Editor’s Note: Nationally-known deer seminar speaker, avid deer hunter and my longtime friend, Ronnie Groom of Panama City, Florida, owned C&G Sporting Goods for 60 years. He’s faced this problem of how to get a buck within range often in the areas he hunts. He uses these tactics, which work well for bowhunters and/or gun hunters, to funnel deer into their stand sites.

According to Ronnie Groom, “Something else to remember when you’re hunting a high-deer population region is to hunt the trails not utilized as much – rather than the trails with a lot of sign on them – particularly if you prefer to take a buck. I’ve observed that bucks generally come into a feeding area on lesser-used trails, rather than on the same trails that a bunch of does utilize. Therefore if a buck is my target, I’ll be hunting over the secondary trails rather than the primary trails. And, don’t forget that the wind will cancel-out some trails. If there are trails leading into a feeding spot from five different directions, the wind may rule out three of the trails, because your human scent will be carried down them. Then you only have one trail you need to turn deer off.”

You can keep up with the lesser-used trails you’ve identified by noting these in your onX Map, DeerCast and HuntStand apps, your GPS or a hunting journal.

Groom utilized this tactic a few years ago when he discovered an old fence line that ran through the woods. “There were two places – one a hole in the fence and the other a gap – where the deer were crossing the fence line. Since I wanted to make sure I had a deer to shoot at, I piled brush up in the hole and set-up my stand near the gap. The deer walked to where the hole was in the fence, turned and came right down to the gap where I took aim.”

In another instance, Groom chose a spot to hunt that had two trails coming out a swamp and crossing a road. He parked his vehicle on the road in front of one trail and set his stand up near the second trail. According to Groom, “Within a couple of hours, a buck came along the trail where I was set-up. I bagged that buck. When I locate two or three deer trails crossing a road, I always park my vehicle where the deer on one trail can see my truck, which generally forces them over to the trail I’m hunting.”

To learn more about deer hunting, see John E. Phillips’ book, “How to Hunt and Take Big Buck Deer on Small Properties,” available in Kindle, print and Audible versions.

Check out John’s book, “How to Hunt Deer Like a Pro,” available in Kindle, print and Audible versions.

When you click on these books, notice on the left where Amazon says you can read and hear 10% of the Audible books for free. You can click on Buy the Audible book on the right side of the pages and below the offer for a free Audible trial.

Click here to see all of John E. Phillips’ books on hunting and fishing.

Tomorrow: Narrow Funnels to Take Deer