What's your tactic for Oct. Whitetails

[yidava25]

Good day.

Every Alberta boy knows how to hunt whitetails in November, but I have a lot more hunting time right now. Got any secrets? There's bucks on the property I hunt but I'm not seeing them in daylight.

Hunt scrapes? Walk the bush? Calling/rattling? Sit at home and read Big Buck till they actually move? Somebody must have something to teach me besides what the whitetail experts from Illinois and Iowa know. Cool stories are welcome.

[charves]

I've plugged one with a bow in early October out of the tree stand overlooking a field.
That's simple enough on a field and you know their entry routes.

I saw a nice 5x5 last weekend in an old cutblock as I was walking into that strong wind we had....saw him at 40 yards but he didn't give me the shot with the brush in the way.
I'd say at this time of year, you want to find a scrape on a good game trail and set up downwind...even better if you can be off the ground.

[Dick284]

Seeing as my deer Mecca doesn't open for rifle till November 1, I got nothing for ya. But I'd figure October 15th wouldn't be that much different than November 5th. Sit your travel corridors and be patient.

[yidava25]

Every year I see bucks like this on camera. They show up once, maybe a couple times. Almost never in daylight. I'm basically the only hunter on this 250 acre property so I can hardly think they're overly pressured.
Heading out there today, will check some more areas for sign and maybe make some scrapes.
Guess they call it hunting, not killing.

[Stinky Buffalo]

yidava25, that's quite the plump buck!

I look for an area that shows a lot of deer sign, and do a tiny bit of rattling.

[Dick284]

Originally Posted by yidava25

Every year I see bucks like this on camera. They show up once, maybe a couple times. Almost never in daylight. I'm basically the only hunter on this 250 acre property so I can hardly think they're overly pressured.
Heading out there today, will check some more areas for sign and maybe make some scrapes.
Guess they call it hunting, not killing.

The more you bumble around the place the more you are stinking the place up with your scent. Mature bucks will swing to nocturnal mode as soon as human activity increases in the area.



Get to your spot, sit and wait. Get straight out, and minimize your scent, always.


Nice Buck, BTW.

[Sledhead71]

If your not seeing them in daylight hours, well your not between bedding and feeding. You want to be where the cagy old fella stage just before stepping out at last light...

Good luck, if was easy it would not be fun.....

[Xiph0id]

Originally Posted by Sledhead71

If your not seeing them in daylight hours, well your not between bedding and feeding. You want to be where the cagy old fella stage just before stepping out at last light...

Good luck, if was easy it would not be fun.....

This is good advise.

Don't hunt where they are at 1 hour after sunset.

Find where they bed. Find where they eat. Pick a spot in between.

[Slicktricker]

Guys got some meat on his bones for sure

[yidava25]

I always hear this advice... find the bedding and feeding areas, set up on a trail in between. Makes great sense, but for the life of me I can't find enough evidence of a buck consistently visiting the same spot. The property I hunt has 4 or 5 perfect small (5 acres or less) alfalfa patches, and tons of dense cover. So it seems the deer have no reason to choose one over the other on a given day. I DREAM of catching multiple pictures of a buck doing the same thing twice in a row. One sighting does not a pattern make.

[Sledhead71]

Originally Posted by yidava25

I always hear this advice... find the bedding and feeding areas, set up on a trail in between. Makes great sense, but for the life of me I can't find enough evidence of a buck consistently visiting the same spot. The property I hunt has 4 or 5 perfect small (5 acres or less) alfalfa patches, and tons of dense cover. So it seems the deer have no reason to choose one over the other on a given day. I DREAM of catching multiple pictures of a buck doing the same thing twice in a row. One sighting does not a pattern make.

Most common mistake is not being flexible... If you not getting a pattern, your not in travel corridor ... Change it up with your camera and keep a log of what your patterning... The staging area is where you NEED to be as the mature deer hold before entering the food sources.

Best of luck

[bucksman]

do they pick which one they go to based on the wind?

[Sledhead71]

Originally Posted by bucksman

do they pick which one they go to based on the wind?

If you pressure any animal, they will certainly adjust accordingly.. Don't rush it, put the time in and wait till conditions are right and pray the deer gods are good to you...

[3blade]

Originally Posted by yidava25

I always hear this advice... find the bedding and feeding areas, set up on a trail in between. Makes great sense, but for the life of me I can't find enough evidence of a buck consistently visiting the same spot. The property I hunt has 4 or 5 perfect small (5 acres or less) alfalfa patches, and tons of dense cover. So it seems the deer have no reason to choose one over the other on a given day. I DREAM of catching multiple pictures of a buck doing the same thing twice in a row. One sighting does not a pattern make.

They don't, at least not the ones who survive more that a year or two. If they have access to the same food in multiple places, they use the wind to get a better idea of what might be ahead. A deer will visually check openings, and scent check cover. Then, if you watch carefully, they move out into the open and feed with their ass pointed into the wind so their nose covers what their eyes can't. It's quite impressive to watch an old buck and see how he uses his environment.

You have to find spots where you are entering and exiting without crossing deer paths or getting upwind of a bedding area, and have something downwind you so they can't scent you. could be a real thick area, pond, steep ravine, etc. If you can't find that, just pay attention to the wind and entrance and exit routes. Get a bunch of trail cams and play the percentages based on what they tell you.

[Prairiekid]

Would a little rattling at least cue some interest?


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[Passthru]

I've seen mature bucks run off smaller bucks around this time. Rattling might work but nothing crazy. They are not battling yet.

