TheHornHunter

Sat for 90 minutes this morning and two hours this evening. Same property but saw two different mature bucks. One was in soy beans for an hour this morning and the other came out about 615 this evening and spent 15 minutes thrashing trees and making scrapes. The one this morning I’ve seen my last two sits there and the one this evening I’ve got a few trail cam pics of. Big boys still not showing any interest in does but they are definitely feeling frisky. I also had a decent 8 pointer sneak in to 30 yards and make a scrape but his body looked immature so he got a pass. Hoping to get back into a stand tomorrow, but I gotta admit all these hang and hunts with one mile hike ins are taking a toll... I have a herniated disc in my back and the doctors keep telling me to take it easy so I gotta try to pace myself unfortunately Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Was this the LW climber or the hang on? I got a LW hang on and stick combo last season and it has all but replaced the tree walker climber I used for the previous few seasons (unless I'm going to be a oak flat where the trees are straight). I love the tree walker and it's more comfortable than the LW.... but the LW hang on gets me into trees I would never even dream about getting a climber into and that offer way more cover. Sometimes I felt like I spent more time hunting for a tree with my climber than actual hunting, but maybe that's a function of where I hunt. Next year I'm going to try the saddle for the long 1+ mile hikes.

Haha, thanks! I haven't looked at those services in at least a year but I try to keep an eye on what else is available because there's always some churn from farmers selling, leasing to solar, etc.

Fair points. All my leases are exclusive hunting rights for all seasons with the exception of one that the farmer retains spring Turkey rights so I assumed most others were like that. I haven't really looked at them the past year but if I remember right pretty much everything on hunt lease network was at least $30/acre in my area (Rochester) while base camp was a little better but still $20+/acre. For high quality ground I'll offer up to $20/acre for timber and $5/acre for field which for most of my properties ends up being about $10/acre since they are about 2/3 ag and 1/3 timber. I'm yet to have any farmers turn it down but it's definitely taken some leg work to find those that are open to leasing.

How much you guys paying for leases ($/acre)? I've looked at both of them but found the pricing to be pretty egregious, or at least compared to what farmers around me are willing to take.

8H and 8F: I've been seeing tons of scrapes, rubs and sparring. I've also seen a good amount of chasing, but it's only been yearling and 2 year old bucks and doesn't last very long. The 3 year olds and up I've seen have shown no interest in does, but are scraping and sparing like crazy. I had a 3 year old cruise by my stand twice Saturday morning with three tines busted off and I watched him put down no less than three scrapes within ten minutes. I saw my first good buck fight Saturday evening and one of the bucks was at least four, but it was too dark to make out the other. We should really start to see the big boys up on their feet more later this week.

Depends on the weather and your property. If you have good bucks on your spots right now I would take off the first week because they will be out and above around your property trying to find the first hot doe. If you have more of a pass through spot or aren't seeing many bucks I would take the second week because that's when bucks will start to move outside their core ranges to try and find the next doe. Personally, I see the greatest number of deer the second week, but I have some really good funnel stands between big chunks of cover... that said, I have a good amount of mature resident bucks and I see the vast majority of them during daylight the last few days of October or the first week of November.

Any crops get cut in your neighborhood? I’ve seen them disappear for a few days when a neighbor harvests beans or corn. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

If she walked off my guess is liver. If you get lungs or heart my experience has been they run like hell while liver or guts they walk off looking real hurt. Full pass through? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

