Big bucks... What does it take?

[gotcoues]

Awesome thread, I'm learning lots for sure! Here is my plan for next season.
First, with lots of money I will buy a key to a locked gate. Then scout said area with ultralight. After locating big buck, I will then hire outfitter to hang cams over salt with corn and hay placed on top. When my season opens, I will have 15-20 guys on every hill that can call me and let me know when to get out bed (my added touch). if I get "lucky", and a shot opportunity presents itself, I will request my outfitter place my rifle on a tripod with the claw on it, but I will only pull the trigger if it is a hybrid! Big bucks, big buck, no whammies CMON! I will then make the 1000 yard shot or two or three or four on my big buck and I will post it up next yr!

 

Thanks for all the tips and tricks, I have it figured out now!

 

And for you guys that said dedication, hard work, patience and time spent in the field....... Your answers sucked

[SunDevil]

30X binos helps

[mattys281]

The obvious one is money, but thats not the only answer. Lots of diy guys knock down big ones just by busting their tails and putting in lots of hours.

 

The one skill that will make or break the deal though is being able to pass smaller bucks right up to the last hour, even if it means eating your tag. Thats the one I have trouble with. I like venison and those grip&grin pictures too much.

[firstcoueswas110]

you gotta have a lot of money to have lots of time to hunt for big bucks and the money to have quality gear. i dont know any true broke dikks that have time and money to put in to searching big bucks. helps when you live in the woods like pine donkey says. i know some that hunt though and they get big bucks when they get lucky. if you have the time to spend every weekend scouting and all the good equipment, truck, etc. you probably have a decent amount of money

[couesmagnet]

Spend every waking hour scouting all year long, never take a vacation unless its to hunt, find an area with everything needed to support good genetics, be a few miles off the road before sun up and back to the truck after sun down, hang cameras, don't tell people where your spot is or post revealing pictures online, hunt areas that most people wouldn't. That's what I'd do if I couldn't afford to pay a guide or if I didn't work 12 hours a day. Good luck.

This about sums it up, and it's totally true. Unless there's stone cold luck involved, you need to be up looking every other weekend starting in mid july all the way till the rifle hunt. In order to constantly harvest big bucks you need to have a couple back up bucks to hunt if something goes wrong with your primary buck. One of the most important things not mentioned is you have to get used to letting 100 to 110 inch bucks walk right on by for a chance at a really big buck. By the time we find 2 to 3 115 plus bucks we have over 3 to 4000 invested in those 3 bucks. Basically you need 10 weekends a year, several thousand to support those weekends, and still a lot of luck to be consistent on big bucks. It's all about the time spent in the forest and really has nothing to do with tons of skill. The skill comes from being out there a bunch and getting lucky, not the other way around. I would bet that out of the 15 or so 110 inch plus bucks i've been involved with, with family and friends , the average big buck costs us 2500 to find and kill. Don't think that the people that kill big bucks are that much more in the know about secrets and tips, it all has to do with spending enough time in the field to get lucky enough to find them. Between all the articles produced as of late with all the big bucks and the corresponding theories and strategies purported to work, it ALL boils down to tons of time in the field and lucky timing. I would bet that a newbie to coues deer hunting could kill a giant on a pretty regular basis if he had 25 days or more a year to scout. The only diff between a big buck killer and an average buck killer is time, not skill!!! Go get um guys.

[firstcoueswas80]

Awesome thread, I'm learning lots for sure! Here is my plan for next season.

First, with lots of money I will buy a key to a locked gate. Then scout said area with ultralight. After locating big buck, I will then hire outfitter to hang cams over salt with corn and hay placed on top. When my season opens, I will have 15-20 guys on every hill that can call me and let me know when to get out bed (my added touch). if I get "lucky", and a shot opportunity presents itself, I will request my outfitter place my rifle on a tripod with the claw on it, but I will only pull the trigger if it is a hybrid! Big bucks, big buck, no whammies CMON! I will then make the 1000 yard shot or two or three or four on my big buck and I will post it up next yr!

 

Thanks for all the tips and tricks, I have it figured out now!

 

And for you guys that said dedication, hard work, patience and time spent in the field....... Your answers sucked

What would you know about killing big deer? You CLEARLY got lucky with Twister, and your archery buck.

 

I've got nothing to add to this thread add I've hunted strictly coues since I was 12 and have yet to bag a 100" buck. I've had three or four in my crosshairs, shot at two and never connected.

 

Best advice?

 

Follow Jim Reynolds, Jim Mullins, Devin and Jody Beck, and a few others. Gps their boots, trucks etc and sneak into their spots. (Kidding.... kinda)

[SunDevil]

having a gov job with access to thermal imaging equipment helps.

[mattys281]

having a gov job with access to thermal imaging equipment helps.

any change you can get us into some drones and possible stinger missiles???

[lancetkenyon]

I would have to agree with Couesmagnet. Even DIYers spend thousands on a hunt. Sure, there is the rare occasion when a total noob gets a dream buck by being at the right place at the right time. But that is the rare exception to the norm.

 

Even though it has been spread out over years to find areas that produce bucks, I have spent thousands on scouting and hunting trips. Add to that the cost of good equipment. I regularly carry around $7-10K in my pack every day in the field during hunting season. Even scouting, as it is ALWAYS coyote and lion season. I do not consider myself rich, however. I just save for a long time to upgrade my equipment. Out of town work affords me additional monies, which are saved. Christmas, I ask for cash. Birthdays are the same. Bonuses go into the fund too. It might take me a year or more to save for a piece of equipment. But nothing comes out of my normal paycheck if I can help it. Keeps my wife happy, which keeps me able to buy what I want, when I want it. It is easier now that one of my kids is grown and on her own.

[SunDevil]

archery hunting thick river bottoms from tree stands or ground blinds in January can be effective.

[firstcoueswas80]

having a gov job with access to thermal imaging equipment helps.

Not when one strictly works on the reservation.

[John O]

A very wise hunter finally broke down and shared the secret of harvesting big bucks. I've hunted for a lot of years, and could never really put my finger on it, but after he told me, it became so simple.

So here it is for everyone to know:

 

The secret to always shooting big bucks is....

 

Don't shoot the small ones.

 

 

There you have it. I'm not much of a trophy hunter yet because I really like having meat in my freezer and filling my tags. Between me and my kids, we've killed 4 javelinas and 3 deer this year. For me, that's pretty cool. 3 of my last 4 coues were with a bow, which for me is also pretty cool. Maybe this thread is starting to inspire me, and I'll start letting a few of the smaller ones pass. Happy hunting everyone!

[kwp]

Wow, most of you guys make it sound like you have to be rich, unethical, or both to kill big bucks. Try working hard and spending more time in the field than on coueswhitetail.com .

[trphyhntr]

that feeling when, never killed a big buck before.

[Guest 300ultramag.]

Don't live in the city