First time I have seen this thread and it is a never ending question for sure.
One thing I have figured out for sure is no two mature deer are the same. They are like humans w/ their own personality.
I think that as the season moves on the bedding areas change.
Early season I seem to find more of the mature bucks in small draws w/ in a mile of a big timber. I find alot of them sitting at the tips of draws or half way down them. I think this is because the does for most of the spring and summer controlled the real quality bedding areas for fawning.
As November comes i find them getting closer to the doe bedding areas or will pull them into the middle of nowhere to breed and not get bothered.
Once shotgun season comes around I find alot of them again in the tips of draws where they can see. I also find alot of them to be close to switchgrass. That is where i really think these deer get old. Last year during gun season I seen one come out of some pines a 1/2 mile from a hwy and walk 50 yds into the switchgrass.
As it gets colder I think they tend to go to the thicker stuff w/ food as long as there isn't too many deer. If there is too many deer I think they will go for a secondary area.
I personally don't believe most of your truly big mature deer spend a lot of time in the big timbers. I think over the years they have learned that's where we go so they go for the second best alternative that gives them all they need (food, habitat, does, and multiple escape routes) which to me seems to be the draws outside the big timbers.
