Inside Corners

I'm halfway listening to a lecture right now, but really thinking about some different set ups for hunting...

I hear people talk about inside corners in reference to fields and things like that, but do you still hunt these "corners" when it refers to different types of trees?

Where I hunt, there is a large section of pines, where I'm sure deer are bedding, but it seems like such a large area, I'm not sure where to go in it. This is an example of what I am talking about:

Corners yes, but i would look hard around the thick patch in the lower right and hunt trails that come out of it... i would focus on the left side between the line of pines and that thick patch. Cant tell the topography from the pic but i would factor that in as well

Topography is what I'm thinking too. Somewhere along that edge of the short pines, is there a ridge or obvious terrain factor? Cluster of white oaks, thinner spot in the edge/briar buffer, or something that looks more obvious like that's where the deer are exiting?

This is the topo of that area. It doesn't line up perfectly with the first picture, but you get the idea.





And also note: I have seen deer (the one I missed) in this area. so I have some general idea of where ONE place is to hunt, but the spot seems dead now, no more sign or activity (the oaks have stopped dropping there too)

Thanks for the help. I'm always learning, you guys have a wealth of knowledge that I appreciate.

Also, on the topo I took a little bigger picture so you could see the ridge.

If im looking right, the line of pines is a ridge top with pines going off the ridge? Definitley check the top between the 2 thick areas and look for trails just off the top, down the ridge a little ways. The inside corner also looks good but i would still key in on the thick patch to the right, the western edge and nw tip of it.

Also, the bottom of pic looks like a finger ridge of pines sticks out.. i would hunt in it if possible. Deer will come across going from one side to the other along the bottom of the pine ridge

Find trails coming out of thick stuff. They're more than likely bedding in the thickest area there and just traveling through the pines.

That's where I missed the deer

It's also helpful to know that the left of the big pine thicket is a cow pasture and the left of the small cluster is a small and very narrow green field that gets super pressured. To the right of the cluster is the road

You need to find the trails between the thicket and the food plot. They're going to stage around that plot just before dark so that they can eat after dark. You cut them off between bedding and the plot and you'll be golden.

I think your ridge will be better than your pines for bedding and travel unless the pines are young and very thick. The ridge looks steap in places and fairly thick, if it is the bucks will use these areas as much as any. Your point on the south west corner would be a good place to start.

This might be a dumb question, but should I hunt on the actual steep part of the ridge? Not just on top, but 1/4, 1/3/ or half way down? I guess I just assumed it would be too steep to have much deer traveling, but the more I think about it the more I'm thinking Im wrong on that.

Gotta be careful climbing on the side of a ridge. If it's very steep, you may be 20' off the ground but eyeball level with any deer coming down the ridge.

what you are refering to hunting is called transition lines. I spend a great deal of time looking at aerial/topography images. try using caltopo.com, you can overlay aerial with topography and adjust the shading of each image on top of each other. very useful

I know the flat tops "look good" but the mountain side is where I've had more success in mountain land. I've always been one to want big open hardwoods and they look good if you want to enjoy the view but the deer travel and bed in those thick hard to get to places on the mountain side. Its took me several years to try to renew my mind on this I think about 1/3 way down around the point on your southwest side looks good. Sometimes they will have benches and sometimes they want. I like being right on the edge of a bench that falls off to another one so you can see both. Usually there will be good trails on these benches and they don't have to be very big to really get used. I personally like the mountain side that has thicker cedars on it. They always have good buck sign. You just have to be ready when you hunt these areas. Many times your view is limited.

Thanks for the advice.

Guess I'll try to hunt a couple of those further away areas the next evening I hunt, so I can kind of quickly scout them out.

So I went a basically walked the perimeter of the 2nd biggest cluster of pines in the picture (the long stretch that runs east to west). I walked out on the point that ghost rabbit suggested and its super young, super thick pines on top of the point. There was trail that ran along the pines on the north side of that cluster, seemed like decent sign in there. The only problem is, I saw maybe 2 climbable trees. Guess I'll just keep trying things and see what works!

Doesn't sound like a problem to me. A climbable tree among young, thick pines sounds like a good spot.

I hunt a spot kind of similar to that setup Jono. The other guys pretty much are spot on in their assessment of how to hunt it. If you have other places to go, you may want to concentrate elsewhere until the rut starts kicking up. I stay out of the similar spot I hunt until the rut gets going there. Every year there will be bucks cruising the downwind side of the thick stuff trying to wind does.