I recently gained access to a small plot of land in western Jackson county. The land goes straight uphill and the hillside a comprised of 4-6 rocky plateaus, each of which regularly contain deer.

I've been told the deer follow a general pattern of going up and down the hill at certain times of day, but I'm not sure what that pattern is yet.

In your experiences, do you usually see deer going uphill during the morning or afternoons? What about downhill? I'm trying to decide whether or not to hide behind a plateau and wait for them to come downhill or lay flat on a plateau and wait for them to start coming uphill. I plan on hunting from sunup-10am or so.

If anyone has experiences hunting on steep hillsides or in Jackson county any help would be great. Thanks!

Any benches on that hillside

I hunt in woodville which is in Jackson county and they have been going uphill in the mornings and downhill in the afternoons

Up hill in the morning and down hill in the afternoon is what I have always been told. But I have had deer come from all directions at all this of the day

It depends on what end their head is on.

I personally would hunt from the side of the mountain overlooking a bench. I would determine how high of a bench (toward the top or bottom) to hunt over based on the time of day. Bench toward the top in morning and bench toward bottom in the afternoon. I would not lay down on a plateau or bench and wait for them to come up. Most places I hunt you couldn't see well enough and the chances of a deer coming straight up the mountain right at you would be small. Also, from what I've seen deer will work their way up or down the mountain diagonally from one bench to another so that's why I would want to be up so I could actually see on the bench. My .02 cents. Disclaimer: I am by no means an expert. Just speaking from personal experience. Good luck! Hopefully they're still chasing. Like was said, they can come from any direction...

Great tips, thanks guys! I like the bench from the side idea a lot.

Set up on the edge so you can watch the bench below you and still see the one above,near a hollow.Ive seen a lot of them travel along the edge of the ledge.

Been hunting diverse mountainsides for years. Some benches are wide and steadily stair-stepping, and some narrow and steep. Some chalk full of boulders and rocks and some beautifully open.

I've never had much luck blindly hunting open (too good to be true) timber on benches in the mountain unless I know there is a group regularly using that area.

If there are any draws or washes on your piece of property...try to overlook that draw in the mornings. Deer sometimes like to use those draws to make their way up the mountain, walking the edges or sometimes in for a while before breaking off.

In the afternoons in October and November, I've had luck with deer moving straight down the mountain, but their patterns always change on me in December once I've busted them out of those trails they've been comfortable with all summer and autumn.

I've witnessed deer moving around, straight down, angling down, etc....in the afternoons. I planning my set on deer moving around personally. Think about it, if you have wind blowing up the mountain cutting straight across those benches, deer are gonna angle down the mountain or cut across them so they can smell everything below them (especially bucks nosing for does below them)...just an example.

Also, I like getting in the cedars and boulders. Bucks like walking in those nooks and crannies where they can dip straight off something steep and thick if they have to run. Even if you can't use a treestand, get in the thick stuff and try to get above a bench you think they're using with the wind blowing up the mountain. If your wind is blowing down the mountain at all in the afternoons, my hope would be grim for that hunt.

But you always gotta keep in mind...a deer is a deer. Their movement can't be predicted 100%. So just give yourself the best chance. The more you hunt your mountainside, the more you will become a pro at it than us. It just takes observation over a couple years to see what they are traditionally doing in certain spots.

Try the draw idea in the morning just to see if you can catch some moving up those washes from the bottoms in the AM.

Watch more deer than you shoot at! Even if they move in on you at dark, listen to them move on down the mountain. Don't spook them. Let them get away comfortably. Observe how those deer are moving in the afternoons and don't shoot your woods up until you get a glimpse of that "no brainer"!

Oh, last thing....best way to get in on those benches in the PM's is when the ground is damp so you can sneak...or during a drizzle so your scent get's washed out. If it's a small piece of property your gonna want to be really careful on keeping those deer comfortable moving through there so you will have a good chance of seeing a good buck.