Recently, I was traveling into the hills of Heath to do some evening work for the Heath Fair. It’s always a pleasure traveling to Heath, whether it’s visiting family, friends, or just taking a drive into the hills. As I climbed Burrington Hill, passing the former property of Bruce and Catherine Cromack, I looked eastward toward Burnt Hill, gazing again at the rugged beauty of that landmark. But as I stopped my vehicle to enjoy the moment, I caught an object that seemed out of place. Sure enough, the head and horns of a large white-tailed buck appeared about 300 yards out, just behind a dip in the terrain with the treeline behind him. Even with only his head and horns showing, it was easy to tell that this buck was a “dandy” with heavy main beads and tall G2 and G3 antlers. A closer look with the optics confirmed this, plus I could not make out a shred of velvet showing on the antlers. So I sat there, watching him until time, and promised responsibilities, pulled me away. But in those 10 perfect minutes, watching him staring my way, he never once moved, which is why smart, older bucks like this one survive.
A sighting like this can stir up even the most seasoned hunters. But I could sit in that same spot for the next week and never see that buck again, because it’s August, and the living is easy for whitetail deer. Right now, deer are simply everywhere, and so is the feed with more to come. It’s August, which is just another day in the life of a whitetail deer, but for deer hunters, August is the month when it all begins. Not with a chance sighting of a big buck, but with the preparation it takes to consistently have an opportunity at a good buck during the season. And as a deer hunter myself, who is about to enter his 54th whitetail season, I can tell you for certain, the preparation for all of this is when the real fun begins.
Now, I could tell you to get out there and scout, scout, scout through August and into September — bear hunters will inadvertently be doing that anyway. But say you’re exclusively scouting for deer more than just a few times a week… Let’s say you’ve spotted one, or more heavy horned bucks that you’d love to tie your tag to this year; and you ask yourself, “will they be there in October or November, or will they vanish again this year”? This scenario happens all the time, with other questions surfacing like, “how far will those bucks go,” or “where might they be on the first day of archery season?”
Who really knows, but I can tell you with a fair degree of certainty that if you hunt large tracts of land, 500 acres or more, don’t worry too much about it because bucks will always be in the range you’re hunting. You just need to do more scouting to pin them down!
A bigger problem for hunters who hunt in tracts of land that may only be 50-300 acres is when a buck shifts only 200 yards or so. That could possibly take him right out of your area and onto another tract of land, which is not good for hunters like me who tend to hunt tracts of land between 100-200 acres. But there’s also some good news here, as even though some mature bucks might leave your area(s) in mid-September, many more that summered elsewhere are apt to move in, and stay put, all fall and winter. This means we need to keep scouting and glassing all the way into October.
Remember, as the season progresses, feed and the rut will play a very large role as to why bucks shift their ground. Much of this movement is simply natural behavior, but a buck’s movement is always driven by the availability of food. And my rule of thumb has always been, as the summer turns to autumn, if there’s green crops and white-oak acorns on the land you’re hunting, the fewer bucks you’ll see moving away from these areas. But poor feed could result with the complete opposite effect, so monitor food sources carefully, and seek out areas to place your tree stands accordingly.
Remember, as the season progresses, a buck’s behavior will change in many ways. Stay versatile and get those cameras up now so you can begin to see what’s happening in your area. Watch closely for early buck sign near your area, and hopefully, other signs that follow a deer season will appear as we slowly move from summer, into those precious days of autumn.
Joe Judd is a lifelong hunter and sportsman. He is an outdoor writer, seminar speaker, member of the New England Outdoor Writers Association, and a 2019 inductee into the N.E. Turkey Hunting Hall of Fame. Joe is also on the Quaker Boy Game Calls and Bass Pro Shops/Cabela’s Pro-Staff.