This year has been tough for me and although iv given it a good go I realy havnt seen a whole lot of rutting activity :knothead: :help:
:campfire:
It's real hit and miss where I hunt. 1 day their all over the place and the next day you don't see a deer.
doug77
Ya doug but I seem to hit all the days where the deer seem not to exist.....................Iv had more sits this year where I didnt see a single deer then Iv had since I was 15 and didnt now what the heck I was doing :readit:
Like right now im sitting at work and its in the fortys out side and this weekend there calling for it to be 60 again :banghead:
I need the weather man to give me some good weather :pray:
I guess it makes it all the sweeter when it all comes together :goldtooth:
I've had to many all day sits and only saw 1 or 2 deer. Hunted Iowa since 2000 and it's not good.
I've only seen 1 good buck this year.
doug77
I seen a lot of chasing, rubbing and thrashing around Halloween weekend and the week after that. Been pretty slow seeing deer ever since in south central IA.
QuoteOriginally posted by doug77:
I've had to many all day sits and only saw 1 or 2 deer. Hunted Iowa since 2000 and it's not good.
I've only seen 1 good buck this year.
doug77
1 good one for me as well but I seen him twice, ounce at 8:00 am on the 10th all alone and again on the 12th at 9:00 am chaseing a doe.
Theres sign all over the place and we have sheds of several good bucks from this last year so thats still giveing me hope that at some point they will come out of the wood work :thumbsup:
I had all last week of and my sightings were poor to say the least,I also have all of thanksgiving week off so we'll see what happens.
Maybe I will get lucky this week-end.
doug77
Good Luck Doug..............
I am in western Iowa, Harrison county to be specific. I've spent around 60 hr or more in 7-8 different stands I have out. Haven't seen what you would call a really good buck. Not much chasing. Don't know what's up.
It seemed that the larger bucks were more out and about a month ago than they are now. I should have shot the ten pointer opening day. I saw the local dominant buck come out of his bed with a bunch of other deer the other day after shooting hours, he did not seem like he was interested in anything other than the alfalfa/clover he was eating.
Interesting posts. I've actually seen a lot of deer movement in the last two days driving around in the country from farm to farm for work. Bucks have been on their feet a lot in the middle of the afternoon in my part of Iowa. I keep dodging them with the truck. This past weekend was slow with warm and windy conditions for November, but buck activity has really been good the last two days.
Guys around here are saying that they are seeing does back with fawns. That would indicate that these older does have been bred. Car/deer accidents are still up though, so the deer are still moving. Last weekend I still had bucks cruising. A little cold air just blew in, so hopefully this weekend they will still be on their feet. My daughter and I plan to punch a tag!
Good luck everyone! Hunt Safe!!
I hunt alot. It was very good till about the 9 th of november and then the lock down week and the terrible full moon, now its starting to get good again. I always see big bucks this last half of the rut. It will be good or better then its been for the next seven to ten days. I hope :pray:
I hope you are right, my wife's NAT has not seen much action this year yet.
quote:
Originally posted by Lost Creek Bows:
I hunt alot. It was very good till about the 9 th of november and then the lock down week and the terrible full moon, now its starting to get good again. I always see big bucks this last half of the rut. It will be good or better then its been for the next seven to ten days. I hope :bigsmyl:
Thanks Guys
The weather this weekend looks questionable. I think Friday and Sunday will be great days to be afield. I will have a doe tag left to fill here in eastern IA also.
I have seen more deer this year than I have in the past two where I am hunting (public land just inside Delaware county). However, I have only seen a couple of bucks and they seem to not be chasing with the exception of the one I saw last night. But he wasn't really chasing, just responding to that grunt style.
I saw some good chasing Friday night and Saturday morning. Both of them were small fork horn bucks running does. I had something come in Friday near dark and chase off that fork horn. I couldn't see the rack size, but it looked like a nice bodied deer.
Of course, I only had a doe tag left so all the small bucks were given a pass. I did harvest Saturday night though and will be getting one more doe tag on my lunch break.
I can't imagine finishing out November without being in the woods. Thank goodness your second doe tag is reduced fee!
Had a long talk with a friend from Michigan even though it's been a tough year for most of us we still live in Iowa and need to remember that. I moved hear from SW Minnesota where a 90 inch buck was a very good deer.
