How's the October lull treating everyone
Contributors to this thread:Whitetail Deer
From: 60X Strings
16-Oct-14
60X Strings's Link
So how's the lull been treating everyone? I've been hunting pretty hard on a few different farms in western Pa and haven't been seeing much of anything. Pics on my trail cams are way down in the past 2 weeks as well.
From: midwest
16-Oct-14
Not even getting into a stand until 11/1. Well, maybe 10/25 depending on the weather.
From: r-man
16-Oct-14
no such thing man. never afected me, people have scout more and follow deer paterns, they a bounceing from nuts to greens, to corn piles, to persimmons and back again, as well as running from one hunter to the next.
From: SB
16-Oct-14
Never had a "lul" in Oct.! I see deer every time out! The whole month has always been great for me! Especially the last half. You just need to know your Deer!
From: Heartshot
17-Oct-14
Just as an FYI, the Oct lull that 60x strings is referring to is not about does......in other words, send pictures of all the 4 year old bucks that you have killed from Oct 10 to Oct 19th. Leave the pictures of deer killed over bait out. Now compare the pictures of these to the period of Oct 20th to Nov 1 and then you see the "lull"
From: Jack Harris
17-Oct-14
It just started for me, first shutout hunt this year, this morning...
From: GhostBird
17-Oct-14
Too many ACORNS !!!!!!!!!!
Bumper acorn crop around here, deer aren't moving around much.... yet.
From: r-man
17-Oct-14
the lttle buck I missed yesterday was walking around and around an oak tree at least ten times, he hardly lifted his head, thats what made the stalk so easy.
From: Buckiller
17-Oct-14
Haven't seen a horn in two weeks now, another week and I think things should start to get going in my neck of the woods
From: Brotsky
17-Oct-14
From October 11-October 25th I hunt waterfowl and upland game. There hasn't been an October lull for either of those! Ha! Can't wait to get back in the tree on the 26th though. Then it'll be game on until the end of the season.
From: gulfcoast
17-Oct-14
Brodsky, must be nice up there to shoot waterfowl a month early. ;) . Here in "Native America", we have to wait until your water freezes to get a few birds. Oklahoma has to suffer the october lul just like the Yankees.
Last week of sept big deer everywhere. In the last two weeks nothing. When you live and hunt on 150acres, you get to know your deer.
....and I know mine are elsewhere, sucking down oaknuts and rubbin saplings.
From: Chad429
17-Oct-14
Right on Brotsky, I hunt waterfowl early and middle of October. I've only got a few spots, a couple of early season spots and I have a few spots that I set up in the summer and do not go into until primetime. The biggest mistake a lot of people and some of my buddies make is over hunting there stands, I know its hard and I would love to be out on stand but waiting and being patient for the right time to go in has always paid off for me.
1 more week of work and I'll be living in a tree starting the 25th for a couple weeks!!
Good luck everyone I hope ya all have a good rut!! Can't wait for the deer meatpole to blow up!!
From: JJJ
17-Oct-14
Shoot. Only 8 more days to hunt Brotsky's stand!
From: Bowsage
17-Oct-14
The deer I've been hunting lately don't seem to be bothered it except for my arrows.
From: drycreek
17-Oct-14
Living up to its name here. Pulled a few morning hunts, but afternoons are still in the eighties. Maybe next week !
From: Jack Harris
17-Oct-14
Had a lull this morn. Had the anti- lull tonight :$
From: Charlie Rehor
18-Oct-14
My Mathews Bow and me swing into action next week! Just been gettin ready so far! C
From: Rick M
18-Oct-14
I found the lull last night. Did not see a deer!! My bro in law was 500 South East of me and the lull had not hit there yet. He had 2 bucks close, one was a borderline shooter:)
From: AntlergeekAdam
18-Oct-14
The October lull is just a word for people that pressured deer to much. Day time deer activity increases through October even with mature deer. They just aren't on their feet in areas where they have felt pressure
From: writer
18-Oct-14
No true, geek.
Trail cams on ranches with very little hunting pressure show the lull during daytime activity.
