How To Approach The Next 3 Weeks Of The Rut Phases
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- Опубліковано 24 жов 2023
- StrategicHabitat.com - Habitat Plans and Hunting Setups
Randy VanderVeen - 616-560-7488 - randy@strategichabitat.com
It’s that time of the hunting season most of us have been waiting for…
The rut phases.
Sitting on the edge of food plots watching deer is always entertaining in the early season, and a great way to take a nice buck while he’s still in his summer feeding patterns.
But in areas of high hunting pressure it doesn’t take long for mature bucks to feel that pressure, and only use food plots after dark.
That leaves young bucks, who are some of the dumbest deer in the woods, with these food plots all to themselves during the day.
By the time we get to the rut phases, the chances of shooting a 3.5 yr old buck while standing still feeding in broad daylight in high hunting pressured areas are pretty low.
For a 3.5 yr old buck, that’s his 4th hunting season. He’s seen plenty of hunters come and go to and from blinds and stands completely exposed to deer feeding in plots and fields, and probably even been shot at a time or two before he had nice antlers.
If this sounds like your situation on your hunting property in high hunting pressured areas, let me ask you a question.
How many mature shooter bucks have you taken with a bow while Mr big is standing still within bow range, feeding in a food plot in broad daylight after Oct 26 when the rut phases start?
We’re talking 3.5 yr olds or older in high hunting pressured areas. Not IA or KS.
In most cases, if a mature buck is on a food plot during the rut, he’s usually tailing a hot doe or pushing does around. Not exactly a high percentage shot on a moving target that won’t stop at the sound of your grunts.
But for some guys it’s hard to get away from food plots and hunt in the timber. After all, we want to see deer. But just because there’s deer in food plots during daylight hours, doesn’t mean the mature buck is gonna do the same in high hunting pressured areas.
Best advice I’ve seen all year.
Public land thumb Michigan. I have never seen a 3 year old buck. Private land I used to hunt? Oh yeah seen many it wasn't pressured. This state land is a completely different ball game. 6,000 acres to about 2000 people
Great layout, great job Randy
Nice Layout Randy! It’s go time out there!hope you get some hunting in !
Weather looks to be lining up very well this Saturday
Great Video Randy, once this cold front makes its way here its time for those pinch-points & funnels in the thicker cover.
Can't wait Jake!
Good video, it's so true so many guys just don't understand the wind and how bucks use it for everything from where they bed to looking for love ❤️. I see guys all the time that park with their wind blowing toward bedding areas and when I see them at lunch I'll say why did you park here and walk all the way in and thru those areas when you could've parked around the corner and used the wind to your advantage? Of course they never see anything except maybe a basket buck or doe until it smells them...lol. I've tried to help people for years how to hunt the rut and wind but they just don't get it...
Very informative. Well done!
Thanks Jeff
Great vid. Thanks. I took a lot from this video.
Awesome. Good Luck
Wow you must have hit the nail on the head with this! Massive views already! Happy hunting brother!
Can't wait to get you to my place in January!
Looking forward to it Greg.
Good video Randy
Thanks John!
How do you get those small plots to come in without the deer mowing down before it produces..
Great video! Thanks for the free intel. I actually am saving my best stand and it is a pain to get to. I am hunting it Saturday night!
Good luck
Very inspiring
Lol, where I hunt I've never seen a mature buck feeding in a plot in daylight. I have harvested several mature bucks w a bow during the tending and late trolling phase though. I drool over all these vids of mature bucks in daylight open areas. It don't happen in my neck of Central GA!
I get my pics from 12a.m. to 2a.m. on mature 10 and teenage 8 the past few weeks with random 10a.m. to 12p.m. sighting. A month ago 8a.m. to 12p.m. more days then not in a week and the night time times as well. I don't go in there or not yet and not as deep as the camera in discussion ever. They still changed,nearest hunter is 300yds horizontal to location ( 3200ft mtn,valley floor 100yds wide at 1400ft to a parallel ridge going to 2000ft the deer or bigger bucks stay 1900ft and above big mtn side.south slope of cumberland mtn sw va) and isn't a moving hunter he hunts a box or small ridge setup. Point being minimal pressure changed their movements atleast on my 1 camera getting them. Kinda cool to attempt putting it all together. Good luck our there and yeah food/crop deer aren't a thing for us appalachian hunters either.briar patch deer are the ticket
@@proudlyamerican2764 I quit running trail cameras in my area. They costed me a old mature buck ( 8+ year old) 2 years ago. I had basically quit hunting the area. I had zero daylight pics during the active fall rut timeframe . At night, I'd regularly get pics of 3-6 3+year olds every night. I had resolved it was a waste of time . Then , on November 16th one year , the old man came through at 11:30am. Had I not known the bucks were nocturnal, I'd have likely been on stand that morning . My favorite and most productive times to hunt the rut are 9:30am to 12:30pm in cover on trails that run diagonal to major trails from bedding to food sources.
I’m sitting over a spot with acorns right off an apple orchard. Should I continue to sit this evenings. ?
What is the yellow shrub at the very end of the video the buck walks past? Looks like a good one for cover that retains its leaves into the fall!
I believe that's a forsythia
Are the stands off the food plots afternoon stands?
Alan forgot to mention in the video that they're most productive 9am - 2pm and before dark
I enjoy the videos, but wish there were some done in the south....I do realize that's not where your at, I'm just saying
Not iowa or Kansas....let me guess because its easy here in iowa and we dont have hunting pressure 😂😂
Why would you want a bedding area on a large food plot edge?
It's high ground bedding close to food which is what does and fawns like.
Why wouldn’t you is the question ?
@@cray-z7404 I just figured they typically bedded down a certain distance away from food. It’s called learning which is why I asked
@@RandyVanderVeen Thankyou!
@@conraywest no pun intended
Heres a challenge for the comments guys:
Massive oak stand 300+acres mixed with young slashing. Beds everywhere, 3 shooters in area, all public 2000+ acres in total. Also a pack of 9+wolves regularily hunt it. Try to establish a pattern. Lmao. Wolves have them scattered every third day. Norther Wisconsin.
Start buying and filling your small game/wolf tag with your friends
@@MichealBacon if it didn't come with a federal charge, they'd all be dead.
Younger the buck, the more tender the meat. I will never understand horn hunters.
@jeffsnider7842 I love the challenge of targeting a big buck with a bow. And all of our venison has been great! Even the older bucks. I think a lot of it has to do with the meat processing.
Some of us enjoy the hunt & the strategy. We want to work hard because it’s more fulfilling. We want to invest a lot of time and effort into the hobby.
I know guys who just go a couple times during rifle season and get meat for their family, and they really enjoy it!
I liken bow hunting for older bucks to fly fishing instead of catching stocked trout with power bait. But there is nothing wrong with that! I think everyone should hunt however they please!
I think whatever you hunt, you better eat it! It bothers me when anyone takes the life of an animal without the intention of eating it. And I guess I feel even better when I know it was a big challenge. The longest shot I’ve ever taken was 25 yards.
Anyway, I hope that helps!