SIGN, SIGN, EVERYWHERE A SIGN
How to correctly interpret rubs, tracks, droppings, scrapes and more to boost your odds of connecting with a trophy white-tailed buck this fall
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Deer may linger to feed in places they feel safe (photo: Sheila Brown/Needpix)STAGING AREAS
A staging area is a small opening where deer feel confident as they linger in the morning to feed a bit more before returning to their bedding area. They’ll also visit their trusted staging area early in the afternoon to snack before heading to their larger feeding grounds when it gets closer to dark. Rubs and scrapes will be evident if bucks are using the area.
The concealed corner of an old apple orchard is one of my favourite staging areas to hunt. A small soybean or alfalfa field in the back 40 that’s surrounded on three sides by woods can also be very productive. Best of all is a huge oak tree that’s covered the forest floor with acorns, 30 yards inside the treeline. Find one of these active staging areas, and it could prove to be yet another gem of a hunting spot—and your ticket to success.
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