I've done a few hundred articles, blogs, photo shoots on trophy-class Kansas bucks.
I can think of two whitetails between about Oct. 6-25 or so, and not many even the last week of October.
Guys that know what they're doing can kill mature bucks Sept. - the first few days of Oct. After that, most of them even back out of the woods for a while.
From: AntlergeekAdam
18-Oct-14
Every Study that I've read and the deer that I've hunted in low pressure states show an increase in daylight activity throughout the whole month of October. The area that I hunt in Kansas doesn't get a lot of hunting pressure and food is still king. As long as you hunt it right and not put too much pressure on the deer you'll see mature deer on there feet in daylight legal shooting hours. Throughout the whole month of October, from the beginning to the end, deer activity increases
From: Keadog
18-Oct-14
It's slow here. I'm finishing up mowing and edging this week. I have 5 cams out and mature buck activity has dropped off significantly over the last two weeks. I only have a few oak trees on my land and a very large soybean field less than a mile away was taken off about 5 days ago. I'll try again towards next weekend. I still have does and yearlings around, but I don't kill yearlings and can't make myself shoot a doe this time of year.
From: gulfcoast
18-Oct-14
... just a word for people that presured deer too much.
Disagree with that statement whole heartedly, Geek. I live on a working horse farm in the lower central plains. My neighbors on 3 sides dont hunt, too old and dont care. I run cams all year, not just for scouting deer but predator and varmit observation. Im in the stand a few times early and leave 80% of my land alone. What pressure? Every year is the same, pre rut comes and 2/3 of the deer move off into the river bottoms to take advantage of the acorn drop. 3 weeks every year.
Be it a season change, pattern change, change in forage opportunity, whatever you call it for whatever reason, there is a lull here. Same time and place every year. Then it gets good. Really good. The deer start showing back up on camera, we see them when we feed animals in the mornings and sitting on the stand is very exciting. Just my observations over the last 7 seasons here...
From: RymanCat
18-Oct-14
Every one has a lull in deer movements many things factor in. Some call it presure that makes them nocturnal. I try to set up for the shot deer move around and one day they are there and 2 or 3 or more not they are the ones who know their deer thats why they move around to see who's ready to breed especially when its getting close to the rut. Sat my stand and there was a new rub he must have come in mid-day will check camera tomorrow morning.
From: sir misalots
19-Oct-14
Lot of new scrape activity here in Ohio over the weekend. several made in my yard. Ive been half hearted hunting up till now. Come Halloween Ill kick it it.
From: Toddtmobile
19-Oct-14
I would add my thoughts but if you guys who are highly respected here can't make a case I would be simply wasting my time.
Anyway, this weekend has been tough. I am thinking next weekend I may break up the monotony and hunt something different.
From: g5smoke21
19-Oct-14
Starting to see alot of good bucks in wisconsin...was out last night and saw 3 nice bucks all as early as 415...im pumped because im hunting a small 40 acre lease that I use to hunt but lost the lease 4 years ago due to the land owner trying to sell...he never sold it and it has not been hunted in 4 years...I have seen a particular nice 10 the last 2 sits that has been walking the same area so plan on hanging a stand over that area on monday wind dependant...also saw a few nice bucks making scrapes and rubs out in front of me...looks like the action is picking up in WI!!
From: AntlergeekAdam
19-Oct-14
Gulfcoast. What your saying is that the deer patterns changed on your place and they aren't running on your property during this time period? Do you think that the places that the deer have moved to is experiencing a lull? No. Because the places where the deer are and are not pressured is going to see an increase in activity day by day throughout the whole month of October.
From: Fulldraw1972
19-Oct-14
Where I hunt I don't think big buck movement increases every day during daylight in October. Not only do I get less trail cam pics in October. I just don't see as many big buck . I am not saying big bucks won't move some during daylight. I seen a pretty good buck last night about a half hour before dark. I hunt a lot in corn country. They very well could be moving in the corn but it's hard hunting in the corn. Harvest is very slow this year with all the rain and with the wet summer the corn doesn't want to dry down decent. Add in corn prices are down so not many are wanting to dry corn.
