Pre-rut is under way here. Have been seeing many dead on the roads and saw a young buck just wandering through an open field during the middle of the day yesterday.
Gentlemen start your engines...ITS ON!
Up here too. I was thinking the same thing last night.
:jumper: :jumper: :jumper: :jumper:
Here too Tom. I spend a LOT of time on the roads, and have been seeing more and more bucks (mostly young ones so far) killed. I am always on the lookout for deer activity when I'm driving as well. I have noticed a few buck wandering out it the middle of the day within the past few days. :bigsmyl:
The movement is way up here as well. I've seen bucks every morning this week on my way to work, and there are deer out in the field behind my house when I get home at 3:45.
High of 45 on Sat. looks like a good day!
Oh yeah! It's almost time. The next cold front that hits will really kick it off. This is the best part of the season in my opinion because they really get to moving around good.
:bigsmyl:
Just starting to see some activity here. It's almost that magical time of the year.(And I don't mean Christmas.)
Going to be 31 degrees here in the morning. That should get them up and at 'em.
Found several big rubs and big scrapes not boundary scrapes and watched one doe work one of them and urinate through her hocks in one this morning. It's getting there!
Took my nephew out with me, there's two more big rubs behind him.
(http://i904.photobucket.com/albums/ac248/TmPotter47/null_zps0895098d.jpg)
Good luck and shoot strait!
Tracy
They are starting to move here also. I had a big mature buck come in to some does grunting his head off Tuesday evening. I thought I was going to get a shot but it didn't happen.
I have seen one rub in the area I hunt at Hillsdale Lake. I thick the deer population took a big hit from the Blue Tongue disease year before last.
This gets me excited. I have been seeing an increase in roadkills, Thats usually a good indicator of more movement.
Are you talking about the early-post-mid-season late pre-rut?
Or the pre-rut just before the latter segment of the middle pre-rut?
Just kidding.
I hope whatever it is - it gets started.
(http://i.imgur.com/2AQbyfp.jpg?1)
You need to keep an eye on your buddys during the prerut. When the ladies aren't receptive yet everything looks good.
Come in from work at 6:45pm.Was eating supper & watched a 2 1/2 year old 8 point dog a doe around the fields here next to my house.Got a call right after dark to help neighbor get one out..He killed a 125" 9 point that I have at least 1000 pictures..Was one I was hoping would make it,oh well.He was working a scrape.Next 2 weeks should be intresting..
I went into a thicket I had a stand in last night. Two days ago there was no scrapes in there. Last night there were 6 that I found. All small at this point but nevertheless its beginning. Wind was good so I climbed into the stand and at 4:30 saw two bucks. A two year old and a one year old. Both just passed through the thicket within bow range just milling and browsing on the honey suckle. They are beginning to feel a little frustrated.
Next step in the ladder as tensions rise is the bachelor groups breaking up and the less dominant bucks aimless wanderings.
I changed the title. Maybe we can keep this going with updated rut progress reports from across the country.
Ours is over with...
It starts the last week of September and goes into the first week or two of Oct.
Of course you will see an occasional buck running a doe for a month after..
I haven't seen any activity in our area yet. I am impatiently waiting for the boys to start chasing the girls.
I was on stand 3 days ago and saw a small 6 point chasing 3 does. he ran them past me and about 60 yards. then 15 minutes later I hear a bunch of grunting. that grunting they do when they grunt with every step. I thought "wow that like buck is all worked up" then to my surprise I saw that little 6 point of to my left staring in the direction the grunting was coming from. a couple minutes later the 3 does ran right under my tree. and following them was a huge 8 point grunting every step. but he gave up on them and angled off to my side and passed at 35 yards then got downwind and took a few good hops to get out of dodge.
It was snowing whne that happened. made for a great night on stand!
The rut time variations around the country have always amazed me Pat. I hunted a place in Livingston Alabama a few years back and their rut is in mid January.
I understand the rut in deep south Texas is around Christmas and ours only 200 miles away is so much earlier.. Crazy!
