Pressure makes of breaks if you'll see mature bucks walking out in the daylight (OTHER THAN THE RUT) any buck that matter or even a 1 1/2 following his mom around pressure dictates if you'll see them in the daylight much. Even then pressure can get so great deer will only move at night. No mater how much pressure your hunting land has deer WILL NOT leave their home range. But you do have some control over the pressure you put on your deer. Even on PL,NF where you can use pressure to your advanage. Or at least at spots your going to hunt.
I have a system and have used it for pushing 20 of my 40 odd years of buck hunting. I'm still refinding it. You have to refind it to each stand site. I do post,pre-season and hunt differetly. Lets start with post-season after the deer season ends to spring. This is the only time I scout,cut shoots staves ,walk around to see what the deer did last year. Before I move on let me say when I talk I talking about mature bucks about 99% of the time. So what bucks to this fall ,they'll mainly do the same the next fall. They 'll feed ,bed and look for does the same places. The older the bucks the more they'll stick to the pattern.
SO YOU HAVE TO TOTALLY BELEIVE IN YOUR SCOUTING
So when I scout I'm looking at what went on last season. This is also the only time I work on my sites ,cut lanes get it ready for next year. RUBS AND SCRAPES DON'T LIE. Then when the times right for that site (THE NEXT SEASON) and I walk out on my deck and the winds right I know what farm and what site I'll be hunting.
I never hunt anywhere when I don't have the wind walking in while I'm there and the part mostly everyone never thinks it matters is when I leave. Remember you never want the bucks or deer to know you've been there. If I don't have those 3 things. Either I hunt another site. Or if it changes while I'm there I'll leave and go home. But I use'lly plan a head and have other site (stand) at this place or close by. Ground or stand hunting THE WIND IS YOUR FRIEND
HERE THE #1 thing not to do. PERIOD After your ready to leave.
DON'T GO WALKING AROUND
All you'll do is let the bucks know you've been there.. The whole secert is not you let bucks know your there. A mature buck that knows someones been there is 100 times harder to kill than one that don't know you've ever been there. This is so with all bucks with younger bucks you can get away with alot more pressure. Mature bucks are a lot more pressure sentive. If he dose (mature buck) find you out then your only real chance at him is the later pre-rut and the rut. I don't know about you but I buck hunt anywhere form 50 to 100 days a year. Depending on the states I'll be hunting that year. So I can aford to burn my sites out.
I know this will turns a lot of heads. Now after season and in the winters the only time I run camers off small bait piles. Even then it'll be where I can use the truck ,4 wheeler to pull right up to it. SPREADING YOU SCENT AROUND EVEN IN THE OFF SEASON PUTTING UNNEEDED PRESSURE OR YOUR BUCKS by put your scent all around. Even on the off season the less the bucks know your there the more they move next fall. Those TV mid west hunting shows where you see humteen big bucks walking around. I don't tell you that those farms are only hunted a few times when the timeing right. And pressure all season long kept to a very ,very little bit.
I hunt mainly farm land so places I can glass the fields come JULY,AUG,SEP where I came keep track of the bucks on that farm. You just can't run in and out pulling cards lots of people even put the all over the stand sites. Ther's no better way of tell the bucks your there. Deer cammeras are a great tool to use not to so off pic's. to your friends. LOOK HE'S RIGHT AT MY STAND. I'll bet you and give you odds if it's not the rut those pic's. are at night. But places I can't glass my bucks I will use them after season to find out what made it through the season.
I don't ground hog hunters or let yote hunters , I don't squirrel hunt or let others. I leave my hunting areas alone. I do, do alot of glassing from a far.
HERES A OLD SAYING AND RINGS TRUE WHEN IT COME'S MATURE WHITETAILS.
NEVER WALK WHEN YOU CAN RIDE.
But other than that I totally leave my buck hunting areas along. Untill the timeing and winds right before I go to it.
I DON'T PUT ANY PRESSURE ON MY DEER POST- RUT, RUT, PRE-RUT.
I'm not saying this is the only or the best way of deer hunting. Most people refuse to change from what ther dads or grandparents taught them. And it nothing wrong with this if all you want to do is kill a deer. But no pressure huntings is the best way I've found to have mature bucks walking around in the daylight. I know this works because it the last 20 or so years I let 100's of young bucks walk. I see more mature bucks in a season than most see in a life time. Last year I saw 27 bucks had bow shots at 11 bucks ,9 were 3 1/2 to 1, 6 1/2 12 point brute I saw. 3 of those I saw twice.
