Bowsite.com

I have ran the trail cameras non-stop since last season at my main hunting spot after last season ended. I have not been motivated by the pictures they have captured to say the least. I had anywhere from 12-20 does around me last fall. I killed the oldest one in the late season. There has only been one fawn seen in the trail photos all summer, I have not seen others when scouting there in person. I have not been seeing deer regularly in my drives to work, nothing recently after the corn was harvested either.

The main field is planted in beans again this year. It should be harvested this week or next weather permitting. I plan on going in for at least one hunt this weekend, will be looking for rut sign and checking/moving the cameras if the scrapes and licking branches are active.

I have four other options I may try this fall if #1 fails to provide action. Three of those are acreages I have hunted in the past, the fourth was offered to me last weekend. The landowner was complaining about 20 deer eating in his bean field that morning. I told him they needed to be hunted and pressured by human presence to stop that. He asked me to come help him with that, AFTER the two guys currently hunting there are out of there. He told me they were running cameras and putting out failure piles of corn........... I gave him my card and asked him to call me when the tv trained hunters were out of there. I told him I would buy an extra antlerless tag to help him thin them out and would use my buck tag there too in the late season if I didn't fill it during the rut. It is a very nice remote property, with little to no pressure from neighboring properties.

The weather folks say rain is likely, possible heavy storms tomorrow, in the evening and overnight. I decided to go in after work to check my cameras ahead of the predicted rain in case I do not get to go hunt tomorrow as planned. There were 50+ pictures on each camera. I saw some fresh rubs, but did not find any active scrapes. All four cameras showed bucks following does in the last 4-5 days, showing aggression towards other bucks. There were also pictures of turkey, coons, possums, and a few pictures of coyotes chasing the deer around.

I’ve never understood the no-archery, but I believe it’s the “greenies” that are behind the ban. A lot of folks over there shoot bows... The desire is there, but politics.

Multiple deer hit by cars today in my area, two in the last 30 minutes East of Emporia.

Headed out here in a bit, going to hunt from the North stand this evening. They say the wind will be out of the NE stand tomorrow, so will hunt from the NW timber stand then. Last week the phone signal was weak, so if I run into that again today, I will post once back home.

I heard a robin in the woods North of me! Only other thing happening was a miniature yellow helicopter flew overhead above me. He came from the SW, circled around right above me, then headed South I assume to the airport. Who has that Chief?

Once to my NW stand, I’m kind of regretting that decision, well established trails in the past have been abandoned and are overgrown. There is one trail about 25yds out in front of me but it has a narrow shooting window for it. It doesn’t appear the deer use the funnel behind me like they have done in the past. I have killed many deer from this setup, but it doesn’t look very promising this season. Too late in the day to switch stands again, we’ll see what happens.

Found another licking branch on my way in, two scrapes near it as well.

Coyotes howling all around me

Will try it again tomorrow if I get off on time. It’s just starting to get good

Thanks for the updates.

Will be in the woods as much as possible this weekend unless they show up to combine the beans. They need cut but I selfishly hope they wait until Monday or Tuesday so I can hunt. Pictures a little later

From the pictures and what I have reported seeing in these threads, one might think it would be a good idea to move closer to the scrapes. All the bucks have went to them to scent checking and adding their own. I have deer hunted this property for the last 40+ years, experience tells me that is the last thing I should do. Any changes noticed by the deer, broke limbs, mashed down weeds, my scent found anywhere close around them consistently, they change their patterns or go elsewhere. They are amazing creatures. I do not care how careful you are about your scents, how stealthy you think you are entering or leaving any property, the deer see you and smell you. Far too many times I have "snuck" into a stand well be before daylight, then watched the deer purposely give where I am sitting a wide berth, all the while staring me down as they walk around me. They also have a habit of going by the stands that I am not sitting in, or showing up downwind of me even though they NEVER walk thru that section of the timber on any other day. The does know you are there, no matter how careful we try to be.

Buck just walked out into the LF to eat at 7:53

When I left this morning, I took the back roads along crop fields and creek/river bottoms looking for cruising bucks and other rut activities. When I left home coming back here, I did the same. I saw nothing, no deer, no parked hunting vehicles, no rubs, only saw two harvest operations active and they were leaving tracks in the fields.

Hopefully the chasing will continue tonight, but think they are still just separating the fawns from the does.

Another doe entering the LF from the South side

All the deer headed back towards the NW bedding area

It’s now 75f with a 9-15mph wind out the South. I parked on the South end by a new rub that wasn’t there a couple days ago. I took the long way in to avoid having my scent invade either bedding area walking in along the hedgerow from the East. I bumped the lone fawn out of her bed in doing so, was shocked to have bedded deer on this place, am sure she moved over to get away from the harassing bucks in their normal bedding choice. She jumped up and ran without blowing, do not believe she saw me, just heard me coming thru the brush and dry leaves. Still did not see established trails back in this neck of timber, but they have used it heavily the last 2-3 hunts

Sitting here swaying in the breeze with a blizzard of leaves raining down on me. Have heard some loud pops in the trees during the bigger gusts, makes me nervous hearing those.

I look forward to being in the woods again the next two days. I hope to see more does than I did in previous hunts. I hope I haven't missed too much of the chase phase working this week, it is the best phase of the rut IMO for action.

These are a few pictures of recent visitors in the last couple of weeks before last weekend's hunt.