Who made this rub?
A rub can tell you which direction its maker was traveling

Hunters may not be able to identify individual bucks by the rubs they make, as other deer can, but a close examination yields clues to the animal's size, dominance, and direction of travel. Here's what to look for:

• Both dominant and subordinate bucks mark small trees of ¿¿ to 2 inches in diameter, but rubs on larger trees are the work of larger antlers.
• Dominant bucks tend to hit the same trees over and over, a trait seldom observed with smaller deer.
• Broken branches and bent or broken tree trunks are left by deer driven by high testosterone levels-"in other words, trophy bucks.
• Gouges in a rub are made by antler points, especially the nubs near the antler bases, and can signify that the sign was made by a big buck.
• Rubs on only one side of a tree show that the buck approached from that direction. Marks on both sides are a better indication of a rub line along a buck's route to and from a particular location.
• Damaged brush adjacent to a rub tree is typically the work of a buck with wide-set antlers. -"K.M.