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tcba1987
12-19-2005, 11:12 PM
i went out this evening, right after a fresh snow fell this morning,
didnt see much deer sign in the areas i usually hunt on my favorite
farm. most of the fresh deer tracks i saw seem to be staying on the
tops of the hills, very few deer tracks were on the sides of the
hills or in the flats in the bottoms. is there a reason for this ??
we had a good inch or 1 1/2 of snow early this morning so i scouted
around this evening , there just wasnt any sign in the normal areas.
i found a nice run where it looked like 6-8 good sized deer had
traveled it but it was on the top of the hill where i seldom see
deer. do the deer go to running the tops of the ridges more late in
the winter months or right after a snow or was this a rare
occurence ?? should i sit my stand that i hunted in gun season in
early december ?? my stand is about 75 yds from a open field where
deer feed regularly in the morning and evening, it (my stand) is
located about halfway up the side of the hill where a natural funnel
occurs from the shape of the hill it is USUALLY a great location (
alot of deer pass through there every day ) going to and from their
bedding area. ive also noticed that the deer seem to have change
there run alittle it was 25 - 30 yds from my stand , they now seem to
be using a old logging road that is about 50 yds away from my stand.
do deer change their runs later in the season or do you think theyve
done this because ive taken 5 deer from my stand in the past 2 years
and theyve gotten wise to my location ??

i did see 7 deer along the road feeding in the fields on the next
farm beside my spot. 6 does and a small buck. as close as they were
to where i hunt i am sure they will cross through my area sometime
during the season, at least i hope so.

Brian




coonskinner
12-20-2005, 04:11 AM
it could be because of gun pressure changing their habit,staying up high for viewing or just plain food thing or an occurance something just spooked yhem up there...deer dont like moving in any very xtreme weather i have found,they will usually bed right where they eat,especially xtreme cold when temps are normally higher,like now...their food source depletes and they move closer to a new and possibly different source or even in it and stay there...good luck...:cool:

Woodland
12-20-2005, 08:04 PM
They were probably taking the path of least resistance. How deep is the snow in the low land around the ridge? Also how deep is the snow in the wooded area as compared to the road.
Open areas tend to get wind swept which pushes the snow to lower land or wooded areas where the trees work as wind blocks.


Rick

CritterGitter
12-20-2005, 09:01 PM
Likely, food is on the high ridge tops. Also, I think someone mentioned that it could be deeper snow in the low lands due to wind and drifting snow. This could also make food down in those areas harder to get to. Also, an elevated look out post this time of year with scant cover can be a real plus for deer.

CG