DRIFTWOOD OUTDOORS: Hunting barnyard bucks

Travel patterns can often lead deer to you

Brandon Butler (left) and his cousin, Derek Butler, practice in the barnyard they grew up hunting in, circa 1992.
Brandon Butler (left) and his cousin, Derek Butler, practice in the barnyard they grew up hunting in, circa 1992.

Most of the Midwestern agricultural lands where giant deer roam are void of large chunks of timber. For the most part, the pancake-flat topography is a checkerboard of fenced fields with occasional 10- to 40-acre woodlots dispersed randomly throughout.

Hunter density is high and habitat is scarce. It takes creativity to locate a honey-hole, but once you do, the spot will likely pay off year in and year out. My favorite just happens to be an old barnyard.

If a buck is going to travel during daylight, they want to be tight to cover. Once the crops are out, the minimal cover of a fencerow or ditch bank may be the only option. Positioning yourself along these high-traffic travel routes is a best bet for connecting on a bruiser buck.

Deer are creatures of habit. If they find ....