Rut update, Nov. 8-14
Wisconsin
Contributors to this thread:
Can't hunt Saturday (all-day basketball tourney) but Sunday's looking decent late in the day when wind is supposed to settle down after blowing 20-30 mph with higher gusts most of the weekend. Next week looks brutal. East winds and rain Monday, changing to snow Tuesday with a north blow that'll bring down high temperatures in the 20s Wednesday and Thursday! Time to break out the winter gear. Good luck to all.
Some snowfall predictions are in the teens!
I am probably wrong but, concerned it is starting to tapper off in Ozaukee County. Seeing does with fawns again.
This is usually the best week up here in NW WI. There is a forecast of about 18" of snow Monday so that will be interesting to see the effect.
I have not hunted much since I have not found a large buck and when I have hunted I have yet to see a deer.
I haven't seen a thing all weekend in 10 hours of hunting but I hope the rut isn't winding down yet...I was really banking on this coming weekend.
Let's say that again lol. Slow down! My eyes are not what they used to be. Golly!
Wind was an issue deer were spooky. Not seeing much rutty behavior but guess that is a night active with the full moon. Off this coming week for Thursday through Sunday. Looks cold don't think rut is done.
The tail end of the rut is when the truly big/old bucks start moving. They know things are winding down, and want that one last piece of tail and they travel looking for it.
forest county/ florence county -just got back hunted 11/1 thru 11/8 found 2 scrapes and 6 small rubs saw 12 doe and 2 spike bucks. i would guess there was 5 inches of snow when we left. saw 2 bucks chasing when shining some fields.
Sheboygan cty.
Last week through today. Wind sucks! But I have seen small bucks constantly moving and pushing does, I have numerous reports from farmers of large bucks locked up with does in the corn fields. I had 4 does com past last night with 1 being a loaner with her tail always in a arched pissing pose - I assume this to be a doe thats hot and looking for a buck?
Seems the ruts on, does are being breed and no reason for the big guys to be out shopping when they have what they need in house. Hopefully next week the house chores get old and they start shopping giving us a chance to intercept.
There already stupid around here just not checking for greener pastures yet.
Oconto Cty; Hunted quite a bit the last 4 days and saw a total of 7 deer. I called in 4 different little bucks(2 forks, a spike, & a small 6 ptr) over that time span. Where the big boys at? Lol
Lincoln cty, slowest year in a long time. Had a great time watching a Great horned owl missing a pine rat about 5 times .
Definitely strong in Juneau, 16 yo killed one last night that was really stinky.
After 5 sits, I saw spike bucks on 4 of them and they were all different young bucks. I have to think the reduced doe tags in my area is allowing nub bucks to make it to their first set of horns. Big boy activity was still at night but that has to switch over with the single digit low temps coming this week.
The future looks bright for this group of young bucks to make it to their 2nd racks and hopefully a few more past that. :)
Jack pine , I hope you are right.
Jack pine , I hope you are right.
I have to agree with Ruger, this is the easily the slowest year I can remember in my area. I hunt private land in Sawyer county and now have 60 hours on stand so far this season with very few deer seen. Very few seen while driving roads after dark also.
My guess would be bucks only next year again. From what Ive seen on camera and on stand I won't even consider a buying a gun tag.
I am with Pine tar on this. I have not had the strong desire I usually have do to what my cams have shown. It will be a while before the age class and some easy winters provide larger racks.
No gun tag for me this year and not sure how many more times I will even bowhunt this year.
I am in Sawyer county as well but in the past hunt in Bayfield and Ashland counties.
Stopped by a friends place near Wonewoc to take a look at his 23 pointer - MY OH MY. I've never seen a buck like that in the wild. Non Typical, 20" inside, typical style frame, drop tine, really one beautiful deer.
Youngest son shot a nubbin buck, double lung, saw it drop at 150 yards. Saturday evening had the "Big 11" at 15 yards and as he was getting ready for a shot, the neighbor picking corn decided to drive the field road behind him spooking the buck. This guy was all alone.
Oldest son, shot his first buck with a bow, a 6 pointer, lung/liver hit, watched it drop within 100 yards.
Son's friend, only could shot a doe (buck already tagged), messed up on the only chance he had on Sunday morning. Did see the "High Racked 8 Pointer". Had him at 25 yards chasing 3 does on Friday evening. Sunday morning, had a 2.5 yr old cruse by him looking for a doe and a now broken rack 3.5 year old looking for does as well. He filmed both deer, cool to see.
