Hunting Outside Mr. Big’s Bedroom Door

STEVE SMOLENSKI

11/05/2015

Can you spot the Buck? Let me introduce you to Mr. Big. He is currently dosing off in his bedroom. It’s not often that you see a 140 Inch buck bedded down for the day…in seemingly clear view of everyone and everything?! But seeing this reminds us that they are out there, they do bed down in obvious places, and if applied correctly can successfully be hunted.

That thick tangle of briars and down trees, the tall CRP or native grass field, that thick recently logged south slope, and even this feathered edge of cattails and weeds around dried up pond bank. They are all bedding areas and while the bucks on your trail cameras seem to be myths, they do bed these areas and quite frequently!

So how do you use this to your advantage? Yes, the most obvious is direct hunting…but what else? What about setting these areas as sanctuaries and keeping the big bucks on your property?

This is why the article is titled “Hunting Outside Mr. Big’s Bedroom Door” and not in it!

I am a FIRM believer in managing properties for one thing and one thing only above all else….cover. But cover is only half the manager’s battle. You have to give the cover security.

Bedding areas have one unique trait above all when it comes to deer hunting. Unlike food sources such as acorns, clover or beans and even that incredible pinch point stand over the funnel, a bedding area’s usage never fades with the seasons. It is fawning cover in the spring, security for bachelor groups in the summer, Hotspots for estrous doe seeking bucks, and thermal survival for all deer in the winter.

So if you have a bedroom with your own Mr. Big in it or several lucky ladies about to get bred I urge you to stay out! Hunt strategically outside with the correct wind and most recent trail camera information. Protecting these areas as sanctuaries will not only keep Mr. Big around but give you a solid known point where he is to base your hunts off of.

Believe me when I say it can pay off every year and in the long run. A 70 acre property managed strictly for cover and sanctuary is my entire focus this year. Last year a 125 inch 2 year old and a 142 inch 3 year old were taken from its huntable “non-sanctuary” areas. This year we are chasing a 130-140s 3 year old and 140-150s 4 year old. How and Why? They have a nice cozy bedroom waiting for them.