Hunting: philosophical approach on hunt area(s)

[VFX_man]

Hi all, trying to see how other people deciding the area(s) they hunt.

Do you hunt multiple areas or focus on a single area?

This will be my 4th year of BC hunting and have yet to focus down on one specific area.

Right now, I hunt in different locations scattered around Management Units 2, 3 and 8. But have as yet to connect [have had some opportunities, but no harvest]. This tells me I might need to focus on one area and "learn" the secrets it holds.

But, based on my available time, I sometimes pick an area that allows me to do shorter "day" trips from the lower mainland.

As a kid in Missouri -- we went to the same location every year and I always connected.

Just curious.

Cheers, VFX

[bacon_overlord]

I think you kind of answered your own question. Multiple
areas.. didn't connect. One area, did.
As long as there is recent sign in the area, focus on one that you can spend the most time in, walk a lot and learn were the game moves, from water and feed to bedding areas, where the rubs are, etc, and what elevation they're hanging at at the time of year. IMO the better you know one area the more likely you will understand where the game are goi got be and the better your chances to intercept them.
Also have to balance travel time, hunting pressure and presence of your target of course, but if you are intimately familiar with the area and the road hunters just blow on by you'll be more likely to fill the freezer.

[Bugle M In]

Come November, I concentrate on one area only until the end of the season, when it comes to mulies.
I think opening day is another area that I used concentrate efforts on over the years.
October, in my opinion, is a good time to look at new areas, and to get a feel for the "lay of the land", but may not tell you
what will be there come November.
Truth is, I have always hunted with a camper( does not come off), so I am limited to exploring new areas.
If I had a quad, they maybe some of my hunting practices would be different, but generally stick to an area and get to know it....that being said, there has to be sig/sightings, to make be feel sure as to "stick with it".

[wideopenthrottle]

i agree that trying to learn an area while hunting it compromises the hunt. i too prefer to hunt in a larger familiar territory so that i can concentrate on hunting and hunting tactics rather than traversing and orienteering to figure out the lay of the land..off season scouting will help to learn the territory..

[bacon_overlord]

As well I tend to use spring bear season as a chance to explore new areas with lower hunter numbers and less pressure to connect.

[Bugle M In]

oh...should of added,
Hunted in an area for deer for years...lots of sign, but for some reason, I always hiked up and hunted higher, with limited
success.
Then one year, started to hunt only yards away from the camp, and stayed closer to the camper, and voila, a lot more
success.. makes me kick myself in the head, as conditions years ago were more optimal to get one of those bigger bucks.
I can't change that now...but I can pass along that experience to you.

[wideopenthrottle]

many animals have been scared up by peeps intent on getting to a spot or in a hurry to return ....my trick is i am always counting my paces (every second step) even when going to and from spots i set a limit on how many paces i am allowed before i must stop and do a full 360 degree search...20-30 paces is max even on a road....as i look ahead i am always adjusting the max number of paces i will take based on my gut feeling of the terrain...sometimes i get down to stopping every step...

[Leaseman]

Many newer hunters spread themselves too thin and hunt a different area each time they go out....that along with the fact that they haven't fully developed their spotting skills results in very little game.....then their hunt turns into a hope of bumping into something!!

[TreeStandMan]

I've mainly hunted the same areas again and again, partly because I know I can consistently put my tag on a two pointer in the same old area. This year, though, I'm resolved to grow as a hunter by focusing entirely new areas. I know I might eat tag soup (for the first time in four years), but as we say in jiu-jitsu, "win or learn."

This said, my buddy got a doe draw in my old area, so I'll take him there November, but that's four point season, so while I'm helping him get some groceries, I'll be engaging in some legally mandated trophy hunting, so despite hunting in a known area, it'll be a different thing.

[TreeStandMan]

....my trick is i am always counting my paces (every second step) even when going to and from spots i set a limit on how many paces i am allowed before i must stop and do a full 360 degree search...20-30 paces is max even on a road.

That's some good advice right there!

