Ideal clear cut age for blacktails?

[chad24n]

IMO scouting bucks this time of year is pointless unless you’re scouting farmland or semi-urban areas . Higher elevations between now and September the bucks will be in different terrain and elevation from my experience! I start really scouting my areas in September

This may be more or less true for gunners in high country, but, for lowland clearcuts (most everything west of I5), though, I'd highly disagree. I don't hunt the rut though with a gun, I'm an archer and now through the second week of August is absolute prime time to figure out where the bucks are in cuts. From my personal experience, west of I5, hunting archery in September, these deer do not travel far at all. I would say their core home area is the size of 3-5 football fields. With their antlers in velvet (they are sensitive and don't want to be in brush), and no hunting pressure right now, the bucks hang out in the open (cuts) deep into the morning. Once you find a nice buck, revisit that same spot every week and chances are you'll see him again and again. Come September, he is still there, however, he'll most likely have gone nocturnal on you. Find his bedding spots in bordering reprod or timber. Most often, those beds will be within 100 yards of the cut you found him in in the summer. In this case, you gotta figure a route to sneak in on his bed areas and about the only way to successfully hunt him with a bow is via tree stand. If you bust him once, he could be gone for weeks. These big boys are elusive and tough to get a shot on.

To give more perspective, when I go out scouting cuts now, I typically see at least a half dozen bucks and at least 20 does or so (sometimes a dozen bucks). And I see these guys in a 2-4 hour dirt road hike starting at 5am. Get out there at the crack of dawn. You will be shocked at how small there home range is.

Edit: Any age cut you can see in is fine for scouting now, hunt wise, I agree with everyone else... Christmas tree size... they do love taller reprod during the day if you can find a nice spot for stand hunting.
The rut at end of October and on throws all of this off.. I'm sure.

[smithkl42]

To give more perspective, when I go out scouting cuts now, I typically see at least a half dozen bucks and at least 20 does or so (sometimes a dozen bucks). And I see these guys in a 2-4 hour dirt road hike starting at 5am. Get out there at the crack of dawn. You will be shocked at how small there home range is.

Man, where do you go (west of the PCT) where you can see that many deer in a day? Where I've been scouting (and hunting), I'm lucky to see that many in a year.

[JasonG]

To give more perspective, when I go out scouting cuts now, I typically see at least a half dozen bucks and at least 20 does or so (sometimes a dozen bucks). And I see these guys in a 2-4 hour dirt road hike starting at 5am. Get out there at the crack of dawn. You will be shocked at how small there home range is.

Man, where do you go (west of the PCT) where you can see that many deer in a day? Where I've been scouting (and hunting), I'm lucky to see that many in a year.

no doubt!?

[deerhunter_98520]

To give more perspective, when I go out scouting cuts now, I typically see at least a half dozen bucks and at least 20 does or so (sometimes a dozen bucks). And I see these guys in a 2-4 hour dirt road hike starting at 5am. Get out there at the crack of dawn. You will be shocked at how small there home range is.

Man, where do you go (west of the PCT) where you can see that many deer in a day? Where I've been scouting (and hunting), I'm lucky to see that many in a year.

no doubt!?

Then you guys haven't found a honey hole yet....I average that many a day also. Glass glass glass, if I see a guy on a cut that I like and know deer frequent I will come back after they leave and spot deer. Majority of people don't glass the cuts and reprod enough or their just doin quick scans looking for the hole body of the deer standing in the open. If you guys want to kill mature blacktail bucks then you have to change your tactics and glass for bits and pieces of the deer. Come rifle season it sure helps, that's when these bigger bucks go from basically nocturnal to roamers looking for does and will show themselves in daylight. Also, blacktails don't migrate on the westside. They have their core home range and don't move far. If you find a big buck in summer he most likely will be around that area in the fall, come the rut he will travel depending on the does population around him but it won't be miles of travel down a mountain. This is where finding a good doe population comes into play, find them does in the summer and keep track of them and come fall bucks from around the area will be cruising the area. Also when it's getting rut time and your finding does, pay attention to their behavior. The does will tell you if a buck is with them, they will be on edge and constantly looking towards them, use them as lookouts for the bucks.

