Rutting Moon

[highlife4me]

Out of all the days, I think tomorrow (Friday the 15th) is the day to be in the woods. The forecast is calling for a pretty calm day (wind 5-10mph) Partly cloudy. Temps at 45 (scent will carry easily). The moon is almost full. And there is a pretty big storm rolling in (deer activity will increase). It would probably be a good idea to sit all day if you can.

All the stars are in line :-) Good Luck!

I'm hoping tomorrow is the day. Haven't been able to get out much with our new baby but bags are packed and heading to deer camp in a few hours.

[96trigger]

I agree completely about tomorrow, wish I hadn't filled my buck tag already. Oh well, good luck to the rest of you.

[Musky Buck]

I agree really, I'm not saying Buffalo County Wisconsin guides know much, it's just what I read last night in field and stream but a 2008 issue, my t-cam lights up with solo bucks near October 20th every year. Then about the last week of October the 1st hot doe goes to through the scrape and it's a dozen bucks visiting the same scrape shortly after meaning a day or 2 because she's leaving the scent they all want. A lack of scrapes and rubs might mean a lack of bucks in the area maybe at the "right" time for making them. I think the less scrapes when you know plenty of bucks are around is because an early doe or 2 went into heat, the later they find the first doe the more scrapes etc, hardly scientific. Sounds to me like your bucks are locked up with does hard so no scraping is needed and no time to rub trees until they get done with her moving onto the next. IDK, all I know is 29 bucks into my life here I could care less what the moon is doing, it won't change my stand sites, it doesn't change when opening day is, I'm not going to not hunt or hunt more because of the moon, does come into heat in my area around October 25th on through about November 20th then it's kinda done, a few years yes a hot December fawn surfaces but you can't bet a nickel on that, I'm in an extremely high buck number area and there aren't many that get missed. I often times have more than 1 buck chasing the same doe, this weekend 5 hot does. 3 bucks, 2 bucks so 40% of the does had multiple bucks after her. I definitely don't like that moon, I like it dark as spades, my records show way way more deer seen from the stand during darker phases and way way less if the moon is torchin. Throw snow in there and I should skip moonlit mornings etc. I see little to no daytime movement then, better PM hunts in my areas. This year is hit and miss, most people I'm talking to are having way better luck this year than last so next year will maybe be the opposite.

[slimngrizzly]

My wife will be heading to Ol'Faithful in the morning with her bow in hand! I hope something pans out!

[triggertrav]

Good luck to her Slim!

[FISHINGURU]

Hey I'm sure one thing we can all agree on is be in the woods whenever you can no matter what, it's the only way it will happen. None of us should say hey I'm not going to hunt today because the moon isn't right or it's too windy or it's too warm, ect.

It's nice collecting data from so many people all over the state though so we can compare notes, keeps us all in tune with what's going on.

Can't wait until we have the perfect storm again some season. Early Rutting Moon, mild wind, corn out, cold temps, ect. This season has been late Rutting Moon, high winds, alot of corn up, and mild temps, ect.

Stoked to hear about them 180"ers, that's what I'm talkin about, I want to be hearing more of that. Well actually I want to be seeing more of that..........at my stand.

[sticknstring]

Got word, the one is north of 200"! Won't net well though.

[MUSKY18]

Going out in a little bit to grab my card and throw up a ground blind in the dark. Try and brush it in as well as I can. Figure with the weather forecast I'll be a little more on the dry side sitting in a blind as opposed to a stand that's not enclosed. Rifle is put away and bow is back in hand!!! LETS DO THIS!

[drewbop]

My buddy shot a doe last night in Duluth. When we found her, a buck was circling her. As we drug her out the buck literally followed us about 10 yds back as he kept his nose to the ground. Each time we would stop to take a break, he would stare at us and wheeze, then run in a circle around us.

We would continue the drag and a moment or two after, he would be right back on our trail, right behind us. We got some video of it, it was kinda neat to have. He came right up to our trucks and just watched as we loaded her. Feel kinda bad for blocking him!

