My Secret Season

[Mike P]

My Secret Season

Tomorrow is opening day. I am always very excited about the opener. I will drift off to sleep tonight thinking of the mature whitetail buck I will kill this season. And I will hunt him tomorrow for the very first time.

Tomorrow morning after I have my coffee with the Swede I will pull on my boots, put on my camo coat and pick up my weapons, a black sharpie and a google earth photo of my hunting area from 1000 feet above. And my secret season will start.

Most don't understand my season. To the uninformed it may look like I am hunting for sheds. Nothing could be further from the truth. I am hunting for a mature buck. This is by far the very best time of the year to find him. I have always kept this season a secret. And now I am going to share it with you.

Anyone can kill a mature whitetail buck. It happens every year. We see the proof on websites and magazines and we hear of hunters who take a monster the very first time they go out. It all goes back to the "right place at the right time" phenomenon. But have you ever noticed that some hunters seem to harvest a mature buck year after year? How do they do that? Well, they do it the same way that the lucky guy did who killed that big boy his first time out; they are in the "right place at the right time." The only difference between the two is one hunter knows how to find the right place at the right time every year. How do they do it? I don't know. But I can tell you how I do it. And I guarantee that you can do it also, it is not very hard. All you have to do is hunt the secret season.

Many of you are already doing it; you're just not doing it right. You're putting in the same amount of time as I am. Your out in the fields and woods looking for sheds. It is fun and addicting. But you're missing the boat. You should be hunting that big mature whitetail buck now. And if you do, I am willing to wager you will also find more sheds.

You will never see more in the woods then you will at this time of year. The leaves and vegetation are but memories in the deer woods during late February and early March. Most of you think it is the best time to find sheds, the light color of the antler shows well in contrast to the dark brown of the forest floor. But one other thing also shows up well. And it is the entire key to not only finding the sheds you are after, but more importantly, it is what will put you in the "right place at the right time" this fall to kill that mature buck.

I use a technique to hunt mature bucks that I call the RAK theory. It is really very simple. The letters stand for "Rubs Are King" and it is the entire basis of my secret season. Rubs stand out at this time of year just as do shed antlers. If you go out looking for sheds you always find rubs that you didn't see or know about during the season. My technique is to use my overhead aerial photograph (available at google earth or numerous other sites) and my black sharpie to record every rub I find in my hunting area. I just make a mark on the photograph that I printed out. I walk my entire hunting area and use my binoculars to scan for rubs. In the process I also find sheds, but they are just the bonus. The antlers I want are the ones that are still attached.

By using the RAK system I have learned a lot about rubs over the years. Did you know that bucks rub their antlers from the very first day they remove some velvet up until about three or four days before they shed. It's true. They still rub long after the rut. And even more interesting, many have unique signatures; they rub in very specific ways or select very specific types of trees. In my area here in southern Ohio the cedar tree seems to be the most preferred by the vast majority of bucks. Some bucks are like the shredding machine you have in the office. They just rip up the tree leaving long strands of wood coming off the trunk much like the plastic skirt on a fishing lure. Others are smoothies. They just rub and rub until the tree looks like someone used four hundred grit sandpaper to smooth it before painting. Some like to go around to the other side of the tree they have just rubbed and use their brow tines to leave sharp up and down scars in the tree. It is almost as if they are signing their name like an artist just finishing his canvas.

The RAK system will let you know if you have a mature whitetail buck in your hunting area. Large mature whitetail bucks may use some small trees, but usually they will use large diameter trees as well. Immature bucks will not take on the large trees. Find a good size rub on a fairly large tree and it is fairly certain that you have a big boy in your area. Of course finding a large shed instantly confirms the presence.

After you have thoroughly walked your area and marked all the rubs on the overhead photograph it is time to go home, have a beer and connect the dots. You may be surprised at what you find. You will be able to identify rub lines in a manner you never dreamed possible. Sure we can all identify a rub line when we see a rub every fifty feet in the woods. But using the photo from google earth and understanding the terrain of your hunting area you will be able to identify a rub line that is far larger then you ever imagined. You should even be able to tell what direction the buck is traveling at what time based on food sources and bedding areas as they easily show up on the photo from space. And if you plan your hunt next year by using your map, you just might be in "the right place at the right time."

It is opening day tomorrow.

And I am armed with a sharpie.

