lets see a show of hands. How many of you all would rather hunt another time of year besides the rut? I find much more activity and success in the first 2-3 wks of the season. What are your opinions?
i like the rut as far as when u see a doe u probably see a buck or 2 but once they get em you dont see em
No way, I love the rut. It's more exciting and I see more bucks. I plan the majority of my hunting time vacation around the rut here in NJ. ;)
I am with jerseyboy, cant pattern any deer, and see does by the bunches, eventually might or might not see a buck. Not to mention orange army everywhere, roadhunters, and on and on. First 3 weeks of bow season here in KY rocks. You can pattern bucks in bachelor groups, and not much hunting pressure either.
Sorry Mike,
I see tons of deer during the rut. I see plenty earlier in the season too, and they are generally easier to shoot because they aren't moving so darn fast. I just love how much they are moving during all times of the day during the rut and alot of the times the previously nocturnal big boys come out to play early.
Early season for me! easy to patern, and I'm not to interested in antlers! Jason
I like the early as well nobody likes the warm temp and ticks.It gives me plenty of area for myself
I second that. I like the early season best...
After the fist week of Nov. was like someone flipped a switch, have not seen a deer in 8 days... was seeing a few almost every sit.
Glad I got a doe early!
Had 9 different bucks within 50 yds yesterday on MI gun opener, all trailing 2 hot does. It is a crap shoot though as my neighbor saw nada, zip, zilch.
i like tuesday thru monday from oct 1 till first part of january.
I have killed more deer and bucks in the first 2 weeks of the season year after year than at any other time. Not to mention that i love the warmer weather. two saturdays ago i woke to a good frost and 28 degree temps. After walking out on my back porch to survey the weather at 5:00 am i promptly got back in bed. call me a sissy but i dont like the cold and why should i have to contend with it with so much of the season in warmer weather here in NJ. The first 10 minutes of the early season i had a plump doe on the ground and the first hour of the second saturday i had a big 3 point on the ground so my vote goes to the early season.
i like the rut, yes patterning is nice in the early season but i bowhunt alot and when the rut rolls around i see a whole new batch of bucks plus the ones i have watched all season, plus more likely to see bucks at all times a day, i have no problem shooting does but there is still that extra excitement when i buck comes by
I love the rut because you never know what you are going to see! I have yet to take a deer during the rut with my bow.But it's all good because I have had more opprotunitys at big whitetail's during the rut.
In the early season find a funnel and you will have plenty of fun .
I just love seeing deer doing their undisturbed routines of the early season. Its much easier to predict where they will be for me.
I love to hunt the rut. Anything can happen at any time!
"NOVEMBER MADNESS" LOVE IT !!!!!!
The rut is real late getting fired up here in WV this year. I hunted Nov 6th thru the 13th and saw a total of 1 fawn. Saturday the 14th it was like you flipped a switch , I saw 12 deer on Saturday , saw 7 this morning and finished up my tags with a doe . SO I LOVE THE RUT :bigsmyl:
Jack
QuoteOriginally posted by jerseyboy:
lets see a show of hands. How many of you all would rather hunt another time of year besides the rut? I find much more activity and success in the first 2-3 wks of the season. What are your opinions?
Sure, a person could see alot of activity during that time, no doubt about it. In fact, the public area I hunt, I watched a field from mid August to mid September and would see 75 to over a 100 deer a night in that particuliar field. Seeing that many deer means nothing once the season gets started though, as things do change once hunting pressure begins. I see no deer in the evenings in that field anymore at this time of year, but the bigger buck sightings have been more up close and personal now.
My question to your question is, what's your goal to everything? If you want to see alot of deer, then maybe I'd agree with you. If you are looking to up your odds of success on a good buck, then I couldn't disagree with you more.
Down in here in south Alabama its hard to see a good buck unless the rut is on.
I like it all.
Gotta have 'em to see 'em. The ruts a great time to see lots of bucks. It's even a good chance you will see bucks that don't call your place home most of the year. Not to mention you may see them at any time of day.
