Optimizing Glassing For Coues Bucks

[massamino]

There is only one place I would spend my time glassing if I were you. EXACTLY the area you found that dead-head in your avatar. There must be some serious minerals(steroids) in that areas soil. All joking aside, follow the info that has been posted and you can't go wrong. Keep it simple,my motto is sun in your face-your in the right place! That works a high percentage of the time in AZ. Good luck.

[AZbowhntr]

The best thing I have ever done is take Dwane Adams glassing class. Chef and I picked up a two for gift certificate at one of the ADA banquets several years ago. I always thought I was ok at glassing and knew how to glass. The one thing that his class really taught me was where and when to glass. As several of the others have said you can find Coues deer anywhere. But for the most part the numbers will always be the same. You have to be a machine when glassing and stick to a pattern. I have found by doing this I find way more deer.

[mattys281]

The biggest buck I've ever glassed up was in 33 right down stream from an organized camp ground, very bottom of the drainage moving through thick brush smack dab in the middle of the day. Very wide massive 4x4 with nice eye gaurds. Picked him up at 12:30pm. Watched him cruise for about 30 minutes before I lost him. They can be any where any time.

[coues7]

Very good pointer here. In the mornings I glass any slope that had a shadow. No matter what direction it faces. Same with the evenings. As soon as the shadows begin to cast I glass those areas

[tjkazhunter]

massamino I wish I had a tag for the unit in which the deadhead in my picture was found. My great uncle found it many years ago and it is the biggest coues deer rack I have ever seen. It's crazy huge and has tons of character. People have offered him tons of money for it, but the most he has let people do is make replicas of it.

[Zeke-BE]

Couse 7 I never thought about Glassing the shadows in the morning. I always did that when it warmed up. I'm keeping a mental note of that. My advise is what everybody has said. Then one more advise for the October hunts I've been in 100 degree weather before and wonderful cool weather. But when it stays hot I did notice during the morning at the base of the mountains, in ravines or small canyons ( Physics) that cold air would settle down there and I would find groups of deers up to 10 bedded down there, bucks as well. Every hot hunt it was like that. When you did make your way through it, it was really nice and cool.

[Guest wdenike]

 

 

 

 

I hate to rain on anybody's parade. Although some useful info was shared. The young man in the picture ( my grandson ). Has started giving clinics, as he is the guru of glassing. And master of knowing where all game is located. How ever as with all forms of higher education. Tuition is very expensive.

 

 

 

 

Take care, Willie

[tjkazhunter]

Do you guys try to move around to different glassing points throughout the day or do you simply choose a point that you can glass from the whole day? Granted you don't find a shooter buck at first light and make a move.

[CouesPursuit]

Do you guys try to move around to different glassing points throughout the day or do you simply choose a point that you can glass from the whole day? Granted you don't find a shooter buck at first light and make a move.

Both. Depends on the area, what you are after, and how much you know about what you are after in that area.

 

I have killed small bucks by moving to different glassing points throughout the day and I have bumped out big bucks I was after because I wasn't patient enough sitting in one spot.

 

Experience will decide. I don't think you can go wrong in your first few rifle hunts, do whichever you feel is right and see what works for you.

[tjkazhunter]

Do you guys find it beneficial to glass saddles?

[mattys281]

Do you guys find it beneficial to glass saddles?

 

All my ambush spots for my late season ridge are in saddles or basins up on top of the ridge. I rarely go a day without having deer move by me, and on those days that I don't see them, I'm sure they're in the vicinity at some point but I don't spot them from my low ambush point. Saddles on ridges that run East/west are easy ones to figure out, as the north facing slope is often very thick which can make for some very pronounced trails where they come off the north face and into the saddle.

[Zeke-BE]

Depends on the area. If i am in a location where I only have less then a 180 degrees from side to side and less then 800 yards I'll move more often or just go over the other side of the ridge and glass. If I got more than 180 degrees from side to side and a mile out its very common to stay there for hours in one spot. Depending on some spots and landscape I've brought in lawn chairs and a few sodas and glasses very comfortable for a few hours

[JLW]

Do you guys find it beneficial to glass saddles?

glass everywhere!

some days they will bed early like right after sun up some days they will feed for a couple hours on the way to bed.

after eating all that food they will often times need a drink so they will get up and work there way to a drinker... could be a spring could be a tank or whatever. as the sun changes and the shade moves they will have to get up and move in the shade. as someone said he watched a buck that would only lay on a certain side of the cedars. this tells you there is no exact method. you'll find pockets of deer. go over a couple ridges and there could be zero. so you may be in an area that holds deer just gotta find the pocket where they are hangin out. the saddles are often used for them to go to and from water food and bed... great places to watch. fingers, bowls, ridges. saddles, bottoms... this is why everyone says glass everywhere.

if your scouting a certain area... try not to booger it up too much. if you find an area that's holding bucks try to see where they are going with out blowin them outta there. if you can bed em then you have found 1 of their spots and will often stay around a certain area.

 

James