I have been turkey scouting since the beginning of February and have been noticing plenty of deer sign along the way. I intend to hunt the same relative areas for deer come July as I am hunting turkeys now so I am trying to record the information with pins on OnX as I come across it. My current style of scouting includes a ton of walking on trails and into semi open valleys and hillsides looking for visible sign, listening for gobbles, and looking for birds at a distance. I usually end up covering around 10-12 miles each day I am out. I have also been trying to go to a new area each time to expand my familiarity. I've only been to one area twice and that was because I shot a pig the first time I was out which detracted from the scouting aspect.
For some context, I have been a duck hunter my entire hunting career and have hunted the occasional dove/turkey/drew a doe tag and got lucky my first morning. The last 4 years I have been stationed on Oahu and have hunted pigs/goat/sheep but there is no seasonality and the animals are extremely consistent with their established ranges and behaviors. I've recently moved back to California and have made it a point to be more serious about my preparation going into 2026 since I am in an entirely new area and hunting animals that are new to me.
- What information do you find relevant to keep track of in the Spring?
- Can I count on deer that I am seeing now to also be in those same spots come late summer and fall?
I see groups of does every single time I go out and I recognize that the areas I am looking for turkeys most likely don't hold bucks that consistently, just by by nature of the terrain being semi-open and the proximity to established trails. I have been seeing places that appear to be prospects for glassing, but because my current focus is finding turkeys I haven't actually sat and glassed these areas. I've dropped a few pins with the intent to return later in the year before deer season starts. I have also been dropping pins on any bucks I've seen (only 1 so far near the road) and when I come across very obvious buck tracks.
If you were in my shoes what would you consider info that is worth noting and revisiting? Anything I am missing?
Thanks for any input
For some context, I have been a duck hunter my entire hunting career and have hunted the occasional dove/turkey/drew a doe tag and got lucky my first morning. The last 4 years I have been stationed on Oahu and have hunted pigs/goat/sheep but there is no seasonality and the animals are extremely consistent with their established ranges and behaviors. I've recently moved back to California and have made it a point to be more serious about my preparation going into 2026 since I am in an entirely new area and hunting animals that are new to me.
- What information do you find relevant to keep track of in the Spring?
- Can I count on deer that I am seeing now to also be in those same spots come late summer and fall?
I see groups of does every single time I go out and I recognize that the areas I am looking for turkeys most likely don't hold bucks that consistently, just by by nature of the terrain being semi-open and the proximity to established trails. I have been seeing places that appear to be prospects for glassing, but because my current focus is finding turkeys I haven't actually sat and glassed these areas. I've dropped a few pins with the intent to return later in the year before deer season starts. I have also been dropping pins on any bucks I've seen (only 1 so far near the road) and when I come across very obvious buck tracks.
If you were in my shoes what would you consider info that is worth noting and revisiting? Anything I am missing?
Thanks for any input
