Originally Posted by
Bugle M In
I never was a big fan of cut block hunting.
Yes, you never know when you come around a corner, and there they are.
But I never had big success with it when I was younger, and that is where I spent most of the times hunting.
Saying that, I never drove around, just walked or sat there observing.
I found some had more success sitting beside the road, between the cutblocks, waiting for deer to cross.
But, now, I have an area I know well, and what I realized over the years is, it always has a lot of sign, year after year,
crossing the roads in all directions.
It is low down, and is much better when snow hits the main plateau early (which rarely happens anymore).
Its seems to be a corridor between seral hills/mts in the area, that the deer move in and out of, and especially the bucks when the rut is on.
If you have snow, and are new to the area, then take the time to drive around and "analyze" it.
You are not looking for the odd track going b-line in one direction over the road here and there.
You are looking for sign where deer seem to be moving back and forth across, day after day.
Old and new, especially when you have snow.
Then hike into those areas inside the timber etc.
If I see lots of different does/fawns in an area, scattered all over during the days walk, then yes, bucks will surely be there or will show up when the rut is on.
The odd doe here and there, has always been a waste of time in my books.
On top of that, a buck might run into her, breed her, all at night.
So, when you can find areas with lots of does around (and I don't mean all together, but groups of 3 or 4 etc), scattered all over the hillside inside the timber, then your chances of seeing a buck greatly improve.
Overtime you will begin to see areas used by deer to go from higher elevations to lower ones.
Remember also, some Does are full time residents, while other does do not show up till the snow gets high, higher up.
And you will find that deer like to hover around the drop offs from these high platueas to winter range, waiting til the snow forces them down.
Last year I spotted 1 single doe bedded.
Within 1/2 hr, 2 bucks had come by and checked her out.
Incredible how they know where each other are (and it wasn't the wind helping them!)