Whitetail Deer Scouting
This is what this farm looks like from the road. Get out your walking shoes!
I took this photo on a piece that obviously has a good population of deer. These are late soybeans in the “butter bean” stage and the deer are hammering them. The field was heavily browsed along all wooded portions for about 30 yards deep. This would be a great place to catch bucks in a feeding pattern before the rut and one to keep an eye on if the crop harvest was later than expected.
Here is another piece with a hidden treasure. This particular piece has a hidden clover/alfalfa field in the middle that cannot be seen from a road in any direction. Lots of good buck sign here. This is in the middle of probably 600-800 acres of surrounding land of all CRP with wooded draws headed to this MAHA land. Where would you like to eat if you were Mr. Deer?
Not all that looks good 
is good. The following piece probably is one of the best looking pieces that I have ever seen. Lots of diverse terrain and habitat but only one problem, the neighbor rides his ATV around this piece almost daily along with his dog. This property was almost void of any deer activity. Free-roaming dogs and ATVs are not the deer hunter’s friend. Good thing I found this out while scouting, it would have made for a disappointing hunt after driving for 10 hours.
Here is another. This is a piece that I hunted in 2005 and it was very productive. It is a mixture of crops, WRP and a wooded hillside with mast. Only one problem, the large cottonwood tree centered in the picture is 10 feet off the property line and someone has built a large ground blind at the base of the tree in the line of fire as deer cross from the hillside to the WRP. Safety could be an issue here in rifle season not to mention a potential conflict with a neighbor. I hope other members remain conscious of things like this and inform the office.
Remember those fence lines, even the domestic wildlife use them as travel corridors just like the deer. This guy followed it for a couple hundred yards before cutting in at a break.
I'm always amazed at the things viewed on these trips. These folks definitely like to fish and are proud of their catch.
I would like to extend my best wishes to other MAHA members on the upcoming seasons; it looks very promising and good luck to all. Once again, thank you John, John and Jerry.
Best of wishes, Gary
End of this deer scouting series.