Bowls and basins

[mtjimbo]

Thanks everyone for the information. Even learned a lot from the comments that have nothing to do with the original question. Am I right in assuming that there are "hunting bro's" out there? That's what I've gathered from this thread at least, lol.

Going on leave for a week so I'll be doing some scouting during that time. Hoping to see something good for archery season

Yes there are plenty of Bros and fanboys who we all make fun of but alot of us secretly are them... I for instance wear full kuiu and hunt back country basins because we'll I think it's cool I also hunt river bottom swamp rat deer. If you wanna be a hunting bro.. do it more power to yah just don't be a pansy and block everyone on Instagram when they call you out like most do. I'd like to say that was directed at one specific "influencer " but it's not. Most are ALL the same.

Sent from my SM-G986U using Tapatalk

 

[mtjimbo]

Ohh also if you happen to like one hunter and someone else doesn't because of political views it makes everyone hate everyone so that's fun.... Everybody loves rinella until he sold a majority share to chernin group and now everyone thinks he is anti gun and a left wing radical... As if chernin doesn't also own shares in fox and used to own barstool sports who all those people love. You will see lots of interesting things about the hunting world of you watch

Sent from my SM-G986U using Tapatalk

 

[Texowa]

Hey I do that! But I'm honestly convinced that my ears are higher on my head than normal. Also do it because if I don't, my safety glasses at work dig into the tops of my ears something fierce.

Seriously though, bowls and basins sound cool, but they hold deer because they have food and shelter. There are plenty of areas that hold deer and have those things that are not bowls and basins.

Well I sincerely hope I didn't offend you, I just thought guys did it to look cool. And for that reason I think it looks ridiculous. I understand doing whatever it takes to get through the work day.

 

[drewhill007]

haha... reading this as I'm listening to gritty..

 

[Trumpkin The Dwarf]

OP, it used to be that folks said there's no such thing as a dumb question. You asked it in a good place to get a quick answer! Bowls and basins are good places to hunt because along with having food and water, the deer are usually easier to see. It makes your hunting life a lot easier, especially starting off. Find good terrain, hunt it hard, kill the first buck that excites you, even if it's bambi. They're all venison, big or small, except the small ones usually eat better. And they all taste better than tag stew.

 

[Bowhunter50]

I hunted a new unit last year and backpacked into a spot with bowls and basins and all I found was a bunch of small er bucks. I tried some of the low country and found a few really good bucks and that's where I spent the rest of my hunt. The biggest bucks aren't always in the picturesque high country....

 

[SoTxShooter]

This thread is pretty solid for both comedy and for good info!

 

[eroksolfe]

To the original question, does the “bowls and basins” idea apply California high sierras as well?The area the I’ve been to doesn’t appear to have the same topography of the areas I see on YouTube “Bowls and Basins” truthers

 

[blackshuk]

To the original question, does the “bowls and basins” idea apply California high sierras as well?The area the I’ve been to doesn’t appear to have the same topography of the areas I see on YouTube “Bowls and Basins” truthers

100% I was just up in a bowl/basin this past weekend in the eastern sierra

 

[mxgsfmdpx]

To the original question, does the “bowls and basins” idea apply California high sierras as well?The area the I’ve been to doesn’t appear to have the same topography of the areas I see on YouTube “Bowls and Basins” truthers

Hey. Yes it applies to California sierras but I tend to look for more of what I call “hips”. Send me a PM and I’ll send over some more details. There’s a lot to it.

 

[eroksolfe]

Hey. Yes it applies to California sierras but I tend to look for more of what I call “hips”. Send me a PM and I’ll send over some more details. There’s a lot to it.

Thanks MX. I’ll do that. I think I need a few more posts to get PM privileges, so I’ll try to do that quickly

 

[mxgsfmdpx]

Thanks MX. I’ll do that. I think I need a few more posts to get PM privileges, so I’ll try to do that quickly

I got a few PM's so I'll just throw some info up here in the thread. Hopefully it helps somebody. This is what works well for me when when I'm scouting brand new areas in the California sierras looking for deer...

The reason guys talk so much about "bowls" and even more so "drainage basins" is because they do tend to hold deer. One of the main reasons they hold deer from what I've seen is because of how those drainages and bowls are formed. Water. Current streams, creeks, and snow run off washouts create smaller "cuts" within these drainages/valleys/basins. You can usually find these current water shed "cuts" by studying the terrain and looking for "hips". You don't want to take off into steep "cliffy" wash outs, the deer don't want to feed in and out of that either, and hiking that sucks. Keep a close eye on both sides of whatever valleys you are hunting and you'll be able to see the drainages coming down forming the valleys and bowls. Really study the terrain and you'll start to see some patterns... "Hips" are the rolling knobish hills that form both sides of the draingages from the top of the watershed down into the valley or basin. They are usually "rounder" (newer relatively speaking) and create more of a progressive slope which allows for good vegetation and tree growth (cover, shelter). It also makes for an easier travel path for game and I end up finding a lot of heavy highway game trails with good sign in these areas. It's easier to describe and show in person but basically... Find a good watershed in promising terrain, look for "hips" which are well tree/vegetation covered and create relatively and easy up/down access... Usually you can follow the creek bottom or river bottom and then cut off onto either side of the bank and head up to one of the hips to start looking. Keep the wind in your face and the cold water is going keep the air cool so it won't rise through you, it's going to head down hill which helps. You're looking for game trails and sign and you will very likely find well identified trails on these hips. Once you find a good game trail it's all up to your preferred hunt strategy what you do from there.