It's going to be a great week-end for all of us.
doug77
QuoteOriginally posted by doug77:
Had a long talk with a friend from Michigan even though it's been a tough year for most of us we still live in Iowa and need to remember that. I moved hear from SW Minnesota where a 90 inch buck was a very good deer.
It's going to be a great week-end for all of us.
doug77
:campfire:
Saw my first real chasing down there Monday.
I sat yesterday till 3. Did not see a deer. Went to town to get the kids and wrecked the car. By the time we got home after dark we had 15 does and one 150 class buck in my yard.
I have all day Fri to hunt. The Xrays show my wrist is not broke. Just praying I can pull my bow!
Glad your OK Katie. Good luck this week-end.
Since you don't a car to drive you'll have to spend all your time hunting LOL
doug77
Thanks. Glad I had not picked the kids up yet!
Had 5 does and 1 small buck in the yard tonight.
Glad your OK Katie!!!
Sorry to hear that Katie...Hopefully you can still get your bow back. Season is definitely hot right now.
I'm planning a nice weekend of hunting. If I can sneak out of work early enough I'll get out starting tonight.
Glad to hear you are ok Katie. I have been spending alot of time in northcentral Iowa and the only chasing I have seen were by scrappers up to 130" bucks. I have much bigger bucks on trailcam. I have seen does with fawns and lot's of them since the 22nd of October. I can't imagine they have been bred already but maybe I just missed it. I have not seen any fawns without a doe with them. Usually, at least in MN we see lots of does without fawns during the first 2 weeks of November. Gonna hit it again this weekend! Good luck to all and make sure to post some pics!!
Just returned from a week hunting outside of Iowa city, zone 7. Weather was cool and very windy. We picked Nov. 9- 17 thinking we would be in the thick of the rut. That was not the case. There was some sporatic rutting activity but by no means where the bucks chasing or grunting down does. I did manage to shoot a mature 4 1/2-5 1/2 year old 10 pointer but they were just starting to show rut activity when we left for home. Seems the rut is coming on later each year.
Sat from sunup till 2:30 this afternoon. Never saw a deer
doug77
I shot a nice buck last night, walked all day with never finding the deer. I had lots of blood, and then he beded three time's in fifty yards, and when he got up the blood was very little of it. He went on the next guys ground to the south. I'm headed back out tomorrow to try to find him. Doug are you in timber or CRP ground. Good luck everyone this weekend they should be seeking hard.
Chad, Ive been hunting both. I thought with the high wind today I'd hunt some CRP the was out of the wind but that did not work out like I'd hoped
we'll see what tomorrow brings.
doug77
I had a group of 8 does come into the picked bean field tonight and didn't see a buck chasing them. Also saw a group of 4 does on my way out and no bucks around. I only have a doe tag left....so I wasn't too unhappy about seeing does!
I like CRP ,and a nice timber mix it seems the bucks push the does out in to the CRP to do the breeding and chasing Good luck the rest of the weekend guys and gals.
I sat yesterday in all that wind. I got out a bit late due to trying to tape up my wrist and not change my grip. I saw one 3 year old buck at 9am. He needed another year for sure. At noon I saw 3 does in the CRP. Thought they might get trailed in but it did not happen. Other than that just WIND!
I stayed in this morning. My husband's cousin is sitting a food plot. Text me at 9am that he has seen nothing yet. I will sit today with the front moving in.
Chad- Hope you find him! If you need help let us know. But I am sure my hubby and I would learn more from you than we would help:)
Sat till 10:30 this moring. Nothing, maybe this afternoon
doug77
Saw a button buck about 2:30 nothing after that.
doug77
I didn't get out this morning....Saw 8 does tonight and one small fork horn just before dark. No chasing...not sure if the ruts over or just no bucks in my area.
I got into a stand at the top of a drainage that leads to a creek at 3. At 3:30 I saw a doe getting chased by a huge body buck down by the creek. I could not make out his rack.
At 4 the front with a NW wind moved in. The front the news said would come at 6! I got down and moved to a natural ground blind. With 45 left on the clock I saw a 10 pointer with a limp climbing the ridge towards me. Hmmm, I missed a 10 with a limp early season. I was pumped. He stopped by a scrape on that trail. I knew he would turn And and head to the last scrape before the corn field. Nope, he checked the wind and must have found love. He turned West into a bottom. As I was walking out in near dark I had 3 deer walk in front of me. 2 does and 1 buck with a limp. Redemption was at my door and the lights went out!
