Knowing where your going opening day?

[AzVTR]

I pose a question for all of you. I have spent many, many days scouting for the upcoming hunt. I haven't found any record sized bucks to chase after, but have seen a few bucks here and there at various different spots. However, the sightings have been few and far between in all locations. The question I pose is, how many of you have that certain spot already figured out to hunt opening morning and how many of you just kind of wing it through various different spots come opening morning? I someday hope to find that fabled honeyhole, but as of now still no beuno. Just wondering if anyone else ends up in the same predicament that I seem to find myself on most occasions.

[Redman]

Its not easy for me to find a 110' buck..... I have spots that I will continue to narrow...then have to go with the area I like the most.

[POB]

I'm planning to go back to last years honey hole and hope it's still hot. Too tough of a climb to go to more than once a year. If it doesn't work out, then I'm probably SOL.

[loco4coues]

We know where we are going for the junior hunt this weekend. We found a spot with good whitetail and mule deer numbers. Several bucks of both species. Haven't narrowed it down yet for the general hunt. Have a couple spots that we are thinking about, still need to get into one of them to check it out. You never know when a big buck will step out...whether you have seen him before or not. That's the beauty of it.

[AzVTR]

Thanks all. Was just wondering how many of you just kind of leave it to chance as I seem to have to do quite often. I've found spots with bucks that I concentrate on, but the challenge of the hunt finds them not cooperating with my wishes most of the time, lol. I think thats what keeps me going is knowing that on a rare occasion that the one really nice buck might just step out. Hopeing to some day have a nice trophy to mount but untill then I've been chasin the little guys. Good luck to everyone this coming hunt. Only a couple more weeks to go.

[Scooter]

With deer like these, it's difficult to just find one spot and stick to it. They roam pretty free until the rut. That's when they get easier to pattern is what I hear- but I still haven't connected

[elkhunter]

If I scouted and find a few bucks, I tell myself that big boys aren't showing themselves and thengo and focus. On the bucks I found for thehunt.

 

It's happened to be before and then I just focused on the largest buck I found during scouting, a little83 inch buck, shot him 30 minutes into opening day

[elkhunter]

With deer like these, it's difficult to just find one spot and stick to it. They roam pretty free until the rut. That's when they get easier to pattern is what I hear- but I still haven't connected

 

Careful, a lot of the older bucks roam under half square mile all summer and fall and then they book outta there for the rut

 

 

Often time you will see those 3 year old and older bucks bed down under the same tree 2 or 3 times a week

[Antmo23]

I've found a few different bucks in a few different areas for my little brothers hunt, now I gotta find myself a few to chase around. But the good news is I'm finding them!

[Scooter]

With deer like these, it's difficult to just find one spot and stick to it. They roam pretty free until the rut. That's when they get easier to pattern is what I hear- but I still haven't connected

 

Careful, a lot of the older bucks roam under half square mile all summer and fall and then they book outta there for the rut

 

 

Often time you will see those 3 year old and older bucks bed down under the same tree 2 or 3 times a week

 

I haven't seen it personally, but I believe it... Heck, seems deer always bed somewhere other than the places I'm looking since I got here!

[Becker]

I agree with Elkhunter. Coues tend to be very habitual early season. Finding them is the hard part, but once you have you can be sure they are going to be there. Assuming that they are not getting pressure of some kind (Whether human or predators). If you are looking for a specific buck they become less predictable during the rut. Its hard to determine where they are going to go looking for does. If he lives somewhere where the doe population is small he might move several miles to find does. However... buck activity in general is very predictable during the rut. They travel ridge lines smelling thermals looking for does, hit saddles, and have scrape lines they work. The rut is a good time to catch that unsuspecting monster out being stupid searching for LOVE!!!

