Scouting strategy/system

[Travisimo]

Hi folks, I'm wondering if anyone is willing to share their scouting system/strategy. How do you look at a large area and decide how to scout it?

I'm headed out scouting this weekend, June 22/23. I have an area I want to check out for a possible early season mule deer hunt. I have narrowed it down to a drainage off the Fraser River. So there is the whole drainage from the river at 300 ish meters of elevation up to the height of land above 2000 m of elevation. There are some fires of different ages in different areas. There are roads that get close to 2000 m, although I don't know the condition of the roads. There are 5 or 6 turnoffs from the main that look like they might lead up to the height of land.

So, even having narrowed it down a fair bit there is still a ton of country to cover. I have this weekend, and a weekend in August to go scouting before hunting season. I'm wondering how you more experienced hunters break an area down so you can be most effective at covering an area.

What elevation would you start at?

Would you drive all the road access first, then start exploring on foot? Or a combination?

What would make you decide to come back to a spot in early September? Early October?

What would make you cross an area off and not come back?

I appreciate the responses. I'm obviously not looking for secret spots or anything. I find as an adult onset self taught hunter I spend a lot of time wondering if I am wasting time in an area that a more experienced hunter would know to skip over, or vice versa.

[HarryToolips]

I can relate to you in the fact I am also a self taught hunter.. sounds like you've already completed step1 which is identifying an area of potential good habitat.. now it's just about scouting there including boots on the ground covering country to look for sign.. remember that dynamics will change from now until hunting season water courses may dry up etc..

[BearSupreme]

For early season mule deer I always start at the top of the mountain and look for good food sources and water somewhat close by. I can also glass from these areas into other clear cuts/burns if im not seeing animals where I currently am. I find the bucks are still in bachelor groups so if you are seeing does then try another area, unless you want to try to get a spike/small 2 point with your bow during bow season. I would try to find an old skid road that no one drives on and walk it first thing in the morning or an hour before sunset and see what you see. A buddy and myself both got mule deer like this a few years back during archery season.

Anytime in October is usually pretty tough, they seem to be more nocturnal then and wont start making fresh rubs until later in the month so if you havent found them by the end of September then it might be worth it to try down lower in November. Its never a bad time to get out thought, the only thing that would turn me out of an area is heavy pressure or lots of wolf sign.

Good luck and happy hunting! Dont get too discouraged and try to enjoy the process, its frustrating at times but well worth the experience

[Bullreaper]

I highly recommend signing up for things like Outdoor class. Remi Warren has a mule deer class on there that should answer all your questions. Plus many other great courses (elk, cooking, wilderness survival, etc). Knowledge is everything. You can do all the scouting in the world, but if you don’t know what you’re looking for, you may as well just be going for a hike. No online course will ever replace boots on the ground experience, but it is gonna give u a wealth of knowledge and get you going in the right direction. I think outdoor class is $100 for the year, but there is lots of promo codes to save 20%. Live wild. Randy. Elktalk. Either of those should work.

[brian]

My scouting new areas usually starts with topo maps and google earth. I am looking for ridges, benches, funky knolls, edge habitat, broken areas in the canopy and anything that can look like it will 1. Affect deer movement, 2. Be bedding/eating areas, 3. Anything that catches my eye or looks interesting. Then I look for road access to the area and check out club tread to check out hiking access or how popular the area is recreationally.

I head out and drive the roads once I have settled on an area. I’m just getting a feel for the landscape and seeing what access is really like. I’ll get out frequently to check sign and deer trails. But day one is usually just to get a sense of a broad picture. Then I go back with more serious destinations in mind. I usually have a wish list of spots based on my map scouting. But I’m also going to go in and hike deer trails and see where they lead me. Here it is about getting to know the micro details that maps can’t show you. This is about looking for sign and judging the landscape for how huntable it is. Then I keep going back and keep going back and keep going back. This is about learning more about the area and finding the little pockets that can be sooo profitable to know about. Eventually I hunt it, but only when conditions are right.

What would make me turn away from an area? Too much hunter access leading to too much hunting pressure. I want to get away from the beaten track, that’s hard to do when the mountain is criss-crossed with roads. Too many biking/hiking trails/recreational use. I definitely don’t want to be running into a lot of rec users. I will rule an area out If I judge that the habitat is very poor or the huntability of the area is too difficult/ limited for me. But that doesn’t mean that there will be an excellent pocket right around the corner. As you can see, deciding to hunt an area is a big investment in time for me. So I will consider it carefully. I will sometimes branch out and scout new areas during the season when conditions are too crappy to hunt my better areas. I figure that it is better to for a hike with a gun and learn something new then add hunting pressure to good spots during sub optimal conditions.

i hope this helps.

[HappyJack]

LOL~so many just drive around till they see something worth shooting, it ain't rocket science. Deer are pretty much any place you look for them.