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[fadetoblack188]

So many of you know from my other threads my cams were doing great all summer and beginning of September. Nice shooter bucks in all.  The last two weeks of September came and boom , the bucks and doe disappeared .

 

i am getting like one Tiny doe pic a week. 

very frustrated today I did some scouting and moved a camera mover to a different area about 1/2 mile away. It looked to be a high traffic area. I set up a licking branch and mock scrape.  Pour some buck urine in the scrape and som tarsal gland on the branch.  If it gets activity over the next week I’ll throw another stand up over there. 
 

I just feel it’s a waste hunting my other stand now because it completely died off.  Is this true? I did leave 2 cameras over there.  It’s my first year actually scouting and trying to learn there movement.  Am I doing it wrong? 

[biggamefish]

Things are going to change rapidly from here on out. As food sources come and go the deer will change there pattern. Then you will have pre rut and rut where all patterns go to hell. That's when you want to start hunting the tight spots.

[Bow sniper]

There summer and fall habitats change do you have white oaks where you hunt or some other food source they moved onto 

[fadetoblack188]

Feel like I shouldn’t even put the cameras out until the end of September . Get you all excited for them to leave hahah

[UpStateRedNeck]

33 minutes ago, Bow sniper said:

There summer and fall habitats change do you have white oaks where you hunt or some other food source they moved onto 

That's what I'm saying into come Friday, white oak acorns.  Cameras on fields died down last week, and there's craploads of acorns on the ground.  Gonna shift some cams into the hard woods on Friday.

[grampy]

Be patient. If you had all those deer on camera earlier, they'll be back at some point. They're just off on a preferred food source right now. When that gets used up they'll be on to another one. Pretty common this time of year.

To consistently put yourself in good spots early season, find where they like to bed. Then try to find the preferred food source. Then set up somewhere down wind, in between.

Did I mention patience????....... 

[fadetoblack188]

2 minutes ago, grampy said:

Be patient. If you had all those deer on camera earlier, they'll be back at some point. They're just off on a preferred food source right now. When that gets used up they'll be on to another one. Pretty common this time of year.

To consistently put yourself in good spots early season, find where they like to bed. Then try to find the preferred food source. Then set up somewhere down wind, in between.

Did I mention patience????....... 

Thanks , yes patience , just hard haha

[land 1]

The one year I had nice bucks on camera during summer they all moved off when they got hard horn, the other years i only had small bucks but around the end of october I start getting regular pics of some nicer bucks and they seem to stay around 

[Robhuntandfish]

You know those deer are in your area as that's there home range.  They won't be that far and will be back thru.  Just being there right time.  I've learned after hunting the same spots for along time that the best way to figure it out is a few seasons. You'll learn the areas they frequent most during season.  

[bhunterED]

The deer you had on camera will most likely be back or at least cruise through there when the food they have switched to is gone. Bucks and does now are hitting food to pack on fat for the rut. I do have to ask though how often do you go in to pull your cards and do you try to make as little impact as possible, or do have cell cams?

[Hock3y24]

they are in the acorns almost exclusively right now

[fadetoblack188]

I pull the cards once a week. I have one cell cam.

 

i just moved the cell cam over into another area to see if there is more activity.  I won’t need to go into that area at all. If there is action I’ll go hang a stand there. If not I probably won’t waste my time. 
 

the area I saw the big bucks still has cameras in it and my stand.  I’ll let it soak for 2 or 3 weeks now before going to check it again, and maybe they will have come back around by then. I am just impatient and want to shoot one now cause the season opened haha

[G-Man]

Requirements for bucks change , they needed more open areas while in velvet as it's full of nerves and tender, once hard they can go anywhere, and this time of year its putting on weight for the rut on the mind, in 3 weeks does will be top priority.  So now focus on food sources, but watch for doe concentrations for end of month and dec. Deer by me are now off fields and on apples, and nuts. The apples are almost gone so they will move on to acorn, corn, cereal grains, within a week. Soon they will be back after doe that are eating in fields still ,you know  to move to where doe are when you see fawns by themselves.. a buck will herd a doe into Thickets and defendable areas so it can breed..  and keep rivals at bay..

[dbHunterNY]

biological term is called dispersal. they do that this time of year. youngest bucks get the boot from mom and bachelor buck groups that established an order of dominance during velvet tolerate each other less and break up.

[JRod 8G8H]

I hear ya... my cams are getting little activity... saw two 1.5 year old bucks together Tuesday evening ACROSS the street from my stand in the neighbors yard lol... like everyone says the acorns are dropping hard and cover crops are booming here where I am too

[fadetoblack188]

Alright I just pray they come back.