[one shot scott]

Thanks Mike P. That was a very informative thread, lots of info I was not aware of

[mikej]

that is a very good tip mikep thank you.when you find a rub how do yuo know exactly where you are on the photo? i am going to google earth now and picking up a sharpie tomorrow, now all i need are snowshoes .

[wildwindom]

Very good read mike i learn something from you every time you post, its like going to school!!

[saxman]

I have never looked for sheds but I will this year
Great read Mike.

[huntman]

Mike P:

How do you know that buck that is making the rubs is not the monster you took the season that just ended?

[Shakibods]

Thanks Mike, I have lurked here for quite sometime and I always find your information to be extremely helpful. Again, thanks for sharing.

[Rich]

Great tip Mike.

Thanks Rich

[Mike P]

Mike P:

How do you know that buck that is making the rubs is not the monster you took the season that just ended?

Excellent question and observation huntman!

I killed the palmated buck up at our farm. I am hunting the sheds and the rubs here in the neighborhood today so it is two separate hunting areas.

But the question is still most viable as many have only one hunting area. And I do use this same technique out at the farm. In that situation the answer to your question is "you don't."

Of course that changes if you find some sheds. That absolutely tells you what quality of buck will be around for opening day in the fall.

But I have found that the rub lines you identify tell you so much about how bucks travel that even if you have killed the buck that made the rubs, the information is still most valuable. Mature bucks travel certain corridors for a reason, usually good cover combined with ease of travel. And another buck seems to always take up the space vacated by the now deceased mature buck.

By plotting the rubs on the map these travel highways become evident and are most helpful with choosing where to scout for that buck you want in the fall.

[bukee]

Great post and very informative. Thanks for sharing some of your strategies.

For the guys in Ontario, this will work better in a month or so when most of the snow is gone, although this thaw we are having could get us out earlier.

[kennisondan]

good show mike.. great read.
dk

[FredBear]

Mike P:

How do you know that buck that is making the rubs is not the monster you took the season that just ended?

Excellent question and observation huntman!

I killed the palmated buck up at our farm. I am hunting the sheds and the rubs here in the neighborhood today so it is two separate hunting areas.

But the question is still most viable as many have only one hunting area. And I do use this same technique out at the farm. In that situation the answer to your question is "you don't."

Of course that changes if you find some sheds. That absolutely tells you what quality of buck will be around for opening day in the fall.

But I have found that the rub lines you identify tell you so much about how bucks travel that even if you have killed the buck that made the rubs, the information is still most valuable. Mature bucks travel certain corridors for a reason, usually good cover combined with ease of travel. And another buck seems to always take up the space vacated by the now deceased mature buck.

By plotting the rubs on the map these travel highways become evident and are most helpful with choosing where to scout for that buck you want in the fall.

I agree with Mike 100 % mature bucks often use the same areas, trails, from year to year, day to day in the rut hour to hour. They feel safe in these special trails. They travel them together in the summer. When you kill a 5 year old buck, there is a good chance there is a 4 years old in the area whom has followed in his steps all the last two summers. This type of behavior is just a vicious cycle. Simply put deer learn from older deer. The mistakes dad made his sons are sure to repeat!!!!! Knowing your deer is almost always the beginning to getting your deer.

[mikej]

mike when you find a shed or rub how do you know excatly where you are on the photo

[Mike P]

mike when you find a shed or rub how do you know excatly where you are on the photo

It is not very difficult at all, I just use the landmarks around me to know where I am.

However, for those that are unsure there is a fail safe way. Most GPS systems record your specific location, all you have to do is push the button.

They record your exact latitude and longitude and are so accurate now that they talk in terms of plus or minus "feet" when pinpointing a location.

Most of the photos also allow you to plug in these coordinates as well right on your computer so you can tell exactly where that rub is in your hunting area.

I don't think that will be necessary Mike once you try this. It becomes pretty easy to see where you are at when you look how close you can zoom in with google earth or other sites.

I do not use google for my photos. I use the county auditors site where I live. They have all the same features as google plus with their photos you are capable of overlaying property lines and they will give you the landowner information as a bonus. Heck, they even tell you if they are delinquent on their taxes.

But trust me, it takes very little time or experience to determine where you find a rub and pinpoint it on these photos.

Once you do it you will see what I mean.

[maple]

Good idea Mike. I'm going to try that!

Maple