Property Evaluations

I recently drove an hour and fifty minutes south to help a client interpret his hunting ground.  I met him at the base of his property, which lay at the bottom of a steep mountain on the east side of the Blue Ridge.  I had never hunted or even hiked there, but I was confident predictable buck behavior would reveal itself on these steep ridges.  In the morning we found normal buck patterns and discussed plans to create a small sanctuary for the bucks the client already had on camera.   

Late afternoon, on the northeast side of the property, downwind of the proposed sanctuary, we found a scrape on a logging road.  It lay where the road curved into the ravine of the mountain.  I was explaining to the client that during the rut, there would be a sentinel buck on the left point above us, watching the scrape to prevent does from getting to the breeder buck at the top of the mountain. 

Since the owner wanted to check two cameras up on that point, we hiked up about three hundred yards and retrieved the cameras.  We saw some fresh tracks on the logging road near the top and when the client asked me how fresh they were, I noted they were pretty fresh in the dark earth, but that with the cold temperatures, they might have been preserved, say, a day and a half old at most. 

Later that night I received the photo posted below.  The three bucks had been bedded above us while we stood 100 yards below them checking out the scrape and interpreting what it meant.  They passed the cameras five minutes before we did.  Topography dictates everything.  And if you check the calendar, you'll see those bucks were still perched over that scrape on January  15.

Spend the day learning how topography dictates the deer movement on your property.  The expectation is that you will purchase and read the book first so that you understand more clearly the universal applications we will find in the field.  Upon my arrival you will need to provide a map with the boundaries accurately drawn. Paper or electronic are acceptable.  Stand recommendations are included, but stand prep is not.  Lease owners must show a copy of the lease.  Please email for pricing.  The options are full and half day with fees for lodging,  travel, and  meals.