Glassing opinions...

Hntn4em · Sep 26, 2008

LAST EDITED ON Sep-26-08 AT 02:36PM (MST)[p]I have talked to several people and they all seem to have differing opinions on the method to the muley madness. The overall consensus is to climb high, glass early, and glass longer than you think you should. Talking with folks though, everyone has an opinion on where to glass and when. I think that it is better to morning glass south facing slopes, mid-day north facing cover, and evenings are usually the inbetweens for me keeping in mind water. But, what do you all think?

sageadvice · Sep 26, 2008

"The overall consensus is to climb high, glass early, and glass longer than you think you should."

That is good advice! Depends how or if you plan your hunt out or play it by ear, letting the hunt take you where it may. If i believe, that i'm pretty much the only hunter in the area and that there are good deer there, i'll really take my time anytime that i can see a lot of country. Your thoughts on where to glass and why are valid and to be kept in mind but don't overlook or fail to glass ANY area within sight!

I always like to use my eyes first especially looking over the closer in areas and scanning for any animals that are obvious, may be alert to me, or already in the escape mode. I will usually sit to glass, again starting near and gradually working out farther, eventually glassing distant ridges with the S. scope some might think too far away to matter. Then repeat... Then repeat...

I can't tell you how many times i've sat to glass and 20 minutes later had a buck that was bedded, stand up within range, him being there the whole time, but hid from sight while bedded. If you believe in the area, use your glasses more than your boots. Once you find him, that's another matter.

Joey

fatrooster · Sep 27, 2008

I glass anytime and anywhere but I must admit that morning glassing is magic time. I see more in the morning than any other time with evening being second best of course. But it seems that the game is always breaking the rules and I've seen them sometimes in the morning, sometimes in the evening and sometimes I find game in the middle of the day and sometimes and especially in colder temps I'll find them all day long.
Sometimes I'll find deer year after year on one side of a mountain only to have them break the rules and hang out on the other side the next year. So to make a long story short, there are no rules and game is where you find it and if something works for you then by all means keep doing it and if one day it is not working then change up your routine. fatrooster.

eelgrass · Sep 27, 2008

As a general rule....glass the edges of openings all day, and spotlight the openings at night.

Sorry, I don't get to go hunting this weekend, and I'm bored.

I agree with sage and 'rooster!

Eel

MJRELKFREAK · Sep 27, 2008

i glass mouring till 10 or so. if i see the buck i want i putt him to bed. then i go back to camp and go back to bed. around 2 i get up eat. wash up and put on fresh camo. then i go back and see if he is still in his bed. if so i draw a map and start the stalk. after he has been in his bed for that long he feels safe and his graud is down. most times chin on dirt asleep. i never glass mid day or still hunt my glassing areas. then the last 2 hrs of day i glass to see where the deer are comming out of bedding areas. if i see something i want moore than 2 times in the same spot i sit in ground blinds where they are emerging from cover. i like spot and stalking them in their bed alot moore than waiting or blundering threw the woods hoping i see a buck. i dont want to waist 1 step if its not 180 plus. lazy nope just dont waist my energy. if i still hunt all day then the next mourning spot a buck 3 miles away i want that energy to be there and it wont be.

LuckyShot · Sep 27, 2008

dude, you're all wrong! Every one of ya. Glassing is for losers!! I never glass. Dont need to!!! I'm that good!!!!I just load up my gear and before daylight start blasting though all the areas where you know the deer frequent. So while you lazy losers are up sitting on your elevated spotting points which have taken you two hours to hike into, with all of your $1000's of dollars in spotting scopes and binoculars, I am plowing blindly through the trees below you, making as much noise as I can. That noise below you that you think is a bind bull moose in full rut shredding trees and humping rocks and who knows what else as it tears apart the bottom of your "secret canyon" is just me! And I have no idea what I'm pushing out in front of me....because it's still dark and I cannot see what I am blowing out of your canyon...your little honey hole you've been watching all summer. But who cares!!!! I sure dont!!! I'm hunting!! I'm on a mission to find something to shoot and in my book the best way is to GO HARD or GO HOME!!!!! so you can keep all of your spotting points and "binoculars" and "spotting scopes." I'll just stick with my approach and my philisophy that binoculars and glassing, like airbags and parachutes...are for pussies!!!!! GO HARD or GO HOME!!!!!!GO BLINDLY!!!! GO EARLY!!!! GO HARDD!!!!!!
signed, "that one guy we all know who ruins at least one hunt for us each year"........y'know.....that guy

sageadvice · Sep 27, 2008

LuckyShot, LOL that's pretty funny stuff. Actually, on public ground, i count on a few guys like you're talking, to help make my hunt better!

