Late season tactics?

[OldNewbie]

This is my first year bow & crossbow hunting, and so will also be my first time hunting the 'late' bow/muzz season, after gun season ends.  I did some scouting today and found a hardwood grove with half a dozen or so active/fresh rubs, some fresh pellets, and a decent ground blind spot. I've read about the second minor rut that can occur around that time.. Will this be a good place to sit on December 12, with some doe-in-estrous wicks nearby? 

Or are there better tactics for the late season?  I remember a family friend saying he hunts over a turnip patch around that time (which I don't have access to). I only have access to public land, and one small private patch of woods with acorns.  If I scout a few more times before the 12th, what should I be looking for?  Staging areas near fields?  Acorns?  Rubs and scrapes?  Thick santuary type habitat (I know a marshy area surrounded by pine woods I've been meaning to scout..) 

Thanks

[philoshop]

The only hard and fast rule about deer hunting is that there are no hard and fast rules. In general, though, late-season deer tend to return to thinking more about food than procreation. It's just my opinion, but hunting food sources is always a good strategy. Even in the peak of the rut when the bucks are totally 'scope-locked' on the does, the does are still primarily focused on the food sources.

[sfoulkrod]

Speaking only for myself, food sources have always been my primary focus during late season.  There are a ton of other factors that can influence things though, such as pressure, weather, wind, etc., but colder temps have often meant fewer humans and slightly more predictable deer patterns, so if there were an abundance of acorn bearing oaks around you, I'd be looking for entry and exit points to that depending on morning or evening hunt.  This usually doesn't seem to happen for me until mid Dec or so.  

 

Edit - I forgot to mention that knowing what foods they're eating is a really difficult thing to do because it there's often a wide variety to what they're eating.  If you can find areas with clumps of scat, look around for what's been turned up.  Look for nibbled tips of branches, berries, etc.  Take pics if you are unsure, but look that stuff up cuz that's what they were eating the night before. 

Edited November 28, 2016 by sfoulkrod
didn't finish

[JRod 8G8H]

Interesting topic... late season I will usually move my cams around a lot and see when, where, what is moving through.  I agree with the post above that you should have entry/exit and "escape routes" covered.  The colder it gets the closer you need to be to food.  I shot two doe today on their escape route...  especially important to hunt escape routes on public land when pressure is high... but I was on 12 acres private land.  They had corn and berries in their belly.

Bucks that got kicked out of areas by more dominant bucks during rut may now move in.  My friend used buck bomb and rattled in a 2.5 yr old 7 pointer last night out of very thick bedding and took him out so anything can happen!!!  Keep your scent from blowing into the bedding area and they should be back into a pattern again very soon.  Good luck!!!!!!!!!!!

[stoneam2006]

I pray for snow 5 to 10 inches. Also hope for sunny days. The deer (where I hunt) are almost always on the sun facing side of the hill eating. Other than that I still hunt. Till I find them

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[chas0218]

34 minutes ago, stoneam2006 said:

I pray for snow 5 to 10 inches. Also hope for sunny days. The deer (where I hunt) are almost always on the sun facing side of the hill eating. Other than that I still hunt. Till I find them

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That early snow gets them worried and they start grazing at all times of the day to try and build up that fat and don't loose out on that ground forage. Not saying they won't dig for their food but deer are opportunistic feeders and will take the easy road if given the chance. That natural instinct for the need to eat will override the need for safety when it comes to grazing during daylight vs night.