As we left, there was a spike buck following our drag path. Interesting night!

[Wanderer]

Every buck we've seen or have heard of being seen this past week in Z172 has its nose to the ground and moving fast. I had a chase go by me this morning too. Couldn't interest him in breaking off the doe and turn my way tho!

[harvey lee]

Started hunting last Wednesday in North Dakota. Shot a 10 and his neck was swollen but his glands on his hind legs were dry and did not have any smell at all. Friwend shot a nice 8 with a normal sized neck but the hind leg glands were a tad musky. My 10 was following 4 does but he looked like he was just along for the walk to the alfalfa. Buddies buck was chasing a doe when he shot it, it stopped for about 10 minutes and then got shot.

For the 4 of us, we saw a little bit of chasing bucks but as far as the rut going, I would say it was very slow at best. 2 of the guys sat all day Friday and Saturday and saw next to no buck activity as far as chasing.

If the rut started in North Dakota, from what we saw, it is slim to just getting started.

Hoping next weekend or the following, this years rut will pick up speed as it has been the poorest I have ever seen it for a rut during the gun season there. We were archery hunting.

Since I shot my buck on Wednesday, I used my filed glasses and watched deer in numerous locations where they typically run during the rut and saw almost no activity uasing my glasses.

I would agree this years rut will be a longer slow going rut without the normal running one would see from what I have seen the past 2 weeks. Out of the last 11 days, I have hunted 5 of them and it has been poor to say the least.

Out of the 28 or last 29 years hunting in ND, this is the slowest rut I have ever seen there. Typically by the secong

d gun weekend, usally the 16-18th which would be this past weekend, it is typically a great time to be in the woods, well not this year.

Yes, plewnty of rubs and alot of scrapes but no daytime movement hardly at all.

[PropsterII]

I'm convinced the bulk of it hasn't happened yet, but that's not to say we're still going to see any intensity. I hope I'm wrong and we will but not holding my breath. This has been the latest slowest I've ever seen. Too many general reports of no movement, none of the normal activity that we all see at least a little of. Sure there have been some spotty area-specific good reports of the usual seeking and chasing we are all used to seeing, but they've been fewer and farther between than we've ever seen. And even if normal rut behavior did occur in certain spots, what about just the general lack of daytime movement, the does you do see out feeding in the evening not being pestered, the lack of young bucks just wandering, etc, etc.

The bucks are ready to breed the minute they lose their velvet, but you don't see bucks come out of the woodwork until the first few does start coming in. In the meantime though they are usually checking scrapes and frustration builds until it's time. We're not seeing any of that where we are, at least to any reasonable extent. If I hadn't had a season's worth of rut action in one hour on the evening of Nov 2, if I hadn't been in that particular stand at that time, I would have said there absolutely was no rut yet. But there are plenty of does in the area and why hasn't it happened again as they come in? And why aren't they just out feeding and bucks checking them out like usual?

That night between 5 and 6 pm I had two or three does that were hot or at least smelling right. I saw seeking, cruising, chasing, grunting, fighting (heard ), tending - all in one hour. I saw at least 8 different bucks, 3 of which were shooters. The one good one that was not with or chasing a doe, came to my tree after tipping the can just twice. He was scent trailing a doe that had been chased through 5 minutes earlier by a bigger buck, and since he had no visual on her I thought he'd be a sucker for a bleat. He was. I shot him at 8 yards and at 141 6/8 he was the runt of the 3 good ones I saw, but a perfect ten and I'm glad I did because in all the hunts since (trying for a doe) I've seen very little buck activity except for two young 8 pts on Nov 8 and Nov 9.

