How to Hunt Bucks in Heavy Timber

Patterning and effectively hunting a big-timber buck isn’t an impossible quest, and the results can be extremely rewarding. (Photo courtesy of Shutterstock)

Patterning a mature buck in a heavily wooded area is one of whitetail hunting’s most challenging tasks. However, determined hunters can crack the code.

E-scouting only takes you so far on properties with vast timber tracts. Walk areas of interest while searching for signs of deer activity, including fresh tracks, rubs and scrapes. (Photo courtesy of Shuttestock)

By Josh Honeycutt – Game & Fish

It’s opening afternoon, and a fat, soybean-fed, heavy-antlered buck eases along the food plot edge. He raises his head, looks around like the king he is and begins ripping cowpeas out of the ground. Wait, that doesn’t sound right. Scratch that. Rewind. Start over.

The deafening sound of silence roars, slowly growing louder until a slight breeze brings that roar to a halt. After days upon days of sitting with nothing but the occasional cricket or squirrel to entertain you, finally you get a sighting. A respectable 8-pointer soft-steps through the vast timber, slowly making its way to the white oaks dropping acorns in the distance.

These two scenarios are vastly different, and those of us who have spent any time hunting big-timber bucks know it. The pursuit isn’t an easy one, and it takes significant time and effort to fill a tag in such places. That said, patterning and effectively hunting a big-timber buck isn’t an impossible quest, and the results can be extremely rewarding. CLICK HERE TO READ FULL STORY