WHY YOU SHOULDN'T GIVE UP ON A HUNTING AREA

Editor's Note:

Brian Pearson of The Roost Hunting Lodge in Aliceville, Alabama, is considered an expert by the hunters at the lodge on deer-hunting wisdom.

Question: Why shouldn't you give up on a hunting area?

Answer: Often a hunter will put a stand up the night before the hunt. He'll be excited and confident that he'll be successful. Then the next day when he doesn't see any deer, he won't go back to that area for the rest of the season. That's a big mistake. You need to return to that region at different times during the season. Many times the deer's feeding patterns are established. If you sit in an area one day and the weather is hot and the deer aren't moving, don't give up on the area. Even if you go two or three days and don't see the big buck you want to see, he's bound to be there. I've always said that we're part-time hunters, but the deer are full-time deer. It's just a matter of meeting up with the deer. Pick a spot and stay there for at least four mornings or afternoons. If you don't find the big buck you've expected, wait until later in the season to hunt the same spot four or five more times. Hunt the same area all season long at different times.

Question: What happens when a buck becomes nocturnal?

Answer: Bucks don't sleep all day long. They must move and feed in the daytime, just like they do at night. However, you may not see the bucks in open woods during daylight hours, because they'll stay in heavy cover instead. Older bucks have learned that to survive hunting pressure they must remain in dense cover when hunters are in the woods. But they will break this rule during the rut. They will move in open places when the rut is taking place.

Question: Do you believe deer pattern hunters?

Answer: Absolutely! If you're going to your stand before daylight and staying in your stand until 10:00 or 11:00 a.m. and then not returning to your stand until 1:30 or 2:00 p.m., there's a very good chance the buck is moving in your area while you're gone. By the middle of the late part of the season, change your routine. Sleep late in the mornings, and hunt in the middle of the day. You just may see that buck you've been trying to take.

Write Brian Pearson at The Roost, P.O. Box 509, Aliceville, AL 35442, (205) 373-3147, to learn more about hunting deer.

Check back each day this week for more from Brian Pearson.

Day 1 - Reasons Hunters Don't Take Deer
Day 2 - How To Look For Deer
Day 3 - How To Avoid Spooking Deer
Day 4 - Know And Understand Your Gun
Day 5 - Why You Shouldn't Give Up On A Hunting Area

John's Journal