RE: Tips on locating bedding area?
 

I'd say if you jump a deer in the thick stuff this time of year its more likley to be a buck from what I saw today. Several does bedded, open area in woods, a stones throw from the road I walked on today. They never moved. Go figure. Up aways and off the same road (dirt) I headed into the woods towards some thicker stuff and jumped what I think was a buck. If its thick, you jump a solo deer, this time of year its gotta be a buck, no guys?

RE: Tips on locating bedding area?
 

first off, DO NOT go in the bedding area in the rain like lou lou said. This would be the exact opposite of what you're trying to do. It's easier for a deer to smell when theres more moisture in the air. thats why gun dogs do better with moist air, because they can smell the birds easier. Yes, during an absolutely downpour i dont think there would be much scent dispersal. but when its lightly raining, i would not go. go when its really dry instead.

Bedding areas: find a rubline made of larger size rubs that starts at a feeding area. follow this into the woods and it should take you right to the bedding area. rubs tend to mark a bucks travel routes through the woods. watch the fields towards dark to figure out where the deer are coming from.follow the runway back down into the woods. i figured out where a bachelor group of bucks bed because of where they have been coming out. i also know what type of cover they're coming out of. its the gnarliest stuff in the area. i also have got a vague location on the bedding area of 3 SLOBS by watching where they feed and where they come out of. hope this helps.

slayer

RE: Tips on locating bedding area?
 

Well, from my experience(which is a lot) There are 2 things to keep in mind here.
1 - There are no absolutes in deer hunting
2 - bedding areas are relative to feeding areas, and feeding areas often change.

With that in mind , just remember that bucks like whatever provides SECURITY. However, on a given day, security may be in the form of visibility, on another day it may be thick cover, etc. I've seen mature bucks bed within 100 yds of barking dogs, I've seen them bed on high brushy benches, south facing slopes, north facing slopes, on fences separating thick timber from a huge wide-open pasture, in deep thick nasty "junk" and in shallow depressions in open fields, etc.

Factor's that affect bedding areas:

Food sources
wind speed/DIRECTION
temperature
stage of the rut
availability of doe groups
time of year(foliage)
parasites
proximity to water
HUNTING PRESSURE
rain
so on and so on.

Since we know the rut is the best time to take a MATURE buck, we'll focus on that time and say that a big buck will always choose his bedding areas with does and security being the only things on his mind. Early in the rut, he will sacrifice the does to maintain security. In the peak of the rut , he will sacrifice security to maintain the does.
My advice is leave your hunting area alone as much as possible until the time is right, then hunt near the security cover proximal to the preferred food source in your area, ALWAYS playing the wind. I hunt the does at this time because the bucks are doing the same thing;). Good luck!!

PS. I don't know where you live, but I will point out that there are areas in the country where the variables don't change that much , and it may be easier to pattern bucks there, but I'm guessing if you lived in one of these ,you wouldn't have this peoblem.

RE: Tips on locating bedding area?
 

Thanks for all of the great tips. Regarding my hunting area, it is Mid Florida where we have a combination of wide open cow pastures, moderately dense palmetto bushes, moderately thick myrtle bushes/fields, a creek that winds through the property and other areas that are very thick and dense, nearly too thick to walk through. To my surprise, some of you have said hunt these thick areas, the ones too thick to walk. I look at these spots and have decided they are too thick for deer to walk through, though i occassionally see light trails in there.

The creek is another good spot since it provides cover for travel. The creek is shallow (3 feet) and the area is moderately mucky, but is moderately thick, consisting of 50-75 yds wide of a variety of oaks, palmetto trees, palmetto bushes, and other tall tree cover. The travel corridor will allow the buck to travel a great portion of the property that is otherwise open fields or lightly dense. At one point, the creek passes immediately next to a food plot.