Which week to hunt SE Kansas?
Contributors to this thread:Whitetail Deer
From: wildwilderness
15-Jul-21
Drew a Kansas archery deer tag, and have a new lease for the season. Hunting out of Neodesha and was wondering which week you would recommend to bow hunt? am hoping for at least my first P&Y buck! I did notice the new moon is Nov 4
From: FORESTBOWS
15-Jul-21
Last week of October or first week of November
From: Norseman
15-Jul-21
Halloween ish
From: jingalls
15-Jul-21
Peak of rut is the 15th ish. So first or second week. Flip a coin?
From: Scott in Camo
15-Jul-21
Can't go wrong between Nov 5-15 especially if the goal is a P&Y buck. I'm only a few miles away from you and will be taking my vacation at that time.
From: Thornton
15-Jul-21
You are going to get quite a few different answers here. Some years the first week is good, other years the 2nd or 3rd week of November is better. Seeing an actual booner is rare but can happen any of the weeks mentioned.
From: Catscratch
15-Jul-21
My 2 favorite weeks in November are the 2nd week, and Thanksgiving week. Lots of great hunts during those times over the yrs.
From: MichaelArnette
15-Jul-21
First two weeks for sure
From: Quinn @work
15-Jul-21
If you want a 125" buck then you can't go wrong with starting October 31. Have fun!
From: Kydeer1
15-Jul-21
End of Oct has always been good to me. Lots of factors though weather being the biggest and you can't control that one.
From: writer
15-Jul-21
Did more articles on real gaggers being shot last half of Nov than the first.
Bucks danged patternable the first few days of the season, especially around food sources.
From: Pop-r
15-Jul-21
Seems the last weekend in October a cold front usually blows in without fail. It's a very nice time to be out in the woods if nothing else.
From: writer
16-Jul-21
Come on, Kyle, I set that one up perfectly for you with "...food sources." You know it works, unfortunately.
From: duckhunterbrad
16-Jul-21
First week of season or a good cold front in October. By far the best success I've had is NOT during the rut, I'm sure that's an unpopular opinion but my trophy rooms says its the truth.
From: wildwilderness
16-Jul-21
So first week to target specific buck hitting a "food source" haha.
Does the moon phase matter during the rut? 19 of November is full moon
From: Kydeer1
16-Jul-21
I've had terrible luck during the full moon and will now not book hunts during that time frame rut or not
From: Thornton
17-Jul-21
Last year while I was out hunting in Idaho, there were some nice ones killed in Kansas probably due to the early snow. First year I've noticed in a long time where the end of October produced that many. I'd venture to say outfitters make a lot of money that time of year selling "pre-rut" hunts and they don't give up many deer doing so. The biggest bucks I've ever seen on the hoof are usually in early December, and I hunt about 15-20 days every November.
From: RIT
17-Jul-21
If you have a “new lease” to hunt why are you trying to narrow down a single week? I’d hunt great weather during the different phases of the rut. Maybe in two or 3 day spurts.
From: Matte
17-Jul-21
I like an afternoon moon rise. No matter the moon phase.
From: wildwilderness
18-Jul-21
I live in AK! So I have to take the time to fly to KS to hunt. So trying to plan the trip.
The advantage of a lease is I can pick any dates and amount of time. Also come back for a second hunt if needed etc.
From: writer
18-Jul-21
First week of the season these two were coming and going from a beanfield, Wildwilderness…until they felt the slightest pressure.
From: wildwilderness
20-Jul-21
Yeah, Opening day would be nice if I could just hop over to hunt. That said I am pretty sure my hunting buddy from Arkansas will be there! We are splitting the lease. Its only a few hours drive for him, and he will be checking cameras so will have the intel.
It's sounding like the first week of Nov or so may be my target
From: Stubbleduck
21-Jul-21
I have hunted Kansas, near Manhattan, every fall since 1995. Although I am a non resident I hold a lifetime hunting license purchased (1986) when I lived in the state (Best $200 I ever spent). From 1995 to 2011 I was able to hunt about a week each season but which week was variable based on work schedule. Since retirement I have generally been there from the last week of October through at least the first two weeks of November and occasionally up to Thanksgiving. I can't really pick a favorite week as my deer sightings and hunting success has varied from year to year with no, to me, predictable pattern. Some years there will be a few days with many sightings and other years I see deer more or less consistently while hunting. I did see many more deer per season from 1995 to about 2009 or so then a major decrease through about 2018. Since then I have been seeing increasing numbers each year with more mature bucks seen in the last two years. This is on about 300 acres of private land, mixed crop and flint hills pasture, that a couple of friends and I own. We are the only hunters on the land and I would say hunting pressure in our immediate area has decreased some over the last 20 years and has become increasingly bow hunting rather than firearm.
From: Copperhead
21-Jul-21
I live in SE Kansas just a few miles from the SE corner of Neodesha County and can tell you that any time in November is a great time to be in the deer hunting woods. What will effect your chances of success the most will be the quantity of P&Y deer, hunting pressure, habitat and weather, not necessarily in that order.
From: Genesis
30-Mar-23
I don't hunt food plots so mostly timber hunting and like every day past Nov. 12th through Thanksgiving
From: Slate
31-Mar-23
Guys check the date of the original post
From: bentstick54
31-Mar-23
I wonder how he did? 2 years ago.
From: bigswivle
31-Mar-23
Whenever Pat goes
From: JSW
31-Mar-23
It's sad that you only get one week. Here's my 2 cents.
I kill most of my bucks around these 3 days. October 30, November 7 and November 22. I could spend hours telling you why I think that is but we don't have time for that.
Since most people have to take a Saturday through Sunday time frame you have to decide if it's 10/28 to 11/5, 11/4 to 11/12 or 11/18 to 11/26 to hit my favorite/most successful dates. 11/10 to 11/20 is when I have the least success. Discount the "lock down" all you want but 40+ years tells me those dates are less productive. Good luck and let us know how it goes.
From: Cheesehead Mike
01-Apr-23
"Good luck and let us know how it goes". 2 years ago...
From: Charlie Rehor
01-Apr-23
Every state is different but if you only have a week based on Genesis’ experience and successes he has Kansas figured out.
From: Thornton
01-Apr-23
We go through this every year. NR shows up too early, and complains nothing but young bucks are moving. The guy in the next valley over sees two of the biggest bucks he's ever laid eyes on cruising for does. A week later the NR complains all the bucks are in "lockdown" and once again, somebody over in the next creek kills a giant cruising. There's no exact right answer to this question, and I've noticed some counties are consistent in movement a week earlier than other counties.