[JasonG]

How old do you think this cut is ? Trees are 1 1/2” -2 “ base and 6-8 ‘ tall?

[deerhunter_98520]

Probably 8-10yrs

[JasonG]

Probably 8-10yrs

Its very thick!!

[Alan K]

Google Earth has several years of photos for most parts of the state. Any units under 10-12 years old you should be able to tell within a year or two by looking through the different aerials.

[deerhunter_98520]

That's the type of area that they will bed down in all day and feed in it.  I would much rather find a good vantage point or a spot where several trails intersect and hang the stand here instead of the other pic

[wooltie]

Have you guys noticed a difference in deer population/activity between clear cuts that see a lot of vehicle traffic vs a clear cut that you have to walk to?

On private timberland in whatcom/skag/sno county, most clear cuts are right next to a road so the vehicle traffic is constant during Oct.  The hike in clear cuts are far and few.

IT is what it is and I just expect company in the form of road hunters when hunting private timberland, which has turned me off from clear cuts on private timber.

Gotta find a gated area, perhaps some dnr and use the mtn bike.

[JasonG]

There isnt a lot of clear cuts on state land in 454 . Some but they seem to get hit pretty hard. I do the mountain bike thing now.

[JasonG]

That's the type of area that they will bed down in all day and feed in it.  I would much rather find a good vantage point or a spot where several trails intersect and hang the stand here instead of the other pic

those two spots are 1/2 mile apart .

[JimmyHoffa]

Have you guys noticed a difference in deer population/activity between clear cuts that see a lot of vehicle traffic vs a clear cut that you have to walk to?

On private timberland in whatcom/skag/sno county, most clear cuts are right next to a road so the vehicle traffic is constant during Oct.  The hike in clear cuts are far and few.

IT is what it is and I just expect company in the form of road hunters when hunting private timberland, which has turned me off from clear cuts on private timber.

Gotta find a gated area, perhaps some dnr and use the mtn bike.

I haven't.  Up until the season, they seem about the same.  Hunting clearcuts during bear, it is about the same if they are roadside or if you have to go in a behind a gate.  Once deer (modern) opens, the traffic jams at the roadside ones on the landings are such a show, I don't keep too many tabs on those.

[elkh8me]

About 15 year old reprod the stuff you can barely see an ear or horn sticking out of...

[chad24n]

To give more perspective, when I go out scouting cuts now, I typically see at least a half dozen bucks and at least 20 does or so (sometimes a dozen bucks). And I see these guys in a 2-4 hour dirt road hike starting at 5am. Get out there at the crack of dawn. You will be shocked at how small there home range is.

Man, where do you go (west of the PCT) where you can see that many deer in a day? Where I've been scouting (and hunting), I'm lucky to see that many in a year.

no doubt!?

Obviously I'm not answering that! Haha. However, a few further details, the main spot I'm referencing borders hundreds of acres of heavily forested private land, it is gated, and jumps from a vast range of aged clear cuts... brand new up to 30 yrs old (like everywhere right?). It also gets lots of brush pickers (a pain during hunting but I'm curious if this desensitizes deer some).

I wouldn't necessarily call it a honey hole... it is well hunted... and during September, I always see deer but am lucky to see 6 in a day and even luckier to see a buck. They dont leave the area, they go nocturnal and get wary right around first to second week in September (bigger bucks get wary when velvet is gone).

Go scouting now, do it once every week or two for half a day. Start your hike at 445am. You'll see deer behind any gate every day. If its west of I5, chances are very high they stay in an area smaller than 4 or 5 football fields. I dont scout east of i5 so cant speak to that. For me, end of June & July seems to be best time to find big bucks and their homes. It gives me confidence in Sept. Cuz I know they're there, I just cant see them! (And cams prove they are still there)