The problem comes with a place with a large amount of doe. A buck doesn't need to travel around to find his next customer. He simply locks down with a hot doe, then after he breds her he doesn't have to roam to find another one. We keep our doe numbers very low. I would say we have a 2-1 or even maybe 3-1 buck to doe ratio. Shoot as many doe as your state will allow every year. This does two things. It makes more room for bucks to stay and it greatly helps at this time of year when the bucks get locked down with a hot doe.
during the rut you will see bucks that you would never hardly see any other time during hunting season
Rut, pre-rut, post-rut - it's all good. I just get grumpy when the orange army invades the place. :-D
Doesn't matter to me...I just want to be out there hunting as often as I can.
i like the rut also, seems like something is always movin, which means more opportunity.
I saw deer from Oct 1 to Oct 10. Didn't see any for 17 days. Then I started to see them again. I think the rut gets things happening, even if they are different than early season happenings. And I MUCH prefer the cold weather. I hate fighting mosquitos.
Not me. Over 85% of record book bucks were killed during the rut. Me? I'd trade 5 days of the early season here in Illinois for just one day during the second week of November.
I gotta say I'm a rut man as well. Here in north Idaho I see plenty of deer early on, but most of the large bucks I see every year come along about the 10th of Nov. to the end of Nov. Except for the biggest buck I've ever laid eyes on (he was the 11th of oct.) I would still take the rut hands down for the number and quality of bucks!! Shot opportunities aren't easy this time of year, competing with all the rifle guys, but I'll take what I can get! And what I get is still awefully darn good! GIVE ME THE RUT :D
Travis
I gotta say I'm a rut man as well. Here in north Idaho I see plenty of deer early on, but most of the large bucks I see every year come along about the 10th of Nov. to the end of Nov. Except for the biggest buck I've ever laid eyes on (he was the 11th of oct.) I would still take the rut hands down for the number and quality of bucks!! Shot opportunities aren't easy this time of year, competing with all the rifle guys, but I'll take what I can get! And what I get is still awefully darn good! GIVE ME THE RUT :D
Travis
I have mixed feelings on this one. Early season and the rut both have there advantages. We have killed alot of big bucks during the 1st 10 days of the season.(I'm currently working on an article about early season hunting). But you get to see so much more "active" activity during the rut. Early season is really predictable and early/late hunts only. The rut, you never know what is going to happen any time of day. So I guess, I'll take them both! I don't know of too many hunters that will pass on a trophy on opening day or they would not be in the stand. Thats my opinion at least.
BTW- I do hate mid Oct. though. The lull can bore me to sleep.
Mike
Once you get in the middle of some serious rut stuff, early season just doesn't have it anymore.. Not to say it's not a great time to fill the freezer and even pick up some serious bone.
But having multiple bucks chasing multiple does in multiple directions all morning long, is plain ole exhilarating.
Gets to the point that killing something is not as important as just being there.
Now if I could just figure out the Lull so I could change my handle to "Mr. Oct."
If I could only hunt one part of the season, it would be the rut. I look forward to that time of year when deer movement is at a fevered pitch, and bucks are cruising and chasing all day long.
The whitetail rut, spring turkey season and September elk seasons are so popular with hunters precisely because of the breeding component, and the affects/excitement associated with the respective game species movements and reactions at that time of year.
high doe ratio and crops still on where I don't have permission...I am seeing zero, rut.... what rut?
I really want to like the rut.
I'm gonna have to beat down some doors for permission for next yr.
I've had good luck during early season. The rut and later is inconsistent. Something that messes me up is, MD throws an early muzzle loader season Oct 22 for a couple weeks. I hunt State land and it's like WW II out there as everyone "Black Powder" hunts now a days...It's a whole different deer that you are hunting after all that goes on. Rut or no Rut. Plus our buck to doe ratio is way out of wack. I'd bet in my area, we are 20 does to 1 buck. So pretty much, most of my success comes early.
