Big Woods Bucks

[FishingWebGuy]

We've had a camera out near Togo for the past 2 months on a funnel near a bedding area. Out of about 20 deer pictures we have no pictures of bucks.

I was talking to a local while we were out for opener last weekend and he hadn't seen any bucks yet either.

I'm starting to understand that the well worn trails we see are usually doe and fawn trails. And that the buck trails will be down wind and less worn.

There is a lot of swamp and thick aspen/poplar/birch/fir/pine in the higher grounds in the area we go to and I'm sure there are bucks hiding somewhere. Any tips on how to go about finding them?

I've started reading Hal Blood's book but I know there is a wealth of knowledge on the forum also.

Even if we can't tag one this year it would be cool to catch some on camera. And it would be interesting to figure how to find them before the rut. Any tips?

[alwaysonthemove]

Togo? where in the world is that?

Anyways did you get 20 deer pictures in the last 2 months?

Is is state land or private?

are there any logging going on?

If there are doe's present now the bucks will be there come rut.

[harvey lee]

As you stated, stay of the heavy traveled trail as they typically are does and fawns.

I usually look around the heavy cover near the bedding areas like the swamps. Where we hunt in North Dakota, seems the heavier the cover, the better the buck we see.

If you have some loggin trails, I would sit and glass those in the mornings and evenings.

I believe Togo is not that far from grand Rapids. I use to hunt that area a bit for grouse uears ago.

[Sorgy]

We hunt near Angora--- again big woods. If you want to get some pics of the bigger bucks in your area find the primary scrapes that have a decent licking branch and set your camera up for that shot. Pay attention to the sun and you should be good to go. I tried a scrape dripper last year and did not get any pics by it. The buck(s) just moved 10 yard further along in the balsams and created a new scrape or two.

I would come in from the side of the trail the bucks use and set the camera 10-15 feet away from the scrape. This is a good tip if you have a camera with very slow trigger speeds as well.

The guy's I hunt with don't believe that the bucks I get on camera are from our area Just gota have faith

We will see how trigger happy the guy's get with it back to a lottery area again. We have been trying to let the 1 1/2 year olds walk for another season.

Good Luck

Steve

[B-man715]

One word for hunting the big woods. FUNNELS

It can be hard to pinpoint where the deer are feeding and where they are bedding in endless acres of woods. They can pretty much feed or bed anywhere they want to.

If you can find some funnels that will naturally neck the deer down to a smaller area your pictures/encounters of both bucks and does will rise.

A great tree I have on public land (for my climber) is on a ridge that is only about 30 yards wide. It seperates 2 ponds. Theoretically it takes all of the deer from about 800 yards and funnels them into just 30. I killed my biggest buck (130" 10pt) there on opening day rifle season. It is a mile off of the road through the woods, or a 1.6 mile walk down old overgrown skidder trails. Don't see to many hunters back there but certainly see plenty of deer. No doe is worth shooting that far back, but a wallhanger is a different story

[bottom-bouncer]

fishingwebguy dont sweat it you probably just bought the same type of camera that I did there a special model that only takes pictures of doe and fawns..

[FishingWebGuy]

Togo? where in the world is that?

Anyways did you get 20 deer pictures in the last 2 months?

Is is state land or private?

are there any logging going on?

If there are doe's present now the bucks will be there come rut.

Yea, 20 pictures in the last 2 months and it's all state land. There is about 1,000 acres of George Washington where we are and about 7,000 more acres of County and timber land around it. The land keeps going on on and on and on but that is all that we have mapped out.

As you can imagine there is all kinds of logging around the area -- year old, two-years old, three, you name it. That is why I say food doesn't seem to be an issue because there are acres upon acres of browse and vegetation. No acorns or apple trees but everything else.

Togo is about an hour North of Grand Rapids. There really isn't much up there besides timber land and State forest. And illusive monster swamp bucks that I have no proof of

I haven't seen any scrapes or rubs yet -- maybe my eyes just aren't trained to have them jump out at me yet though. Everywhere you go it seems the grass is waste high. It's not like a hardwood forest with a clean floor.