Not a lot of chasing over the weekend that we saw. BC
POLK COUNTY, Private land
Just got back from 6 days of bow hunting on my land. Had 13 guests from Friday thru Sunday.
The hunting was HORRIBLE, virtually no deer movement, little to no chasing, except by spikes and dink basket racks. The little trail cam pics we have are all nocturnal. Scrapes no longer freshen up after rain or snows.
It is obvious that our deer numbers are down tremendously. :(
Left the property with about 6 new inches of snow on the ground, and still coming down hard.
With the cold temps and the heavy snow, my guess is it will be a mess for gun season. mud underneath the snow, and lake ice not freezing thick.
I did get 1 decent buck on camera on Saturday night. (the cam dates and times are wrong/broken)
Sat his evening and seen a lone fawn. 4 mile log road In after our snowfall. Only cut 3 sets of tracks.
A lot of nice bucks have been falling in farm country in recent days, including this 182-pound 11-pointer.
This one, also taken Sunday but about 20 miles west (east of Green Bay), looked like it had been gored by an antler tine in a fight. Arrow entry was in the other side, lucky it hit a major artery for a young man's first buck.
Another nice one, this one west of GB, got a ride in a friend's truck.
Friend passed on this nice buck a day prior to downing a larger one. He said it came through with another buck, they sparred near a fenced apple tree, then bedded about 50 yards away. They appeared wore down and actually seemed to sleep or at least deep rest a bit before getting back up about two hours later; pushed and shoved some more and then one worked a licking branch. Brothers out 'til "bar time" the night before and a bit tired yet?!
Had an encounter with a giant 3:15 in the afternoon. He busted me. He was out cruising. Had a single doe come through a half hour later and at the last half hour of light, I stuck a young buck I let lay over night. Hope to recover him in the morning. Most action I have had all year. Very nocturnal rut this year.
Is it just me or has this been a very confusing rut for most hunters?? I hunted Friday Saturday Sunday last weekend. Saw 7 different bucks those 3 days and not a single one was following a doe. Is the rut over or has it not started? I've heard a lot of times it's not until the end of the rut when you see the big guys up and moving trying to find that last hot doe. Do you think the weekend is going to be better because of the cold temps? I took off again this Friday in hopes to get a crack at dandy 12 point I've been getting on camera.
Sat tonight in Onieda Co. Finally saw a doe w/2 fawns.
PSEUSER, It has totally. My opinion is most of the action has been at night thanks to the full moon. When I have had an encounter, usually 50 yards off from where they typically ran. I made adjustments to no avail. Only one real big boy seen during light. Put a bad hit on a 2.5 year old I did not recover. My bow is stored for the year. I make a bad shot, I pay the piper. Rest of my bow season will be with a camera.
Hey ten, that's like me putting my golf clubs away in the summer cause I hit one in the water. There is still a lot of season left. Get back out there.
Took my 85-year-old dad for an hour ride at sunrise this morning. Put on a lot of miles, must say it was much slower than usual for wildlife sightings. Finally, six gorgeous roosters in one field made for some nice photo ops (and memories of 28 years of a Brittany, then an English setter!), then miles away a dandy buck stood alone next to a pine plantation. Stopped, took a few long-range shots, then a doe (appeared to be a doe fawn?) stood, then two more bucks joined in the chase but stayed back (decent 8- or so basket and a smaller fork or six point).
Here are a couple shots I got (side by side with a screenshot on my desktop so could get two in one frame). First shot is what we initially saw, a tank! … then after about a dozen shots the doe or doe fawn stood up (no wonder he didn't run). As soon as she turned tail and ran, he followed, followed by two other bucks that came out of the grass.
Naz, that is so cool. Memory to last forever.
Thanks 10, my dad, after 66 years of deer hunting, says he's not going this year. He still turkey hunts. By sacrificing some morning hunts and taking him on some drives this weekend, I hope to get him excited enough to at least go once more. Torn as I have kids that would like to get out, too. But he's not the kind that wants to mentor one of mine. I think if I offer to sit with him he'll go, but he's stubborn. Long story, left my mom with eight kids when I was three … but that's in the past, and he doesn't have many years to go, obviously. Here's a couple of the nice roosters we saw. Wish I could have got all six in the same frame … with the right lens, could have at one point as they ran across the plowing. All nice tails!