Hunt Report Nov. 15-20
Wisconsin
Last week before gun season. My guess is things are slowing down with some lock down going on.
Very sad day for me here. I pulled most of my stands today. While driving around I saw no hunters parked around where I hunt and several deer feeding around last hour of light.
Saw no evidence of what some call lockdown in a drive at dusk tonight. Deer everywhere, with one of my spots (cut corn) having three does and five fawns (silhouetted above), the property just north with a doe and two fawns in the small opening amidst the swamp and a neighboring hay field hosting 20 (three bucks and 17 baldies!). Most I've seen in two of the spots since summer.
Twenty minutes after sunset; couldn't get 'em all in one frame. Many other fields around that square mile had 2-8 deer on. Yet like most of my heavily-hunted square miles of ag land, once the orange invasion is on, you'd swear most were sucked up by the same DNR helicopters that relocate wolves and stock cougars, rattle snakes and firles!
1 unidentified (pretty sure it was a doe ) and a 2.5 yr old 8 pt this morning. He was checking the bedding area. Didn't even care about the grunt or bleat from me when I was trying to get him to stop to see just how big he really was. Afternoon was a bust, except for the doe I kicked up while walking in.
I did one last quick morning hunt before gun season this morn. Sat one of my best funnels from 5:20-10:45 with nothing seen besides a coyote that I couldn't get a shot at.
First year bow hunting for me so this may be a stupid question but is it worth even sitting after gun season?
It depends on the area. By us they shut down completely until about the week before Christmas and they they are out during the day again. We have a fair amount of muzzle-loader pressure though also. The colder it is though the less likely any of that matters.
Alpha...give them a week or two to settle down after gun season. Late season is my favorite time of the year to be in a tree. Granted many bucks are missing but the big boys who have evaded the orange army for years are still there. You have the secondary rut kicking in and with snow on the ground (at least by me most of the time)tracking is a breeze.
good to hear thanks guys! just want some more time up in the stand to really learn my family's property and get more experience
I have taken many deer in December and some big ones on the 31st. It takes them some time to calm down after guns season if they have had a lot of pressure but my area it good mid week of muzzleloader season.
Don't get too excited over the so called secondary rut. In most areas it is a non-event. If you have a high deer population then it might be something. Most does are bred or dead by then. The bucks are capable but it is nothing like the rut (peak in Nov.). Just look at what this rut was like. You are better off hunting food sources.
Around Dec. 3-10 can be some decent second rut action in farm country to catch the early does that weren't bred the first time, or fawns coming in for the first time ever. Shot a dandy buck last day of muzzleloader a decade ago that was tailing a doe fawn and once watched a string of yearling bucks tailing a doe in heat during December four-day antlerless gun hunt. Was so much fun I decided not to drop her. ;)
If you can get permission in a metro area where no guns are allowed, or have permission on an ag field that has hay, clover, winter wheat or corn stubble (or the rare standing corn this year), that can be good for late-season bow.
Sat in the rain until dark. 3 does, 6 pt, & a 130 class 8 pt at 20 yards . I 'm starting to wonder if I should let a Buck like that walk away , hunting on Public grounds & on the ground. Oh well :-)
"a 130 class 8 pt at 20 yards . I 'm starting to wonder if I should let a Buck like that walk away "
If he doesn't get you cranked up, then letting him walk is the right thing to do. But there is no way I would let one like that walk on public land.
Pulled my photo cards today and by the looks of it, the seeking phase started on the 9th in Juneau county and it is still going on. Still had bucks visiting scrapes as of yesterday. Lockdown might occur during gun season.
Sat at big timber # 2 tonite. Nasty, windy, steady rains, & temp falling . I was packing up when 2 does showed up. I sat down to let them feed through. It was dark when a big Deer showed up following the does. Too dark to see antlers.
I waited until all was quiet and headed for the Jeep. Geez I was cold.
20s, windy and maybe snow showers Saturday, but I hear ya, rain and wind if you get wet is worse, even if in the 40s! Brother in U.P. said very slow past three days, seeing mostly nocturnal movement.
last Friday I had a great encounter. this area is so thick and nasty, no way to get a stand in there, unless prepared in the spring.....
sitting on the ground, since 1pm, in my chair. 4pm a nice 6 point comes out, on my right side. and he was close, at the most 15 feet....
he just stands there, after coming out of the bog, and then looks at me, as I stare ahead, hopeing he will walk forward and out, so I can draw my bow...
He walks another 2 steps toward me, I can not believe he can not smell me, but I have the wind, and sitting in my plaids and wool, and face mask, he has no clue/
He finally walks to his right behind a big windfall. and he is going east. I tried to stop him, with a bleat call,,,,,, I think he got down wind of me, but after that bleat, he jumped out of his skin, and was on his way, to Florence.....
got to love them close encounters,,,,,,,,,,,
Opening day of UP guns season Naz, it was 55 and sunny and Monday we had warm weather, and it was slow.... came home to take the wife out, going back up Wed nite, hope with the front the deer will move on Friday
Sunday 11/15, my last hunt of the early season...this 2.5 yr 8 pt walked by at 7am, got a quick look and decided not to shoot. As he walked away, I grunted to see how he'd react. He circled all the way around and came back in to about 10 yds behind me and upwind. Silence for 10 min, then I realized he must have bedded. I couldn't see him cause it's so thick, but he laid there for 2.5hrs!! Every 20 min or so he'd cough and wheeze and then go quiet. Well at 9:45 I've got to get going to my daughters hoops game, so I decide I'll lob my cushion over him, hoping he'll get up and give me 1 last good look to make sure I don't want to shoot. I short armed my toss and the cushion lands kind of between us, he jumps up and slowly walks over to check out my cushion...and precedes to lick it several times!!! Ha! He then casually saunters all around my stand before walking away...I drew twice just to try and wispered to him "see you next year!"
Sat for 3 hours under nasty conditions Wed nite. Heavy rain & winds. I ' m convinced that older Deer feel safe in bad weather. Saw a 110 inch 8 pt & a 130 inch 8 . I hope they are around Saturday when the grandkids are hunting.