Keep up the good work! Oh, and Thank You! lol

Joey

mulebuck · Sep 27, 2008

>i glass mouring till 10 or
>so. if i see the
>buck i want i putt
>him to bed. then i
>go back to camp and
>go back to bed. around
>2 i get up eat.
>wash up and put on
>fresh camo. then i go
>back and see if he
>is still in his bed.

I like the idea of being fresh for a stalk. However, why would you not go after a buck when you have put him to bed in the morning?

Luckyshot - you're post had me rollin'. I think we've all experienced that crap at one time or another.

AZbowhntr · Sep 28, 2008

Well I was able to take Duwane Adams glassing class a couple months ago. I have pretty much known how to glass before the class but I learned a lot about when to glass and what direction. We glassed southeast facing slopes until around 8 in the morning and then switched over and started glassing the opposite sides. I have never seen so many deer in my life. Granted they were Coues deer but still. If you ever get the chance I highly recommend his class.

MJRELKFREAK · Sep 28, 2008

here is the why. i want him to chill, get realy confortable and know he is safe. that takes time. not 1 hr either. the longer he is there the moore he relaxes and te moore of his guard he lets down. i return to spoting place and see whats up before i take a step. most times he is asleep... chin on dirt. my odds go way up to get in on him. circle around till im above him. wind currents are stable and will be uphill. his eyes are closed. and his ears will be turned away from me. how many moore ways can i stack my odds? but the best part is every step i take in the stalk. i know what my reward is if i connect. hunting just dont get any better than that. i picked this up from Larry Jones and Dwight Schue some 20 yrs ago. many pro,s and guides use the same system. its no secret. ken

cabinfever · Oct 1, 2008

Good topic!

I'm a big advocate of climbing the highest peak to glass. If you can get in an area where you have 360 degrees to glass you will have plenty of country to look over in a morning or evening glassing session. Here are a few things I have learned over the years.These are in order of how I glass.

1)Glass the close open areas first. I don't know why but this is hard for me to do. I guess I don't anticipate a big buck standing out in the open a few hundred yards below me, but this year we had a pretty respectable buck within 250 yds and I had started glassing the distant areas first.

2) Glass the the close areas near the edge of timber.

3)Glass distant open areas.

4)Glass distant areas along the edge of timber

5) I'm not a grid glasser.I try and cover the whole mountain, but I do it based on areas that look bucky as well as past experience. Don't discount those areas that you think would be deerless. I've seen big bucks in areas I thought looked like they would hold no deer.

6) I don't get caught up in the whole southwest northwest glassing at certain times of the day drama. The key is to follow the shadows. Deer generally don't like to bed in the open sun. Glass the shadows and you will spot more deer. An exception to this rule is the timberline country. Deer at these altitudes will sometimes bed in the open sun.

Mornings are the most effective time to glass, however, if you are hunting a full moon, deer seem to be more active in the early evenings than mornings. they have been up all night feeding and are bedded before sunrise so around 4-5pm they seem to get real active.

MJRELKFREAK · Oct 1, 2008

very good stuff. i do alot of the same. the high line bucks that do bed out in open most times will be close to some cover but will seldome be alone. most bucks in the high country durring bow season are bunched in bachelore herds. from 3 to 30 in a groop. this is my favorite deer to stalk. say i got 10 bucks bedded. 20 eyes 20 ears and 10 noses. im stalking a monster. thats a challange.

nickman · Oct 1, 2008

Losers!

I sleep in late. When I get up, I head to where my trailcam has been showing a nice buck and I ambush him while he is eating the apples I left for him the night prior to the opener.

There is no set time or place for glassing a deer area.

Deer bedded down are HARD to spot and you have to be patient. I've shot them at first light and near dark and every hour in between.

They pee or dump, something like 26 times a day and they have to stand up to do it. If you have chosen your area well and are "on the glass", you can catch them moving around. They can catch you "moving around" at much farther distance, so pick your spot and stay silll.

I believe in the 3-2-1 rule. Deer can hear you for 3 miles, see you at 2 miles and smell you for 1 mile. Relocating to glass somewhere else is shakey at best.

Or you could just road hunt.

Hntn4em · Oct 1, 2008

I always love the intelligent replies that tend to show up every once in a while on a half-way interesting question. BTW what does everyone think? Would you glass out your herd bull the same way you would glass out your muley?

MJRELKFREAK · Oct 1, 2008

just like in nature ther always is a young buck with moore ego than wisdom. people an no differnt. i dont mind when they show just how wise they are. good for a grin every time. as far as elk i do not stalk them in their bed so no would be my input. as far as spotting bedded bucks. it takes practise.