The month of July is usually associated with vacations and frolicking in the sun, not hunting whitetails. The truth is that serious deer hunters will use this month as a starting point for their quest to find a trophy buck this fall, whether their weapon of choice is gun or bow. July is the month that deer start magically appearing in the fields and forest edges, where they feed on the lush vegetation that nature has provided. Their forays will bring them into the open an hour or two before dark, making them highly visible for sportsmen to observe.


By the Fourth of July, most bucks will have completed 80 to 90 percent of its annual antler growth, according to what numerous biologists have told me. May and June are the prime growth months, where a deer may add up to an inch of antler a day. By the start of July, bucks will have most of the headgear that they will carry into fall but may add some mass to their rack in the ensuing weeks before they shed their velvet. In other words, what you see on them now is basically what they are going to have this fall. To me, that is what makes this summer observation session so inspiring. Put the glasses on a good buck now, and you have started to put together the pieces of the puzzle necessary to put your tag on him this fall or winter.


So where do you start your summer quest to observe bucks? In the agricultural areas, it is an easy task. Simply start watching alfalfa or soybean fields during those long evening hours for activity. Usually the deer will focus on one particular food source, so if you have not observed any activity in one field during a couple of outings, try looking to others to determine where the bucks can be found.


How many might show up in one field is anyone’s guess. Some bucks prefer a solitary life, while others may link up with several other bucks to form a bachelor group this time of year. I have seen as many as 17 bucks in one such herd during field observations, but typically, seeing three or four bucks together is more the norm.


Bucks may stay grouped to some extent through early October, but once the mating instinct starts to affect their behavior, those deer most likely will not tolerate one another. Still, it is good to know that during the early archery season, if you see one buck that has been hanging around with a group you have become familiar with, you might just see that group together still. If that happens, you had better move in quickly with a good setup, because it could be a short-lived phenomenon. Of course, if you are not out scouting during the summer to observe these bucks together, you will not have a clue about what is taking place.


Farmland bucks are the easiest to locate and scout, but since most of us are forced to hunt in wooded areas, how do you go about scouting these? There are numerous ways you can focus your efforts. The best option is to use trail cameras to observe many different areas. I prefer to locate water sources during the summer months and focus on the trails that lead there when deciding where to place my cameras. Leave them in place at least a week so as to allow your intrusion into the area settle down so that the deer will resume a normal routine if you have bumped them.


You may even want to let the camera out longer during times when you know that you have spooked deer from the area. A little trick I use is to place my cameras out during a light rainfall or just after a thunderstorm has moved through the area in order to help keep my scent down as much as possible.


You can also make observations in the clearer areas of the forest. Bucks, particularly those that grow the biggest racks, are well aware of the damage that can be done to their antler growth by hitting them against objects. Due to this fact, they will often bed in more open timber than normal so that they have open avenues of travel to and from food and water sources. Playing the wind and setting up in a good vantage point can allow you to glass an area for deer activity during the first and last hours of the day.


Whitetails will also take advantage of breaks in the timber to use as travel routes and feeding areas at this time of the year. Things like right of ways, hiking trails, logging roads, or any other kind of avenue through the timber will become a highway or feeding area for deer. Carefully negotiating through these areas while using binoculars to scout ahead can allow you to catch a glimpse of potential targets for the fall hunting season.


The one thing I like about this method is that bucks I have observed in the woodland settings are usually not too far away from these areas come the fall hunting season. The bucks in agricultural areas can be vast distances away by this time, having been bumped from their summer range by the harvest of crops or a change in food sources.


Speaking of food sources, once you have located a whitetail that catches your interest, start looking for the things that will keep him in a given area during the fall and winter hunting seasons. Obviously, he will need various food sources, so take the time to locate what will be available in the fall. Knowing that he will want a secure area, start looking for places where he will be able to bed during the daytime hours to avoid people and predators. Also note where any doe groups are located in the area as well, as these will be of interest to him at some point during the fall. All of the pieces start falling into place now, and you need to be out there a couple of times a week to pattern the deer you will seek this fall.


It is a lot of work, but it will put you many steps ahead of others who wait until the week before the season opens to start doing their preparations. Having the knowledge of knowing what inhabits a particular area is more than enough to pull you out of a comfortable bed during the hunting season. For now, it will be fighting the gnats and humidity, but once you get those first glimpses of velvet-covered antlers, you can start putting your hunting plan together for the fall hunting season.