I think rut is back on!
Thanks for the offer Katie. I got a guy coming up Monday with a bloodhound ,he has found 20 deer so far this year in November hope its 21 after monday. My brother boy, shot a 6 1/2 year old 10 point tonight tru the front shoulders, so thats tommorrows job. Hope he has better luck finding his. It was right behind a doe. This week has been great in Southeast Iowa.
I slept in this AM.
doug77
I had the best morning in a deer stand ever on Saturday morning. I called in a total of 9 different bucks. I had the one I wanted picked out and in the mass confusion I shot the wrong one!No regrets though, I couldn't be happier!
Sorry for the blurry pics, camera phone!
(http://i183.photobucket.com/albums/x196/robhood23/Iowabuck.jpg)
(http://i183.photobucket.com/albums/x196/robhood23/Iowabuck2.jpg)
Very nice buck! Congrats.
I was in today.
I've only been out 3 times this year and have seen lots of sign but no live animals. One public spot next to the Missouri River I tried, though, looked like it had been under about 5-6 feet of water this year from the flooding.
Great Buck! I saw deer Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Even glassed a really nice 8 point across a cut bean field tonight. He was surrounded by 4 does and showed no signs of chasing. I just need to position myself in the right spot to get a shot!
I'm happy tonight. I missed an easy 145 inch buck tonight. Shot right under him 12 yards.
He'll be be back and so will I.
He was all by himself and showed no insterest in the does that were already out in the picked beans and stayed away from them.
doug77
Well my redemption buck just came to my door in a truck. My husband's cousin hunts our place and today he brought a buddy. The buddy shot my buck. Hope that does not happen again;)
He was a nice buck. Oh well, more out there.
That bites Katie, I can tell your not impressed.
We should have a good week-end coming up. Thanksgiving week-end has been good to me before.
doug77
Yeah but that stuff happens when you buy family land! I can't complain, I walk out my door to hunt big whitetails. Blessed for sure!
Just hate to see them go down to far out quartering wheelie shots.
My 2 cents
The full moon seemed to really kill my action this year as far as old bucks go. Majority of the big ones I've got on camera and seen through the rut were at night. I've come to hate South winds and warm days this year also. :knothead: Hoping these dark nights, the front moving through and lock down being over will mean what it should for the next few days. Best of luck to you guys and ladies!
Well, I was back in the woods with the video camera again over the weekend. Friday afternoon, I saw a really nice buck cruising the opposite creek bank. He was the kind you know is a good one when you first see them. I took as much footage as I could of him. I even blew the buck roar tube at him just to see what he would do. He eventually turned to cross the creek and I lost sight of him. I saw him again when another nice buck from my side of the creek came out to exchange how do you do's with the first buck in the middle of the creek. They never fought, just tickled antlers for a second, then wandered off together. The weather was screwing with the rut IMO. It would be warm, then cold, then warm, then cold. One day I'd see chasing, then the next, they'd be cruising slowly through the timber. Saturday was the slowest day, but I saw plenty of deer all week.
Fri. night through Sun. night I seen 6 deer.
One being a BIG BOY that would of went all of 57"......MAYBE???
I think Sun. night was my last sit of the year...I gave it a good go and NOW its time to get back to the family and life!
With 3 arrows lossed and three does to show for it, Im calling it good :thumbsup:
Good luck to all that are still at it :archer2:
The area I'm hunting doesn't seem to have any rut activity left in it. Maybe it's happening at night like mentioned. I did see a decent 8 pt (130's or so) last night and he didn't tend to any of the 12 does in the field feeding.
Got out for a few hours tonight, didn't see any deer but I gave it a go. Hope you all havent called it quits. You still got time. This week-end should be good if you have some private ground with early guns season they should be chaseing some deer around. Remember were in Iowa and you never know what could show up.
doug77
Saw some bucks crusin this AM and PM I just need to be in the right tree.
doug77
Lots of action between 8:30 and 11:00 this mourning. Also saw a very good buck after a doe tonight they were close but not close enough.
doug77