is a long shot, so I don't mind having the activity. I will say though...a few years ago, when we were slamming just about every doe we saw to try to get the numbers down, my hopes was that it would make a HUGE difference. It made some difference, but honestly - I think alot ofdeer from surrounding areas just migrated in and filled in the spots of the ones we took out. It did help our buck/doe ratio and numbers of older bucks some for sure, but not as much as we'd hoped it would - especially with the numbers we were shooting.Back then, I'd rather have seen only 1 - the one - than deer every sit. Today, I still hope for the stud I want to come by, but honestly I am spending more time hunting with my kids than by myself - so its nice to have deer come by almost every sit. That keeps them motivated and excited, and you still never know who will show up. Last year was my best season ever, and I didn't even elect to shoot a deer. My son (9 then) killed his first buck ever a 7pt, and actually ended up getting another buck later as well. That to me is what its all about. This year he and my daughter (7) are itching to go...so I HOPE we see alot of deer each time out. Your boy did great last year. Best of luck with your and the kid'shunting!! Tim |
RE: Deer "Sightings"
We usually don't see many does in our buck spots either early in the season. A lot depends on the area though. If a really large bedding area... we tend to see more does but still not alot compared to bucks.
Now that waterfoul season is going on, things have changed again. Right now it is a mess as the deer are getting pushed around by allthe duck hunters. Time to hunt sloughsinside corn fields or less pressured spots ( if you can find any ). It's a mad house here with the duck hunters.The doe sightings will be way up as they are getting pushed into less pressured spots. It isstill earlyenough ( before prerut )where it will be pure luck that a mature bucks moves before dark from all the new pressure.Buck hunting is tough now as you have a greater chance of getting busted by does hunting from the ground. Tonight I think I will actually find a tree to hunt out of and get off the ground. Got a a nice tree belt seperating two corn fields that they like to travel down getting to other fields if the duck hunters haven't been inthere lately. Right now I am not strictly buck hunting with the current conditions.Too bad for the does!! :D Tim |
RE: Deer "Sightings"
I go hunting...to see deer. Period. The more the better.
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RE: Deer "Sightings"
My last hunt (Thursday evening, I was out of town for the weekend) I saw 4 does.... Those were the first deer I saw in I think 7 straight hunts (around a 25 hour span).
I only hunt where I think I will see a mature buck on the hoof in daylight hours, not where I will see "deer".... I will tell you when you hunt like this.... When you hear a deer coming the ole' heart gets pumping [8D] I have saw enough deer over the years I don't need to see a deer to have a successful hunt. Knowing I am doing everything I can to put myself in position to take an animal I pursue is rewarding enough for me. Welcome and good luck :) |
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