On here too! 4 different bucks last night just cruising. Had a nice buck last night standing next to my deer target when I pulled in the drive. Looking for love in all the wrong places I assume.
I found a huge scrape near one of my blinds, car hood sized. Hope he shows tonight. Got a perfect wind for that stand.
Well, well...found the first scrape of the season today. Now, things might get interesting!
I have not seen any rutting activity or scrapes but a 2.5 yr old 8 point got hit down the road.
Starting to see dead deer up on the highway. It usually signifies the rut is starting. I have heard multiple reports of bucks harassing does locally.
The woods are all tore up!!!!! Charlie(CyclicRivers) & I found the 1st scape of the season, 2 weeks ago... I'm finding new scapes & rubs almost every day, and the bucks are running the snot outa the does!!!!!
I haven't seen any lonely littleones, so the bucks don't have them in "lockdown" yet.....
That Old Familiar Smell, is in the air!!! :bigsmyl:
(and all I have left, is a couple of doe tags... :rolleyes:
Buckeye_hunter,
Did you all have a muzzlerifle season open when you started noticing the roadkills?
Ky had one going on when I started noticing them. I wonder if that is a factor or a combo of pre-rut/muzzleriflers invasion?
Seen more bucks and the temps have fallen.
Not seen scrapes (other than my mock)
going out in a few hours so we'll see if they respond to horns and grunts.
Real nice weather this morning,was a heavy frost on.
Had a doe come into a scrape this morning sniffing around & a little while later a 3 year old 10 shows up & works it.He leaves then comes back & works it again 15 minutes later.I had a camera on the scrape,when I come out tonight I'll pull the card & post them up.Having new bucks show up daily.
Here is SW Missouri, we have had the bachelors crusing together in the daylight. One daring lad had the fortitude to make a nice big scrape 14yds from a stand I have set. Just don't know what is best time of day to hunt? Morning early seen the aimless wandering off of the trails, middle of fields, and evening is all does? When and where?
Seeing scrapes , fresh ones. Haven't spotted any bucks chasing yet , but we are getting some cool weather this weekend.
TJ,
Come to think of it, it was around the muzzleloader season that I noticed more dead deer on the highway.
I was also looking up the county by county statistics and there were 30% more bucks reported killed in my favorite county just after the muzzleloader season. It's either the bucks are moving earlier or some got shot on the weekend and reported on Monday. I'll leave the speculation alone on that.
Our overall deer harvest is still down 3% so far. Maybe less does will get more bucks up and moving? I'll find out soon!
Rob has reported seeing some mature bucks up and moving during daylight near the standing cornfields.
Picking up, but I was dissappointed both this morning and this evening. Guess I need to go deeper.
Lots of scrapes. Ones from a week ago seem abandoned but new ones pop up in the same areas seemingly overnight. Only found one real big one and it's out on a hedgerow about 300 yards from where I park.
I hunted yesterday morning and had a small buck in a scrape about 40 yards from my stand. I hadn't hunted this area and just climbed a tree in a likely looking area. My next stand will be 20 yards closer.
I too am seeing more deer and more bucks from the highways, dead or alive. Was turkey hunting last Sunday and had a whole "family" cross the road just in front of the truck: one buck, a few does, and several yearlings, 8 in all. I guess he figured the odds were in his favor, better than that pic of the young bucks . . .
Watched a lone 8 point make a scrape and beat up some small trees at about 35 yards behind a screen of brush. No shot, but it was good to see him.
Saw 2 good ones last nite, rattled/ grunted em in, but they are still pretty cautious . They made it to 20 but it was just too dark. A 9 pt and a short tined wide 7x7. :archer:
Last weekend I had a buck 15 yards up wind of me and he stunk to high heaven, very strong rut smelling, haven't seen any chasing yet.
A few evenings ago I hunted from the ground near a deer run/trail through the woods. Had a 1 1/2 year-old six pointer come through and make 4 rubs within 30 yards of me and then made a little scrape about 12 yards away! It was awesome. Then he wandered around and offered me a shot at 12 yards and I was able to draw on him and then I let the string back down. Could've had him while hunting from the ground but there's a nice 140" or better ten pointer that posed for a single pic on my trail cam that I'm after. Went again this morning and there was a new scrape about 10 yards from my lock-on stand. Saw the same six pointer again and then had a buck with only one antler run past me while I was getting the sd card out of my trail cam after the hunt. He ran right past me at about 7 yards. Looked to be an 8 pointer if he would've had both beams intact.
