I've got my sights on this buck.

[MRH]

I've had my eye on one particular stud in the area, and he showed up at 9am on camera on 10/7. It's rare to get the big boys on camera in the daytime around here, and you have to hope to get a nice surprise and catch them on the fringes of legal light.

I think it is actually making it worse now that I know he'll pop-up in daylight, and it is driving me crazy...

Most of our property is thicket, but there are edges that open up to hardwoods, and these "openings" are pretty thick too. There are holes here and there where a 100 yard shot is possible, but in most places, anywhere you look, it's more like 50 yards and less. Mostly less. So when you look at it my dilemma is finding his bedding area in all of these thick scrub oaks, persimmons, and pines. Much of it looks the same. And I don't want to push him out of his bedding either. I just want to know where it is! Yep, getting him right now is not going to be a simple task unless I can get lucky and catch him slipping to or from his bedding area on an edge of thicket. The interior road, on a straight away is a likely place. The roads have thickets on both sides as you can guess. My place is tough to hunt and I have to be ready to shoot at all times or it's "bye bye". But that's part of what I love about it.

 

[batoncolle]

Most of our property is thicket, but there are edges that open up to hardwoods, and these "openings" are pretty thick too. There are holes here and there where a 100 yard shot is possible, but in most places, anywhere you look, it's more like 50 yards and less. Mostly less. So when you look at it my dilemma is finding his bedding area in all of these thick scrub oaks, persimmons, and pines. Much of it looks the same. And I don't want to push him out of his bedding either. I just want to know where it is! Yep, getting him right now is not going to be a simple task unless I can get lucky and catch him slipping to or from his bedding area on an edge of thicket. The interior road, on a straight away is a likely place. The roads have thickets on both sides as you can guess. My place is tough to hunt and I have to be ready to shoot at all times or it's "bye bye". But that's part of what I love about it.

I have the exact same setup so I feel your pain. It's all thick except one open area where at most I could stretch to maybe 125 yards. This fella shows up in the one open area, and if this would've been during hunting season, it would have been a 50 yard broad side shot. And that's a doe over to his left.

 

[MRH]

I have the exact same setup so I feel your pain. It's all thick except one open area where at most I could stretch to maybe 125 yards. This fella shows up in the one open area, and if this would've been during hunting season, it would have been a 50 yard broad side shot. And that's a doe over to his left.

Yeah he's a beautiful buck. Mature too. I love those tall chocolate racks. Man, he's a stud.

 

[batoncolle]

Yeah he's a beautiful buck. Mature too. I love those tall chocolate racks. Man, he's a stud.

Yeah the chocolate rack is pretty cool. This thread inspired me to go hunt that spot tonight. I usually don't hunt that area until the leaves drop in the thicker parts. I watched a doe skirt the edge right where that other one is sitting in the pic, and I let her walk hoping he might show up, but he didn't make an appearance.

It looks like we both have a good chase this season, and that's what makes it fun.

 

[Comanche]

I have the exact same setup so I feel your pain. It's all thick except one open area where at most I could stretch to maybe 125 yards. This fella shows up in the one open area, and if this would've been during hunting season, it would have been a 50 yard broad side shot. And that's a doe over to his left.

Good Lord what a monster!

 

[mfoster]

Those mature bucks are a different beast,good luck with him.

 

[strongtactics]

Let us know when you take him down. Would look great on a wall.
This makes me want to go hunting (deer or hog or both!)...I think this will be my year to actually do it.