Most hunters, regardless of what age or skill level, usually take quite a fancy to a particular buck from the moment they lay lies on it. I am no exception. This past summer we received a trail camera picture a nice bachelor group (consisting of 4 bucks) visiting one of our mineral stations. There was a yearling spike, a decent 2.5 year old buck, a nice three year old that may grow into a potential shooter and a massive 4.5+ year old that really caught my eye. The picture was taken in early July and he was already a main frame 9 with a split left G2. This split G2 earned him the nickname “Lefty.”Given a 14-16” inside spread, I would estimate Lefty to score in the mid 120s. I immediately became drawn to this buck and devoted a good bit of my time thinking of how I could score on him.
I realized that my best chance to score on Lefty was during the bow season because once the rut began my chances would diminish quickly. The next step was to get a general idea of his home range and then connect the dots to where he would be come October. During one of my shed hunting excursions this past winter, I discovered an acorn lot that had not received much attention during hunting season and was virtually untouched during bow season.
After looking at the trail cam. photo again I determined that Lefty came from the direction that the acorn lot was located. However, the acorn lot was useless to Lefty during the summer, but the surrounding habitat was not. The particular lot which I feel Lefty will vist regularly come fall is surrounded by big buck habitat. The prime feeding area is surrounded by two pine thickets and an over grown clear cut that gives Lefty supreme cover and security. Feeling sure this was part of Lefty’s core area, I decided to do a little scouting.
A few weeks back I entered Lefty’s Domain to gain an idea for stand placement and discovered an important clue. As I was scanning the pine thicket I found an enormous bed which had large buck droppings in it. I just KNEW it was Lefty’s bed. I immediately became overwhelmed with excitement and felt my chances skyrocket.
By the end of my scouting trip I had found Lefty’s bed and a nice white oak to hang my stand, I was pumped. I feel I have a great chance of catching Lefty leaving his prime bedding area (the pine thicket) in a transition zone between his bedding area and prime feeding area (the acorn lot), or vise versa. Unfortunately, I may only get hunt this stand a limited number of times if the wind does not cooperate. I have to wait for a southerly wind before I can even think of entering this setup. I don’t want to ruin my hunt before it evens begins!
Lefty is a one of a kind buck that I just hope I get a chance to see from the tree stand, much less attempt to harvest. However, I feel through hard work and careful attention to detail I feel I have put myself in the best location possible. I may not even get a crack at ole Lefty, but I can tell you one thing, it’s going to be a blast chasing after him this fall!
I realized that my best chance to score on Lefty was during the bow season because once the rut began my chances would diminish quickly. The next step was to get a general idea of his home range and then connect the dots to where he would be come October. During one of my shed hunting excursions this past winter, I discovered an acorn lot that had not received much attention during hunting season and was virtually untouched during bow season.
After looking at the trail cam. photo again I determined that Lefty came from the direction that the acorn lot was located. However, the acorn lot was useless to Lefty during the summer, but the surrounding habitat was not. The particular lot which I feel Lefty will vist regularly come fall is surrounded by big buck habitat. The prime feeding area is surrounded by two pine thickets and an over grown clear cut that gives Lefty supreme cover and security. Feeling sure this was part of Lefty’s core area, I decided to do a little scouting.
A few weeks back I entered Lefty’s Domain to gain an idea for stand placement and discovered an important clue. As I was scanning the pine thicket I found an enormous bed which had large buck droppings in it. I just KNEW it was Lefty’s bed. I immediately became overwhelmed with excitement and felt my chances skyrocket.
By the end of my scouting trip I had found Lefty’s bed and a nice white oak to hang my stand, I was pumped. I feel I have a great chance of catching Lefty leaving his prime bedding area (the pine thicket) in a transition zone between his bedding area and prime feeding area (the acorn lot), or vise versa. Unfortunately, I may only get hunt this stand a limited number of times if the wind does not cooperate. I have to wait for a southerly wind before I can even think of entering this setup. I don’t want to ruin my hunt before it evens begins!
Lefty is a one of a kind buck that I just hope I get a chance to see from the tree stand, much less attempt to harvest. However, I feel through hard work and careful attention to detail I feel I have put myself in the best location possible. I may not even get a crack at ole Lefty, but I can tell you one thing, it’s going to be a blast chasing after him this fall!