Things are really gettin' good right now around here....
Had a pretty good show this morning. Watched a big wide racked mature buck and a smaller 3-4 year old 8 pointer dogging a doe in the edge of a CRP field. The bigger deer ran the 8 pointer into the woods with me but stayed in the field with his girlfriend. They all hung around this secluded corner for 30 minutes or so untill the doe took off and they all ran out of my life (for now).
The doe's button buck yearling hung around under my tree and watched the entire show with me and then meandered off in the direction they headed.
God I love this time of year.
Trap
The last two evenings in Trousdale County Tn, have shown the little fellas are feeling frisky and checking every doe to enter the field, Saw 25 on Thursday evening, 6 different bucks, nothing over 1.5/2.5 years of age. 4 of the bucks were seen multiple times through the evening bumping and chasing, made for a very enjoyable time in the tree. Friday evening, 8 deer seen, one of the year and half old bucks from the evening before was the only buck seen but was feeling awful frisky, chasing 4 of the seven out of the beans back to a cedar, hoping one of the bigger bucks start putting the hammer down on these little ones haha.
Two bucks yesterday am and one last night just hanging with doe and fawns. First bucks I have seen by eye or camera in daylight in weeks.
morning bucks were either checking or making scrapes. Doe was hitting scrapes on her route,
have trail cam pick from a couple days ago of a doe urinating on her hocks and a buck checking it out a few hours later. This was in a feed spot under a Oak on a field edge and at night.
Saw 2 sets of lonely twins, this weekend.....
No Bucks, No Does... Maybe the Bucks have Mama in "lockdown" already?????
Not much activity at McAlester AAP this weekend. I little bit of checking but no real chasing.
QuoteOriginally posted by woodchucker:
Saw 2 sets of lonely twins, this weekend.....
No Bucks, No Does... Maybe the Bucks have Mama in "lockdown" already?????
She is probably in someone's freezer and the kids are wondering around without supervision. I have seen that some where I am also. I know where one of their mothers is.
The bucks are on the move here also, that is at least along the RR tracks, found one today that was hit by a train, two main beams on each side, or I should say he had them, got broke off after trying to spar with the train, the piece I got is a 4pt. less the other beam that was also broken off, hate to see them get it like that.
On a good note, I also saw a big buck with a huge rack, way past his ears, crossed the road in front of me while I was going to work, one of the biggest bucks I have ever seen in N.J. Funny thing is he was crossing from the river area with plenty of woods to the houses just before light, he probably lives in someone's back yard and will never be hunted.
I killed a 8 pt yesterday that was chasing a doe along with 2 other smaller bucks, the 8 pt attempted to breed her several times but she always walked out from under him, both deer were panting and worn out from the chase, its like what is supposed to be happening 3 weeks from now around here...
The young bucks are starting to get stupid. I have seen several doe haulin the mail and looking over thier shoulder. Had a little 5 point bird doggin a doe two nights ago. She almost fell down a good size hill she was so stressed. She ran out into a field and had three other doe on alert for 10 min.
Hunted this weekend with my dad on our property in Ohio. I saw 3 bucks on Saturday and shot a 7 pointer that night. I headed home yesterday and dad saw 3 more bucks last night. The first two I saw were studs and my buck was probably his 2nd rack. Scrapes all over the place and trees were tore up. We have never seen so much activity this early in Ohio. It's still slow in Iowa but I have not been out for a week here. Driving home yesterday to Iowa I saw another shooter in Ohio and several dead along the highway. It's hot in some places!
I agree with BuckeyeGuy! Here in Ohio I have never seen this much deer activity this early. In the last week I have seen more bucks than I have all season combined. Sunday night I had 3 bucks working does. They weren't quite chasing the does but definitely following them close by.
