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John's Journal... Entry 177, Day 5

HUNT RUTTING BUCKS NOW

More on Midwestern Bad-Weather Buck Techniques

EDITOR'S NOTE: Hunters have chased them, shot at them, cussed them, spooked and aggravated them all season long. But the biggest, the oldest and the smartest bucks on any property you hunt have managed to survive until the end of the season. These large, older bucks write the textbooks young bucks study to survive. Some of the nation's best hunters employ strategies that will take these end-of-the-season rutting bucks each year. These masters of the hunt tell us their tactics for bagging late-season bucks.

"Christmas season two years ago, the wind howled, and the temperature fell to around -9 degrees," Harris recalls. "Because the weather was so bad, and the wind blew very hard, I got into thick cover within 80 yards of a rutting buck without his hearing, seeing or smelling me and bagged him."

Harris also places tree stands in sections where he anticipates bucks will hold during snow and ice storms. "I'll put tree stands on south-facing slopes with plenty of brush and cover since most of the wind and snow our area gets comes from the north," Harris reports. "The deer move onto these hillsides to dodge the wind and the ice and to get under the cover and the brush the south slope provides. In the middle of the day when the weather warms, these bucks will stand up, feed and move some. When they do, if I'm in my tree stand using my binoculars, I can spot them and get a shot." Harris prefers to hunt these sunny hillsides during the middle of the day when the sun shines the brightest, the deer movement peaks, and hunter pressure lessens. A little knob on the side of a hayfield, not necessarily a major mountain range, with a south-facing slope can become a productive place to find a trophy buck when you hunt in bad weather during the rut.

"I wait until 8:30 a.m. or 9:00 a.m. before I go to my stand site," Harris explains. "Then I have the sun to keep me warm, and I can stay in my stand during the time the bucks usually become the most active." Hunting secondary food sources next to bedding spots has proven a productive tactic for Harris' late-season rut hunting. Deer must feed every day. During bad weather and intense hunting pressure, a trophy buck will feed in places closest to his bedding site, even if the region doesn't provide his favorite food. "Look for honeysuckle vines, honey-locust leaves, blackberry bushes or any other type of plant the deer will eat close to its bedding area. You may know of a clover or a wheat field nearby where the deer are feeding, probably at night. If deer want to feed during daylight hours when they know hunters can take them, they must eat the food closest to their sanctuary, even though that food may not be the deer's preferred food." Deer tend to follow the same types of feeding habits during bad weather as humans. If you have to walk two miles through rain, sleet and snow to eat a steak with all the trimmings or go to a hamburger stand half a block away to get something to eat, where will you go? Personally I'll order a sack full of hamburgers and run back to the house.

Harris also emphasizes that no matter where you hunt during the late season, you must use bad-weather conditions to allow you to approach your stand undetected. "Older-age-class bucks have a higher sensitivity to hunter pressure than younger bucks," Harris mentions. "I never approach my big-buck stands unless I have a howling wind, a blowing rain or fresh snow to mask the sound of my movement. The less likely a buck is to hear, see or smell me, the greater chances of success I'll have for bagging that late-season trophy buck." Our experts agree on the difficulty of taking rutting bucks. Try these tactics from across the country late-season to bag a buck in the rut.

 

 

Check back each day this week for more about HUNT RUTTING BUCKS NOW ...

Day 1 - Hunt Rutting Bucks Now
Day 2 - Middle State Strategies That Will Pay Deer Dividends
Day 3 - Southern Techniques for the Rut
Day 4 - Midwestern Bad-Weather Buck Techniques for the Rut
Day 5 - More on Midwestern Bad-Weather Buck Techniques


John's Journal