What has been your observations with scrapes you find on walking paths? the paths that are cut around property say for hunters to walk on or four wheelers or just for you to get to your stands. or even scrapes on old logging roads.I have seen a ton of scrapes this year on these foot paths or old logging roads, but I have not seen a single deer on camera in daylight on these paths. I assume they are just casually visiting these scrapes in the dark?
I have seen lots of scrapes on my place along paths that I use regularly. They even use the spot where I park my tractor every year. Like you, I don't see much daytime activity, but at night a lot happens. I don't think bucks are casual about the activity, at least as the rut gets closer. They are looking for action. As the peak of the rut comes, hopefully you will see some of these deer in the early morning light.
one path has literally a scrape every 5 yards. I normally pay no attention to them because i see them every year on these paths and the cameras always show night time deer, but man this year it is has been hit regularly. I did not have cam on this one path so i don't know when they are doing it. I did sit there this weekend in the PM and saw nothing.
I have seen the same thing. My friend's farm had certain fields that had scrapes all around them. Look ahead for a bush or tree with overhanging branches for licking and there will be a scrape there. But I NEVER saw any daytime use of these.
ChuckC
well I get it around a field edge. I know they will do that while at night in the field when eating and hanging out in the fields around here, rarely do people kill bucks in the fields here..but some of these paths are snack in the middle of thick cutovers. I figured they would feel "safe " enough to check em during daylight hours. or apparently not!
Field edge scrapes don't see daytime use as frequently.
I once read that the early scrapes you see open up are likely to be the more prominently used scrapes.
I don't know how accurate this is, but it makes you think.
I've only killed two bucks off of scrape lines. The first I shot while he was working the branch and the buck I shot this year heading to the scrape line.