Killing Mature or Older bucks for your area is EASY, all you need to do is....

[Sligh1]

Very interesting thread! I’ve often wondered the what and why to this game and how are some so successful. Is it access/ownership of top quality property, management of that property, an eye for great stand sets, the best equipment, time in the stand??? Like anything I’m guessing it’s a combination there of but some guys just have the IT factor. My grandfather had the it factor walleye fishing. You could mimic everything he was using and he’d get it done and you’d go o for everything. Guess I’m adding time in stand and the IT factor. I used to have the time thing but not so much on the other.

Owning top quality farms help.... no doubt..... BUT.... it ain’t what u think it is!!! we killed almost as many mature bucks or had chances at them when we were BROKE & in college. We had the combo of: the drive to hunt hard, bettered our skills PLUS 2 critical things: 1) we DROVE all over the place to where big bucks lived (all over KS, IL, IA) & skipped enough class time to have plenty of time to hunt (or when graduated - took all our vacation time at good hunting times). We didnt have kids & had the time to take weekend trips to scout & knock on doors. 1 older Jeep Cherokee + a tent + a lot of pb & j sandwiches = a lot of hunting with very little $. Took a lot of time & hard work but as broke kids in late teens and early 20’s - we killed almost as many older bucks as we do now. We owned zero and split gas $ & put in the time. Lot of mistakes and headaches but again, guys who do it right beat guys who might have $ but miss out on so many other critical elements.
Agree on fishing too.... why do some of my buddies slay the fish on public lakes while others continue to get skunked??? Year after year after year. See that ALL the time!!!! (I would be the second group- the guys that get skunked! )

 

[IowaBowHunter1983]

Great thread. If you happen to have your own farms the single biggest key, IMO, is sanctuary’s near food (#6 on list). If you have areas that are thick, and off limits completely to human intrusion and in a spot that neighbors can’t affect.... you're in business. If you can set that up, hunt the wind properly, and have good access, you will have opportunities. Personal perspective is that I have never had a big farm, quite small compared to most. Year in and year out there will be mature deer on them.

 

[meyeri]

#9 and #13 have been huge for me lately, although the whole list has to be done right to be consistent. When I do hunt public, I find I'm trying to kill deer that spend 95% of their time on the private ground close by.

I would add that you have to stay disciplined. It's easy to get lazy by the 14th day in and say, I'll just take the easy access route instead of the right access route.

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