Locating mature bucks on public land

[CMF]

What is your strategy for locating a mature buck on public land? I hunt National Forest Land in Mississippi. I have six trail cams out in different areas all summer hoping to locate at least one mature buck. Heading back this weekend to hunt and check them, but as of the end of August I haven't got anything older than a 10pt that looks 2-3 yrs old.
With them having such a small home range in summer do you just keep moving your cameras around, use attractants or just hope to locate them in season/post season when they move more?

 

[WannabeHunter]

For public land deer, I actually use the same tactic alot of western guys do. Find the bedding, food, and water sources. Find an area with all those things combined. If that spot is in the worst possible place to hunt, perfect. As the season goes on, the deer will be pushed to find better, harder to reach cover. I find public land deer where I'm at in SC will "cruise" looking for does, but they always seem to be in bedding areas that bucks prefer. Because they have all the ingredients bucks are looking for.

That's just one tactic I use. There's about a thousand different scenarios (wind, temp, rut phase, etc) but they all stem from some sort of play off the above.

Every time you put out a camera or check that camera, you are lowering your odds of killing a mature public land deer. You are adding your scent and presence.

Check out this Wired to Hunt podcast. It's got alot of great tactics from a gentleman that harvests mature deer on public land. He does not deploy cameras for the current season, he only uses past camera activity and deer sign to determine where to hunt. Really in depth, but really interesting.

 

[CMF]

"Every time you put out a camera or check that camera, you are lowering your odds of killing a mature public land deer. You are adding your scent and presence. "
I agree with you there and I don't usually run them much during the season if at all because they're more likely to get stolen.
I'll definitely check out that podcast.
I'm not really looking for tactics to hunt them as much as I am to just locate one. The deer are very pressured and very few make it to 4 or 5 years old where I'm hunting, so I'm trying to narrow down my hunt areas by knowing which ones hold a mature deer.

 

[WannabeHunter]

"Every time you put out a camera or check that camera, you are lowering your odds of killing a mature public land deer. You are adding your scent and presence. "
I agree with you there and I don't usually run them much during the season if at all because they're more likely to get stolen.
I'll definitely check out that podcast.
I'm not really looking for tactics to hunt them as much as I am to just locate one. The deer are very pressured and very few make it to 4 or 5 years old where I'm hunting, so I'm trying to narrow down my hunt areas by knowing which ones hold a mature deer.

Yeah check that podcast. He's very knowledgeable and even gets down to understanding which bedding areas mature bucks will use when. I believe he said that he averages only 6 hunts before he kills a mature buck on public land....6 hunts?!?!

 

[Dkpack99]

For public land deer, I actually use the same tactic alot of western guys do. Find the bedding, food, and water sources. Find an area with all those things combined. If that spot is in the worst possible place to hunt, perfect. As the season goes on, the deer will be pushed to find better, harder to reach cover. I find public land deer where I'm at in SC will "cruise" looking for does, but they always seem to be in bedding areas that bucks prefer. Because they have all the ingredients bucks are looking for.

That's just one tactic I use. There's about a thousand different scenarios (wind, temp, rut phase, etc) but they all stem from some sort of play off the above.

Every time you put out a camera or check that camera, you are lowering your odds of killing a mature public land deer. You are adding your scent and presence.

Check out this Wired to Hunt podcast. It's got alot of great tactics from a gentleman that harvests mature deer on public land. He does not deploy cameras for the current season, he only uses past camera activity and deer sign to determine where to hunt. Really in depth, but really interesting.

Thanks for the link to the podcast. Good stuff, especially for us newbies.

 

[Pepe55]

Al that stuff is important but one thing not mentioned is stay in your stand and trust your scouting. Ive killed more big deer after 10:00 . Big bucks are different animals, they didnt get that way by reading scripts.

 

[hoff1ck]

May have done this already, but check out Dan Infalt with the hunting beast and The Hunting Public guys. They have locating bucks on pressured public land down to a science. Enjoyable content to watch/listen to as well.

 

[Pepe55]

Big deer are where they are period. They know where hunters travel and contrary to what everyone prints , that they smell you and they relocate 10 counties over, theyre still there . They just turn nocturnal or move when you arent there. Hell ive killed deer 80 yards from the parking lot with hunters eating lunch and bsing,intheir cars. Stop checking trail cams play the wind and hunt them where they are, two miles in or on the road.

 

[timekiller13]

If you check out the hunting public and hunting beast, you will get good info. A lot of mature deer bed where they can watch access points, and then sneak out the opposite way. I know where a real big buck is bedding on public. He's 60 yds from parking lot. He can see everyone get out of their car and see what direction they walk. Everyone walks down the same path. He just slips out the opposite way onto a piece of private. Next time I go back, I am going to park up above him and slip in on the back side, paralleling the private and then set up right on his escape route. Wind has to be just right for me to do this, and I need a little pressure to help me. May have to wait until blackpowder opens so there will be more people in the woods to push him.

 

[Pepe55]

Same deal a few years ago with a 26” inside 8pt i have on my wall. Had 2 stands 200 yds apart where he was coming in and bedding. Everytime i hunted one hed walk right by the other, he knew! So i took a buddy and put him in one and i in the other. The buck walked right up on himand he shoots. I wait a1/2 hour and check on him no blood no deer, muzzleloader hunt. I told him the deer was still in the woods because i knew where most guys were and no one else shot. We got 50 yds apart and pushed this thicket slowly. At about 75 yds from where he shot at him he jumped up at my feet and i dropped him . They know how to deal with people

 

[stump06]

Also check out the southern outdoorsman podcast. It has hunters from the south on hunting areas like you hunt. A gold mine of information for a southern hunter

 

[Shakeandbake]

Listen to Dan Infalt on the Hunting Beast podcast or YouTube. Guy can find mature bucks in any public land and explains how he does it.

 

[Tsenenfelder]

For public land deer, I actually use the same tactic alot of western guys do. Find the bedding, food, and water sources. Find an area with all those things combined. If that spot is in the worst possible place to hunt, perfect. As the season goes on, the deer will be pushed to find better, harder to reach cover. I find public land deer where I'm at in SC will "cruise" looking for does, but they always seem to be in bedding areas that bucks prefer. Because they have all the ingredients bucks are looking for.

That's just one tactic I use. There's about a thousand different scenarios (wind, temp, rut phase, etc) but they all stem from some sort of play off the above.

Every time you put out a camera or check that camera, you are lowering your odds of killing a mature public land deer. You are adding your scent and presence.

Check out this Wired to Hunt podcast. It's got alot of great tactics from a gentleman that harvests mature deer on public land. He does not deploy cameras for the current season, he only uses past camera activity and deer sign to determine where to hunt. Really in depth, but really interesting.

I agree with this and he referenced a great podcast.