Setting Expectations
Let's get one thing straight.
No one sees deer movement every single day unless they...
- Hunt farmland groomed and tailored for growing and holding big bucks
- Own a large parcel of property with a high fence (a.k.a. "ranch")
- All of the above
It's going to take some time, through both pre-season scouting and in-season observation while hunting, to get a lay of the land. Most hunters will tell you this process is ongoing, even after hunting the same parcel of land for years.
Why do we tell you this? Because it's easy to get discouraged if you don't see movement right away but the truth is, not seeing deer daily puts you in the majority rather than the minority. Especially as a beginner. Give it some time.
If you're able to witness deer movement every third or fourth sit on public land, you're doing great.
In this episode we lean heavily on anecdotal experience to illustrate that it helps to be good...
...but in the real world, it often pays better to be lucky.
Mindset Is Crucial
The reason we devoted so much time to talking about this is because it's far too easy to get discouraged. It's understandable. Many hunters put the time in year-round in preparation for the fall, only to sit in a stand for a weekend and not see any deer. Most of us are also sitting alone, which can play heavily on the psyche. If it doesn't pan out right away, it can put us in a mental tailspin.
That's why we're encouraging you not to go after that big, mature buck right away. It's a different style of hunting that, while utilizing the same skillset and knowledge, requires for more of both as well as substantially more risk.
A few unsuspecting hunters are rewarded every year, often due to some combination of the magical time know as "The Rut," and, frankly, dumb luck.
As we said before, sometimes it's better to be lucky than good. That rings especially true for beginners because, let's face it:
You're not that good yet.
...right, Bucky?
If you're still intent on ignoring our advice and are really motivated to try your hand at hunting a mature buck this year, we wish you success all the same.
Since we're sticking to 101-level material in this course, we'll steer the monster seekers toward some resources we've found helpful as we've explored that side of hunting whitetails.
Big buck enthusiasts would be wise to check out the MeatEater YouTube channel and blog for advanced tips and strategies.
Rinella is one of the premier names in hunting and conservation content today, and for good reason. A Midwest boy like us, he's been able to relay the values and ideals of the hunting/conservation community as a whole in ways the general non-hunting public can understand and appreciate.
Granted, much of the content you'll find across MeatEater's channels is geared towards more experienced hunters. But once you've nailed the basics through this course, we'd make the argument this should be in your heavy rotation moving forward. We're always picking up helpful tips from these guys.
MeatEater staff member and writer Mark Kenyon also hosts arguably the best (and there are many) whitetail-focused podcast, aptly named Wired To Hunt.
Landing page for the Wired To Hunt podcast with Mark Kenyon
Mark is a big buck fanatic and self-proclaimed student of the mature whitetail pursuit. He has an awesome approach to getting in the right mindset to hunt these careful, clever animals. Like all content produced by MeatEater, Mark interprets complex subjects in ways that newcomers and experienced hunters alike can appreciate and comprehend.
You can also pick up some quick tips for attempting to harvest a mature whitetail during the rut by watching this episode and others of MeatEater's The Back 40.
Good luck chasing that unicorn! You're gonna need it.
Next Steps
Move onto the next lesson to start learning about deer and what makes them tick.
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