 

The hardest part IMO is people having the necessary free time to spend scouting and patterning a specific deer. Its no easy task. I can think of several bucks over the last couple of years that my family has taken that was a stones throw away from the place where I first found them. One in particular I watched in the same draw for two years before we got a tag to harvest him. I would glass for him two times a week, he was always there. One of the bucks that Amanda has on one of the CWT T-shirts is in a video and they nicknamed him "clockwork" I believe. He did the same thing everyday to a T. There are lots of factors obviously that can change things.....Food sources, water, temperature, moon phase, but generally speaking Coues have a very small home range and they will be very close to place where you first saw them throughout the year. If you have the patience, and the time to dial into that you can become a very dangerous foe for the old sneaky Coues!!! Granted as long as everything falls into place, and I don't get messed up by other hunters, illegals, lions etc. , I want to be set up to shoot in grey light opening morning. Most of the hunt for me is all done preseason and I want to be waiting around for opening day to get it done!!!

[elkhunter]

I agree with Elkhunter. Coues tend to be very habitual early season. Finding them is the hard part, but once you have you can be sure they are going to be there. Assuming that they are not getting pressure of some kind (Whether human or predators). If you are looking for a specific buck they become less predictable during the rut. Its hard to determine where they are going to go looking for does. If he lives somewhere where the doe population is small he might move several miles to find does. However... buck activity in general is very predictable during the rut. They travel ridge lines smelling thermals looking for does, hit saddles, and have scrape lines they work. The rut is a good time to catch that unsuspecting monster out being stupid searching for LOVE!!!

 

The hardest part IMO is people having the necessary free time to spend scouting and patterning a specific deer. Its no easy task. I can think of several bucks over the last couple of years that my family has taken that was a stones throw away from the place where I first found them. One in particular I watched in the same draw for two years before we got a tag to harvest him. I would glass for him two times a week, he was always there. One of the bucks that Amanda has on one of the CWT T-shirts is in a video and they nicknamed him "clockwork" I believe. He did the same thing everyday to a T. There are lots of factors obviously that can change things.....Food sources, water, temperature, moon phase, but generally speaking Coues have a very small home range and they will be very close to place where you first saw them throughout the year. If you have the patience, and the time to dial into that you can become a very dangerous foe for the old sneaky Coues!!! Granted as long as everything falls into place, and I don't get messed up by other hunters, illegals, lions etc. , I want to be set up to shoot in grey light opening morning. Most of the hunt for me is all done preseason and I want to be waiting around for opening day to get it done!!!

 

Some of the larger bucks I have taken happened while I was in college and had all the free time in the world to scout. Those bucks fed on the same hill and bedded down on a different hill but always bedded on the same hill.

 

Come December or January there would be absolutely no bucks in the area, love takes them elsewhere. 90% of the hunt is done preseason. The other 9% of the hunt is packing up gears and 1% of the hunt is finding the deer and shooting him

[Coues&Bass]

I scout during the off season but if I do not find what I am looking for I know I can always go to certin spots and find deer. I killed a good buck in 09 and found another buck that was smaller but had potential. In 2010 I went back and found him in the same place and still growing. Tried to get my buddy on him but he got away. found him again in 2011, he had one side that was broke off so I let him walk. Hopefully this will be the year. I will find out when I hunt with a friend in late Nov. If he can not take him then I will be back in December hot on his trail. During the rut I try not to give up on a spot to soon especially if I am seeing alot of does. Sooner or later dude is going to show up with his nose in the air and I will be waiting.

[Non-Typical Solutions]

I know exactly where I am going to go, problem is the buck in my avatar does not seem to cooperate

 

Looking for another chance to cross his path.

 

I blame time spent out there during the hunt for my inability to catch up with this guy.........but like everything else it is just an excuse....he is better than me at sneaking around in that thick stuff...........

 

Can't wait........counting the days.........

[AzVTR]

From the sounds of it I just need to keep doing what I'm doing. I've spent probably 14-15 days scouting since August this year and am finding a lot of deer. A few bucks, but mostly does. The more time I spend out there, the better I'm getting at glassing and each trip seem to find more and more deer. I just haven't been able to decide if any one spot I've been at would be any more likely for a successful hunt than the others. I think any of the spots I've concentrated on have to potential to be productive, it's just a matter of right time right place. Hopefully I'll pick a winner this season and tag my first. 16 days and a wake up, can't wait.