RUT?

[walleyemaster08]

Think the deer will still be chasing next weekend?

[hockeybc69]

Personally I think the rut is in better shape now than it was 2 weeks ago.

Been seeing deer during the day when I have been out and about, trail cams picking up some day time movement as well.

Prior to now, I hadnt seen much of any buck movement.

Some could be the weather now compared to a couple weeks ago is more conducive to daylight travel too.

The last 2 seasons, my best luck for actual rutting deer that I witnessed while on stand has been during muzzleloader season.

[matchset]

simply stated...yes

[Musky Buck]

The weekend of the 27th and 28th, bucks will be game, not so sure many does are left with the night time rutting and breeding that takes place, I'd look for maybe a doe fawn coming into heat, I'd actually look to the thickest cover u can hunt especially with ample snow on the way, my gang we haven't seen a buck chase a doe after mid-november in our parties history that I'm aware of. 10 of us muzzleload and have since the first all-season tag, none of us have seen this 2nd rut business, likely occurs after dark when the buck finds a feeding group of does and fawns and sniffs them over, but the last 3 muzzy seasons have been better than the rifle season so I'm optimistic, but those 5 ladder stands I have out could be a little chilly come Saturday. I have seen more deer now before dark recently, but the weather pattern of late is telling the deer fill up big time and with less crops around the search for food is tougher. Areas vary a lot.

[Musky Buck]

Here's the skinny on how I connected 2 of the past 3 muzzy years on a mature buck. Even if the buck I hope to get is rutting a doe or fawn or whatever, my theory is they must eat so my plan is to sneak into my stand on favorable wind days, I first figured out where I thought they fed the most and hunted that property exclusively, much less pressure so I believe the mistake the bucks made was to not get back to their bedding ground in the dark, they were out in the middle of a 130 acre combined corn field, this is what they used to do during rifle season but every field has a stand or two in them then, got 1 5 minutes into shooting light, lone buck, and last year was a lone buck coming back from feeding that a car honked the horn at about 20 minutes into shooting light, I think some of these bucks are trying to put on some fat that may be lost during the heaviest of rutting time, it's a matter of faith and not bumping him on the hike into the stand, during rifle they are often on the edge of the swamps I hunt because of field pressure and they're trying to figure out the danger issue and here I come bumping them for the 2nd time in the dark on the swamps edge, now saturday these deer can be out in the middle of the field(s) and I'm able to sneak in before they come back, hopefully and talking to the neighbors no one really took any sort of buck this rifle season so I know they are around, does that mean more hunters will choose to muzzleload I'll find out Saturday morning. But, I'm going into the thickest jungle closest to 1 of the ladder stands, red willow and grass with some blow downs.

[nonteepical]

the so called second rut isn't much for activity, you may find a buck trailing a doe (fawn) but i would hunt the food source if you can find it.