[Albertadiver]

Gonna road hunt hard! Don't want to get my boots wet in this slush.



Sounds like a plan. LOL.

[Stinky Buffalo]

Originally Posted by Passthru

I've seen mature bucks run off smaller bucks around this time. Rattling might work but nothing crazy. They are not battling yet.

Yup, keep it subtle! Just enough to arouse a bit of curiosity. Be prepared for the buck to "sneak" in - they probably won't come in at full charge, and may take a while too - patience is key.

[Slicktricker]

Originally Posted by Albertadiver

Gonna road hunt hard! Don't want to get my boots wet in this slush.

That’s 90% of hunters year round plans lol

[Big Lou]

Originally Posted by bucksman

do they pick which one they go to based on the wind?

One deer in particular I have unfinished business with will only enter in anything close to legal light on the property I have access to with a west or NW wind. If it’s a different factor he always waits until dark. I can’t get on where he beds or travels to food but I have the food. It’s a bit of screwing around but I take note of wind direction in my diary and then reference it with trail cam pictures of any and all deer I’m interested in. It’s not an exact science but has really helped with planning access and egress in conjunction with a set I can or absolutely should not hunt.

[last minute]

Get to your spot, sit and wait. Get straight out, and minimize your scent, always.


Nice Buck, BTW.
__________________

x2 agreed Very sound advice Good luck .

[Rhamnus]

I just started this year. Calling lake, Swan Hills, Cadomin (area). Its still pre rut and from what I understand deer are still cautious.

My strategy is find a spot on a map. Drive there, look for signs. If there are I will set my blind upwind and sit till last light.

Has not worked so far. But I dont want to push bush that hard with all my gear.

Just practicing till November 12th.

I try not to disturb the area Im sitting in too much. Wash my clothes in scent free detergent. Air dry them. Bag and containers. Change into them on location. Keep my scents low. As long as I eliminate factors where I may be messing myself up Im happy.

At this stage of the game I don't expect to see anything anymore. Last two weeks of November though. I am hoping I get something...

[dfrobert]

Read big buck mag, and keep dreaming! Ha. If your just scouting now, hunt where the biggest concentration of does is at come November. The bucks will show.

[heretohunt]

You should start seeing scrape lines opening up at this time of year. Maybe at night though but they are defineatly becoming active.

[58thecat]

Originally Posted by Prairiekid

Would a little rattling at least cue some interest?


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Light rattling, bleats, grunts, rub a tree, all lightly, this has for me in the past sparked curiosity to check things out during October hunts.

I also have my stands now in wooded, low areas, natural funnels where mature animals feel comfortable travelling with minimal exposure yet still checking the area out.

Good luck.

[The Cook]

We stopped the first light thing years ago. Have a nice casual breakfast and let them bed down, then push them out of their beds around 11 am or noon. Got a few nice Alberta bucks this way.

[58thecat]

Originally Posted by The Cook

We stopped the first light thing years ago. Have a nice casual breakfast and let them bed down, then push them out of their beds around 11 am or noon. Got a few nice Alberta bucks this way.

That's another alternate too, did a lot of that in Saskatchewan just got tired of all the people etc like the quit of the woods now, just hang out and relax. Pass up a heck of a lot more than I see or call in, just enjoy the adventure.
Wife, kids use to say when I came in did you get anything now they say did you see anything son hunts the same way now, we enjoy the stories of potential bucks we see that need a few years but every now and then we take that special to us buck.

[Schroedes13]

I got a nice, old 8 pointer two weeks ago. I just sit on edges of fields with a large doe population and every second time or so, a buck will come out just before shooting light ends. No rattling or calling st all. Save that TIL November.


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[Hugenuge]

I love October hunts for rattling and grunting. I took my first bow buck this way mid October two years ago. It’s in my observation that once the velvet comes off the bucks like to do some light sparing and playing around. ( Trail cam evidence) then as we progress into mid to late October bucks seem to be starting to get a little more intense with the sparing and aggressive over territory. That’s why I love rattling and grunting this time of the year because it does peek their curiosity.

I have shot other bucks with a rifle in this fashion and passed up a couple that needed more time!!

I would suggest hanging a tree stand near an area you know bucks are frequenting either bedding, corridors, staging or feeding areas. Try to set it up in a way that wind is in your face and so is the majority of the options the deer will come from. Example I like to have a field down wind of me because a field is something the bucks feel less comfortable moving through to get down wind. I’ll use fence line in this way to act as a natural guide for where I want the buck to travel as he comes to the sound of the rattle.

Put a little bit of scent on a tree upwind of you so that if a deer is trying to cut down wind he picks that scent up first. (This is exactly what I did when I shot ny now buck it the deer played into perfectly. He caught the scent just before getting down wind of me enough that it actually turned him right into the fence line I had planned for a deer to come into my shooting lane on.

This strategy has worked for me. There is many other great strategies on here that works as well. Have fun and keep us posted.


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[DJS]

For me I love hunting scrape lines in mid to late October. The bucks, particularly the bigger ones, don't do alot of day light moving early on. My experiences have showed that as they get into mid to late October daylight movement increases big time in the bush. Generally every year we hunt the same areas so we know in advance where the scrape lines will be and our stand locations are usually the same. I won't go out early in the morning as I worry about pushing deer but an hour and half after legal light I'll sneak into a stand and hunt that area for at least 4-5 hours. Midday movement is very common at this time of the year and throughout November although the bucks will be moving for shorter periods of time right now.