A Marathon, Not a Sprint

The rut! Man, I bet I just gave your stomach butterflies with those two words. The rut is without a doubt, the most exciting time of the year for a seasoned deer hunter. The thought of two 140 inch titans fighting over an estrous doe, monster bucks roaming the woods unaware of your presence and the cool crisp autumn air is what I live for! With the rutting activity a little over a week away, I thought I would share some insight on how Damin and I hunt the magical rut.

Any whitetail hunter worth his salt knows that the rut just doesn’t mysteriously occur for two weeks during the general firearms season. Also contrary to popular belief the rut is easily compared to a marathon and rather than a short sprint. Realizing this will allow you to hunt the rut smarter thus increasing your chances of taking a buck of a life time.

Since whitetails do not have the thinking and reasoning capacity of us humans, obviously, they need Mother Nature to tell them when it is time to breed. This is where the moon comes into play. Every year, generally around the last week of October and first week of November the first full moon after the Fall Equinox occurs, to deer hunters this is often referred to as the "rutting moon." The rutting moon and decreasing amount of light taken in through the deer’s eye triggers a sensory receptor in the brain, kind of like their aphrodisiac. As stated before this usually occurs in late October and early November, however this year the rutting moon is late and will fall on the night of November 13th. This will result in a more compact, frenzied rut.

We are also going to assume that fellow hunters know the rut can be generalized into three different phases: the seek phase, the chase and the breeding phase. Read on to see what skills and tactics we apply to hunting each phase and how we approach the big boys during this time.

Seek Phase: The seek phase is the first of the aforementioned three phases. Bucks testosterone levels are close to peaking or have peaked already. However, at this point of the game they are able to contain their sexual drive and the majority remains cool and collected. Bucks are now cruising and scanning the outskirts of doe travel routes, bedding and feeding areas checking each doe’s estrous level. A buck’s sense of smell is so well defined that he can actually pinpoint individual does and knows their age, social status and estrous status! Damin and I actually hunt this stage very patiently and cautiously. Remember, bucks are all still reserved animals at this point and, even though their daytime activity will increase, they will do the majority of their cruising during the fringe of dawn and dusk. I do very little to draw attention to myself during this phase. My calling will consist of several soft contact grunts right at sunrise and sundown. However, I will rattle during this time of year. I’m trying to simulate an intense fight between two bucks that have found an early estrous doe, attempting to tempt a mature buck in closer range. Hunting scrapes lines, albeit mock (we’ll explain mock scrapes in a later post) or natural will also increase your chances of harvesting a bruiser this time of year. Most ‘hot lines’ will stay hot for nearly two weeks if conditions are steady and little human pressure is applied. To summarize the seek phase Damin and I hunt very smart during this time. Bucks are becoming more susceptible to calling, scents and decoys yet are skittish and wary enough to pinpoint a fake deer or unnatural sound. Be patient though, primetime is just a week away!

Chase Phase: To quote Dickie V, “It’s primetime with a capital A!” Boy is it ever; the chase phase is by far my favorite time not only to hunt. Bucks are all jacked up on testosterone and are bouncing from doe group to group looking for an estrous doe. This is your best chance to tag a mature buck. This is your best chance to dupe Mr. Big as he has one thing and one thing only on his mind, estrous does. So, what are the best call, decoy and scent for hunting the chase phase? None of the above, that’s right, hunts the does. Big bucks are hunting does this time of year and, while it’s a simple concept, Damin and I are too. I have always said that the best lure for a mature buck is a mature doe. Damin and I hunt primary food sources this time of year as this is where we will have the best chance of seeing does. In fact, many times we hunt certain doe groups or families, as we know their tendencies and habits and know that eventually they will tempt in a big buck. Still, mature deer didn’t get old and big by being dumb. While it may seem that bucks are running around with no care in the world, this is actually not the case. Mature bucks use the knowledge they learned of their doe groups during the seek phase and apply this to their ‘hunting’, for does. Damin and I study, apply and utilize the topographical features of our property during this time. The scouting that took place during the shedding season allows us to hang stands in transition zones and funnels, hoping to catch a buck travel from doe bedding area to doe feeding area or vice versa. It is also during this time when we hunt the most aggressive. Hunting over buck decoys, mixed with aggressive rattling and calling work best during the chase phase. Combining estrous doe bleats with tending grunts works especially well now, as it simulates a buck tending a hot doe and this catching the attention of every buck in the vicinity. Quick summary: This is when deer hunting is at its best. We hunt hard, but smart at the same time. We are hunting doe concentrated areas, utilizing topographic features and become very aggressive with our calling because it is prime time baby!

Breeding phase: Sadly, the intensity of the chase phase is followed by a ‘dead zone’ known as the breeding phase. It is during this time that bucks are holed up with their does and the woods will be so quite and calm you’ll wonder if your deer herd has moved to the next zip code. The moon is almost full again, extreme hunter pressure has the deer as skittish as ever and exhausted bucks make this a slow time for deer hunting. It is actually during this time where Damin and I get a little R&R as well. Let me explain. As stated before the moon will almost be full again thus resulting in midday activity. It is wise and comforting to catch up on some sleep and hunt less during this time. Often we will hunt during the middle of the day. In fact, last year we had an encounter with The Dark Knight during a midday hunt, unfortunately no ethical shot presented itself. Again, rattling will work well as mature bucks will be the only deer to respond to the horns because they are the only bucks that have enough energy left to do so. Still hunting and stalking can be very productive if done correctly. It was actually during a still hunt when Damin and snuck up on the Dark Knight. Still, we play close attention to the wind, move only wind a strong wind blows and use the topographical features again to our advantage. Another tactic we use during this phase is capitalizing off other hunters. The breeding phase often coincides with the general firearms season and the Orange Army (the hills become covered with fur and fire hunters). Damin and I will often plan our hunts on the mistakes of other hunters by positioning ourselves on escape routes that we know the deer will use when bumped from another property. Quick summary: This can be a miserable time to hunt, however, through effective scouting Damin and I are familiar enough with our property and deer herd to get a bead on the pressure wary bucks.

Wow, what a marathon read! Just like this post, the rut is drawn out and full of detail. Through hard work and patience, Damin and I feel as if we have enough knowledge of the bucks on our property and their tendencies to feel confident in seeing mature deer every time out. Remember, all three phases overlap one another and no two bucks are the same. I hope everyone took something from this post as the rut is literally just over a week away! Damin and I honestly cannot wait and are about as jacked up as these bucks (if not more)! We’d love to hear everyone’s hunting experiences during the rut, so if you read the blog, post a comment!