Last night I had a 4 point come in and make a scrape at 10 yards than walk past me at 5 yards as I sat in my ghillie. Right before dark I had a very nice young 8 point walk right up beside me at 6 yards and head out into the field. He is the best buck I have seen so far. If I wasn't doing QDM and passing up all 1&2 year old bucks I pry would of dropped the string on him.
I saw a 6 pt. and a 5 pt. trailiing a doe on Saturday. The 6 worked over a sapling pretty good. He was about 40 yards away at the time. He then walked up to the 5 and started head butting him and they worked each other over for about 10 minutes. They followed the doe up into an area I can't go. 30 minutes later they were 10 yards from me battling away again. I had a birds eye view of two bucks working each other over for at least 10 minutes. The 6 had a cut above his left eye. Really neat to see so close up. Boy I wish I had a camera. I had no desire to shoot either one. It was just fun to watch.
Checked a secret spot yesterday where I know Does lay down in wait for bucks to come and check them. Sure enough, there were a Doe there waiting. I don't mess with the deer in this spot.
I saw a fat little 4 pointer twice this morning. He was definitely "cruising". Covering lots of ground... no feeding... stopping very briefly to look and listen and then off again.
We are having some cool weather, especially at night/early morning. That can't hurt anything either.
My son took a decent 8 point last evening after videoing him rubbing a tree. Not seeing scrapes... but there are probably some out there.
Happy rut to all!!
Two nights ago I witnessed a true monster making a scrape before he passed me at 30 yards. Oh why couldn't he have been at 20??? Too many limbs in the way at 30 and I am glad there was. Those limbs kept me from doing something I knew I shouldn't.
Sat Sunday night and only saw does....
It should break loose anyday now. I'm seeing a few rubs and scrapes but its still a bit early this far north.
Hunting 3 of the next 4 days and hoping to catch that first wave....
Jeff
Saw two big bucks in a bachelor group in NY on Oct. 12, no does in sight.
Saw two big bucks in a bachelor group in VA on Oct. 19th chasing a group of 6 does. No rubbing or scraping was seen in the hunting area.
October 25th and 26th, evidence of a large buck staring a rubline in the same area the two whoppers were seen the week before. Pre-rut just getting going here. I think another 10-14days to peak rut here. Seems a bit slow really ... not much rubbing and no scrapes yet, bucks have been on the move though.
i saw 6 different bucks tonight in a tree line between two fields. One ten point and a good eight point starting to act rutty but a couple of small bucks were actually chasing does hard. Of course the ladies were having none of it.
:archer2:
The blacktail bucks have been rubbing everything in sight...during the night.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v117/treekiller/buck%20and%20bull%20rubs/DSC_6579_zps71e11d77.jpg) (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/treekiller/media/buck%20and%20bull%20rubs/DSC_6579_zps71e11d77.jpg.html)
But I managed to rattle up this handsome fella last Monday morning.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v117/treekiller/Wildlife%20Photos/DSC_6444_zps277dbbba.jpg) (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/treekiller/media/Wildlife%20Photos/DSC_6444_zps277dbbba.jpg.html)
Scraps not being worked much right now but rain makes it hard to tell. No bigger this week anyway.
Saw one small buck last night in the rain but he was not interested in the ladies in the area. Saw 6 does with no bucks lurking. This morning saw a nice 8 walk into a field and lay down about 9. Didn't look to be up to anything but coming from food and bedding for the day.
Tonight saw small buck and button buck. The fork did hit a scrape. I have him a couple die grunts but he did little more than look in my direction the wonder off.
Hope it heats up quick.
More rubs and scrapes showing up. Saw 2 does this morning. No buck on their tails yet...
This is a telephone pole standing between a CRP field and an Allfalfa field on my farm. I'd say frustration levels are kinda high. Wasn't like that 2 days ago. Sorry for the crappy iphone pic.
(http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/aa277/DUCK_TRAP/FD4D7E89-0EC1-4C3B-A6D1-D6F3669B736E-20247-000012E1E897AB76_zps9c4eb9c5.jpg)
Trap