One of the best nights I’ve had since rut last year. Saw my first shooter of the season, 8 other bucks and maybe 15 does/fawns. I was expecting a crappy night because the farmer was cutting the beans on the other side of the property but I was covered in deer all night. All the bucks were sparring but only the 1 and 2 year olds were chasing does. The shooter was a huge main frame 8 probably 140 class with a tank of a body that I’ve never seen before. He got in a sparring match 70 yards away during day light and another within forty yards just as it was getting dark but I didn’t have a shot. Probably not going to get back out until Wednesday at the earliest, but glad to see things are finally starting to pick up Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Sitting on a bean field tonight. The farmer is combining the north part of the property about 1/4 mile away. It’s not bothering the deer at all, I barely got in the stand and already have a few does and small bucks coming out. Good luck to everyone out Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Did my first morning sit of the year today. Got in early and had several deer go by my stand but was too dark to see. Had two yearling bucks come by and then a super aggressive and busted up two or three year old cruised through several times. He made no less than four scrapes and I got some awesome video of one of them. He eventually strolled over to another bedding area a 1/4 mile away where my buddy was hunting. All in all decent morning, but I think the big boys are still getting back to bed before dark. Probably need another week or a good cold front to get them on their feet. Headed to a bean field tonight but not expecting much Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Yeah he’s a stud and I think he’s only four! I hunted him once on the ground this year because I didn’t have any stands hung or good trees for a hang and hunt and ended up having a doe basically walk into me and made a scene. I have a pretty good idea where he should be cruising during rut and hopefully I can get a crack at him Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Good luck! Trail cams are a blessing and a curse. I’m only running them on about half my properties and I’m about to stop checking them. I run them September to October to get an idea of what’s around and then just hunt. I find they spook mature bucks and there’s something to be said for not knowing what’s lurking out there. My best properties the last two years have had zero cams ran on them. Hunt up high on the ridges in the morning and drop down low in the evenings. Use the thermals to your advantage. River and creek bottoms can be like the highways of deer world, just gotta play them right Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thanks! Glad to be back. Work has been crazy so I haven’t got out much yet but looking forward to participating here more. I’ve got a really good inventory of shooters on my leases but this buck is my #1 target. He’s done nothing but frustrate me for three years. My buddy’s keep telling me to focus on my leases but I love the challenge of public land and this buck in particular given our history. It’s a great problem to have, just gotta figure out where to prioritize my time. Here’s some of the shooters on my leases Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I’m not sure exactly what to call it haha. It’s something between a split brow tine and a kicker off the brow. He’s had it each of the last three years, here’s a better picture of what it looked like in 2017. Surprisingly this is a small but pretty far out of the way and unknown piece of public. There’s some other hunters but I don’t believe any know he’s around. I’ve had him within 50 yards each of the last two seasons just haven’t been able to seal the deal so hopefully my third season chasing is the charm [emoji1696] Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Jumped two does on the way in but finally set up on a secluded hay plot next to a huge bedding area. I got my first day light pics of a buck I’ve been chasing since 2017 here last week so hoping he shows up again. It’s all tore up with scrapes and rubs. Good luck to everyone out there! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Lots of day light activity in our clover too as well as brassicas. Less interest in beans and haven't seen any signs of them hitting the corn too hard.

Saw ten deer. Three bucks, seven does. Most deer followed the script and entered the field 50 yards upwind. A doe with a buck following her snuck to within ten yards of me thru some thick shit but she eventually got spooked after about five minutes of trying to creep downwind of me. Buck looked decent in terms of antlers but I never got a good look at his body so I didn’t shoot him. The downside of ground hunting is they sometimes walk right into you and there’s nothing you can do but sit and hope they don’t see you... but man is it exciting! The other two bucks were two year olds and one of them chased some does around out in the beans for a few minutes. I’m not shooting does right now. I see new bucks every time I pull cards on any of my spots so I’m staying on the perimeter and trying to keep my presence to a minimum. Probably not going to get back out until Sunday or maybe next week. Work has been crazy busy and I haven’t even been able to put cameras out at all my spots! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Beans and brassicas are the main attraction for the deer in my neighborhood. Not much action around clover or corn. I have some beans that are still greenish yellow and those get hit the hardest but they still feed right thru the brown ones. It will probably get quiet once it all turns brown Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Good to get back on this thread again and see all the repeat posters! I’m out for my third hunt of the year sitting on the edge of a bean field. Not a great set up but didn’t have any stands here and there’s been a couple mature bucks hitting this field each night, including a beautiful ten pointer. Feels like a good night, good luck to all you other hunters out in the woods! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Walked two properties and a little over 4 miles this afternoon. Picked up two good left sides and a small chewed up spike. Knew one buck well and had lots of pictures. Never seen the big 8 before but he’s a stud. 11” g2s and 23” beams. I also saw no less than four bucks with full racks and one with a half rack. It seems like they are holding later this year. I’m probably going to wait at least a week or two before I go out again. Definitely would be nice to find the matching sides for these two. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Ditto what everyone else said. The only thing I’d add is I find at least 80% of my sheds along edges between bedding and food. Most common is just inside tree line next to a ag field. Drive around your area one evening and look where the deer are gathering to eat. Bedding will be within a few hundred yards of that and try to find the trails between. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Some bucks are still holding in 8H. I went out for the first time Saturday but backed out after seeing this guy; interestingly this buck worked a scrape, rubbed some trees and then sniffed some does - apparently no one told him it wasn’t November anymore. I’ll get after it again in a couple weeks. I don’t want to push any bucks off my properties right before they drop. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thanks! I'm fortunate to have several good properties, but am always trying to get more - typically will knock on 50 or so doors during the offseason and get 3-5 new spots per year. It amazes me how much a spot can change in a year - some of my best spots last year were duds this year and my best spot this year was pretty slow last year.