I did see a 2.5 year old this morning. He was trailing behind a doe.
From: gulfcoast
19-Oct-14
Lol. Read carefully. Never said other places were experiencing a lull. Cant speak for the "other places". Id be trespassing. :)
Geek... sounds like you have the myth of the October "lull" all worked out. At least for central Oklahoma.
Just my observations on my farm and limited understanding of whitetail behavior.
From: AntlergeekAdam
19-Oct-14
All I'm saying is that deer activity increases throughout the month of October. They might just be doing it in places that we cannot see or monitor...take for instance a big corn field.
From: AntlergeekAdam
19-Oct-14
AntlergeekAdam's Link
for instance
From: AntlergeekAdam
19-Oct-14
AntlergeekAdam's Link
or
From: AntlergeekAdam
19-Oct-14
AntlergeekAdam's Link
this deer is atleast five years old. Shot just a few nights ago. October Lull? get where the deer are and you can catch mature deer on their feet. Just have to be in the right place with the right conditions
From: ELK ELSEWHERE
19-Oct-14
Car kills are on a steady increase thru Oct till after rut in Nov. I believe its because of pressure myself.
From: Zim1
19-Oct-14
I was lucky to lower the boom on an uneducated toad three hours into my first hunt October 3rd. Buck movement was good until the 11th, then shut down. So I am letting 4 trail cams do my hunting until I resume the 24th. Plan to hunt full time that last week of October because the public land throngs will arrive November 1st. Hope to be just turkey & doe hunting by then! :)
From: bowriter
19-Oct-14
Which lull are you talking about? I have never seen one. I have had years I have had to adjust as the deer adjusted and years when weather made me change tactics and years when instead of seeing 20-deer a day, I only saw 10 but I have never seen any indication of a the mythical October lull.
From: Zim1
20-Oct-14
JTV, 34 degrees in mid-September Indiana?
From: Heartshot
20-Oct-14
I just love the unabashed cocksureness on this website. Millions of factors but the most recent and a genius is made. I am not talking about any individual.
From: Stinkbait1
20-Oct-14
I've hunted the same patch of ground for the past 7 yrs. In the past, I've rarely seen any deer moving in the daytime (I got tons of night pictures) during the 1st 3 weeks of October. The only exception to that has been when we had a big cold front and the deer moved around to feed. But, here in NE Oklahoma that doesn't happen very often. Then, like flicking a light switch daytime activity picks up considerably beginning the last week of October. Right now, the bucks are starting to rub and scrape. That's about it. There were 6 of us on the lease this weekend and 1 guy saw a buck and another saw 2 does. So, 6 guys that hunted Friday evening through Sunday evening saw a total of 3 deer. Call it what you want. For me, its just been a nice sit in the woods watching squirrels, birds, etc. I did kill a coyote with my bow on Sat. morning.
From: SteveB
20-Oct-14
This past Saturday 10/18/14 my good friend had this great Ohio buck at 30 yds broadside with 2 minutes left in legal shooting but he could not see his pins to release due to rainy cloud cover. That would have been tough!
The buck are still out there!
From: XMan
20-Oct-14
JTV, "there are better in the area" holy smokes man, but that is a freaky old giant right there, I would love to see the bigger ones you are hunting :)
From: midwest
20-Oct-14
Supposed to be in the low 70's this weekend....think I'll get one last smallmouth fishing trip in. The deer can wait.
From: gulfcoast
20-Oct-14
Those are some very nice bucks. Anyone gettin any daytime pics of deer like that right now? Still feeling the lull. :D
From: Zim1
20-Oct-14
JTV, I finally scored a trophy buck here in Illinois October 3rd. 160" eight point. Much better than the 141" I took in 2007. Long wait, as always on public land. This is the first year I am getting serious about trail cams. Put up 4 at the property I'm hunting. Will check them Saturday. Been out there 2 weeks.
Quite a toad you got last year. What did that guy score?
From: TurkeyBowMaster
20-Oct-14
No lull in October here...rut is months away. December is the lull month. Good time to track does and develope patterns.