Take it slow and learn the area, move to the other side of the creek bottom if you have to. Be adaptable and scout scout scout. You'll be able to see where the deer are coming from and where they are going to create a plan for game time during hunting season.

 

[blackshuk]

I got a few PM's so I'll just throw some info up here in the thread. Hopefully it helps somebody. This is what works well for me when when I'm scouting brand new areas in the California sierras looking for deer...

The reason guys talk so much about "bowls" and even more so "drainage basins" is because they do tend to hold deer. One of the main reasons they hold deer from what I've seen is because of how those drainages and bowls are formed. Water. Current streams, creeks, and snow run off washouts create smaller "cuts" within these drainages/valleys/basins. You can usually find these current water shed "cuts" by studying the terrain and looking for "hips". You don't want to take off into steep "cliffy" wash outs, the deer don't want to feed in and out of that either, and hiking that sucks. Keep a close eye on both sides of whatever valleys you are hunting and you'll be able to see the drainages coming down forming the valleys and bowls. Really study the terrain and you'll start to see some patterns... "Hips" are the rolling knobish hills that form both sides of the draingages from the top of the watershed down into the valley or basin. They are usually "rounder" (newer relatively speaking) and create more of a progressive slope which allows for good vegetation and tree growth (cover, shelter). It also makes for an easier travel path for game and I end up finding a lot of heavy highway game trails with good sign in these areas. It's easier to describe and show in person but basically... Find a good watershed in promising terrain, look for "hips" which are well tree/vegetation covered and create relatively and easy up/down access... Usually you can follow the creek bottom or river bottom and then cut off onto either side of the bank and head up to one of the hips to start looking. Keep the wind in your face and the cold water is going keep the air cool so it won't rise through you, it's going to head down hill which helps. You're looking for game trails and sign and you will very likely find well identified trails on these hips. Once you find a good game trail it's all up to your preferred hunt strategy what you do from there.

Take it slow and learn the area, move to the other side of the creek bottom if you have to. Be adaptable and scout scout scout. You'll be able to see where the deer are coming from and where they are going to create a plan for game time during hunting season.

You're the GOAT.

 

[mxgsfmdpx]

Could you use Caltopo or Google Earth and then use the "Snipping Tool" on a computer to post some pics for us to learn what to look for on a topo map?

Much easier to show in person once you are in the terrain but here a couple quick photos that may help.

 

[mxgsfmdpx]

Yep, that is what I thought they were. I recognize that second pic.

Yeah check out his app. Awesome stuff up that way.

 

[eroksolfe]

So probably a basic question but how would you expect mule deer to use those hips? General movement would be bedding grounds to the water in the morning /to feed and then back to the bedding grounds during the heat of the day?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[eroksolfe]

So the area that I’ve been e-scouting isn’t quite as high and so has lots of timber. Does this change for Mule deer that have more timber to hide in?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[drewhill007]

I got a few PM's so I'll just throw some info up here in the thread. Hopefully it helps somebody. This is what works well for me when when I'm scouting brand new areas in the California sierras looking for deer...

The reason guys talk so much about "bowls" and even more so "drainage basins" is because they do tend to hold deer. One of the main reasons they hold deer from what I've seen is because of how those drainages and bowls are formed. Water. Current streams, creeks, and snow run off washouts create smaller "cuts" within these drainages/valleys/basins. You can usually find these current water shed "cuts" by studying the terrain and looking for "hips". You don't want to take off into steep "cliffy" wash outs, the deer don't want to feed in and out of that either, and hiking that sucks. Keep a close eye on both sides of whatever valleys you are hunting and you'll be able to see the drainages coming down forming the valleys and bowls. Really study the terrain and you'll start to see some patterns... "Hips" are the rolling knobish hills that form both sides of the draingages from the top of the watershed down into the valley or basin. They are usually "rounder" (newer relatively speaking) and create more of a progressive slope which allows for good vegetation and tree growth (cover, shelter). It also makes for an easier travel path for game and I end up finding a lot of heavy highway game trails with good sign in these areas. It's easier to describe and show in person but basically... Find a good watershed in promising terrain, look for "hips" which are well tree/vegetation covered and create relatively and easy up/down access... Usually you can follow the creek bottom or river bottom and then cut off onto either side of the bank and head up to one of the hips to start looking. Keep the wind in your face and the cold water is going keep the air cool so it won't rise through you, it's going to head down hill which helps. You're looking for game trails and sign and you will very likely find well identified trails on these hips. Once you find a good game trail it's all up to your preferred hunt strategy what you do from there.

Take it slow and learn the area, move to the other side of the creek bottom if you have to. Be adaptable and scout scout scout. You'll be able to see where the deer are coming from and where they are going to create a plan for game time during hunting season.

Excellent description!
Thanks for describing this.

 

[blacktail sniper]

Hey I do that! But I'm honestly convinced that my ears are higher on my head than normal. Also do it because if I don't, my safety glasses at work dig into the tops of my ears something fierce.

Seriously though, bowls and basins sound cool, but they hold deer because they have food and shelter. There are plenty of areas that hold deer and have those things that are not bowls and basins.

U arent i cant stand that either. I give hitting lessons to some of the kids around sorry its not a good look

 

[effinnewb]

New to western hunting and in addition to lots of scouting, I've been doing a lot of reading and listening to hunting podcast. One thing that constantly comes up is looking for "bowls and basins" in the backcountry. Sorry for the ignorant question, but what is so appealing about bowls and basins? What makes them better for finding deer than other features such as fingers and canyons.

I’m so glad you asked this question. I’m in the same boat. New to western hunting and wondering about the same. Great info. Love the flat brim army references!