What’s the key to harvesting the biggest buck of your life? My success has come from paying strict attention to detail and not taking any shortcuts when it comes to being prepared for opening day. I’ve always believed the more I do to “stack the deck” in my favor, the better my chances are for harvesting a giant buck and the following is my whitetail regimen.
[Read more…] about In order to consistently harvest mature deer like this Kansas booner, you better have a bullet proof game plan. Here are my top 10 tips for success in the whitetail woods this fall!
Advanced Tactics for Hunting Mature Bucks
Predicting daylight activity for giant whitetails!
What’s the secret to killing mature bucks consistently? How do some guys seem to score on bigger than average bucks year after year when other hunters struggle just to see a shooter? There are so many variables that can affect a hunter’s success it would be tough for a couple guys to agree on one or even two of these key factors. I’m willing to bet, the more guys you ask, the more different answers you will get!
Forget about all of that for a minute. Forget everything you’ve read, everything you’ve watched on TV and every tip you’ve seen on Facebook. Clear your mind and ask yourself this simple question: What is the single most important factor for me to kill a big deer this fall? I can imagine there’s probably a host of answers running through your mind right now, but the answer is simple: you can’t kill him if he’s not there. Let’s take that one step further and acknowledge that he must live there (and) he has to be moving during daylight for you to kill him. EVERY hunter that has ever killed a big buck had these 2 things in common, period!
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Understanding “The Change” for Whitetails
Who out there has an eyeball on a big buck already? Trail cam pics? Video? Or have you burned a hole through him with your spotting scope? Is he predictable, doing the same thing every night? Have you had your eye on him all summer, watching him waltz into the local soybean field like he owned it, with such regularity that you could set your watch by his movements? What’s going to happen when he sheds his velvet? The time is drawing near, and there’s a change about to take place. A change that will happen and you better be prepared for it! I see it happen every year and hear the horror stories from guys like you and me that can’t wait for opening day to get here because it’s going to be a slam dunk, then as quick as it gets here, he’s gone! What happened and where did he go?
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Patience, the Name of the Game for Trophy Bucks.
When it comes to hunting Monster Bucks, especially early in the season, patience is the name of the game! They say patience is a virtue, but in this situation it might be better explained that in order to make the best of a difficult situation, we have to understand the circumstances and deal with them accordingly. I believe that when it comes to chasing these big Dominant Bucks, you have to hunt them hard during the rut, but you have to hunt smart early on.
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Stand Locations for Early Success
If deer season opened up next week, how prepared are you right now? I know, it’s only the first week in July and the opener is 3 months away, but how ready are you? Have you found a buck you are interested in harvesting yet? Do you know where you have the best chance of getting a shot at him once season begins? This is a great time to take inventory and evaluate how ready you are for season, while there’s still time to do something about it! I’m a HUGE believer in the fact that “it’s the little things we do right now to prepare ourselves, that will make the BIGGEST differences later in the year when it will be too late!
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Summers Best Kept Secret for Big Deer
When is the best time to see a Monster buck this time of the year? I’m sure if you are reading this column, you’ve probably been running trail cameras in your hunting area and cruising the roads glassing the bean fields, trying to catch a glimpse of a giant in velvet. I’ll bet some of you have even purchased your moon guides, and you have those special evenings for seeing the big boys highlighted on your calendars! I know I’ve been out on those red evenings and caught a glimpse of some big bone already. The deer in my area are showing some good growth with most racks over half way developed and a few looking like they are almost done. Like I’ve said before though, the only definite when it comes to chasing mature whitetails is “nothing is ever definite” and as much as I believe in the moon guide, there may be some better nights to catch a big buck out in the open, and it has nothing to do with the moon – it has to do with salad dressing!
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Advanced Summer Scouting Tactics
If I had to name just one thing that has increased my success on seeing monster bucks during the daylight hours, whether it’s in season or during summer scouting, it would have to be paying attention to the MOON! I know there are many different opinions about the moon and what impact it has on whitetail deer, and some of you may or may not believe in it depending on your own experiences, but I’m here to tell you it is vitally important to my success! What I’m going to share with you comes from my own personal experiences after following this tactic for the past 16 years, and from 30 years of trial and error and in the field experience from my good friend and the late Jeff Murray.
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Summer Scouting Tips
Although it can be extremely hot and humid during the summer months here in the mid west, the dedicated hunter can accumulate some valuable information from June through September to help him score on a monster whitetail! Last week, I started on the subject of summer scouting and the best locations I’ve found for keeping an eye on local bachelor groups, this week we’ll take a look at the very low impact, two step approach I use to monitor these deer.
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