We have found some funnels created by thick brush but not any created by swamp or water yet. That is a great idea B-man, I'll get the topo out and see what I can find.

BB, I just checked my camera and it doesn't say it is the doe model. Is there anywhere I can take it to get a buck upgrade?

[picksbigwagon]

If there are does, there are bucks....It's kind of like college...........

[harvey lee]

You got it Picks, when the rut is close, find the does and the bucks will not be far behind.

During the rut it is so much easier as the big boys will make the mistakes they only make once a year.

A few years ago, I saw one large buck and he had approx 25 does in his harem. One doe would get out a ways and he would cut her back into the group like a good cattle dog. It was fun to watch.

[96trigger]

My pics of bucks has greatly diminished in the last 3 weeks, changes are happening as the bachelor groups are starting to break up. They are going to go into their fall patterns and will stay away from the does until the rut hits, then, when you see does, you will see bucks, now however, they are usually separate. I have no idea how to get good pics up where you are, down here, we find funnels that lead to fields, your situation is completely different. Just don't get discouraged about the lack of bucks, if you read a few threads, you will hear more people talking about seeing less and less bucks, they are still around. Think about all the hunters that were in the woods last weekend on this site alone, only a few have reported seeing bucks. A month ago they were feeding in the fields plain as day. They are just doing there thing and laying low right now.

[Bear55]

B-man gives some great advice, the funnels are where to find the bucks in the big woods but you have to think LARGE SCALE. And by large scale I am talking in terms of 1/2 mile to mile or more sections of woods narrowing down to 25 to 300 yards. Yep a big woods funnel can be 300 yards wide or maybe even larger, you just have to scout and find where the deer are using that funnel. Get out the topo maps and aerial photos and study them, find a few locations that look good and get out and scout, the further off the road the better. Some of my favorite bigwoods funnels are strips of high groud through large swamps, the edges of lakes, river crossings, and inside corners of large clearings.

Like you are starting to find out the bedding and feeding areas in the bigwoods aren't really defined, there is endless cover and the food is normally spread out. The does usually bed in the thicker regrowth of 8-15 year old cuttings so they are fairly easy to find. Buck bedding areas can be a myster but think of increadibly thick cover, wind direction and escape routes. I have also kicked up bucks bedding in thick grass along rivers, usually miles from any road.

Closer to the peak of the rut I like to hunt downwind of the doe bedding areas and just hang in there and wait for the bucks to come to you, most of the time they don't show but when they do be ready. Remember the wood are increadibly thick so you might only get a split second or two to get a shot off at a mature buck all season so you have to make the most of your opportunities.

Also like someone else mentioned keep you eye out for primary scrape areas, they won't be easy to find but when you do stumble on one you will know. You might find 1 or 2 large scrapes or possibly 20+ scrapes in a small area, there will also be plenty of rubs in the area. I finally found one of these in the area I hunt and I was amazed, there were 40-50 scrapes in a 80 yard span.

[Sorgy]

I had stated to set them up on primary scrapes. If you are new to the area keep your eyes open. Look for primary scrapes on the edge of a clearcut-under the first small grove of balsams, or spruce trees- I sometimes find them on the edges of the ridges and such. I usually spot scrapes and rublines the season before and then decide to return the following year and set up the camera. Most of the pics I get are at night but not all.

In our area the entire area has been clearcut over the last 15 years. The deer end up using the same trails over time. Boy do I miss the old jackpine ridges and the second growth timber.

Good Luck

Steve

[alwaysonthemove]

Allright yeah ep grade that trail camera to a buck model LOL

when logging occurs there is new growth that happens. Deer love these areas for feeding.

