Bucksnbears
Well-Known Member
Winter of 23/24 I spent a good amount of time doing a bedding cut.
Picked away for about 2 months. Was very methodical on how it was gonna be laid out.
Area size was about 2 acres total. Trees present were ( lots ) of boxelder, some smaller elm, bigger basswood, smaller hackberry, Big Ash and a few Big burroak.
Went back their for the first time last week since last april (sanctuary) and had forgot about the windstorm we had last July. Quite a few big ash,oak n basswood were layed down in the bedding area I hinge cut. TOTALL mess!. What was incredible was the amount of beds/ deer crap/ browsing in spots I had to crawl into with a chainsaw to open up the trails. Many places I'd get down on my knees, look into a tangled mess and wonder how a deer could even get in there?
Yesterday and today were dedicated to re_ cutting travel routes. pooped out!
I've only got 32 acres but it's heaven on earth to me.
Pics with descriptions.
Pic # 1. Lay of the land. Blue line is the river, black live is the property. Black circles are small 1/4 acre foodplots. Small black spots are treestands.
Ink lines are major deer trails everything inside the black is all timber.
No hunting allowed on the 400 acres across the river to east/ south and only one guy hunts the north 200 acres (bow).
Shallow river deer can cross no problem.
Here are some pics I took today.
1st and 2nd is just inside the cover leading in/ out to my clover plot heading to the bedding cut.
3rd, a buckthorn jungle.
4th, a couple Big burr Oak that went down in last summers windstorm. Deer have a major train between them.
5th, start of the bedding cut.
6th, I like to hinge cut high. Not doing it for browse but for horizontal/ tunnel effect cover.
7th, high hinge cut. Deer beds colored under it.
8th, trail I had to re_ cut in.
9th, this is Ground Zero on my whole piece. This is looking east.
10th looking south.
11th is west and 12th is west.
12th is going into a pocket is specifically carved out for a ( hopefully) mature buck bedding hidy hole. Yeah, I know..., sounds goofy but...
13th is the " bedroom".., yeah, I know. Lol.
14 and 15 are places I lugged in square strawbales and made beds. Yeah, I know. Lol.
Both beds have been used HEAVILY!! not sure if buck / doe but ? Just a fun thing I've been doing for the past 15ish year.
16th. Another trail I had to cut out and reopen.
17th. Same as above.
18th. Pic across the river. Riverbank is all tall grass. Don't know what kind?
19th. As an experiment last winter, I purposely high hinge cut this spot. It's about a 25x25' area. Wanted to see if deer would enter/ bed in such an enclosed place. Holy WOW do they ever!!!
20th. Unreal the amounts of beds/ crap under that canopy!!! It stank of deer in there!
21. The river.
22. Bedding cut edge right above the riverbank.
23. Trail that follows the high bank paralleling the river. Massive trail that has been there since I starting hunting here 40 years ago.
24.same as above.
25. Leaving the Noth end of the bedding cut.
26. Entering a buckthorn thicket.
27. One of the best treestands I've ever put up!!. (Far right side).it's about a 15' ladderstand in a HUGE burroak. Can only hunt it with a west/ southwest wind. ( scent blows across the river). I seldom hunt it because assessing it is tough. Gotta keep SUPER CLEAN to get to it. (Ground scent).
28.hemp rope (licking branch).
29. Hemp rope n stand. Bout a 14 yard shot.
30. The trail going by that stand.
31. The clover field where all the action is.
32. The main trail heading Noth from the clover field.
Dang, took me bout 4 beers to type this up. Lol.
Picked away for about 2 months. Was very methodical on how it was gonna be laid out.
Area size was about 2 acres total. Trees present were ( lots ) of boxelder, some smaller elm, bigger basswood, smaller hackberry, Big Ash and a few Big burroak.
Went back their for the first time last week since last april (sanctuary) and had forgot about the windstorm we had last July. Quite a few big ash,oak n basswood were layed down in the bedding area I hinge cut. TOTALL mess!. What was incredible was the amount of beds/ deer crap/ browsing in spots I had to crawl into with a chainsaw to open up the trails. Many places I'd get down on my knees, look into a tangled mess and wonder how a deer could even get in there?
Yesterday and today were dedicated to re_ cutting travel routes. pooped out!
I've only got 32 acres but it's heaven on earth to me.
Pics with descriptions.
Pic # 1. Lay of the land. Blue line is the river, black live is the property. Black circles are small 1/4 acre foodplots. Small black spots are treestands.
Ink lines are major deer trails everything inside the black is all timber.
No hunting allowed on the 400 acres across the river to east/ south and only one guy hunts the north 200 acres (bow).
Shallow river deer can cross no problem.
Here are some pics I took today.
1st and 2nd is just inside the cover leading in/ out to my clover plot heading to the bedding cut.
3rd, a buckthorn jungle.
4th, a couple Big burr Oak that went down in last summers windstorm. Deer have a major train between them.
5th, start of the bedding cut.
6th, I like to hinge cut high. Not doing it for browse but for horizontal/ tunnel effect cover.
7th, high hinge cut. Deer beds colored under it.
8th, trail I had to re_ cut in.
9th, this is Ground Zero on my whole piece. This is looking east.
10th looking south.
11th is west and 12th is west.
12th is going into a pocket is specifically carved out for a ( hopefully) mature buck bedding hidy hole. Yeah, I know..., sounds goofy but...
13th is the " bedroom".., yeah, I know. Lol.
14 and 15 are places I lugged in square strawbales and made beds. Yeah, I know. Lol.
Both beds have been used HEAVILY!! not sure if buck / doe but ? Just a fun thing I've been doing for the past 15ish year.
16th. Another trail I had to cut out and reopen.
17th. Same as above.
18th. Pic across the river. Riverbank is all tall grass. Don't know what kind?
19th. As an experiment last winter, I purposely high hinge cut this spot. It's about a 25x25' area. Wanted to see if deer would enter/ bed in such an enclosed place. Holy WOW do they ever!!!
20th. Unreal the amounts of beds/ crap under that canopy!!! It stank of deer in there!
21. The river.
22. Bedding cut edge right above the riverbank.
23. Trail that follows the high bank paralleling the river. Massive trail that has been there since I starting hunting here 40 years ago.
24.same as above.
25. Leaving the Noth end of the bedding cut.
26. Entering a buckthorn thicket.
27. One of the best treestands I've ever put up!!. (Far right side).it's about a 15' ladderstand in a HUGE burroak. Can only hunt it with a west/ southwest wind. ( scent blows across the river). I seldom hunt it because assessing it is tough. Gotta keep SUPER CLEAN to get to it. (Ground scent).
28.hemp rope (licking branch).
29. Hemp rope n stand. Bout a 14 yard shot.
30. The trail going by that stand.
31. The clover field where all the action is.
32. The main trail heading Noth from the clover field.
Dang, took me bout 4 beers to type this up. Lol.
