The author has spent considerable time studying funnels and hunting them. This beautiful 150-class 12-pointer was intercepted in a 50-yard-wide funnel between two large open areas. The funnel consisted of heavy vegetation.

As my headlights lit up the gravel road in front of me, I could hardly believe my eyes. It was the opening morning of rifle season, and standing in the road -- right next to the property I was about to hunt -- was a tremendous buck! He turned, gracefully jumped a barbed-wire fence, and disappeared into the darkness. Thirty minutes later, as the eastern horizon was beginning to brighten, another buck moved through the same area as I watched from my stand. Then, less than an hour after sunrise, the biggest buck of the morning approached my position from the opposite direction.

You might think I was just lucky that morning, but I know differently. I had done my homework, and I was sitting in the middle of a well-used deer funnel. The three bucks I had seen were using that funnel to move through while they searched for hot does that morning.

We all know that finding and using good funnels are key ingredients to solving the deer-hunting puzzle. When you find a funnel in the deer woods, you greatly increase your chances of seeing and harvesting venison. To take things a step further, if you want the opportunity to harvest a true trophy buck, you must pay special attention to several important "funnel factors."

FUNNEL FACTOR NO. 1
WHY DEER USE FUNNELS
It's important to understand exactly why deer choose to travel through funnel areas. To begin with, a funnel is usually the easiest or most convenient path for deer to follow as they move from point A to point B. This does not always mean that it is the fastest or most direct route, though.

For example, if a deer wants to travel from its bedding area on one side of a ridge to a food plot on the other side, it probably won't walk straight up and over the ridge, even though that would be the quickest and straightest route. Instead, the deer most likely will find the easiest path, while also being careful not to compromise its safety. In most cases, this means skirting around the peak and traveling through a saddle or bench on its way to the other side.

When we turn our attention to mature bucks, though, there is much more involved than simply following the easiest path. For the big boys, security is usually the most important factor that determines where they will -- and will not -- travel. For trophy bucks, this means that the funnels they follow will almost always consist of protective cover. In addition, these travel routes will often lead the animal into the predominant wind, at least slightly, so that the deer's keen sense of smell is always in play as it moves from one area to another.

When all of these factors come together -- an easy travel route, the presence of good security cover, and a travel path that utilizes the deer's keen sense of smell -- another key piece of understanding about funnels becomes clear: Deer will use these same funnels time after time, season after season, generation after generation. If you are fortunate enough to hunt the same property each season, you already know what I'm talking about. When you find an area that funnels a deer's travel movements, it's a spot that will probably produce results for you time and time again.

Identifying these deer highways is not only extremely helpful when it comes to hanging a stand and ambushing a buck, but it can also be very beneficial if you conduct deer drives and want to position a shooter in the best spot possible. Deer will travel through funnels when they are not pressured, and they usually choose to follow a funnel -- especially if it provides cover -- when they are pressured. But how do you find a promising deer funnel? Start by looking at a map.

page: 1 | 2 | 3