Also the main number one thing to remember about whitetails they are edge users they love edges. edges are anything from a transition to a swamp, clear cut edge, old logging road edge, ridges,

I used to hunt alot of bobcat and in the winter there where always deer on the edge. And that is why they love central mn. lots of edges fields, woods, etc

[FishingWebGuy]

B-man gives some great advice, the funnels are where to find the bucks in the big woods but you have to think LARGE SCALE. And by large scale I am talking in terms of 1/2 mile to mile or more sections of woods narrowing down to 25 to 300 yards. Yep a big woods funnel can be 300 yards wide or maybe even larger,...

Thanks guys. This is all great info. I found 5 large scale funnels in the area we hunt. Mostly high ground between swamps or river beds. I realized while looking at the maps I have no idea why the deer would want to move through these except maybe to escape the pressured areas or to find a doe.

As it's been said, food and cover are everywhere. It'd be interesting to see how much the deer in the area move or how big there home area is before the rut since it doesn't seem like they would need to go anywhere unless they are pressured or looking for does.

So with that said, in early season is it best to hunt over lots of sign? And later in the season, when they are moving, hunt funnels even if they didn't have any sign previously?

I have a feeling that come the October small game hunters and atvers, the deer will start to move further and further away from easy access trails and high activity areas. I wonder if the does will even be in the same area 2-3 weeks from now with the increase in traffic.

[Bear55]

The deer in my area see a lot of small game hunters every fall, this doesn't affect the does as much as they usually hang out in the same areas, however they might use different travel routes and avoid the trails. The bucks however seem to stay bedded down until dark or end up bedding ways back in the woods where they almost never run into people. There will be young bucks running around everywhere but the big boys don't show up until the rut. I am going to be scouting some new areas this year (way back) so I can hopefully find out where the bucks have been hiding all these years.

[Musky Buck]

Interesting, so you are getting 1 pic every 3 days. No bucks, but the does got bred last fall. I wouldn't worry about august and september tcam results, the bachelor herds are splitting up some now and in my area acorns are the ticket, I think you'll be alright when November hits, those baldies will bring in the bucks. If you are rifle hunting this thick/river bottom type of an area I'd pack a lunch and hunt the entire day during the rut and you may just see something to believe in.

[Bear55]

FWG

I know you are new to hunting so are you looking for any buck or something a little larger? If you are looking for any buck just be patient, they will show up and might be closer than you think. Many of us here are after that elusive mature buck and they can be very difficult to find and pattern, especially in the bigwoods. Sometimes its just better to get lucky, especially when you are just starting out.

[nik]

I agree with Bear55. Luck does play a big part of it when you are just starting out. Heck, the last big buck I got was due to completely insane luck. You seem to be doing your homework and it worked to score that nice doe. The bucks will come in time. You learn something everytime you go into the woods. Keep up the good work and good luck!

[deerhunter]

FWB My uncle and brother hunt up right next to Togo for years and they have shot bucks some decent and a lot of little baskets during rifle season. My uncle just got a bow this year and he is planning on going up there this weekend if you ever see a REAL BIG Red headed guy up there maybe at the Junction that is him he is pretty hard to miss.

[FishingWebGuy]

FWG

I know you are new to hunting so are you looking for any buck or something a little larger? If you are looking for any buck just be patient, they will show up and might be closer than you think. Many of us here are after that elusive mature buck and they can be very difficult to find and pattern, especially in the bigwoods. Sometimes its just better to get lucky, especially when you are just starting out.

Yea, we are just kinda looking for anything with antlers right now to catch on film. I think I figured out a big part of our problem over on the trail cam thread. We were trying to cover a 30-40 yard opening with 1 cam but the deer have to be withing 10-15 yards to trigger it. We probably missed a lot of deer (maybe some bucks) just out of range.

I do know we aren't gonna shoot any baskets or buttons even if the next guy will.

[FishingWebGuy]

FWB My uncle and brother hunt up right next to Togo for years and they have shot bucks some decent and a lot of little baskets during rifle season. My uncle just got a bow this year and he is planning on going up there this weekend if you ever see a REAL BIG Red headed guy up there maybe at the Junction that is him he is pretty hard to miss.

I'll keep an eye out for him. The junction is quite the place. The population of Togo must double or triple when that place is full.