[wideopenthrottle]

thanks TreeStandMan...it has worked for me alot over the years (as in forcing my self to stop and look when i was tired or in a hurry and didnt have an urge to do it)....i have seen many deer staring at me when doing my 360 that i would likely not have seen or heard while moving..."look more, move less" is a benefit of being familiar with an area i think

[boxhitch]

That's some good advice right there!Yup, good stuff for sure. Make a point of stopping the truck at least every couple hundred meteres once the area looks good, sometimes its only a death crawl for a long time. Let those others drive past and pay no attention. They won't scare the game and sometimes movement is spotted easily by the second vehicle and missed by the first. Besides driving slow and stopping often keeps the cab cleaner.
Don't worry so much about wind, but keep in mind the direction of travel to keep the glare off the windshield as much as possible. And remember to top up the washer fluid

[Weatherby Fan]

Depends what Im hunting and what time of year Im hunting, early season(Sept) alpine hunting for Mule deer regions 3 or 8, Elk hunting mid Oct area 4, late season Mule Deer hunting Area 3, but yeh we frequent the same places every year around the same time if possible.

[VFX_man]

many animals have been scared up by peeps intent on getting to a spot or in a hurry to return ....my trick is i am always counting my paces (every second step) even when going to and from spots i set a limit on how many paces i am allowed before i must stop and do a full 360 degree search...20-30 paces is max even on a road....as i look ahead i am always adjusting the max number of paces i will take based on my gut feeling of the terrain...sometimes i get down to stopping every step...

I have been "building" ground stands and waiting for the deer to come to me. Maybe that is my issue, I need to walk. Deer stands worked in the more "compact" Ozark mountains with it's thick brush, but maybe it's too limiting in BC?

My first year, I missed a broadside 4x4 buck at 100 yards using a borrowed gun/scope [that I stupidly didn't test shoot] as I slowly walked up the edge of a new growth cut. All others I've seen have been exiting the road or found from glassing a cut.

This is definitely different country, and my "old" technique is seemingly not working for me.

Thanks for any guidance.

[Bugle M In]

Yup, hunting mule deer from one spot can work....but, someone once told me to just "go in there and hunt them",
and that seemed to work a lot better...and yes, a few steps, look 360 w/binos, then repeat is great advice.

You will be surprised how many deer are there just standing looking at you, but remember, they like to stand behind stuff...and binos really help, even at close range.

[frankthedog]

"Find a spot with lots of deer, and spend all your time there" - That is a Blacktail hunting saying. It seems to be true though, even if all you see is does, there is a buck or two around.

[brian]

"Find a spot with lots of deer, and spend all your time there" Can't disagree there. I prefer to get to know one area really really well. Then use down time to expand what I know and scout new areas. Its really nice having more intimate knowledge of a mountain. Its way easier to set up stands and decide on areas to focus on when you know where the animals like to hang out.

A couple of days ago I went out mid day in the heat. I used the opportunity to hike with a gun and cover a ton of ground to get a feel for how the animals were doing on the mountain. It is a great experience to just go out there and see animals where you expect to see animals.

[Bugle M In]

One thing I have found, but it requires snow on the ground, is to look for areas where you see sign coming and going,
and crossing in all different directions etc, and hunt around there (even 1km around that area in all directions).
I never waste my time in an area where you just see the odd single track going this way or that way, as I find those deer
are heading somewhere else to go hang around in.
And thats the big factor, finding an area where they like to hang in, and that can be quite a large area/perimeter that
you have to hike and hunt.
So snow helps to learn or should I say see where some of those locations are, and then on future hunts, you don't need the snow any longer for that area.
So getting out on snow covered days to drive around and find "new areas" is definitely a way to maximize your time and further your knowledge of an area....so don't pass those days up to get out there.
Same goes for elk, if you can find an area with lots of fresh sign, then that is where you spend your time, and a lot of it.

[Darksith]

You have to learn the habits of the animals. Some stay in an area all year, others migrate. I hunt mainly 3 areas. 1 is a great early mid season mule deer location that holds whitetail deer as well all year around. The other has mule deer all year and the third holds a few early season mule deer but is mainly a wintering/late seson area to hunt. I know where the deer go from the first season I mentioned, but I don't hunt it because it gets a lot of pressure already.

This being said, I know these areas intimately. I know every small creek, I know where I will usually see animals, I know how to hunt each area with different wind directions. I also know how when I have a vistor that wants to hunt how to get them onto a deer pretty consistently in these spots. It makes for a lot of fun. These areas are also where I have my trail cameras. I have yet to see a very big deer in these areas, the monster continues to allude me but I know it is probably just a matter of timing and luck rather than the lack of a big buck. The eternal desire to find a really big buck does push me to explore new areas, but I mainly hunt these 3 spots. If I want a deer I rarely go without mainly because I know these spots so well...sometimes my freezer is full enough that I can hold out for a monster and thus sometimes I almost regret letting pretty good deer walk once the season is over.

The only way to really know an area is to get out of the truck...also having spots like this saves me a bunch of fuel :)