When it comes to whitetail deer hunting, harvesting mature bucks can be difficult in some states, particularly if you wait to long after the beginning of the season to go hunting. By the time young bucks become mature, they've already figured out that movement is dangerous during hunting season. In fact, deer that were captured and fitted with GPS collars to track their movement proved that middle-aged bucks (3-4 years old) tend to shift their homes to remote areas where hunters are less likely to be. So what's a hunter to do? Go to a whitetail deer hunting ranch. Here's why. 

Finding mature bucks on public land can be difficult 

Public land areas welcome whitetail deer hunters to help control the deer population. However, public land is the most accessible for hunters to travel to to enjoy their favorite seasonal past-time of hunting, and this is not necessarily a good thing. It's not uncommon for hunters to see a number of other hunters walking through the woods, scouting out areas where you've already scouted. Sometimes, you may see more hunters than you do deer and most of the deer you do see are does or young bucks. In order to find mature bucks on public land, you will need to go deep into the land. 

Drawbacks of owning private land to hunt on 

Whitetail deer hunting on your own private land may sound like a dream come true, but it can also be a nightmare. Not only is there an upfront cost of purchasing enough private land where you can safely hunt whitetail deer, you need to pay annual property taxes. There's also a concern of trespassers and wildlife poachers getting injured while on your property—or worse—shot and killed by another trespasser. Of course, you could staple 'private land, no hunting' signs throughout the property, but that doesn't always work because those signs are sometimes ignored, unfortunately. 

Advantages of hunting on a wildlife ranch 

Hunting ranches are scattered throughout the United States and provide a way for hunting enthusiasts to enjoy the hunt on privately-owned property without running the risk of hunting in an area overly-crowded with other hunters. Guided hunting ranches can help take a lot of the guesswork out of where to look for mature bucks. More importantly, hunting guides can tell you what size the deer you have in sight is before you pull the trigger. That way, you would not inadvertently use your allotted number of tags on smaller deer, depending on the hunting license laws of the state where the ranch is located.