My buddies have hit it hard the last two weeks. One of them shot the only buck he's seen in those two weeks (147 gross), he was alone on the morning of Nov 12 just walking around. They've had multiple sits where they haven't seen a deer. And this is just across the river in Wisc with no gun pressure. I talked to a friend in Illinois last night. They lease 1000 acres and own another 480. A few booners in there and who knows how many regular book bucks. Four of them all good hunters. They haven't shot a deer yet. They don't have any answers either. Sounds like it's not restricted to Minn but may be occurring across the Midwest.

Sorry for the long post, but from what I'm hearing I was one of the lucky ones, otherwise the rest of my season has been eerily similar to many others. Even in a trickle rut where a doe may come in here or there, wouldn't you think the bucks would be all worked up and wandering around looking for that next one? They sure as heck aren't getting shot!

[slimngrizzly]

I had 2 new big bucks that I haven't seen all year show up on the 15th, BOTH of them! I blew on one of them... a typ. 7x6!

[PropsterII]

Great! Maybe it is still about to happen. Or could those be an example of bigger bucks getting involved after the main fireworks? Either way it's good to hear.

[nbadger23]

For those of us who keep journals, this might be one of those that we bookmark as the "weird" year. Maybe 20 years from now we'll be coming back to it and saying.. remember that 2013 rut?

The highlight of the morning today was the turkeys yelping and gobbling, followed by the neighbors chickens answering them... and then the hoot owl who wanted to get into the mix. If you would have had a camera on me, you would have seen me chuckling a bit as I listened to the woods wake up.

[MUSKY18]

Sat for a few hours last night. Woods was pretty quiet. Bout 3:30 I had a nice buck appear on the alfalfa field about 500 yards out. Was just going across at a slow trot, but didn't have his nose down and didn't seem to be in a real hurry to get anywhere. Watched him through the binos until he crossed the neighbors field and disappeared into the river bottom. Thought it might be the start of good things and some movement. I was wrong. Quiet for the rest of the night. Only heard 4 shots, 3 were pretty distant and 1 was the guys on the 80 to my north. Going to hit it again tonight for the last 1 1/2 of daylight after work. Hoping for better results...........

[harvey lee]

THis year seem's to be a bit off from our normal rut every season.

Best bet for this season is to spend as much time as one can in the woods to catch the buck moving as he will sooner or later. Surely increases one's odds.

[Scott K]

In NW Wisconsin, I am just getting bucks chasing does now. My brother shot one last night, thick neck, and nose on the ground walking out to the hay field after some does.

[Bear55]

I'd say we are on pace as usual and likely in or reaching lock down mode right now, always a chance to catch a buck between does this time of year but I don't think you will see a lot of action. I have seen chasing this time of year too so you never know and it sure beats sitting on the couch. I don't know that we should expect the rut to be the same from year to year, just way to much randomness to the whole thing. So much depends on if and when we have hot does in your area or if you are in the right tree at the right time, that can make or break your season unless you have a prime area.

Opening week of rifle season I think it was on but they just weren't moving a lot, every large set of tracks I saw was paired up with a doe or two. We have to remember just because we don't see the action doesn't mean it isn't happening. Almost all night action around me.

[DonBo]

Almost all night action around me.

This is a typical full moon scenario, rut or not. Not sure why everyone's excited about the "rutting moon". Full moon always spells tough hunting in my world.

[FISHINGURU]

GF seen a big buck chasing does on her way to work again this morning, about 7:45 in the morning. Sounds like it's time to grab the bow and get back out there, I'm not letting up until the end this season, if anything I need to get me 2 nice does. Gun hunting was pretty much a joke with all the pressure, late/trickle rut, and the heavy winds.

The "Rutting Moon" was last night and we've heard of more and more activity starting to ramp up, lets make it happen.

[PropsterII]

Don, I agree with generally tough hunting during full moons. I don't think anyone was "excited" about the rutting moon in terms of hunting it, just the timing of it - when it was occurring and what effect that had on the playing out of the rut and timing of seeking/chasing/breeding. It's called the "rutting moon" but it is simply referring to the second full moon after the autumn equinox.