Funnels!

I look for funnels first and foremost! Especially natural funnels located between bedding areas and feeding areas.

I've had a good deal of result early in the season by patterning big deer. Basically, I have found that a travel route between a food source and a bedding area, especially if you view a buck in the same location between the two on more than one occassion will be your best bet.

Works for me. I am however lucky enough to monitor those travel routes fairly well.

Good luck.

Kelly

I hunt them all. I'd never restrict myself by saying I HAVE to hunt ONE area. Find likely trees in all zones. First you have to do enough research to locate the zones. Then you have to stay flexible to changing food patterns. If there is corn around I hunt right on it or in it etc etc. Time of day an approach avenues also effect where you hunt any given time. It's all about food in September. All the bucks are in groups and solitary, probably hanging out in a small area(like the middle of a planted corn field) and not moving. If it's extremely dry and there's water close all the better. With so much greenery still around they don't have to travel far and won't.

Example, a couple years ago I sneaked out into a hedge row dividing a corn field. The hedgerow created a pie shaped smaller cornfield on one side. I got out in the hedgerow about 75 yards looking into the pie. It was about 60 yards to the wood line on the other side. The corn in the pie was extremely scattered and stunted next to the big trees of the woods and the hedgerow. I quietly sneaked in, climbed a tree with my climber and settled in to sweat. At 4:30 I saw a corn stalk shaking in an area with sparse corn and long grass about 75 yards away. I checked with the binos and here's a nice 8 point laying down with his head stretched up ripping on an ear of corn. About 20 minutes later he finished, got up took 10 or 15 steps, laid back down and started ripping on another ear of green corn. About 30 minutes later he got up and started working along the woodline about 4 or 5 rows of corn in. He was suddenly joined by another nice buck that just rose up in front of me not 50 yards away. Within 10 minutes 5 bucks rose up from the corn. They were anywhere from 40 to 75 yards away right in front of me. Eventually a nice 8 point wandered to my hedgerow with an intermitten water run off for a drink. I watched him fall. The pie piece of corn was cut in two by a low area that was all grass. The grass area was about 15-20 yards across. I also so 15 does and fawns come out of the corn to feed in the grassy area. So, there were at least 20 deer bedded in that little patch of corn on a hot September day. behind me the rest of the corn field is probably 200 acres. I wonder how many were in there?