I like the rut and try to plan my vacation for it but this year is different in my part of Illinois. I only saw one nice buck in twelve days of hunting and he is still out there. There is still standing corn all over and where I hunt there is a lot of new construction going on. All you can here is back up alarms from trucks and other large earth moving equipment.Some guys don't think the rut is on with all the noise, standing corn and warm weather. I think the deer were just rutting in the privacy of the standing corn.
I like the two weeks before gun season here in WV (gun season opens Nov. 23rd). I've had my best luck during the week of Veterans Day). This year during that week, I saw 6 bucks and most were trailing or looking for them does. I don't like the early season because it's too warm for me.
I love the rut !!!
At least up until the gun season opener...
Then everything goes crazy.
I hardly hunt till Nov. 1 -15th.
Those are the days in my area that are smokin' hot for big bucks.
I went back through my records from the last six years. All but one, yes all, of the mature bucks I have seen while hunting have been between Nov 1 and Nov 30. Granted, I have never seen or gotten trial cam pics of a buck over 3.5 yrs and mature in my book is 2.5 yrs at this time, still this is quite a testament for my favorite month- November. I think it depends on the habitat that you hunt also. Gotta get back to it, I ran into a nice rutting buck this morning with my new TallTines.
I also love the early season and have taken many big bucks in the first 10 days of the season.But the rut is exciting and you never know what you will see next.But hard to get shots because they wont stand still. :banghead:
I think most hunters let some of the best days of hunting slip by.By waiting for november.Leatherneck and myself will open a few eyes on early season hunting when the article comes out.
It is no coincidence that I take my hunting vacation every year which is the first 10 days of our season.
I have found the rut to be feast or famine.
There have been seasons past, where I saw nearly NOTHING while hunting the traditional rut period...and then there have been times that were totally amazing.
If nothing else, I love the rut for the possibilities!
Do you guys write for a magazine and if so what one? And secondly i live and hunt in an area that has between 20-50 deer per sq. mile and also has some book class bucks. One killedduring the firearm season last year not 5 miles from where i live scored 190+ but i must say that in 32 years of hunting i have only seen bucks chasing does about 4-5 times heard bucks grunting about 3 times and have never heard two bucks fighting. So what gives i live and hunt in a great farming area with good nutrition,water cover and pretty decent gene pool but i never see the good stuff. I kill plenty but nothing amazing.
It ain't the rut that gets me, its work! I was only to get out during our bow season for two afternoon hunts. Then once the rifle season opened I have hunted 8 days. I passed up numerous bucks and does to get a chance at a big buck, and then the weather hit us. It has been extremely wet and hot down here and the rutting activity has been non-existant on our land. Oh well, I shot a doe Sun. night with a rifle. I have to wait until Dec. to go back, and I intend to hunt the remaining weekends with a bow. I envy you guys who can hunt every day or whenever you want. I mostly have to watch the rut go by while I work.
Jersey, Not sure whats going on with you not hearing or seeing rut activity with #'s like that. My last two hunts on different farms I saw three shooter bucks two of which came under my tree. Saw one of them rake his antlers through the limbs and make a scrape. Then take off after deer chasing sounds on a close by ridge. When he was about to crest the top a monster came crashing down off the ridge after him. Couldn't really tell exactly what he was but he was huge. Then right before dark a wide 8 point came across under me with his nose to the ground looking for love. The next hunt saw three different bucks chasing does one of which was grunting uncontrollably all around me while sitting in a thicket.
You need to move to Kentucky.
I think like i said earlier in this post that there are too many food sources where i live in fact thats all there is, one farm after another.Soybean,corn sourgum alfalfa,timothy all types of orchards and vegetable farms and the list goes on, and lets not forget hundreds of acres of white and red oak along with beechnut,hickory and wild grapes. Why the heck would they come by me in particular when they could go any direction and find anything they want. Im going to try more winter bow this year when the food sources are low and see if that makes a difference. Also the hunting pressure is very low because all the land is private so there are a limited # of hunters especially in archery season, most of the landowners dont bowhunt only shotgun.I know what your thinking what a problem to have right!
I love it all, anytime of the year.